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Borràs J, Cursach J, Herrera C, Perelló-Suau S, Capó M. Ecological perspectives on female and male reproductive success with competition in two Serapias species. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2024; 134:311-324. [PMID: 38712800 PMCID: PMC11232520 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcae074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS The deceptive strategies by which orchids are pollinated and how these are capable of attracting pollinators remain understudied with regard to their implications for plant fitness. Despite their ecological importance, limited investigations have been conducted on sexual deception and shelter mimicry in orchid species, making this a compelling avenue in orchid biology research. To expand the knowledge of these reproductive mechanisms, we studied the pollination of Serapias lingua and S. parviflora in co-occurring and isolated sites in the Balearic Islands (Spain), further accentuated by the presence of a hybrid, indicating shared pollinators. METHODS We employed bagging and hand pollination experiments to examine the reproductive biology of the two species. Furthermore, we evaluated the influence of phenotypical and ecological factors on reproductive success, including biometric measurements, reproductive performance and neighbourhood diversity (co-flowering and pollinator communities). KEY RESULTS Reproductive mechanisms between these two orchid species exhibit substantial disparities. Serapias lingua relies primarily on insect-mediated pollination, while S. parviflora demonstrates self-reproduction capacity. Although events of open pollination are rare, hybridization occurs predominantly when S. lingua is the pollen donor. Fruit set in S. parviflora was positively correlated with plant height, while in S. lingua it was negatively associated with flower size. The coexistence of the two species positively affected pollinium removal in S. parviflora, but did not exert an influence on reproductive traits in S. lingua. Overall, biometric parameters were diminished in isolated compared with co-occurring sites. At the community level, the increased diversity of co-flowering species in the vicinity exhibited an inhibitory effect on pollinium removal in S. parviflora. CONCLUSIONS Under a context of pollinator loss or phenological mismatch between pollinator presence and flowering, the selfing capacity of S. parviflora would guarantee reproduction whereas S. lingua survival would be compromised. Furthers studies are needed to assess the effects of phenotypical and ecological factors on reproductive success of S. lingua in pollinator-decline scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Borràs
- Research Group of Plant Biology under Mediterranean Conditions, Department of Biology, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Balearic Islands, Spain
| | - Joana Cursach
- Research Group of Plant Biology under Mediterranean Conditions, Department of Biology, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Balearic Islands, Spain
| | - Cayetano Herrera
- Department of Biology (Zoology), Universitat de les Illes Balears, Balearic Islands, Spain
| | - Sebastià Perelló-Suau
- Research Group of Plant Biology under Mediterranean Conditions, Department of Biology, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Balearic Islands, Spain
| | - Miquel Capó
- Departamento de Sistemas y Recursos Naturales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Plant & Animal Ecology Lab, Centro para la Conservación de la Biodiversidad y el Desarrollo Sostenible, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
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Peralta G, CaraDonna PJ, Rakosy D, Fründ J, Pascual Tudanca MP, Dormann CF, Burkle LA, Kaiser-Bunbury CN, Knight TM, Resasco J, Winfree R, Blüthgen N, Castillo WJ, Vázquez DP. Predicting plant-pollinator interactions: concepts, methods, and challenges. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:494-505. [PMID: 38262775 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Plant-pollinator interactions are ecologically and economically important, and, as a result, their prediction is a crucial theoretical and applied goal for ecologists. Although various analytical methods are available, we still have a limited ability to predict plant-pollinator interactions. The predictive ability of different plant-pollinator interaction models depends on the specific definitions used to conceptualize and quantify species attributes (e.g., morphological traits), sampling effects (e.g., detection probabilities), and data resolution and availability. Progress in the study of plant-pollinator interactions requires conceptual and methodological advances concerning the mechanisms and species attributes governing interactions as well as improved modeling approaches to predict interactions. Current methods to predict plant-pollinator interactions present ample opportunities for improvement and spark new horizons for basic and applied research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guadalupe Peralta
- Multidisciplinary Institute of Plant Biology, National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET)-National University of Córdoba, Córdoba, X5016GCN, Argentina.
| | - Paul J CaraDonna
- Chicago Botanic Garden, Negaunee Institute for Plant Conservation Science and Action, Glencoe, IL 60022, USA; Plant Biology and Conservation, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60201, USA
| | - Demetra Rakosy
- Department for Community Ecology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig 04318, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Jochen Fründ
- Biometry and Environmental System Analysis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg 79098, Germany; Animal Network Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Hamburg, Hamburg 20148, Germany
| | - María P Pascual Tudanca
- Argentine Institute for Dryland Research, National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET)-National University of Cuyo, Mendoza 5500, Argentina
| | - Carsten F Dormann
- Biometry and Environmental System Analysis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg 79098, Germany
| | - Laura A Burkle
- Department of Ecology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, USA
| | - Christopher N Kaiser-Bunbury
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Tiffany M Knight
- Department for Community Ecology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig 04318, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany; Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany
| | - Julian Resasco
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Rachael Winfree
- Department of Ecology, Evolution & Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
| | - Nico Blüthgen
- Ecological Networks Lab, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Darmstadt 64287, Germany
| | - William J Castillo
- Biometry and Environmental System Analysis, University of Freiburg, Freiburg 79098, Germany
| | - Diego P Vázquez
- Argentine Institute for Dryland Research, National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET)-National University of Cuyo, Mendoza 5500, Argentina; Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences, National University of Cuyo, Mendoza M5502, Argentina.
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Dellinger AS, Hamilton AM, Wessinger CA, Smith S. Opposing Patterns of Altitude-Driven Pollinator Turnover in the Tropical and Temperate Americas. Am Nat 2023; 202:152-165. [PMID: 37531276 PMCID: PMC7614872 DOI: 10.1086/725017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/04/2023]
Abstract
AbstractAbiotic factors (e.g., temperature, precipitation) vary markedly along elevational gradients and differentially affect major groups of pollinators. Ectothermic bees, for example, are impeded in visiting flowers by cold and rainy conditions common at high elevations, while endothermic hummingbirds may continue foraging under such conditions. Despite the possibly far-reaching effects of the abiotic environment on plant-pollinator interactions, we know little about how these factors play out at broad ecogeographic scales. We address this knowledge gap by investigating how pollination systems vary across elevations in 26 plant clades from the Americas. Specifically, we explore Cruden's 1972 hypothesis that the harsh montane environment drives a turnover from insect to vertebrate pollination at higher elevations. We compared the elevational distribution and bioclimatic attributes for a total of 2,232 flowering plants and found that Cruden's hypothesis holds only in the tropics. Above 30°N and below 30°S, plants pollinated by vertebrates (mostly hummingbirds) tend to occur at lower elevations than those pollinated by insects. We hypothesize that this latitudinal transition is due to the distribution of moist, forested habitats favored by vertebrate pollinators, which are common at high elevations in the tropics but not in the temperate Americas.
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Maguiña‐Conde R, Zuñiga‐Rivas D, Kay KM. An elevational gradient in floral traits and pollinator assemblages in the Neotropical species Costus guanaiensis var. tarmicus in Peru. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10314. [PMID: 37529588 PMCID: PMC10375365 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Different populations of plant species can adapt to their local pollinators and diverge in floral traits accordingly. Floral traits are subject to pollinator-driven natural selection to enhance plant reproductive success. Studies on temperate plant systems have shown pollinator-driven selection results in floral trait variation along elevational gradients, but studies in tropical systems are lacking. We analyzed floral traits and pollinator assemblages in the Neotropical bee-pollinated taxon Costus guanaiensis var. tarmicus across four sites along a steep elevational gradient in Peru. We found variations in floral traits of size, color, and reward, and in the pollinator assemblage along the elevational gradient. We examined our results considering two hypotheses, (1) local adaptation to different bee assemblages, and (2) the early stages of an evolutionary shift to a new pollinator functional group (hummingbirds). We found some evidence consistent with the adaptation of C. guanaiensis var. tarmicus to the local bee fauna along the studied elevational gradient. Corolla width across sites was associated with bee thorax width of the local most frequent pollinator. However, we could not rule out the possibility of the beginning of a bee-to-hummingbird pollination shift in the highest-studied site. Our study is one of the few geographic-scale analyses of floral trait and pollinator assemblage variation in tropical plant species. Our results broaden our understanding of plant-pollinator interactions beyond temperate systems by showing substantial intraspecific divergence in both floral traits and pollinator assemblages across geographic space in a tropical plant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rossana Maguiña‐Conde
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology DepartmentUniversity of California Santa CruzSanta CruzCaliforniaUSA
| | - Dorali Zuñiga‐Rivas
- Laboratorio de EntomologíaUniversidad Nacional San Antonio Abad del CuscoCuscoPeru
| | - Kathleen M. Kay
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology DepartmentUniversity of California Santa CruzSanta CruzCaliforniaUSA
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Janeček Š, Chmel K, Mlíkovský J, Uceda-Gómez G, Janečková P, Fominka NT, Njie MM, Ewome FL. Spatiotemporal pattern of specialization of sunbird-plant networks on Mt. Cameroon. Oecologia 2022; 199:885-896. [PMID: 35947185 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-022-05234-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2022] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
Abstract
Differences in interaction specializations between nectarivorous birds and plants across continents serve as common examples of evolutionary trajectory specificity. While New World hummingbird-plant networks have been extensively studied and are considered highly specialized, knowledge on the network specialization of their Old World counterparts, sunbirds (Nectariniidae), remains limited. A few studies from tropical Africa indicate that sunbird-plant networks are rather generalized. Unfortunately, these studies are limited to dry seasons and high elevations at the tree line, environments where niche-based hypotheses also often predict lower resource partitioning. In our study, we explored the specialization of sunbird-plant networks and their spatiotemporal variability on Mt. Cameroon (Cameroon). Using a combination of automatic video recordings and personal observations, we constructed eight comprehensive sunbird-plant networks in four forest types at different elevations in both the dry and wet seasons. As reported in previous studies, the montane forest plants, birds and whole networks were highly generalized. Nevertheless, we observed a much higher specialization in forests at lower elevations. Except at the lowest altitude, the wet season was also characterized by higher specialization. While less specialized flowering trees dominated in the dry season networks, more specialized herbs and shrubs were visited by birds during the wet season. As our findings do not support the generally accepted assumption that Old World bird-plant networks are rather generalized, we need further studies to understand the differences in bird-plant specializations on individual continents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Štěpán Janeček
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic.
| | - Kryštof Chmel
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Mlíkovský
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic
| | - Guillermo Uceda-Gómez
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic
| | - Petra Janečková
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic
| | - Nestoral Tajaocha Fominka
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic.,Department of Zoology and Animal Physiology, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, P.O. Box 63, Buea, Cameroon
| | - Marcus Mokake Njie
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic.,National Forestry School, Mbalmayo, P.O. Box 69, Yaounde, Cameroon
| | - Francis Luma Ewome
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, 128 44, Prague 2, Czech Republic
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Mundi O, Awa Ii T, Chmel K, Ewome FL, Uceda-Gómez G, Janečková P, Janeček Š. The ornithophily of Impatiens sakeriana does not guarantee a preference by sunbirds. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blac083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
In recent decades, the tight mutual specialization between nectarivorous birds and ornithophilous plants has been questioned, and instead, high degrees of generalization and interaction asymmetry have been highlighted. Here, we studied interactions among two sunbirds and four plant species in two Mount Cameroon forests, with two plant species from each forest. First, we investigated whether sunbirds differ in frequencies of visitation to target plant species in natural conditions. Second, using a cage experiment, we investigated whether sunbirds prefer various plant species, plants with which they are more familiar and that occur in the habitat where they were caught and/or the only studied ornithophilous plant, Impatiens sakeriana. In natural conditions, the short-billed sunbird, Cinnyris reichenowi, fed more on flowers with shorter tubes than the long-billed sunbird, Cyanomitra oritis. Likewise, sunbirds differed in their experimental preferences. Local plants were generally preferred. This was most obvious in the case of I. sakeriana, which was often visited by both sunbirds, but only in the habitat where it grows naturally. This study supports the importance of associative learning. Together with other studies, we suggest that the signalling traits of flowers with bird pollination syndromes evolved to filter out other visitors rather than to attract bird pollinators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Onella Mundi
- Laboratory of Applied Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang , PO Box 67, Dschang, West Region , Cameroon
| | - Taku Awa Ii
- Laboratory of Applied Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Dschang , PO Box 67, Dschang, West Region , Cameroon
| | - Kryštof Chmel
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University , Viničná 7, CZ-128 44 Praha 2 , Czech Republic
| | - Francis Luma Ewome
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University , Viničná 7, CZ-128 44 Praha 2 , Czech Republic
| | - Guillermo Uceda-Gómez
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University , Viničná 7, CZ-128 44 Praha 2 , Czech Republic
| | - Petra Janečková
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University , Viničná 7, CZ-128 44 Praha 2 , Czech Republic
| | - Štěpán Janeček
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University , Viničná 7, CZ-128 44 Praha 2 , Czech Republic
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Crone MK, Biddinger DJ, Grozinger CM. Wild Bee Nutritional Ecology: Integrative Strategies to Assess Foraging Preferences and Nutritional Requirements. FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2022.847003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Bees depend on flowering plants for their nutrition, and reduced availability of floral resources is a major driver of declines in both managed and wild bee populations. Understanding the nutritional needs of different bee species, and how these needs are met by the varying nutritional resources provided by different flowering plant taxa, can greatly inform land management recommendations to support bee populations and their associated ecosystem services. However, most bee nutrition research has focused on the three most commonly managed and commercially reared bee taxa—honey bees, bumble bees, and mason bees—with fewer studies focused on wild bees and other managed species, such as leafcutting bees, stingless bees, and alkali bees. Thus, we have limited information about the nutritional requirements and foraging preferences of the vast majority of bee species. Here, we discuss the approaches traditionally used to understand bee nutritional ecology: identification of floral visitors of selected focal plant species, evaluation of the foraging preferences of adults in selected focal bee species, evaluation of the nutritional requirements of focal bee species (larvae or adults) in controlled settings, and examine how these methods may be adapted to study a wider range of bee species. We also highlight emerging technologies that have the potential to greatly facilitate studies of the nutritional ecology of wild bee species, as well as evaluate bee nutritional ecology at significantly larger spatio-temporal scales than were previously feasible. While the focus of this review is on bee species, many of these techniques can be applied to other pollinator taxa as well.
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