Differences in female reproductive success between female and hermaphrodite individuals in the subdioecious shrub Eurya japonica (Theaceae)

Sexual Differences in Eurya loquaiana Dunn Floral Scent and How Pollinators Respond

Eurya plants are usually dioecious or subdioecious with small fragrant flowers. Here, we investigate the floral scent components of the subdioecious species Eurya loquaiana Dunn and how floral scent affects pollinators. Headspace solid-phase microextraction–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) was used to compare the floral scents of male, female, and hermaphrodite flowers. We also test whether differences in floral scent affect the foraging behaviors of pollinators and describe the flower morphological traits of the three sexes. Twenty-eight floral scent compounds were tentatively identified, and four monoterpenoids were tentatively identified as the most abundant compounds: linalool oxide (pyranoid), linalool, lilac aldehyde, and linalool oxide (furanoid). There were floral scent differences among the sex types, and male flowers were more attractive to pollinators in the wild, even when visual factors were excluded, indicating that pollinators likely distinguish sexual differences by floral scent. In the competition for pollinators, the advantage that male flowers have over female and hermaphrodite flowers can likely be accounted for the differences in floral scent and display size.

A primary study of breeding system of Ziziphus jujuba var. spinosa

Ziziphus jujuba var. spinosa has been used as a windbreak and for soil conservation and water retention. Previous studies focused on pharmacological effects and extraction of chemical components in this species, and very few explored the breeding system. The present study combined the analysis of floral morphology, behavior of flower visitors, and artificial pollination to reveal reproductive characteristics of the species. Its flowers are characterized by dichogamy, herkogamy, and stamen movement, which are evolutionary adaptations to its breeding system. There were more than 40 species of visiting insects, mainly Hymenoptera and Diptera, and the characteristics of dichogamous and herkogamous flower adapted to the visiting insects. The breeding system is outcrossing, partially self-compatible, and demand for pollinators. The fruit setting rate after natural pollination was 2%. Geitonogamy and xenogamy did not significantly increase the fruit setting rate, indicating that the low fruit setting rate was not due to pollen limitation by likely caused by resource limitation or fruit consumption. The fruit setting rate of zero in emasculated and in naturally and hand self-pollinated individuals suggested the absence of apomixis and spontaneous self-pollination. The above results can be utilized in studies on evolution and cultivation of Z. jujuba var. spinosa.

Sexual and temporal variations in floral scent in the subdioecious shrub Eurya japonica Thunb

In many flowering plants, floral scents are a significant trait for visitors, playing an important role in attracting pollinators and/or detracting herbivores. The evolution of flowering plants from hermaphroditism to dioecy is often accompanied by sexual dimorphism in floral scent. In this study, floral scents emitted by different sexual morphs of the subdioecious shrub Eurya japonica Thunb. were collected using a dynamic headspace method, and sexual and temporal variations were evaluated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Two volatiles, α-pinene and linalool, were identified as the major components of floral scents in females, hermaphrodites, and males. The males emit higher amounts of floral scents, particularly α-pinene, compared to females or hermaphrodites. Floral scents emitted by males generally decrease as flowers enter senescence, whereas those from females or hermaphrodites do not significantly differ. Intraspecific variations in floral scents of subdioecious species provided by this study would contribute to better understanding of sexual dimorphism in floral scent.

Restricted female function of hermaphrodites in a gynodioecious shrub, Daphne jezoensis (Thymelaeaceae)

Gynodioecy is the coexistence of hermaphrodites and females in a population. It is supposed to be an intermediate stage in the evolutionary pathway from hermaphroditism to dioecy in angiosperm. Hermaphrodites gain fitness through both seed and pollen production whereas females gain fitness only through seed production. As females spread in a gynodioecious population, sexual selection prompts hermaphrodites to invest in male function and male-biased hermaphrodites prevail. In the gynodioecious shrub Daphne jezoensis (Thymelaeaceae), female frequency is stably around 50% in most populations, and fruit-set rate of hermaphrodites is commonly low. Therefore, D. jezoensis is likely at a later stage in the evolutionary pathway. Female function of hermaphrodites (fruit-set rate, selfing rate, seed size, and germination rate) was assessed in three populations under natural conditions. In order to evaluate the potential seed fertility and inbreeding depression by selfing in hermaphrodites, hand pollination treatments were also performed. Over a 2-year period under natural conditions, 18-29% of hermaphrodites and 69-81% of females set fruit. Across all three populations, the mean fruit-set rate ranged 9.5-49.2% in females and only 3.9-10.2% in hermaphrodites. Even with artificial outcross-pollination, 59-91% of hermaphrodites failed to set any fruit. When self-pollination was performed in hermaphrodites, both of fruit-set and germination rates were decreased, indicating early-acting inbreeding depression. In addition, more than half of the hermaphrodite seeds were produced by selfing under natural pollination, but pollinator service was still required. Totally, hermaphrodites performed poorly as seed producers because of the intrinsically-low fruiting ability and a combination of autogamous selfing and strong inbreeding depression, indicating the absence of reproductive assurance. These results indicate that the mating system of D. jezoensis is functionally close to dioecy.

Sex change in the subdioecious shrub Eurya japonica (Pentaphylacaceae)

Sex change affects the sex ratios of plant populations and may play an essential role in the evolutionary shift of sexual systems. Sex change can be a strategy for increasing fitness over the lifetime of a plant, and plant size, environmental factors, and growth rate may affect sex change. We described frequent, repeated sex changes following various patterns in a subdioecious Eurya japonica population over five successive years. Of the individuals, 27.5% changed their sex at least once, and these changes were unidirectional or bidirectional. The sex ratio (females/males/all hermaphrodite types) did not fluctuate over the 5 years. In our study plots, although the current sex ratio among the sexes appears to be stable, the change in sex ratio may be slowly progressing toward increasing females and decreasing males. Sex was more likely to change with higher growth rates and more exposure to light throughout the year. Among individuals that changed sex, those that were less exposed to light in the leafy season and had less diameter growth tended to shift from hermaphrodite to a single sex. Therefore, sex change in E. japonica seemed to be explained by a response to the internal physiological condition of an individual mediated by intrinsic and abiotic environmental factors.

High male fertility in males of a subdioecious shrub in hand-pollinated crosses

Female reproductive success in females versus hermaphrodites has been well documented. However, documenting a potential advantage in male fertility of male versus hermaphrodite individuals in subdioecious species is also essential for understanding the evolutionary pathway toward dioecy from hermaphroditism via gynodioecy. Siring success in terms of fruit set, fruit mass, number of seeds and mean seed mass was compared by hand-pollinated crosses in the subdioecious shrub Eurya japonica The pollen was from male and hermaphrodite individuals, and the pollen recipients were females and hermaphrodites. Seed quality was also evaluated in terms of seed germination rate, seed germination day and seedling survival. Overall, pollen from males sired more fruits of larger size and more seeds than did pollen from hermaphrodites. The male advantage was observed when pollen recipients were females, whereas no effect was found in hermaphrodite recipients. Pollen from males also produced better quality seeds with higher germination rate and sooner germination day. Although these results could also be explained by a higher pollen load for crosses with male pollen donors, we took care to saturate the stigma regardless of the pollen donor. Therefore, these results suggest that male individuals of E. japonica have advantages in male fertility in terms of both quantity and quality. Our previous studies indicated that females exhibit higher female reproductive success compared with hermaphrodites. Thus, both the female and male functions of hermaphrodites are outperformed by females and males, respectively, raising the possibility that the subdioecious E. japonica at this study site is entering the transitional phase to dioecy along the gynodioecy-dioecy pathway.