Aims Most flowering plants engage in mutualisms with animals to move pollen between individuals,and it is expected that pollinators play an essential role in the evolution of selfing,yet few studies have deter-mined h...Aims Most flowering plants engage in mutualisms with animals to move pollen between individuals,and it is expected that pollinators play an essential role in the evolution of selfing,yet few studies have deter-mined how distinct pollinator types affect a plant’s mating system and reproductive success differentially.We investigated the effect of two different pollinators on the reproductive success of Incarvillea sinensis,an annual with showy,insect-pollinated,one-day flowers.Methods We marked flowers after a single visit from both pollinator species(Bombus patagiatus and Amegilla quadrifasciata)and calculated the number of pollen grains deposited on the stigma and pollen left in the anthers,the fruit and seed set,the outcrossing rate and the cor-relations of paternity.Important Findings There was no significant difference in the number of pollen grains deposited on the stigma,or in the seed and fruit set between the two pollinators in both years.The mean number of pollen grains removed by B.patagiatus was significantly higher than that removed by A.quadrifasciata.The outcrossing rate of flowers pollinated by B.patagiatus was significantly higher than that of flowers pollinated by A.quadrifasciata.The correlation of paternity of flowers pollinated by B.patagiatus was significantly lower than that of flowers polli-nated by A.quadrifasciata.For I.sinensis,B.patagiatus may exhibit larger pollen wastage,thus reducing the male reproductive success of the plant,but it causes higher female reproductive success because of its higher outcrossing rate and the lower correlation of paternity.Our findings highlighted that different animal pollinators could indeed cause differential mating systems and reproductive success.展开更多
Aims Exploring the characteristics and function of a flower color poly-morphism contributes to our understanding of floral evolution in angiosperms.However,little information is available on stigma color polymorphisms...Aims Exploring the characteristics and function of a flower color poly-morphism contributes to our understanding of floral evolution in angiosperms.However,little information is available on stigma color polymorphisms in flowering plants despite their important functional role in plant reproduction.Methods We studied a stigma color polymorphism at the individual level in Acer pictum subsp.mono(aka A.mono)by investigating stigma-color morph proportion and comparing stigma performance and compo-nents of female fitness(pollen adhesion,pollen germination,fruit set,seed set and fruit weight)between the two morphs(red and greenish-yellow stigma)within natural populations at Dongling mountain in the north of China.in the flowering period,we conducted hand pol-lination in natural populations and then made microscopic observa-tions using the aniline blue fluorescence method.Important Findingsindividuals in the studied populations did not change their stigma color between years,and flowers produced by a single tree were uniform in their stigma color.This strongly suggests that stigma color variation is genetically controlled.The percentage of the red stigma flowers with germinated pollen grains was significantly higher than that of the greenish-yellow stigma flowers when hand pollination was conducted in the early flowering period,but not so in the late flowering period.There was no significant difference in the percentage of flowers with pollen adhesion to the stigma between the two morphs.Fruit set of the red morph was signifi-cantly higher than that of the greenish-yellow morph.our findings suggest that the red morph may be more advantageous for pollen germination and fruit set than the greenish-yellow morph,which may provide a functional explanation for the high incidence of the red stigma morph in the studied populations.alternative explana-tions for the stigma color polymorphism are discussed to stimulate further work.展开更多
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(41371073 and 41671040).
文摘Aims Most flowering plants engage in mutualisms with animals to move pollen between individuals,and it is expected that pollinators play an essential role in the evolution of selfing,yet few studies have deter-mined how distinct pollinator types affect a plant’s mating system and reproductive success differentially.We investigated the effect of two different pollinators on the reproductive success of Incarvillea sinensis,an annual with showy,insect-pollinated,one-day flowers.Methods We marked flowers after a single visit from both pollinator species(Bombus patagiatus and Amegilla quadrifasciata)and calculated the number of pollen grains deposited on the stigma and pollen left in the anthers,the fruit and seed set,the outcrossing rate and the cor-relations of paternity.Important Findings There was no significant difference in the number of pollen grains deposited on the stigma,or in the seed and fruit set between the two pollinators in both years.The mean number of pollen grains removed by B.patagiatus was significantly higher than that removed by A.quadrifasciata.The outcrossing rate of flowers pollinated by B.patagiatus was significantly higher than that of flowers pollinated by A.quadrifasciata.The correlation of paternity of flowers pollinated by B.patagiatus was significantly lower than that of flowers polli-nated by A.quadrifasciata.For I.sinensis,B.patagiatus may exhibit larger pollen wastage,thus reducing the male reproductive success of the plant,but it causes higher female reproductive success because of its higher outcrossing rate and the lower correlation of paternity.Our findings highlighted that different animal pollinators could indeed cause differential mating systems and reproductive success.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(41371073 and 31421063).
文摘Aims Exploring the characteristics and function of a flower color poly-morphism contributes to our understanding of floral evolution in angiosperms.However,little information is available on stigma color polymorphisms in flowering plants despite their important functional role in plant reproduction.Methods We studied a stigma color polymorphism at the individual level in Acer pictum subsp.mono(aka A.mono)by investigating stigma-color morph proportion and comparing stigma performance and compo-nents of female fitness(pollen adhesion,pollen germination,fruit set,seed set and fruit weight)between the two morphs(red and greenish-yellow stigma)within natural populations at Dongling mountain in the north of China.in the flowering period,we conducted hand pol-lination in natural populations and then made microscopic observa-tions using the aniline blue fluorescence method.Important Findingsindividuals in the studied populations did not change their stigma color between years,and flowers produced by a single tree were uniform in their stigma color.This strongly suggests that stigma color variation is genetically controlled.The percentage of the red stigma flowers with germinated pollen grains was significantly higher than that of the greenish-yellow stigma flowers when hand pollination was conducted in the early flowering period,but not so in the late flowering period.There was no significant difference in the percentage of flowers with pollen adhesion to the stigma between the two morphs.Fruit set of the red morph was signifi-cantly higher than that of the greenish-yellow morph.our findings suggest that the red morph may be more advantageous for pollen germination and fruit set than the greenish-yellow morph,which may provide a functional explanation for the high incidence of the red stigma morph in the studied populations.alternative explana-tions for the stigma color polymorphism are discussed to stimulate further work.
