Pollinator Communities of Restored Sandhills: a Comparison of Insect Visitation Rates to Generalist and Specialist Flowering Plants in Sandhill Ecosystems of Central Florida

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 168
Author(s):  
Cindy Bennington ◽  
Peter May
Keyword(s):  
Flowering Plants ◽  
Central Florida ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Insect Visitation

scholarly journals How does timing of flowering affect competition for pollinators, flower visitation and seed set in an early spring grassland plant?

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Kehrberger ◽  
Andrea Holzschuh
Keyword(s):  
Species Interactions ◽  
Seed Set ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Flowering Plants ◽  
Early Flowering ◽  
Flower Visitation ◽  
Floral Longevity ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Phenological Shifts

Abstract Knowledge on how the timing of flowering is related to plant fitness and species interactions is crucial to understand consequences of phenological shifts as they occur under climate change. Early flowering plants may face advantages of low competition for pollinators and disadvantages of low pollinator abundances and unfavourable weather conditions. However, it is unknown how this trade-off changes over the season and how the timing affects reproductive success. On eight grasslands we recorded intra-seasonal changes in pollinators, co-flowering plants, weather conditions, flower visitation rates, floral longevity and seed set of Pulsatilla vulgaris. Although bee abundances and the number of pollinator-suitable hours were low at the beginning of the season, early flowers of P. vulgaris received higher flower visitation rates and estimated total number of bee visits than later flowers, which was positively related to seed set. Flower visitation rates decreased over time and with increasing number of co-flowering plants, which competed with P. vulgaris for pollinators. Low interspecific competition for pollinators seems to be a major driver for early flowering dates. Thus, non-synchronous temporal shifts of co-flowering plants as they may occur under climate warming can be expected to strongly affect plant-pollinator interactions and the fitness of the involved plants.

scholarly journals Busy Bees: Variation in Insect Flower-Visiting Rates across Multiple Plant Species

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret J. Couvillon ◽  
Chandra M. Walter ◽  
Eluned M. Blows ◽  
Tomer J. Czaczkes ◽  
Karin L. Alton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Bumble Bees ◽  
The Other ◽  
Insect Diversity ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Insect Visitation ◽  
Flower Visiting

We quantified insect visitation rates by counting how many flowers/inflorescences were probed per unit time for five plant species (four native and one garden: California lilac, bramble, ragwort, wild marjoram, and ivy) growing in Sussex, United Kingdom, by following individual insects (n=2987) from nine functional groups (honey bees (Apis mellifera), bumble bees (Bombusspp.), hoverflies, flies, butterflies, beetles, wasps, non-Apidae bees, and moths). Additionally, we made a census of the insect diversity on the studied plant species. Overall we found that insect groups differed greatly in their rate of flower visits (P<2.2e-16), with bumble bees and honey bees visiting significantly more flowers per time (11.5 and 9.2 flowers/minute, resp.) than the other insect groups. Additionally, we report on a within-group difference in the non-Apidae bees, where the genusOsmia, which is often suggested as an alternative to honey bees as a managed pollinator, was very speedy (13.4 flowers/minute) compared to the other non-Apidae bees (4.3 flowers/minute). Our census showed that the plants attracted a range of insects, with the honey bee as the most abundant visitor (34%). Therefore, rate differences cannot be explained by particular specializations. Lastly, we discuss potential implications of our conclusions for pollination.

scholarly journals Rotating Arrays of Orchid Flowers: A Simple and Effective Method for Studying Pollination in Food Deceptive Plants

Diversity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Scaccabarozzi ◽  
Andrea Galimberti ◽  
Kingsley W. Dixon ◽  
Salvatore Cozzolino
Keyword(s):  
Field Observations ◽  
Pollination Success ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Visitation Frequency ◽  
Pollination Mechanisms ◽  
Behavioural Patterns ◽  
Insect Visitation ◽  
Southwest Australia ◽  
First Time ◽  
Effective Pollinators

Floral deception has been observed in several genera in angiosperms, but is most common in the Orchidaceae. Pollination mechanisms in food deceptive plants are often difficult to assess, as visitation frequency by insects requires numerous hours of field observations to ascertain. Here, for the first time, we describe in detail and validate a simple and effective method that extends previous approaches to increase the effectiveness of pollination studies of food deceptive orchids. We used an orchid of southwest Australia, Diuris brumalis (Orchidaceae), that visually mimics model plants belonging to the genus Daviesia (Faboideae). Arrays of orchid flowers were placed and moved systematically in proximity to model plants, resulting in rapid attraction of the pollinators of D. brumalis. We compared pollinaria removal (as an indicator of pollination success) in naturally growing orchids with pollinaria removal in arrays of orchid flowers in the same sites. We showed that the proposed method greatly enhances pollinator attractiveness in food deceptive systems with very low pollination rates, and we compared its efficiency with other similar methods. The approach can be used for observing pollinator behavioural patterns and confirming effective pollinators for food deceptive species with low insect visitation rates.

Insect visitation rates and foraging patterns differ in androdioecious and hermaphrodite-only populations of Laguncularia racemosa (Combretaceae) in Florida

2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 343-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol L. Landry ◽  
Beverly J. Rathcke
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Mathematical Models ◽  
Breeding System ◽  
Laguncularia Racemosa ◽  
Foraging Patterns ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Self Pollination ◽  
Insect Visitation ◽  
Relative Abundances

Abstract:Insect-pollinated Laguncularia racemosa has a variable breeding system; some populations are androdioecious, with male and hermaphroditic plants, while others lack male plants. We observed the foraging behaviours of insects in three androdioecious and three hermaphrodite-only populations of L. racemosa in Florida. In each population, insect visitation rates were estimated from 30–108 timed intervals. We recorded the number of flowers visited by 144–224 insects during foraging bouts made to 15–40 male and hermaphroditic plants. Male plants in androdioecious populations had significantly more visitors than hermaphroditic plants, increasing the number of vectors carrying pollen from male plants. Further, many insects visited few flowers during foraging bouts, which should increase outcrossing frequency. According to mathematical models, male plants benefit from these combined factors. Plants in hermaphrodite-only populations had significantly more visitors than hermaphroditic plants in androdioecious populations. Proportionately more insects visited many flowers during foraging bouts in hermaphrodite-only versus androdioecious populations. The increased likelihood of geitonogamous self-pollination could help explain the lack of male plants in hermaphrodite-only populations. Differences in pollinator assemblages and the relative abundances of several species were responsible for differences in foraging behaviours: Apis mellifera, Bombus sp., Melissodes sp., Xylocopa sp., Euodynerus sp. and a calliphorid species.

Hop tree (Ptelea trifoliata) in Canada: population and reproductive biology of a rare species

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 1928-1935 ◽  
Author(s):  
John D. Ambrose ◽  
Peter G. Kevan ◽  
Randy M. Gadawski
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Rare Species ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Sexual Expression ◽  
Large Area ◽  
Natural Distribution ◽  
Dioecious Species ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Insect Visitation ◽  
Disturbed Habitats

In Canada, Ptelea trifoliata L. (Rutaceae) is restricted in its natural distribution primarily to the Lake Erie shoreline. Although it is locally successful as a colonizing species, it appears inhibited from either exploiting a large area of shoreline habitat or extending its range inland. The morphological descriptions of the hop tree's sexual expression have been ambiguous; however, our observations show this species to be clearly dioecious, with only about 2% of the otherwise male plants producing a few hermaphroditic flowers, and fruit. The sex ratio is strongly skewed toward the males, which produce more and showier inflorescences than female plants. Despite this, the insect visitation rates are not significantly different between the sexes. For pollination, the hop tree is a polyphilic generalist, dependent on a diverse array of insects, including short-tongued bees, wasps, and flies. It is totally dependent on wind-dispersed seeds for establishment, lacking the ability to grow clonally. In a dioecious species of disturbed habitats, this is exceptional.

A half-day flowering pattern helps plants sharing pollinators in an oceanic island community

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Xiangping Wang ◽  
Tong Zeng ◽  
Mingsong Wu ◽  
Dianxiang Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Flowering Plants ◽  
Oceanic Island ◽  
Species Level ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Flower Opening ◽  
Flower Visitation ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Island Community ◽  
Plant Pollinator

Abstract The temporal pattern of flower opening and closure is a feature of the biology of many plant species, particularly those inhabiting oceanic islands where flowering generally lasts for only a few hours per day. Additionally, flower visitors often seek different floral sources on a timely basis, thus the relative timing of interactions is central to their status in pollination competition, or in the facilitation of pollination among co-flowering plants sharing pollinators. However, few studies have examined the impacts of daily temporal variation in flowering patterns on the pollinator network and competition on a community scale. In order to examine whether the daily pattern of flower opening and closure can impose temporal dynamics on interspecific interactions within a single day, plant–pollinator interaction networks (AM subweb and PM subweb) were quantified, and the relevant interactions between the two subwebs were compared using the Bray–Curtis dissimilarity of visitation frequencies in an oceanic island community (Paracel Islands, South China Sea). The role of species within networks and its variation between two subwebs were assessed by calculating the species-level specialization and species strength of each plant and pollinator species. The quantitative plant–pollinator interaction dissimilarity between morning and afternoon subsets was 0.69, and this value dropped to 0.58 when considering plant species flowering throughout the day. In our study, this dissimilarity between the two subwebs might be explained by the morning peak activity rather than a preference for morning flowers. No significant differences were detected in the species-level specialization and species strength of plants flowering all day from morning to afternoon at the community level. The flower visitation rates of native honeybee Apis cerana were not significantly different between morning and afternoon for most of the whole-day flowering plants. However, plant species only flowering either in the morning or the afternoon differed in the rate of visitation by A. cerana. The analyses of variation in the visitation rates of pollinators shared by plants within a single day in the studied community suggest that daily structuring at a community level and half-day staggered flowering during the morning or afternoon might reduce competitive interactions in oceanic insular habitats.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document