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Plant Biol (Stuttg) 2007; 9(4): 453-461
DOI: 10.1055/s-2007-964962
Research Paper

Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart KG · New York

Pollination Biology and the Impact of Floral Display, Pollen Donors, and Distyly on Seed Production in Arcytophyllum lavarum (Rubiaceae)

C. García-Robledo1 , F. Mora2
  • 1Department of Biology, University of Miami, P.O. Box 249118, Coral Gables, FL 33124-0421, USA
  • 2Escuela de Biología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro Montes de Oca, Costa Rica
Further Information

Publication History

Received: September 23, 2006

Accepted: January 18, 2007

Publication Date:
02 April 2007 (online)

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Abstract

In animal-pollinated plants, two factors affecting pollen flow and seed production are changes in floral display and the availability of compatible mates. Changes in floral display may affect the number of pollinator visits and the availability of compatible mates will affect the probability of legitimate pollination and seed production. Distyly is a floral polymorphism where long-styled (pin) and short-styled (thrum) floral morphs occur among different individuals. Distylous plants frequently exhibit self and intra-morph incompatibility. Therefore changes in morph abundance directly affect the arrival of compatible pollen to the stigmas. Floral morph by itself may also affect female reproductive success because floral morphs may display differences in seed production. We explored the effects of floral display, availability of neighboring compatible mates, and floral morph on seed production in the distylous herb Arcytophyllum lavarum. We found that floral display does not affect the mean number of seeds produced per flower. There is also no effect of the proportion of neighboring legitimate pollen donors on seed production in pin or thrum flowers. However, floral morphs differed in their female reproductive success and the thrum morph produced more seeds. Hand pollination experiments suggest that differences in seed production between morphs are the result of pollen limitation. Future research will elucidate if the higher seed production in thrum flowers is a consequence of higher availability of pollen donors in the population, or higher efficiency of the pin morph as pollen donor.

Key words

Arcytophyllum lavarum - Costa Rica - distyly - floral display - Páramo - pollen donors.

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C. García-Robledo

Department of Biology
University of Miami

P.O. Box 24 91 18

Coral Gables, FL 33124-0421

USA

Email: carlos@bio.miami.edu

Editor: J. T. M. Elzenga

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