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Pollination Ecology
• Community Ecology• Pollen• Pollination• Self-pollination • Wind: Anemophily• Animal Pollination
(Zoophily)• Consequences of
Animal Pollination
What is a community?• Community: a group of
populations that coexist in space and time and interact with one another directly or indirectly
• Species interactions: affect one another’s population dynamics
• Natural selection and co-evolution may follow
• Co-evolution – led to ideas of plant
defense – pollination ecology – other plant-animal
interactions: seed dispersal
Pollination Syndromes
• Can be (+,+) interaction
• Plant-animal interaction
• Pollen grains• size tens of microns
Pollination
• Dependence on breeding system
• Self-pollination• Pollen/ovule ratio
Pollination
Delphinium
Grass (Poa pratensis)
• flower morphology• surface
– wind: smooth – animal: sculptured
• Packages (animal only) – dyads and tetrads
(Ericaceae) – Pollina (orchids &
Asclepicadaceae) – viscin threads (Fabaceae
& Onagraceae)
Pollination syndromes
• Self-pollination• Wind• Insect• Birds• Mammals
Prevention of self pollination
Primula spp.: long and short styleForm. Self pollination difficult
Wind: Anemophily• lacks precision
– long range – some weeds 1.25
million pollen grains – Hazel: 600 million – common where
conspecifics close by – vegetation open
seasonally – environmental cues
coordinate flowering
Animal Pollination (Zoophily)
• Insect • Vertebrates • Pollination syndromes
– Flower morphology – odor – color – shape
• nectar reward – sucrose/glucose/fructose concentrations
Insect
Insect
Color cues
Birds
Pollinator rewards
Mammals
Consequences of Animal Pollination
• Distance/Direction • Constancy
• Vector behavior • Handling time • Distance/Direction • Constancy
Distribution of insect species
Gene flow
• genetic consequences – Impact on fertilization – gene flow limited – Raphanus sativus
• Problems – non-pollinating visitors