Am. J. Bot.
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (18)
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Steiner, K. E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by Steiner, K. E.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Steiner, K. E.

American Journal of Botany, Vol 85, 1180, Copyright © 1998 by Botanical Society of America, Inc.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

The evolution of beetle pollination in a South African orchid

KE Steiner

The pollination biology of the orchid Ceratandra grandiflora was investigated in order to determine whether the partial loss of a specialized floral reward (i.e., oil) was the result of an incomplete shift from one specialized pollinator to another. In the three-species clade of section Ceratandra, there has been a progressive loss of the oil-secreting callus. lt is always present in C atrata, sometimes present in C. grandiflora, and never present in C. globosa. Thirty-nine to 67% of individuals in populations of C. grandiflora bear the callus gland, but gland presence has no signifikant effect on the proportion of flowers pollinated. Pollinator observations show that the shift in pollinators is complete and that the oil-secreting callus is a vestige of the ancestral oil-bee pollination system that no longer plays a role in pollination. C grandiflora is pollinated almost exclusively by a single species of hopliine beetle (Scarabaeidae). Experiments with artificial flower traps indicate that color alone can explain the attraction of beetles to C. grandiflora, despite the absence of a floral reward. The proportion of C. grandiflora flowers pollinated (50.2 and 61.1%; N = 524 and 324 flowers, respectively) is unusually high for a plant that relies on generalized food deception and is probably due to the use of inflorescences as mating sites (i.e., rendezvous pollination).


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 ANN BOT (LOND)Home page
M. Stpiczynska and K. L. Davies
Elaiophore Structure and Oil Secretion in Flowers of Oncidium trulliferum Lindl. and Ornithophora radicans (Rchb.f.) Garay & Pabst (Oncidiinae: Orchidaceae)
Ann. Bot., February 1, 2008; 101(3): 375 - 384.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Am. J. Bot.Home page
S. D. Johnson, A. Ellis, and S. Dotterl
Specialization for pollination by beetles and wasps: the role of lollipop hairs and fragrance in Satyrium microrrhynchum (Orchidaceae)
Am. J. Botany, January 1, 2007; 94(1): 47 - 55.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 ANN BOT (LOND)Home page
C. I. PETER and S. D. JOHNSON
Anther Cap Retention Prevents Self-pollination by Elaterid Beetles in the South African Orchid Eulophia foliosa
Ann. Bot., March 1, 2006; 97(3): 345 - 355.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USAHome page
R. M. Cowling and R. L. Pressey
Rapid plant diversification: Planning for an evolutionary future
PNAS, May 8, 2001; 98(10): 5452 - 5457.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1998 by the Botanical Society of America, Inc.