| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||
Biology Department, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, Pennsylvania 18104-5586
The influence of pollen competitive environment on pollen performance (pollen germination, stigmatic penetration, and pollen tube growth rate), the maturation or abortion of initiated fruit, seed size, and seedling vigor was explored by manipulating the size and diversity of stigmatic pollen loads on Mirabilis jalapa. All aspects of pollen performance significantly increased with the number of pollen grains on a stigma or pollen tubes in a style, but was not influenced by the diversity of pollen donors. Plants tended to mature single-ovulate fruits that came from flowers where pollen load size and diversity were greatest and aborted those where these were lowest. No plants from seeds resulting from pollinations with a single pollen grain survived, but other fitness measures were mostly determined by maternal plant. The data suggest that pollen performance is influenced by pollen competitive environment, and both the genetic diversity of the pollen load and number of competing pollen tubes are important determinants of seed/fruit abortion.
Key Words: competition • fitness • fruit • fruit abortion • maternal effect • Mirabilis jalapa; • Nyctaginaceae • pollen
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  M. G. M. Shaner and D. L. Marshall How robust is nonrandom mating in wild radish: do small pollen loads coupled with more competing pollen donors lead to random mating? Am. J. Botany, February 1, 2007; 94(2): 266 - 273. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. I. MENA-ALI and O. J. ROCHA Selective Seed Abortion Affects the Performance of the Offspring in Bauhinia ungulata Ann. Bot., May 1, 2005; 95(6): 1017 - 1023. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. I. MENA-ALI and O. J. ROCHA Effect of Ovule Position within the Pod on the Probability of Seed Production in Bauhinia ungulata (Fabaceae) Ann. Bot., February 1, 2005; 95(3): 449 - 455. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. G. M. Shaner and D. L. Marshall Under how wide a set of conditions will nonrandom mating occur in Raphanus sativus (Brassicaceae)? Am. J. Botany, November 1, 2003; 90(11): 1604 - 1611. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. M. Herrera Censusing natural microgametophyte populations: variable spatial mosaics and extreme fine-graininess in winter-flowering Helleborus foetidus (Ranunculaceae) Am. J. Botany, October 1, 2002; 89(10): 1570 - 1578. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. Paschke, C. Abs, and B. Schmid Effects of population size and pollen diversity on reproductive success and offspring size in the narrow endemic Cochlearia bavarica (Brassicaceae) Am. J. Botany, August 1, 2002; 89(8): 1250 - 1259. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. Quesada, E. J. Fuchs, and J. A. Lobo Pollen load size, reproductive success, and progeny kinship of naturally pollinated flowers of the tropical dry forest tree Pachira quinata (Bombacaceae) Am. J. Botany, November 1, 2001; 88(11): 2113 - 2118. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. Melser and P. G. L. Klinkhamer Selective seed abortion increases offspring survival in Cynoglossum officinale (Boraginaceae) Am. J. Botany, June 1, 2001; 88(6): 1033 - 1040. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
D. L. Marshall and P. K. Diggle Mechanisms of differential pollen donor performance in wild radish, Raphanus sativus (Brassicaceae) Am. J. Botany, February 1, 2001; 88(2): 242 - 257. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
D. L. Marshall, J. J. Avritt, M. Shaner, and R. L. Saunders Effects of pollen load size and composition on pollen donor performance in wild radish, Raphanus sativus (Brassicaceae) Am. J. Botany, November 1, 2000; 87(11): 1619 - 1627. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
