Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae)

NWIPB OpenIR

	Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae)
	Duan, Y. W. ; Zhang, T. F. ; He, Y. P. ; Liu, J. Q.
	2009-11-01
发表期刊	PLANT BIOLOGY ; Duan, YW; Zhang, TF; He, YP; Liu, JQ.Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae),PLANT BIOLOGY,2009,11(6):796-802
摘要	Wind pollination can provide reproductive insurance for animal-pollinated dioecious plants in the absence of available pollinators, but combinations of insect and wind pollination (ambophily) have rarely been studied in hermaphrodite herbs. We examined the stable occurrence of insect pollination and wind pollination over 4 years in a population of a biennial Aconitum species (A. gymnandrum) with actinomorphic and degenerate sepals. The total frequency of visits of two bumblebee species showed no distinct fluctuations in the studied population among the 4 years. However, seed production of netted flowers after emasculation indicated wind pollination had occurred. The seed number of bagged flowers with one visit by bumblebees was significantly less than that of netted flowers after one visit, or in control flowers. Both seed number and fruit set of netted flowers were significantly lower than in control flowers. These results suggest that wind pollination provides supplementary pollen to unvisited and/or once-visited flowers, but accounts for only a small amount of seed production compared to bumblebee pollination in natural conditions. Such a combination of insect and wind pollination might play an important role in maintaining sexual reproduction of this biennial herb, allowing it to persist in arid habitats on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, especially during Quaternary glacial periods when pollinator populations oscillated extensively.; Wind pollination can provide reproductive insurance for animal-pollinated dioecious plants in the absence of available pollinators, but combinations of insect and wind pollination (ambophily) have rarely been studied in hermaphrodite herbs. We examined the stable occurrence of insect pollination and wind pollination over 4 years in a population of a biennial Aconitum species (A. gymnandrum) with actinomorphic and degenerate sepals. The total frequency of visits of two bumblebee species showed no distinct fluctuations in the studied population among the 4 years. However, seed production of netted flowers after emasculation indicated wind pollination had occurred. The seed number of bagged flowers with one visit by bumblebees was significantly less than that of netted flowers after one visit, or in control flowers. Both seed number and fruit set of netted flowers were significantly lower than in control flowers. These results suggest that wind pollination provides supplementary pollen to unvisited and/or once-visited flowers, but accounts for only a small amount of seed production compared to bumblebee pollination in natural conditions. Such a combination of insect and wind pollination might play an important role in maintaining sexual reproduction of this biennial herb, allowing it to persist in arid habitats on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, especially during Quaternary glacial periods when pollinator populations oscillated extensively.
文献类型	期刊论文
条目标识符	http://210.75.249.4/handle/363003/15488
专题	中国科学院西北高原生物研究所
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Duan, Y. W.,Zhang, T. F.,He, Y. P.,et al. Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae)[J]. PLANT BIOLOGY, Duan, YW; Zhang, TF; He, YP; Liu, JQ.Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae),PLANT BIOLOGY,2009,11(6):796-802,2009.
APA	Duan, Y. W.,Zhang, T. F.,He, Y. P.,&Liu, J. Q..(2009).Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae).PLANT BIOLOGY.
MLA	Duan, Y. W.,et al."Insect and wind pollination of an alpine biennial Aconitum gymnandrum (Ranunculaceae)".PLANT BIOLOGY (2009).