Reproductive biology in Gomphichis valida Rchb. f. (Orchidaceae: Orchidoideae, Cranichidinae): Generalist pollination in a high-Andean terrestrial orchid with long-lived flowers
Fernando H. Calderon-Quispe, Rodrigo Bustos Singer
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Floral features, the pollination process, the breeding system, and fruiting success are documented in the Andean terrestrial orchid Gomphichis valida. Studies were performed at the Department of Ancash, Peru, at ca. 4250 m a.s.l., from June to November 2022. The breeding system was studied through controlled pollinations in plants excluded from pollinators (bagged). Natural pollination was studied in the field and through photos and videos. The flowers are nectariferous and non-protandrous and present the longest lifespan reported so far for a neotropical terrestrial orchid (53–80 days). This species is pollinator dependent (unable to set fruit and seed without the agency of pollinators) and self-compatible. The observed pollinators belong to three functional groups that appeared successively (in order of appearance): hummingbirds (Chalcostigma stanleyi), bumblebees (Bombus coccineus and Bombus rubicundus), and solitary Halictidae bees (Augochlorella sp.). All recorded pollinators probe the flowers for nectar. The pollinaria adhere to the bee mouthparts and onto the lateral side of the hummingbird bill. Bumblebees were the most frequent and efficient functional group (up to 62.07% of the observed pollination events), followed by Halictidae (31.03%) and hummingbirds (6.90%). Natural fruiting success is high (66.66%–94.49%). Such high natural fruiting success is unexpected at high altitudes, but it is likely explained by a combination of factors, including the long floral lifespan, nectar secretion, and self-compatibility. This is the first report of hummingbirds as pollinators of Cranichidinae orchids, and G. valida is, to the best of our knowledge, a neotropical orchidoid orchid with the most generalist pollination biology recorded so far.
期刊介绍:
Plant Species Biology is published four times a year by The Society for the Study of Species Biology. Plant Species Biology publishes research manuscripts in the fields of population biology, pollination biology, evolutionary ecology, biosystematics, co-evolution, and any other related fields in biology. In addition to full length papers, the journal also includes short research papers as notes and comments. Invited articles may be accepted or occasion at the request of the Editorial Board. Manuscripts should contain new results of empirical and/or theoretical investigations concerning facts, processes, mechanisms or concepts of evolutionary as well as biological phenomena. Papers that are purely descriptive are not suitable for this journal. Notes & comments of the following contents will not be accepted for publication: Development of DNA markers. The journal is introducing ''Life history monographs of Japanese plant species''. The journal is dedicated to minimizing the time between submission, review and publication and to providing a high quality forum for original research in Plant Species Biology.