Digest: Selection for staggered pollen release as a driver of heteranthery*

Abstract

Why do some flowers have stamens of different shapes and sizes? Focusing on a group of Neotropical flowering plants, Dellinger et al. tackled this question and found that the evolution of heteranthery, contrary to the predominant view, is not strictly related to pollen-reward pollination and selection for division of labor between stamens. Moreover, they found support for the idea that selection for staggered pollen release might lead to heteranthery.