Does successful ovule development depend on its position within the pod? Examples from Neotropical Fabaceae

Abstract

Previous studies have shown a nonrandom pattern of ovule fate probabilities according to ovule position in legume pods. Here, we tested how ovule position within the pods of two Fabaceae affects its fate. We expected higher proportion of well‐formed seeds near the fruit tips and of unfertilized and aborted ovules near fruit bases. We collected pods of Poincianella pyramidalis and Anandenanthera colubrina in a seasonal dry forest in northeastern Brazil and recorded total pod length and ovule number, position, and fate (unfertilized, well formed, aborted, and predated). The proportion of well‐formed ovules at fruit tips was significantly higher than at fruit bases in P. pyramidalis. The opposite pattern was found for unfertilized and aborted ovules, thus corroborating our hypothesis. However, the probability of seed predation in A. colubrina was significantly higher in pod tips, thus providing moderate support for our hypotheses. Interspecific differences in the patterns of ovule fate are likely to be driven by species pollination systems.

Mulching Affects Seed Set, Provisioning, and Offspring Performance of Vicia unijuga (Fabaceae)

“…The linear arrangement of ovules within the pods of legumes provides a way to assess the effect of the maternal environment on ovule and seed fates (Silveira and Fuzessy, 2015). We found a strong nonrandom pattern of ovule‐fate probabilities, depending on ovule position in the pods of V. unijuga .…”

“…We found a strong nonrandom pattern of ovule‐fate probabilities, depending on ovule position in the pods of V. unijuga . Pollen limitation, which is inferred from a high proportion of nonfertilized ovules at the base of the pod (Silveira et al, 2015), accounted for a higher proportion of ovule loss in V. unijuga compared with resource limitation, which is inferred from aborted fertilized ovules and low conversion of ovules into seeds near the base of the pod (Silveira and Fuzessy, 2015). The low likelihood of ovules being fertilized at the base of V. unijuga pods suggested that pollen quality and/or quantity are strongly limited by the harsh subalpine environments.…”