Pollinator‐prey conflict in carnivorous plants

Jürgens, Andreas; Sciligo, Amber R.; Witt, Taina; El‐Sayed, Ashraf M.; Suckling, D. M.

doi:10.1111/j.1469-185x.2011.00213.x

Cited by 33 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 96 publications

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“…These results are analogous to the few comprehensive reproductive ecology studies conducted in Europe for other Pinguicula species (Molau ; Jürgens et al . ; e.g. P. longifolia [García et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reproductive ecology of three rareNorthAmericanPinguiculaspecies

Molano‐Flores

Primer

Annis

et al. 2018

Plant Species Biology

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Pinguicula (Lentibulariaceae) is a genus of more than 100 carnivorous plant species. A handful of comprehensive studies have examined the reproductive ecology of these species, mostly in Europe and none in the USA. During 2013–2016 different aspects of the reproductive ecology of P. ionantha, P. lutea and P. planifolia were studied at multiple locations in the Florida Panhandle, USA. All three species are of conservation concern within the study region and some aspects of their reproductive ecology may be contributing to their rarity. For all species, we conducted breeding system studies investigating xenogamy vs. autogamy, self‐incompatibility vs. self‐compatibility, pollen:ovule ratios, flower phenology and longevity, and pollinator visitation, as well as fruit and seed set differences among populations. All three Pinguicula species were determined to be xenogamous and self‐compatible, although the pollen:ovule ratios were extremely low. In addition, these species have floral nastic movements and flower longevity that ranges from 2 to 3 weeks depending on the species. Hymenoptera was identified as the primary group of pollinators visiting all species, although observed visitation events were low. All three Pinguicula species had extremely high levels of fruit set and seed set. Worldwide, Pinguicula species share similar breeding system and reproductive patterns. The rare status of P. ionantha, P. lutea and P. planifolia is more likely due to their ecological requirements, demographics and/or patterns of genetic diversity, than reproduction. This work is among the first and most comprehensive associated with the reproductive ecology of North American Pinguicula.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…; Heslop‐Harrison ; Jürgens et al . ). These studies have shown that Pinguicula species are self‐compatible and can be autogamous or xenogamous, are mostly pollinated by Diptera and Hymenoptera, and have relatively high fruit and seed sets.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Reproductive ecology of three rareNorthAmericanPinguiculaspecies

Molano‐Flores

Primer

Annis

et al. 2018

Plant Species Biology

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“…A pollinator–prey conflict (PPC) may be described as a trade‐off between increasing the risk of pollinators being trapped to gain more resources (that can in turn be invested in reproduction) vs. reducing the effectiveness of traps to increase reproductive success via pollen import and export through pollinators (Jürgens et al . ). It seems possible that the pollinator–prey conflict can be partly resolved through the evolution of features that reduce the risk of pollinators being trapped, for example by increasing the distance between prey capturing leaves and flowers (Anderson & Midgley ; Anderson ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Another way to reduce the risk of pollinators being trapped might be to use specific olfactory and/or visual cues to lure non‐pollinating animals to traps, while at the same time attracting pollinators to flowers (see Jürgens et al . ). However, our knowledge of the importance of visual and olfactory cues in carnivorous plants for attracting prey insects is still very limited.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

The effect of trap colour and trap‐flower distance on prey and pollinator capture in carnivorous Drosera species

et al. 2015

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Summary1. The functional features of carnivorous plants' traps have been mostly interpreted as adaptations to capture prey. Carnivorous plants that feed on insects, however, run the risk that increasing trapping effectiveness might in turn reduce reproductive success through capture of pollinators. Such a pollinator-prey conflict might play an important role in the evolution of trap features. In carnivorous plants with sticky leaves (e.g. Drosera, Pinguicula), both spatial distance between traps and flowers and their visual signals (e.g. colour, display size) likely play a role in attracting prey but it has also been suggested that they affect the risk of potential pollinators landing on a trap. It has been reported, for example, that red pigmentation in carnivorous plants may lure insect prey to traps. This idea remains controversial, however, because colour vision of most insects does not extend very far into the red part of the spectrum. 2. We tested an alternative hypothesis, namely that red pigmentation of the trapping leaves may reduce the risk of a pollinator-prey conflict. Experiments were conducted in a natural habitat of Drosera arcturi and D. spatulata in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. Using sticky model traps similar in shape to Drosera leaf traps and flowers, we investigated the effect of colour (green vs. red vs. white) and flower-trap distance (flower stalk length and leaf arrangement, that is upright as in D. arcturi vs. flat ground rosette as in D. spatulata) on composition and abundance of insects landing and being trapped. 3. Flower-trap distance had no significant effect on the risk of pollinators being trapped but model flowers higher above the ground received more pollinator landings. Across all model traps, the number of trapped potential pollinators was significantly lower in traps with red leaves compared to green ones. 4. The results suggest that the typical red pigmentation of the trapping leaves in Drosera may be a way to protect pollinators from being attracted and captured. However, our data also suggest that pollinator protection via red traps may come with a trade-off since total prey capture was also significantly reduced.

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“…The presence of insect inquilines, which are able to leave the pitcher after metamorphosis, seems to be unresolved in the European populations. A final possible source of Dipteran DNA could be from the pollinators of S. purpurea (Jürgens, Sciligo, Witt, El‐Sayed, & Suckling, ), as it is possible that our metabarcoding approach detects Dipteran DNA which has been transferred during these visits. Although the particular inquiline and prey species differ between native and allochthonous populations, invertebrate functional groups may be important biological predictors of pitcher plant range, as inquiline successional stages are thought to be similar in pattern (Gray, Akob, Green, & Kostka, ; Zander et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

DNA metabarcoding reveals changes in the contents of carnivorous plants along an elevation gradient

et al. 2018

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Resource variation along abiotic gradients influences subsequent trophic interactions and these effects can be transmitted through entire food webs. Interactions along abiotic gradients can provide clues as to how organisms will face changing environmental conditions, such as future range shifts. However, it is challenging to find replicated systems to study these effects. Phytotelmata, such as those found in carnivorous plants, are isolated aquatic communities and thus form a good model for the study of replicated food webs. Due to the degraded nature of the prey, molecular techniques provide a useful tool to study these communities. We studied the pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea L. in allochthonous populations along an elevational gradient in the Alps and Jura. We predicted that invertebrate richness in the contents of the pitcher plants would decrease with increasing elevation, reflecting harsher environmental conditions. Using metabarcoding of the COI gene, we sequenced the invertebrate contents of these pitcher plants. We assigned Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units at ordinal level as well as recovering species-level data. We found small but significant changes in community composition with elevation. These recovered sequences could belong to invertebrate prey, rotifer inquilines, pollinators and other animals possibly living inside the pitchers. However, we found no directional trend or site-based differences in MOTU richness with elevational gradient. Use of molecular techniques for dietary or contents analysis is a powerful way to examine numerous degraded samples, although factors such as DNA persistence and the relationship with species presence still have to be completely determined.

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Pollinator‐prey conflict in carnivorous plants

Cited by 33 publications

References 96 publications

Reproductive ecology of three rareNorthAmericanPinguiculaspecies

Reproductive ecology of three rareNorthAmericanPinguiculaspecies

The effect of trap colour and trap‐flower distance on prey and pollinator capture in carnivorous Drosera species

DNA metabarcoding reveals changes in the contents of carnivorous plants along an elevation gradient

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