Asking the pikas politely…
The theory of pollination syndromes is pervasive in pollination biology. Correlational selection may explain why certain flower phenotypes are selected for by certain pollinators thereby offering support for the theory of pollinations syndromes. Using potted individuals of the hummingbird-pollinated alpine wildflower Ipomopsis aggregata, we manipulated three floral traits (flower color, size of the nectar reward, and floral orifice shape) to generate a total of eight character combinations. Plants were set up in an artificial array in the field and pollinator visitation was observed. No significant interactions between trait combinations on the mean visitation rate per treatment per hour were found for the experiments as a whole. However, when data were analyzed separately by hour, there was a significant interaction between color and petal shape seen during the second observation hour, which affected mean visitation rate. Further experimental investigation of only two traits (size of the nectar reward and floral orifice shape) revealed a significant effect of nectar on mean visitation rate also during the second hour of observation. Our results do not provide consistent support for correlational selection.
Knowledge graph centered on Pollinator-mediate selection in Ipomopsis aggregat with 27 nodes and 75 connections. Top connected: Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Gothic, Scarlet Gilia, Slender-tube Skyrocket, Pollinator-Plant Interactions.
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