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POLLINATION AND POLLEN ENERGETICS IN MEDITERRANEAN ECOSYSTEMS
Author(s) -
Petanidou Theodora,
Vokou Despina
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
american journal of botany
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.218
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1537-2197
pISSN - 0002-9122
DOI - 10.1002/j.1537-2197.1990.tb13593.x
Subject(s) - pollinator , pollen , pollination , biology , pollen source , abiotic component , zoophily , botany , ecosystem , insect , ecology
Most plants in Mediterranean ecosystems are insect pollinated, with pollen being the main reward to pollinators. The great majority of pollinators (70%) are bees and flies. We measured the energy content of pollen from 40 plant species in these ecosystems that represent abiotic and biotic pollination modes as well as the number of species of their pollinators. Pollen energy content correlates with pollinator diversity. Pollen of wind‐pollinated plants contained less energy than that of insect‐pollinated plants; there was no difference between insect‐pollinated dicots and insect‐pollinated monocots. The median date of flowering (from 1 January) estimated for each of the plant species did not vary significantly either with the number of pollinator species or with the energy content of pollen. The reasons for the differing values of pollen energy content are discussed; in particular, its relation to the type of pollen reserves, length of the flower style, and pollination enhancement.