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The allometry of flower size dimorphism in dioecious Dombeya species on La Réunion
Author(s) -
Humeau Laurence,
Thompson John D.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1046/j.1461-0248.2001.00217.x
Subject(s) - allometry , sexual dimorphism , biology , dioecy , botany , zoology , ecology , pollen
In this paper we examine whether variation in male and female flower size follows an allometric relation for 10 dioecious species in the genus Dombeya endemic to La Réunion. Male flowers are significantly larger than female flowers and the degree of dimorphism varies significantly across species. There is a significant allometric relationship between male and female flower size: as mean flower size decreases the degree of flower size dimorphism increases. This is the first study to document an allometric relationship between male and female flower size in unisexual plants. We discuss this allometric relationship in relation to two characteristics frequently observed in dioecious flowers: flower size dimorphism is common in unisexual plants and dioecious species often have smaller flowers than hermaphrodites.