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Interspecific pollinator movements reduce pollen deposition and seed production in Mimulus ringens (Phrymaceae)
Author(s) -
Flanagan Rebecca J.,
Mitchell Randall J.,
Knutowski Dustin,
Karron Jeffrey D.
Publication year - 2009
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 - 10.3732/ajb.0800317
Subject(s) - biology , pollinator , pollen , interspecific competition , pollination , outcrossing , pollen source , hand pollination , competition (biology) , botany , forage , ecology
Movement of pollinators between coflowering plant species may influence conspecific pollen deposition and seed set. Interspecific pollinator movements between native and showy invasive plants may be particularly detrimental to the pollination and reproductive success of native species. We explored the effects of invasive Lythrum salicaria on the reproductive success of Mimulus ringens , a wetland plant native to eastern North America. Pollinator flights between these species significantly reduced the amount of conspecific pollen deposited on Mimulus stigmas and the number of seeds in Mimulus fruits, suggesting that pollen loss is an important mechanism of competition for pollination. Although pollen loss is often attributed to pollen wastage on heterospecific floral structures, our novel findings suggest that grooming by bees as they forage on a competitor may also significantly reduce outcross pollen export and seed set in Mimulus ringens .