Incidental pollination by passing animals: An overlooked mechanism?

Plants People Planet, Год журнала: 2025, Номер unknown

Опубликована: Март 11, 2025

Societal Impact Statement The conservation of pollinators is essential for sustaining the ecosystem services pollen transfer, which support crop production, biodiversity and health. While primary have been focus most efforts, subordinate or incidental largely overlooked. Animals that pass through vegetation may compensate pollination deficits in context ongoing pollinator declines. Such could potentially enhance gene flow among plants over greater distances more varied directions compared to alone. To fully benefit from these supplementary services, it preserve diverse habitats across broader landscapes spatial scales. Summary Terrestrial angiosperms primarily employ two strategies: anemophily zoophily. Anemophilous flowers produce large quantities small grains wind‐mediated transport, often inefficient. In contrast, zoophilous attract flower‐visiting insects, other invertebrates vertebrate using visual, olfactory cues, exchange rewards. However, non‐target animals, including mammals, birds arthropods, frequently visit flowering without consuming floral These visitors inadvertently transfer between plants, contributing fruit set. This phenomenon, termed “background pollination”, be particularly relevant mass‐flowering species, generalist flowers, riverine zoochorous where passage combined with static electricity, facilitates deposition. Detecting such mechanisms poses challenges traditional methods, as situ observation bagging experiments field. Emerging approaches, camera trapping examination wild‐caught animals' body surfaces, offer useful insights into interactions. Background likely complements anemophilous strategies, introducing additional complexity dynamics within plant populations.

Язык: Английский

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Biogeographic patterns and evolutionary history of Elatostema (Urticaceae)

Botanical studies, Год журнала: 2025, Номер 66(1)

Опубликована: Март 19, 2025

Abstract Background The paleotropics, home to half of Earth's rainforests, exhibit remarkable biodiversity and complex biogeographic patterns. Understanding the intercontinental distribution plant taxa between Africa Asia in this region is crucial for resolving longstanding debates on evolution dispersal mechanisms. This study investigates genus Elatostema , a widely distributed taxon found subtropical tropical Africa, Asia, Australasia, aiming elucidate factors shaping its modern disjunctions evolutionary history. Result Using molecular dating ancestral area reconstruction, we reconstructed historical pattern . Our results indicated that originated during Eocene, likely associated with boreotropical floras. history involved multiple events, including two independent colonizations from Asia. Diversification within core clade was primarily driven by events Oceania, key contributing diversification reciprocal Malesia eastward island hopping karstification China. Furthermore, geographical phylogenetic structure observed clade, possibly due limited seed pollen dispersal. Conclusions present provides first comprehensive insights into biogeography presence numerous narrowly endemics, relatively few widespread species, structures suggest gene flow may be factor speciation processes, similar other species-rich genera.

Язык: Английский

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Turning lances into shields: flower mantids stretch their raptorial forelegs to avert and deflect predator attack

Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, Год журнала: 2025, Номер 292(2044)

Опубликована: Апрель 1, 2025

Evolutionary co-option, in which existing traits acquire novel adaptive functions, is a key strategy by organisms adapt to new environmental challenges. Although such co-option has been widely documented at the genetic and morphological levels, its incidence behavioural level remains largely unknown. Mantids stretch their forelegs capture prey; however, some flower mantids also perform foreleg stretches absence of prey. The current study tested whether this behaviour represents function stretch, thus representing case co-option. Predator encounter assays revealed that stretching facilitates escape from large predatory delaying predator approach or deflecting attack towards less vulnerable body parts. Phylogenetic analysis suggested ancestral involves prey capture, with anti-predator subsequently acquired mantid clade, coinciding diversification large-sized mantids, most likely invertebrate predators mantids. This provides where uses organ as defensive implement cope own predators. These findings further suggest may be common nature, meriting more comprehensive studies.

Язык: Английский

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Environmental yeasts differentially impact the development and oviposition behavior of the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus

Microbiome, Год журнала: 2025, Номер 13(1)

Опубликована: Апрель 16, 2025

While the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), a known vector of many arboviruses, establishes symbiotic associations with environmentally acquired yeasts, their impact on biology remains poorly investigated. To better understand these associations, we hypothesized that waterborne yeasts colonizing larval gut differentially support development based capacity to produce riboflavin or recycle nitrogen waste into proteins by secreting uricase, as B vitamins and amino acids are crucial for development. address this hypothesis, used axenic gnotobiotic insects gauge specific different environmental Ae. albopictus survival. We then evaluated whether observed variations across yeast species could be linked differential uricolytic activities varying quantities in insecta. Finally, given oviposition site selection favors conditions enhance offspring performance, tested promote faster mediate gravid females. Differences times were used. Yeasts like Rhodotorula mucilaginosa Aureobasidium pullulans promoted rapid associated improved Conversely, such Torulaspora delbrueckii Martiniozyma asiatica, which led slower development, produced smaller adults. Notably, R. mucilaginosa, fastest provided high intakes nitrogenous recycling protein synthesis through strong uricolytic-ureolytic activity. Behavioral experiments indicated promoting "attract Our findings highlight set present natural breeding sites can survival enhancing nutritional intake, thereby attracting Variations time likely levels production capacities among species. This study opens new perspectives trophic interactions between mosquitoes mycobiota, emphasizing importance nitrogen-containing molecules essential acids, proteins, mycobiota. Video Abstract.

Язык: Английский

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The spatial distribution of a hummingbird‐pollinated plant is not strongly influenced by hummingbird abundance

American Journal of Botany, Год журнала: 2025, Номер unknown

Опубликована: Апрель 26, 2025

Abstract Premise Many angiosperms have evolved specialized systems that promote pollination by specific taxa. Therefore, plant distributions may be limited the local abundance of their specialist pollinators. In eastern North America, Lobelia cardinalis is thought to pollinated solely Archilochus colubris , only hummingbird species found in region. Here we tested hypothesis distribution a with controlled range and its pollinator. Methods We investigated importance A. abundance, sourced from eBird, as variable MaxEnt model L. using presence data iNaturalist. also compared between locations congeneric during respective flowering periods explored whether congenerics align week peak abundance. Results Unexpectedly, modelling did not suggest key driver distribution. habitat suitability was lowest absence increased increasing but low regions where highest. Still, at generally higher than most congenerics, tended flower near Conclusions While populations hummingbird‐pollinated require hummingbirds, fine‐scale variation strongly influence spatial distributions.

Язык: Английский

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