Sexual specialization in phenology in dioecious Ficus benguetensis and its consequences for the mutualism.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Timing of reproductive events has become central in ecological studies linking success in pollination and seed dispersion to optimizing the probability and periods of encounters with pollinators or dispersers. Obligate plant-insect interactions, especially Ficus-fig wasp mutualisms, offer striking examples of fine-tuned encounter optimization as biological cycles between mutualistic partners are deeply dependent on each other and intertwined over generations. Despite fig flowering phenology being crucial in maintaining Ficus-fig wasp mutualisms, until now, the forces of selection shaping the phenological evolution of dioecious fig trees have received little attention. By conducting a 2-year survey of a population of Ficus benguetensis in Northern Taiwan, we assessed whet

SUBMITTER: Lin SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5432922 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature