Sequential stamen maturation and movement in a protandrous herb: mechanisms increasing pollination efficiency and reducing sexual interference.

ABSTRACT: Successive stamen movement directly controls pollen presentation schedules through sequential stamen maturation and changes the extent of herkogamy by altering the positions of sexual organs. However, the implications of such movements in terms of pollination are not well understood. Pollen presentation theory predicts that staggered pollen presentation should be favoured when plants are subject to diminishing returns on pollen transfer. Herkogamy on the other hand, has been interpreted as an adaptive trait that reduces sexual interference in hermaphrodite flowers. In this study, we conducted floral manipulations to determine the function of successive stamen movement in pollen transfer. By artificially manipulating the flowers to present two anthers simultaneously in the floral centre, we

SUBMITTER: Xiao CL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5499893 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature