Observations on the pollination and breeding systems of two Corybas species (Diurideae; Orchidaceae) by fungus gnats (Mycetophilidae) in southwestern Yunnan, China.

ABSTRACT: Modes of floral presentation in some angiosperms attract flies that eat and/or oviposit on seasonal fruiting bodies of fungi. Mushroom mimesis by orchid flowers has been speculated in the geoflorous, Indo-Malaysian-Australasian, genus Corybas s.l. for decades but most studies remain fragmentary and are often inconclusive. Here we report the roles of fungus gnats as pollinators of Corybas geminigibbus and C. shanlinshiensis in southwestern Yunnan, China, combining results of field observations, lab analyses, and manipulative experiments. Hand pollination experiments suggested both species were self-compatible but incapable of mechanical self-pollination, thereby requiring pollinators for fruit production. A female of a Phthinia sp. (Mycetophilidae) carried a pollinarium of C. geminigibbus d

SUBMITTER: Han ZD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9438300 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature