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Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.

Floral nectar, being a primary reward for insect visitors, is a key factor in shaping plant–pollinator interactions. However, little is known about the variability in nectar traits, which could potentially affect pollinators and the reproduction of the species. We investigated intraspecific variatio...

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Autores principales: Ryniewicz, Justyna, Skłodowski, Mateusz, Chmur, Magdalena, Bajguz, Andrzej, Roguz, Katarzyna, Roguz, Agata, Zych, Marcin
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7600102/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33019586
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/plants9101297
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author Ryniewicz, Justyna
Skłodowski, Mateusz
Chmur, Magdalena
Bajguz, Andrzej
Roguz, Katarzyna
Roguz, Agata
Zych, Marcin
author_facet Ryniewicz, Justyna
Skłodowski, Mateusz
Chmur, Magdalena
Bajguz, Andrzej
Roguz, Katarzyna
Roguz, Agata
Zych, Marcin
author_sort Ryniewicz, Justyna
collection PubMed
description Floral nectar, being a primary reward for insect visitors, is a key factor in shaping plant–pollinator interactions. However, little is known about the variability in nectar traits, which could potentially affect pollinators and the reproduction of the species. We investigated intraspecific variation in nectar traits in 14 populations of a Red-listed plant, Polemonium caeruleum. Populations varied in terms of the proportion of self-compatible and self-incompatible individuals, and insect communities visiting flowers. Using HPLC, we determined the nectar sugar and amino acid (AA) composition and concentration. We also recorded some basic habitat parameters, which could influence nectar chemistry. In seven selected populations, we investigated the taxonomic composition of the insects visiting flowers. Our observations revealed significant intraspecific variability in nectar chemistry in P. caeruleum. Nectar production was male-biased, with male-phase flowers secreting sucrose- and AA-rich nectar. An analysis revealed that variability in P. caeruleum nectar may be slightly shaped by environmental factors. The studied nectar characters, especially sugars, had little effect on insects visiting flowers. We argue that variation in nectar traits in this generalist plant is a matter of random genetic drift or “adaptive wandering” rather than directional specialization and adaptation in the most effective and abundant group of pollinators.
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spelling pubmed-76001022020-11-01 Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L. Ryniewicz, Justyna Skłodowski, Mateusz Chmur, Magdalena Bajguz, Andrzej Roguz, Katarzyna Roguz, Agata Zych, Marcin Plants (Basel) Article Floral nectar, being a primary reward for insect visitors, is a key factor in shaping plant–pollinator interactions. However, little is known about the variability in nectar traits, which could potentially affect pollinators and the reproduction of the species. We investigated intraspecific variation in nectar traits in 14 populations of a Red-listed plant, Polemonium caeruleum. Populations varied in terms of the proportion of self-compatible and self-incompatible individuals, and insect communities visiting flowers. Using HPLC, we determined the nectar sugar and amino acid (AA) composition and concentration. We also recorded some basic habitat parameters, which could influence nectar chemistry. In seven selected populations, we investigated the taxonomic composition of the insects visiting flowers. Our observations revealed significant intraspecific variability in nectar chemistry in P. caeruleum. Nectar production was male-biased, with male-phase flowers secreting sucrose- and AA-rich nectar. An analysis revealed that variability in P. caeruleum nectar may be slightly shaped by environmental factors. The studied nectar characters, especially sugars, had little effect on insects visiting flowers. We argue that variation in nectar traits in this generalist plant is a matter of random genetic drift or “adaptive wandering” rather than directional specialization and adaptation in the most effective and abundant group of pollinators. MDPI 2020-10-01 /pmc/articles/PMC7600102/ /pubmed/33019586 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/plants9101297 Text en © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Ryniewicz, Justyna
Skłodowski, Mateusz
Chmur, Magdalena
Bajguz, Andrzej
Roguz, Katarzyna
Roguz, Agata
Zych, Marcin
Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title_full Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title_fullStr Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title_full_unstemmed Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title_short Intraspecific Variation in Nectar Chemistry and Its Implications for Insect Visitors: The Case of the Medicinal Plant, Polemonium Caeruleum L.
title_sort intraspecific variation in nectar chemistry and its implications for insect visitors: the case of the medicinal plant, polemonium caeruleum l.
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7600102/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33019586
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/plants9101297
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