Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae)

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dc.contributor.advisorMidgley, Jeremy Jen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorKleizen, Ciaraen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2017-08-23T13:04:15Z
dc.date.available2017-08-23T13:04:15Z
dc.date.issued2006en_ZA
dc.date.updated2017-02-27T13:17:10Z
dc.description.abstractThe repeated discovery of rodent pollination (therophily) has led to the concept of a rodent pollination syndrome. The adaptive plant traits that characterize this syndrome include flowers packed tightly into geoflorous and cryptic inflorescences, nocturnal anthesis and production of copious amounts of sugar-rich nectar and pollen as well as a musky odour. Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae), a geophyte that occurs in the semiarid Succulent karoo region of South Africa, exhibits several of the therophilous traits. Experiments were conducted investigating the hypothesis that this species is rodent pollinated. Several lines of evidence were found to support this hypothesis. These include: the almost exclusive presence of A. latifolium pollen in the scats of live-trapped Aethomys namaquensis rodents and in the fuschin gelatine swabs from the rostrum area of the rodents; and observations of captive A. namaquensis individuals foraging for nectar non-destructively in A. latifolium inflorescences. The exclusion of rodents from inflorescences resulted in a significant decrease in seed set compared to control plants. This result indicated that rodents do contribute to pollination success of A. latifolium, however, in the absence of rodents, the flowers self-pollinate, indicating a facultative selfing strategy. Therefore, A. latifolium displays an opportunistic life history attracting rodents to the sugar-rich nectar when other food sources are scarce. This is supported by the observation that the seed set of A. latifolium decreases as the distance from the rodents nesting site increases. This study presents substantial evidence for therophily in A. latifolium, making this species the first species in the family Colchicaceae, and the second geophyte in the world to be rodent pollinated.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationKleizen, C. (2006). <i>Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae)</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24942en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationKleizen, Ciara. <i>"Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae)."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24942en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationKleizen, C. 2006. Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae). University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Kleizen, Ciara AB - The repeated discovery of rodent pollination (therophily) has led to the concept of a rodent pollination syndrome. The adaptive plant traits that characterize this syndrome include flowers packed tightly into geoflorous and cryptic inflorescences, nocturnal anthesis and production of copious amounts of sugar-rich nectar and pollen as well as a musky odour. Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae), a geophyte that occurs in the semiarid Succulent karoo region of South Africa, exhibits several of the therophilous traits. Experiments were conducted investigating the hypothesis that this species is rodent pollinated. Several lines of evidence were found to support this hypothesis. These include: the almost exclusive presence of A. latifolium pollen in the scats of live-trapped Aethomys namaquensis rodents and in the fuschin gelatine swabs from the rostrum area of the rodents; and observations of captive A. namaquensis individuals foraging for nectar non-destructively in A. latifolium inflorescences. The exclusion of rodents from inflorescences resulted in a significant decrease in seed set compared to control plants. This result indicated that rodents do contribute to pollination success of A. latifolium, however, in the absence of rodents, the flowers self-pollinate, indicating a facultative selfing strategy. Therefore, A. latifolium displays an opportunistic life history attracting rodents to the sugar-rich nectar when other food sources are scarce. This is supported by the observation that the seed set of A. latifolium decreases as the distance from the rodents nesting site increases. This study presents substantial evidence for therophily in A. latifolium, making this species the first species in the family Colchicaceae, and the second geophyte in the world to be rodent pollinated. DA - 2006 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2006 T1 - Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae) TI - Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae) UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24942 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/24942
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationKleizen C. Rodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae). [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2006 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24942en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherBotanyen_ZA
dc.titleRodent pollination in Androcymbium latifolium (Colchicaceae)en_ZA
dc.typeBachelor Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelHonours
dc.type.qualificationnameBSc (Hons)en_ZA
uct.type.filetype
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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