Soil water and nutrient availability interactively modify pollinator‐mediated directional and correlational selection on floral display

Wu, Yun; Liu, Guangli; Sletvold, Nina; Duan, Xuyu; Tong, Zhaoli; Liu, Qingjun

doi:10.1111/nph.18537

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Therefore, similar studies should be conducted with wild populations of plants and with different pollination systems. Finally, it is important to study the interaction between plants’ floral responses to changes in soil nutrients and important factors related to climate change (drought, temperature, CO 2 ) and how these scale up to pollinator attraction and plant reproduction 18 , 19 , 38 , 56 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Importantly, landscape levels of nitrogen and phosphorus can be profoundly influenced by anthropogenic change 15 . However, little research exists examining the effect of soil nutrients on floral cues and reward, pollinator attraction, and ultimately plant reproduction 16 (yet see 7 , 8 , 17 – 19 ). Using cucumbers ( Cucumis sativus L.) and bumble bees ( Bombus impatiens C.) as a model system, we examine the influence of nitrogen and phosphorus on a suite of floral traits and how these traits influence pollinator visitation rates and plant reproductive success through fruit production.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, we present one of the first studies examining the influence and interaction of nitrogen and phosphorus soil nutrients on a plant's floral traits, including reward nutritional quality, and directly testing these effects on pollinator attractiveness and plant fitness 16 , 18 , 19 , 26 . We studied the plant’s complete life cycle and measured the effects of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrient concentrations and ratios ranging from limitation to surplus.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of soil nutrition on floral traits, pollinator attraction, and fitness in cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.)

Vaudo

Erickson

Patch

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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Annual plants allocate soil nutrients to floral display and pollinator rewards to ensure pollination success in a single season. Nitrogen and phosphorus are critical soil nutrients whose levels are altered by intensive land use that may affect plants’ fitness via pollinator attractiveness through floral display and rewards. In a controlled greenhouse study, we studied in cucumbers (Cucumis sativus) how changes in soil nitrogen and phosphorus influence floral traits, including nectar and pollen reward composition. We evaluated how these traits affect bumble bee (Bombus impatiens, an important cucumber pollinator) visitation and ultimately fruit yield. While increasing nitrogen and phosphorus increased growth and floral display, excess nitrogen created an asymptotic or negative effect, which was mitigated by increasing phosphorus. Male floral traits exhibited higher plasticity in responses to changes in soil nutrients than female flowers. At 4:1 nitrogen:phosphorus ratios, male flowers presented increased nectar volume and pollen number resulting in increased bumble bee visitation. Interestingly, other pollinator rewards remained consistent across all soil treatments: male and female nectar sugar composition, female nectar volume, and pollen protein and lipid concentrations. Therefore, although cucumber pollination success was buffered in conditions of nutrient stress, highly skewed nitrogen:phosphorus soil ratios reduced plant fitness via reduced numbers of flowers and reward quantity, pollinator attraction, and ultimately yield.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Impacts of soil nutrition on floral traits, pollinator attraction, and fitness in cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.)

Vaudo

Erickson

Patch

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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“…Plants can adapt to environmental changes by adjusting their functional traits and reproductive allocation (Atkin et al., 2015 ; Körner, 2003 ). Floral display in terms of flower size and number has influences on pollinator visitation rate and seed production (Bell, 1985 ; Sandring & Ågren, 2009 ; Wu et al., 2023 ). Therefore, floral display is an important reproductive trait related to fitness (Sargent et al., 2007 ), and is often used to study plant evolution and adaptation mechanisms (Sandring & Ågren, 2009 ; Zhang et al., 2017 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influences of elevational gradient on flower size and number of Gentiana lawrencei var. farreri

Wang,

Yang

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Plants can adapt to environmental changes by adjusting their functional traits and biomass allocation. The size and number of flowers are functional traits related to plant reproduction. Life history theory predicts that there is a trade‐off between flower size and number, and the trade‐off can potentially explain the adaptability of plants. Elevation gradients in mountains provide a unique opportunity to test how plants will respond to climate change. In this study, we tried to better explain the adaptability of the alpine plant Gentiana lawrencei var. farreri in response to climate change. We measured the flower size and number, individual size, and reproductive allocation of G. lawrencei var. farreri during the flowering period along an elevation gradient from 3200 to 4000 m, and explored their relationships using linear mixed‐effect models and the structural equation model. We found that with elevation increasing, individual size and flower number decreased and flower size increased, while reproductive allocation remained unchanged. Individual size positively affected flower number, but was not related to flower size; reproductive allocation positively affected flower size, but was not related to flower number; there is a clear trade‐off between flower size and number. We also found that elevation decreased flower number indirectly via directly reducing individual size. In sum, this study suggests that G. lawrencei var. farreri can adapt to alpine environments by the synergies or trade‐offs among individual size, reproductive allocation, flower size, and flower number. This study increases our understanding of the adaptation mechanisms of alpine plants to climate change in alpine environments.

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“…However, it remains unclear how such water stress-induced changes influence the strength of natural selection on floral traits as empirical tests are rare (e.g. Sherrard and Maherali 2006 ; Brachi et al 2012 ; Lambrecht et al 2017 ; Wu et al 2023 ). The few studies measuring phenotypic selection on floral traits after experimental water manipulation have mainly focused on phenological traits and show contrasting results (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water deficit changes patterns of selection on floral signals and nectar rewards in the common morning glory

García,

Dow,

Parachnowitsch

2023

AoB PLANTS

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Understanding whether and how resource limitation alters phenotypic selection on floral traits is key to predict the evolution of plant-pollinator interactions under climate change. Two important resources predicted to decline with our changing climate are pollinators and water in the form of increased droughts. Most work, however, has studied these selective agents separately and in the case of water deficit, studies are rare. Here, we use the common morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea) to investigate the effects of experimental reduction in pollinator access and water availability on floral signals and nectar rewards and their effects on phenotypic selection on these traits. We conducted a manipulative experiment in a common garden, where we grew plants in three treatments: 1) pollinator restriction, 2) water reduction, and 3) unmanipulated control. Plants in pollinator restriction and control treatments were well-watered compared to water deficit. We found that in contrast to pollinator restriction, water deficit had strong effects altering floral signals and nectar rewards but also differed in the direction and strength of selection on these traits compared to control plants. Water deficit increased the opportunity for selection, and selection in this treatment favored lower nectar volumes and larger floral sizes, which might further alter pollinator visitation. In addition, well-watered plants, both in control and pollinator deficit, showed similar patterns of selection to increase nectar volume suggesting non-pollinator-mediated selection on nectar. Our study shows that floral traits may evolve in response to reduction in water access faster than to declines in pollinators and reinforces that abiotic factors can be important agents of selection on floral traits. Although only few experimental selection studies have manipulated access to biotic and abiotic resources, our results suggest that this approach is key for understanding how pollination systems may evolve under climate change.

show abstract

Soil water and nutrient availability interactively modify pollinator‐mediated directional and correlational selection on floral display

Cited by 9 publications

References 57 publications

Impacts of soil nutrition on floral traits, pollinator attraction, and fitness in cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.)

Impacts of soil nutrition on floral traits, pollinator attraction, and fitness in cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.)

Influences of elevational gradient on flower size and number of Gentiana lawrencei var. farreri

Water deficit changes patterns of selection on floral signals and nectar rewards in the common morning glory

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