Dissertation Research: Shared pollinators affect flowering plant coexistence

论文研究：共享传粉媒介影响开花植物共存

• 批准号: 1701675
• 负责人: Monica Geber
• 金额: $ 1.6万
• 依托单位: Cornell University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-08-01 至 2019-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1701675&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dissertation; Research; Shared; pollinators; affect

Without pollinators like bees, bats and butterflies, most of the world's flowering plants would disappear. Because of the importance of pollinators, insuring their health is essential for preserving biodiversity and promoting global agricultural security. As pollinators, some native bees can show strong loyalty by limiting their visits to only flowers from a certain species, while other bees may not be so loyal, visiting many different types of flowers. In theory, plants with loyal pollinators should produce more fruit and seeds because the pollinators provide only the appropriate pollen type when they visit. The aim of this research is to understand the degree to which native bees show loyalty to certain plants. This study also explores how the sharing of pollinators between closely related plants might influence how many seeds those plants produce. If some of the plants do worse than others when sharing pollinators, differences in pollinator loyalty may influence how common or rare those plants become. The results of this research are important for understanding the role pollinators play in maintaining healthy and diverse agricultural and natural plant communities. This research contributes to the training of a graduate student, develops a lab and field program for a high school biology class and provides opportunities to engage and encourage women and under-represented students in STEM science.Coexistence theory addresses how species richness is maintained in biological communities by framing species interactions as a balance of competition within versus between species. This study uses that theory to investigate whether pollinator sharing affects coexistence dynamics in four co-occurring plants in the genus Clarkia. Determining whether pollinator sharing is detrimental or favorable for flowering plant coexistence hinges on understanding the flower preference and constancy of native bees that specialize on flowers and the quantity of pollen they provide. The diversity and quantity of pollen found on Clarkia's pollinators will be measured with a genetic identification technique (qPCR). These measurements will be used in conjunction with estimates of each plant species' competitive ability to determine whether shared pollinators can change plant fitness and whether the pattern shows a negative frequency dependence. This study will shed light on the role that pollinator sharing can play in promoting the coexistence of flowering plants.

如果没有像蜜蜂、蝙蝠和蝴蝶这样的传粉者，世界上大多数开花植物都会消失。由于传粉者的重要性，确保其健康对于保护生物多样性和促进全球农业安全至关重要。作为传粉者，一些本地蜜蜂可以通过限制它们只访问某个物种的花朵来表现出强烈的忠诚度，而其他蜜蜂可能不那么忠诚，访问许多不同类型的花朵。从理论上讲，有忠实的传粉者的植物应该会结出更多的果实和种子，因为传粉者来访时只提供合适的花粉类型。 这项研究的目的是了解本地蜜蜂对某些植物的忠诚程度。这项研究还探讨了密切相关的植物之间的传粉者共享如何影响这些植物产生多少种子。如果一些植物在分享传粉者时表现得比其他植物差，那么传粉者忠诚度的差异可能会影响这些植物的常见或稀有程度。这项研究的结果对于理解传粉者在维持健康和多样化的农业和自然植物群落中所起的作用非常重要。这项研究有助于培养研究生，为高中生物课开发实验室和实地项目，并提供机会，吸引和鼓励妇女和代表性不足的学生在STEM science.Coexistence理论解决如何物种丰富度是保持在生物群落的框架内与物种之间的竞争的平衡物种的相互作用。本研究利用这一理论，调查是否授粉共享影响共存动态在四个共同发生的植物属Clarkia。确定传粉者共享是有害还是有益于开花植物的共存取决于了解花的偏好和本地蜜蜂的恒定性，专门对花和花粉的数量，他们提供。在Clarkia授粉者身上发现的花粉的多样性和数量将通过遗传鉴定技术（qPCR）进行测量。这些测量将与每个植物物种的竞争能力的估计，以确定是否共享传粉者可以改变植物的健身和模式是否显示出负的频率依赖。这项研究将阐明传粉者共享在促进显花植物共存中的作用。