Collaborative Research: Context-Dependency in the Exploitation of Pollination Mutualisms

为什么物种之间的合作如此普遍，以及它如何在欺骗面前坚持下去，这是生物学中最大的谜团之一。该项目将探讨生态条件如何导致一个物种在受益和寄生另一个物种之间切换，使用最重要的合作案例之一，动物为植物授粉。当动物传粉者从花朵中窃取花蜜而不传递花粉时，物种之间这种关键的互利关系就可以转变为寄生关系。该项目将结合联合收割机的实地观察、操纵实验和一个在落基山脉中在授粉和欺骗之间切换的两种蜜蜂物种的模型，以确定（1）蜜蜂何时以及为什么欺骗它们访问的植物;（2）在不同的情况下，欺骗还是合作对蜜蜂更有利;以及（3）花蜜掠夺如何影响蜜蜂访问的植物的繁殖。该项目的更广泛影响包括学生培训、与公众的外联以及对主要生态系统服务的更深入了解。该项目将培养本科生、研究生和博士后研究员。计划通过博物馆、初中和高中以及科学夏令营向公众宣传。研究结果将增加对授粉的理解，这是农业和生物多样性保护的关键服务：确定授粉者不作弊的条件有助于提高作物产量和保持本地植物物种。

Why cooperation between species is so common and how it can persist in the face of cheating is one of the great enigmas in biology. This project will explore how ecological conditions can cause a species to switch between benefiting and parasitizing another species, using one of the most important cases of cooperation, the pollination of plants by animals. This key type of mutually beneficial relationship between species can switch to a parasitic relationship when animal pollinators steal nectar from flowers without transferring pollen. The project will combine field observations, manipulative experiments, and a model of two bee species that switch between pollinating and cheating in the Rocky Mountains to determine (1) when and why bees cheat the plants they visit; (2) whether cheating or cooperation benefits the bees more under different circumstances; and (3) how nectar robbing affects the reproduction of the plants that the bees visit. The broader impacts of this project include student training, outreach to the general public, and greater understanding of a major ecosystem service. The project will train undergraduate students, a graduate student, and a postdoctoral researcher. Public outreach is planned through museums, middle and high schools, and summer science camps. Results will increase understanding of pollination, a critical service for agriculture and conservation of biodiversity: identifying the conditions under which pollinators refrain from cheating could help increase crop yields and maintain native plant species.