A. Microstoma flowers are half buried in the ground (A) or inconspicuous between rubble (B) and rocks (C, D). Photo credits: T. Rupp, B. Oelschlägel, K. Rabitschetal.
Plant Aristolochia microstoma It uses a unique trick. The flowers give off a foul-smelling, muddy odor that appears to mimic the odor of degrading insects. Flies belonging to the genus Megaceria (Phoridae) may be attracted to this smell when searching for carcasses of mating and egg-laying insects. Upon entering the flower, she becomes trapped, first pollinating the female organs and then covering the male organs. The flowers then release them intact.
“Here, A. Microstoma It releases an abnormal mixture of volatiles, including alkylpyrazine, but is rarely otherwise produced by flowering plants. Our results suggest that this is not the carrion of vertebrates, but the first known case of flowers fooling pollen with the smell of dead or rotten insects. ”Says the relevant author, Professor Stephen Detter, head of the Plant Ecology and Botanical Gardens group in Paris. Rodron University, Salzburg, Austria This study was published in an open access journal. Ecology and evolution frontier.
4-6% of flowering plants use a “deceptive pollination strategy”. We use scents, colors, and tactile sensations to reward pollen issues like nectar, pollen, mating sites, and breeding grounds, but we don’t really give them anything. .. Deception works because pollen matters do not distinguish well between rewards and imitations. Deceptive pollination is typical of many orchids, but has evolved independently in other plants as well, including the genus Aristolochia (birthwort or birthwort).
“Aristolochia contains more than 550 species worldwide, especially in the tropics and subtropics. They are mostly woody vines and perennials with showy and complex flowers and visitors. Temporarily lock up and contaminate the plant, ”said Christophneinhaus, co-author of the study. The Technical University of Dresden in Germany is building one of the largest Aristolochia collections in the world.
When pollen enters the flowers of Aristolochia chinensis, hairs lead them down into a small space where the genitals are located. Trapped inside, they deposit the pollen they carry in the female organs before the stamens mature, releasing more pollen. When the hairs blocking the entrance to the chamber die, the pollen mass can escape and a new cycle begins.
“It is known that many species of Aristolochia attract flies with the scent of flowers, for example the scent of carrion and feces of mammals, rotten plants and fungi,” said lead author Dr. Thomas Rupp. I have. A student at the University of Paris Rodron in Salzburg. “But our curiosity is A. Microstoma, a species that is only known from Greece: In contrast to other Aristolochia with striking flowers A. Microstoma Between litter and rocks there are discreet brownish flowers that are horizontal, partially buried or close to the ground. The flowers give off an unpleasant carrion-like odor and people notice them at close range. “
Sample from Rupp and colleagues A. Microstoma plants from three locations in Greece: one west of Athens and two in the Peloponnese. We collected a total of 248 arthropods, from 1,457 flowers (72% of them in the first female instar) to four families of flies to millipedes and collembolans. Women and men only Megaceria FliesM. Scalaris and members M. Angsta / Longi Costaris found that clusters of closely related species, as determined by DNA barcoding and morphology, carry pollen into the flowers. This indicates that they are regular pollinators.
Next, the authors used gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC / MS) to analyze the “bouquet” of floral scents. They discovered 16 compounds that contained volatile molecules, including highly fragrant nitrogen and sulfur. Its main ingredients included oligosulfides, which were produced by many species of plants whose pollen affairs are blowflies and bats. This is a stench that is characteristic of the breakdown of meat. Surprisingly, the other was 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (8-47% of the total composition). This is a musty scent that is typical of rice and roasted peanuts and is known to occur naturally in the beetle-degrading shell and in rodent urine. Little is known about the plants that produce this compound. A. Microstoma It mimics a rare fake “reward” to attract professional pollen affairs.
“In previous studies, A. Microstoma Because of the orientation and position of the flowers, they can be pollinated by insects that live on litter, such as. B. ants. But here it shows that this is wrong. Instead, the main pollen Megaceria “Flies” plays a role. As the name suggests, these flies feed on carrion, lay eggs on it and serve as food for the larvae. That is why it is often used as evidence for forensic medicine, ”says Dötterl.
“We show that A. Microstoma Flowers releases a simple but very unusually fragrant mixture that is not found in vertebrate carcasses or feces, but rather contains the molecule 2,5-dimethylpyrazine, which is present in dead beetles. We conclude that A. Microstoma You’re probably using a strategy that has never been reported. The flowers mimic the smell of invertebrate carrion, attracting pollen and locking it in. The unique orientation of flowers close to the ground can also help as pollinating flies look for breeding grounds and food close to the ground, e.g. B. in leaves or between rocks ”, co-author in Dresden. Professor Stephen Wanke concludes.
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For more informations:
Thomas Rupp et al., The deceptive Aristolochia microstoma flower is pollinated by flies and releases known volatiles from invertebrate carrion. Border between ecology and evolution (2021). DOI: 10.3389 / fevo.2021.658441
Quote: The first flower of this kind are the “coffin flies” (May 2021), which were received on May 21, 2021 from https://phys.org/news/2021-05-first-of-its-. 21.) Imprisoned It smells like a dead insect Kind-dead-insects-prison-coffin-coffin
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The first flower of this kind smells like a dead insect that traps a “coffin fly”.
Source link The first flower of this kind smells like a dead insect that is imprisoning a “coffin fly”.
