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Floral herbivory at different stages of flower development changes reproduction in Iris gracilipes (Iridaceae)

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Abstract

Floral herbivores and pollinators are major determinants of plant reproduction. Because interaction of floral herbivores and pollinators occurs when herbivores attack the flowers in the bud and flower stages and because the compensatory ability of plants is known to differ according to the timing of herbivory, the effects of herbivory may differ according to its timing. In this study, we investigated the effects of floral herbivory at different stages on fruit production and seed/ovule ratio at two sites of large populations of the perennial herb, Iris gracilipes for 2 years. Herbivory at the bud and fruit stages both tended to have negative effects on fruit production, but the former caused more severe damage. On the other hand, herbivory at the flower stage tended not to have negative effects on fruit production because the degree of flower loss was smaller in the flower stage. Although herbivory decreased fruit production, flowers did not compensate for the damage by increasing the seed/ovule ratio because reproduction of I. gracilipes was limited by pollen availability rather than resources. These results indicate that floral herbivory at different stages has different effects on plant reproduction.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Satoshi Chiba for reading an early version of this paper; Onno Muller for improving the English and helpful comments; Tohru Nakashizuka, Kouki Hikosaka, Shimpei Oikawa, Tomoyuki Itagaki, Hisashi Tsujisawa, Yuka Suzuki, and Yuka Uchino for their valuable suggestions; Yasuhiko Konno for identifying the floral herbivore; and Jun Yokoyama and Noriyuki Osada for advice on identifying floral herbivores.

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  1. Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, 980-8578, Japan

    Michio Oguro & Satoki Sakai

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  1. Michio Oguro
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  2. Satoki Sakai
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Correspondence to Michio Oguro.

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Oguro, M., Sakai, S. Floral herbivory at different stages of flower development changes reproduction in Iris gracilipes (Iridaceae). Plant Ecol 202, 221–234 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-008-9461-7

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