High fruit sets in a rewardless orchid: a case study of obligate agamospermy in Habenaria
Wenliu Zhang A B and Jiangyun Gao A C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Laboratory of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilisation of Bio-resources in Yunnan, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan 650091, China.
B Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, Yunnan 666303, China.
C Corresponding author. Email: jiangyun.gao@ynu.edu.cn
Australian Journal of Botany 66(2) 144-151 https://doi.org/10.1071/BT17182
Submitted: 26 September 2017 Accepted: 17 February 2018 Published: 13 March 2018
Abstract
Low fruit set and pollination limitation are common characteristics of non-autogamous orchids, especially in rewardless species. The flowers of many Habenaria species are often characterised by long spurs and are mostly pollinated by long-tongued hawkmoths or butterflies. Unlike the flowers of other Habenaria species, the flowers of Habenaria malintana (Blanco) Merr. have very short spurs with no nectar or scent; however, this species is able to maintain high fecundity in south-west China. Breeding system experiments suggested that H. malintana is an obligate agamospermous orchid. Seed set did not need to be triggered by pollen grain deposition on stigmas, and ~100% fruit set was found in different populations and years. In pollen germination experiments, hand-deposited pollen failed to germinate on stigmas. The flowers of H. malintana failed to attract any pollinators, as we did not observe any floral visitors, and no pollinia removal or deposition occurred in both 2013 and 2014 at two study sites. These results strongly suggested that H. malintana has completely abandoned sexual reproduction and has adopted obligate agamospermy to achieve high reproductive output. We suggest that this strategy may have evolved to provide reproductive assurance and reduce the cost of flowers in response to unreliable pollinator service.
Additional keywords: breeding system, fruit set, Orchidaceae.
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