Biodiv Sci ›› 2025, Vol. 33 ›› Issue (4): 24554. DOI: 10.17520/biods.2024554 cstr: 32101.14.biods.2024554
• Original Papers: Plant Diversity • Previous Articles Next Articles
Wang Shunyu1,2(), Li Yang1,2(
), Lü Xiaoqin1,3(
), Li Xin1(
), Fan Quanxiu1(
), Wang Xiaoyue1,3,*(
)(
)
Received:
2024-12-09
Accepted:
2025-03-03
Online:
2025-04-20
Published:
2025-03-10
Contact:
*E-mail: wang.xiaoyue1989@163.com
Supported by:
Wang Shunyu, Li Yang, Lü Xiaoqin, Li Xin, Fan Quanxiu, Wang Xiaoyue. The color preference of bumblebee nectar robbing and its impact on the reproductive fitness of Lonicera calcarata[J]. Biodiv Sci, 2025, 33(4): 24554.
Fig. 1 Inflorescence and single flower of Lonicera calcarata and the visiting behavior of insects. A. White, yellow and orange-red flowers on the branch of L. calcarata; B. Nectar robbing phenomenon (using the white flower as an example, the hole marked with a red arrow); C. Diagram showing the measurement of floral traits (a, Upper lip length; b, Upper lip width; c, Lower lip length; d, Lower lip width; e, Floral opening diameter; f, Floral tube diamete; g, Floral tube depth; h, Nectar spur length; i, Nectar spur diameter; j, Pistil length; k, Stigma diameter; l, Stigma thickness; m, Stamen length; n, Anther length; o, Anther width; p, Anther thickness; q, Robbing hole’ length; r, Robbing hole’s width); D. Bombus melanurus forages the nectar through the corolla opening (legitimate visit); E. B. melanurus inserts its proboscis into the nectar spur’s base to rob nectar; F. B. eximius visits the flowers legitimately; G. B. eximius robs the nectar from the base of the nectar spur; H. B. sonani visits the flowers legitimately; I. B. sonani robs the nectar from the base of the nectar spur; J. Aporia agathon visits the flowers legitimately; K. Moths visits the flowers legitimately.
居群 Population | 位置 Location | 盗蜜率 Nectar robbing rate (%) | Wald χ2 | df | P | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
纬度 Latitude (°N) | 经度 Longitude (°E) | 海拔 Altitude (m) | 白色花 White flowers | 黄色花 Yellow flowers | 橘红色花 Orange-red flowers | ||||
1 | 23.14 | 104.81 | 1,939 | 15.81 ± 5.30b | 58.53 ± 13.36a | 60.88 ± 14.68a | 12.107 | 2 | 0.002 |
2 | 23.24 | 104.91 | 1,953 | 41.67 ± 22.05b | 89.71 ± 7.55a | 96.97 ± 3.03a | 12.895 | 2 | 0.002 |
3 | 23.16 | 104.82 | 1,920 | 32.82 ± 3.41b | 80.16 ± 8.40a | 83.33 ± 9.62a | 26.701 | 2 | < 0.001 |
4 | 23.19 | 104.86 | 1,930 | 16.90 ± 6.91b | 34.17 ± 19.73a | 75.35 ± 9.01a | 22.566 | 2 | < 0.001 |
5 | 23.29 | 104.76 | 1,941 | 11.97 ± 4.93b | 65.19 ± 17.12a | 72.50 ± 7.25a | 56.944 | 2 | < 0.001 |
6 | 22.69 | 105.76 | 1,817 | 35.42 ± 7.38b | 32.97 ± 7.67ab | 58.78 ± 8.58a | 8.746 | 2 | 0.013 |
7 | 22.19 | 105.16 | 1,761 | 0.00 ± 0.00c | 20.00 ± 16.33b | 38.89 ± 18.59a | 42.372 | 2 | < 0.001 |
Table 1 The locations of the seven wild populations of Lonicera calcarata and comparison of nectar robbing rates of white, yellow, and orange-red flowers in each population (generalized linear model analysis). Different lower case letters in the same row indicate significant differences in nectar robbing rate among the different color flowers.
居群 Population | 位置 Location | 盗蜜率 Nectar robbing rate (%) | Wald χ2 | df | P | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
纬度 Latitude (°N) | 经度 Longitude (°E) | 海拔 Altitude (m) | 白色花 White flowers | 黄色花 Yellow flowers | 橘红色花 Orange-red flowers | ||||
1 | 23.14 | 104.81 | 1,939 | 15.81 ± 5.30b | 58.53 ± 13.36a | 60.88 ± 14.68a | 12.107 | 2 | 0.002 |
2 | 23.24 | 104.91 | 1,953 | 41.67 ± 22.05b | 89.71 ± 7.55a | 96.97 ± 3.03a | 12.895 | 2 | 0.002 |
3 | 23.16 | 104.82 | 1,920 | 32.82 ± 3.41b | 80.16 ± 8.40a | 83.33 ± 9.62a | 26.701 | 2 | < 0.001 |
4 | 23.19 | 104.86 | 1,930 | 16.90 ± 6.91b | 34.17 ± 19.73a | 75.35 ± 9.01a | 22.566 | 2 | < 0.001 |
5 | 23.29 | 104.76 | 1,941 | 11.97 ± 4.93b | 65.19 ± 17.12a | 72.50 ± 7.25a | 56.944 | 2 | < 0.001 |
6 | 22.69 | 105.76 | 1,817 | 35.42 ± 7.38b | 32.97 ± 7.67ab | 58.78 ± 8.58a | 8.746 | 2 | 0.013 |
7 | 22.19 | 105.16 | 1,761 | 0.00 ± 0.00c | 20.00 ± 16.33b | 38.89 ± 18.59a | 42.372 | 2 | < 0.001 |
Fig. 2 Comparison of the frequency of legitimate visits (completing the pollination process) and nectar robbing behavior of Aporia agathon, moths, Bombus melanurus, B. eximius and B. sonani on Lonicera calcarata. Different uppercase letters indicate significant difference in the frequency of legitimate visits among different insects, while different lowercase letters indicate significant difference in the frequency of nectar robbing behavior among different insects. “ns” indicates no significant difference between the frequency of legitimate visit and nectar robbing behavior of the same insect (P > 0.05), while *** indicates that the nectar robbing frequency is significantly higher than the frequency of legitimate visits of the same insect (P < 0.001).
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Table 2 Comparison of floral characters between robbed and normal unrobbed flowers (white, yellow and orange-red) of Lonicera calcarata and nectar robbing hole size among these three colors flowers (mean土SE, units: mm, generalized linear model analysis). Different lowercase letters in the same row for one color flower indicate significant difference in the floral characters between robbed and normal flowers, with larger value in bold.
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Fig. 3 Comparison of nectar volume (A) and sugar concentration (B) during three flowering stages of normal and robbed Lonicera calcarata flowers. Different uppercase letters indicate significant difference in nectar volume or sugar concentration of normal L. calcarata flowers at different stages. Different lowercase letters indicate significant difference in nectar volume or sugar concentration of robbed L. calcarata at different stages. *** indicates a significant difference (P < 0.001) between two treatments at the same stage, and “ns” indicates no significant difference (P > 0.05) between two treatments at the same stage.
Fig. 4 Comparison of total number of pollen grains (A) and ovules (B) between normal and robbed flower buds of Lonicera calcarata, and comparison of seed sets among different pollination treatments (C). Normal pollen * robbed stigma, abbreviated to NP*RS; normal pollen*normal stigma, abbreviated to NP*NS; robbed pollen * normal stigma, abbreviated to RP*NS. “ns” indicates no significant difference between the different treatments (P > 0.05).
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