Hastings Natural History Reservation

09 May, 05 PM - 16 May, 05 PM

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of co-pollinators in the coevolving interaction between Greya politella and their hosts: L. cymbalaria, L. parviflorum and L. heterophyllum. Greya politella, is close relative of yucca moths, and its several host plants has been used to evaluate the components of the geographic mosaic theory of coevolution. The geographic range of the moths extends from Montana to southwestern Colorado and from southern British Columbia to southern California. G. politella is restricted to Lithophragma throughout its range, although it uses different species in different parts of its geographic range. Ecological studies have shown that G. politella is an effective pollinator of L. parviflorum. G. politella pollinate Lithophragma plants passively while ovipositing though the corolla. G. politella has a mutualistic effect on the plant, when it pollinates, and an antagonistic effect when it eats the seeds. Whether the overall effect of the interaction is locally mutualistic depends upon the presence of co-pollinators that pollinate the flowers but do not oviposit into flowers. In some populations where co-pollinators are abundant, they can swamp the mutualistic effects of Greya on seed set. In the northern geographic range, the interaction ranges from antagonism to commensalism to mutualism among habitats. Continuing with these studies, the objective of the proposed work is to evaluate how the network structure of the interaction differs in outlier populations of the plants at the very southern and western edges of the ranges of the moths. At that range edge, the moths have shifted from their normal Lithophragma host plant (Lithophragma parviflorum) onto a different Lithophragma species (Lithophragma cymbalaria in Sedwick Reserve, and L. heterophylum in Hopland Reserve and Hasting location).

Visit #7374 @Hastings Natural History Reservation

Approved

Under Project # 5035 | Research

Effect of co-pollinators in a coevolutionary network

research_scientist - University of California, Santa Cruz

Reservation Members(s)

Mariana Cuautle May 9 - 16, 2005 (8 days)

Reserve Resources(s) | Create Invoice

Bunk House Cottage 1 May 9 - 16, 2005