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  [Aroid-l] Some Botanical Fun
From: ju-bo at msn.com (Julius Boos) on 2007.10.25 at 10:27:03(16607)
From: bogus@does.not.exist.com ()
Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2007 21:33:25 -0000
Subject: No subject
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Dear Ted,

Thanks for another very interesting and thought-provoking posting!
I recomend that those interested read Deni Bown`s WONDERFUL book "Aroids,
plants of the arum family".
Deni has an extensive section devoted to just this aspect of aroid
reproduction, the attracting of many genera and species of insects as
pollinators. The production of heat to disperse the attractive scents is
well documented in the Araceae, but Deni lists other plant families in which
this feature has been recorded-- the Annonaceae, Arecaceae,
Aristolochiaceae, Cycadaceae, Cyclanthaceae, and Nymphaeaceae.
To stick to 'our' plants, the aroids-- there are different 'strategies' used
by different genera to first attract, then "hold" the insects within the
bloom for the period necessary for fertilization of the female flowers, and
afterward to repel them when the male pollen is being produced so that they
can take this pollen away with them to another bloom that is at female
anthesis and so now is attractive to them, thereby achieving cross
pollination of one bloom by another bloom, hopefully of the same species!
The 'holding' method in some aroids is that they produce edible structures
or in some cases, secretions upon which the beetles actually stay and feed!
These structures are usually the sterile male florets, but other items may
be involved depending on the aroid. Sterile female florets, pollen,
nectar, etc. have been recorded.
The plant gives the insects enough time to (hopefully!) fertilize the female
flowers, and take note, my friends---this is no ''passive''
activity!!!--Deni describes an episode within the spathe of a Philodendron
bipinnatifidium as being "an orgy of mating and feasting on the nutritous
sterile flowers and secretions"!!! (and WE thought that ''we'' had invented
"night clubbing"!!)
When this sordid interlude is over-- all the available food has been eaten,
the beetles appetite for sex has abated (at least for a while!!), the flower
will begin male anthesis and producing pollen, and so several methods are
used to get the insects to leave, collecting pollen as they do so, and move
on to the next bloom (night club!!!!) at female anthesis. The food supply
may just run out, or the spathe may constrict and so leave little/no
comfortable 'space' for the insects, forcing them out. In other aroids the
upper portion of the spathe curves up and away, no longer forming a
protective 'roof' over the opening. Rain showers, a nightly occurence in
the tropics, cause water to then pour down into the spathe, so for the
insects, its leave QUICKLY or swim, or drown. With further research it just
might be discovered that there is in fact some sort of repellant factor at
work in certain aroids, who knows what mysteries are out there waiting to be
discovered and solved!
I encourage those of "us" who do not own the book by Deni Bown to get one
ASAP, you will NOT regret this decision, it is all (or at least most) of
what we NEED to know about aroids, and is certainly GREAT reading! [Thanks,
Deni!!!]
Lots more research is needed in this facet of 'our' plants lives!

The Best,

Julius

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