Sex Allocation of Females and Hermaphrodites in the Gynodioecious Geranium sylvaticum

Seed production and patterns of sex allocation were studied in female and hermaphroditic plants in two gynodioecious populations of Geranium sylvaticum (Geraniaceae). Females produced more flower buds and seeds than hermaphrodites in one of the two study populations. The other female traits measured...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of botany 2003-08, Vol.92 (2), p.207-213
Main Authors: RAMULA, SATU, MUTIKAINEN, PIA
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ecological competition
Female animals
Flower buds
Flowers
Flowers - anatomy & histology
Flowers - physiology
Geraniaceae
Geranium - anatomy & histology
Geranium - physiology
gynodioecy
Key words:Geranium sylvaticum
Original
Plant reproduction
Plants
Pollen
pollen production
Reproduction
Seed production
Seeds
Seeds - physiology
Sex allocation
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Summary:Seed production and patterns of sex allocation were studied in female and hermaphroditic plants in two gynodioecious populations of Geranium sylvaticum (Geraniaceae). Females produced more flower buds and seeds than hermaphrodites in one of the two study populations. The other female traits measured (pistil biomass, seed number per fruit, individual seed mass) did not differ between the gender morphs. The relative seed fitness of hermaphrodites differed between the study populations, with hermaphrodites gaining less of their fitness through female function in the population with a high frequency of females. However, the amount and size of pollen produced by hermaphrodites did not differ between populations. The number of flower buds was positively correlated with seed production in females, whereas in hermaphrodites a positive correlation between number of buds and seed production was found in only one of the two study populations. These results suggest that fitness gain through female function is labile in hermaphrodites of this species, and is probably affected by environmental factors such as the sex ratio of the population.
ISSN:0305-7364
1095-8290
1095-8290
DOI:10.1093/aob/mcg125