A novel TFL1 gene induces flowering in the mast seeding alpine snow tussock, Chionochloa pallens (Poaceae)

Foraging animals use diverse cues to locate resources. Common foraging cues have visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile or gustatory characteristics. Here, we show a foraging herbivore using infrared (IR) radiation from living plants as a host-finding cue. We present data revealing that (i) conifer cones are warmer and emit more near-, mid- and long-range IR radiation than needles, (ii) cone-feeding western conifer seed bugs, Leptoglossus occidentalis (Hemiptera: Coreidae), possess IR receptive organs and orient towards experimental IR cues, and (iii) occlusion of the insects' IR receptors impairs IR perception. The conifers' cost of attracting cone-feeding insects may be offset by occasional mast seeding resulting in cone crops too large to be effectively exploited by herbivores.

Download Full-text

The functional response of a hoarding seed predator to mast seeding

Ecology ◽

10.1890/09-1816.1 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 91 (9) ◽

pp. 2673-2683 ◽

Cited By ~ 72

Author(s):

Quinn E. Fletcher ◽

Stan Boutin ◽

Jeffrey E. Lane ◽

Jalene M. LaMontagne ◽

Andrew G. McAdam ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Response ◽

Mast Seeding ◽

Seed Predator

Download Full-text

Of mast and mean: differential-temperature cue makes mast seeding insensitive to climate change

Ecology Letters ◽

10.1111/ele.12020 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 90-98 ◽

Cited By ~ 122

Author(s):

Dave Kelly ◽

Andre Geldenhuis ◽

Alex James ◽

E. Penelope Holland ◽

Michael J. Plank ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Mast Seeding

Download Full-text

VIEWPOINT. An hypothesis to explain the linkage between kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) breeding and the mast fruiting of their food trees

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr07148 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 35 (1) ◽

pp. 1 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Andrew E. Fidler ◽

Stephen B. Lawrence ◽

Kenneth P. McNatty

Keyword(s):

Egg Yolk ◽

Ovarian Follicles ◽

Yolk Protein ◽

Egg Laying ◽

Food Plants ◽

Mast Seeding ◽

Future Research ◽

Yolk Protein Genes ◽

Hypothetical Mechanism ◽

Future Research Directions

An important goal in the intensive conservation management of New Zealand’s critically endangered nocturnal parrot, kakapo (Strigops habroptilus), is to increase the frequency of breeding attempts. Kakapo breeding does not occur annually but rather correlates with 3–5-year cycles in ‘mast’ seeding/fruiting of kakapo food plants, most notably podocarps such as rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum). Here we advance a hypothetical mechanism for the linking of kakapo breeding with such ‘mast’ seeding/fruiting. The essence of the hypothesis is that exposure to low levels of dietary phytochemicals may, in combination with hepatic gene ‘memory’, sensitise egg yolk protein genes, expressed in female kakapo livers, to oestrogens derived from developing ovarian follicles. Only in those years when the egg yolk protein genes have been sufficiently ‘pre-sensitised’ by dietary chemicals do kakapo ovarian follicles develop to ovulation and egg-laying occurs. While speculative, this hypothesis is both physiologically and evolutionarily plausible and suggests both future research directions and relatively simple interventions that may afford conservation workers some influence over kakapo breeding frequency.

Download Full-text