scholarly journals Possible chemical mimicry of the European lady’s slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus)

2012 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-110
Author(s):  
Tomasz Przybyłowicz ◽  
Peter Roessingh ◽  
Astrid T. Groot ◽  
J.C. (Koos) Biesmeijer ◽  
J.G.B. (Gerard) Oostermeijer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Community ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Chemical Compounds ◽  
Chemical Mimicry ◽  
Olfactory Cues ◽  
Pollinator Attraction ◽  
Pollinator Species ◽  
Cypripedium Calceolus ◽  
Slipper Orchid

Pollination based on insect deception has been debated in the scientific community since it was first reported over two hundred years ago. A vast majority of deceptive syndromes occur within the orchid family. While many cheating flowers have been described and are well known, there are still many curious cases that need further investigation. One prime example of such a case is Cypripedium calceolus, known as European lady’s slipper orchid. While the flower has been of interest to many prominent scientists for over a century, its pollination is still not fully understood. Both visual and olfactory cues seem to play an important role in pollinator attraction. In this study we focussed on the olfactory cues in order to explore their relationship (in future experiments) with floral visual cues, including the unique asymmetry of these flowers. Some of the plants’ floral fragrances were used in Electroantennography experiments. Eleven chemical compounds were applied to the antennae of Bombus terrestris and Apis mellifera. Even though these species are not regular visitors of C. calceolus, we were interested to see whether there were common principles in their responses to the flowers’ scent that might justify extrapolating to other pollinator species such as sand bees that get trapped in these orchids and fly out of the flowers afterwards with pollen smeared on their body. The results show that while both species react similarly to most of the odours, some of the tested acetates induced a significantly greater reaction in B. terrestris antennae. These acetates play an important role in bumblebee pheromones, but their relevance for the natural pollinators of C. calceolus remains to be confirmed to see whether chemical mimicry by these flowers is deliberately employed to attract pollinators.

scholarly journals Modality-specific attention in foraging bumblebees

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (10) ◽  
pp. 150324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivek Nityananda ◽  
Lars Chittka
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cues ◽  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Olfactory Cues ◽  
Attentional Demands ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Biologically Relevant ◽  
Crossmodal Attention ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Multiple Tasks ◽  
Set Up

Attentional demands can prevent humans and other animals from performing multiple tasks simultaneously. Some studies, however, show that tasks presented in different sensory modalities (e.g. visual and auditory) can be processed simultaneously. This suggests that, at least in these cases, attention might be modality-specific and divided differently between tasks when present in the same modality compared with different modalities. We investigated this possibility in bumblebees ( Bombus terrestris ) using a biologically relevant experimental set-up where they had to simultaneously choose more rewarding flowers and avoid simulated predatory attacks by robotic ‘spiders’. We found that when the tasks had to be performed using visual cues alone, bees failed to perform both tasks simultaneously. However, when highly rewarding flowers were indicated by olfactory cues and predators were indicated by visual cues, bees managed to perform both tasks successfully. Our results thus provide evidence for modality-specific attention in foraging bees and establish a novel framework for future studies of crossmodal attention in ecologically realistic settings.

scholarly journals Dynamics of Lady’s slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus L.) population at Lake Kwiecko (West Pomerania)

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maciej Korczyński ◽  
Ewa Krasicka-Korczyńska
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Endangered Species ◽  
Rare Species ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Good Condition ◽  
Hydroelectric Power Plant ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Hydroelectric Power ◽  
Cypripedium Calceolus ◽  
Slipper Orchid

Abstract Cypripedium calceolus is considered an endangered species in the territory of Poland. Population of this rare species, situated at Lake Kwiecko (Western Pomerania), was regularly monitored in the years 1986-2013. The studied population has been under the permanent influence of the nearby hydroelectric power plant for almost 45 years. The field observations showed that the power plant had no negative impact on the condition of Cypripedium calceolus population. An indication of its good condition was, among others, an increase in the size - from 150 to 350 specimens within the study period.

scholarly journals Food Avoidance Learning in Squirrel Monkeys and Common Marmosets

1998 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-203
Author(s):  
Matthias Laska ◽  
Karin Metzker
Keyword(s):  
Avoidance Learning ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Squirrel Monkeys ◽  
Olfactory Cues ◽  
Saimiri Sciureus ◽  
Common Marmosets ◽  
Food Avoidance ◽  
Robust Learning ◽  
Olfactory Cue ◽  
Potential Food

Using a conditioned food avoidance learning paradigm, six squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) and six common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) were tested for their ability to (1) reliably form associations between visual or olfactory cues of a potential food and its palatability and (2) remember such associations over prolonged periods of time. We found (1) that at the group level both species showed one-trial learning with the visual cues color and shape, whereas only the marmosets were able to do so with the olfactory cue, (2) that all individuals from both species learned to reliably avoid the unpalatable food items within 10 trials, (3) a tendency in both species for quicker acquisition of the association with the visual cues compared with the olfactory cue, (4) a tendency for quicker acquisition and higher reliability of the aversion by the marmosets compared with the squirrel monkeys, and (5) that all individuals from both species were able to reliably remember the significance of the visual cues, color and shape, even after 4 months, whereas only the marmosets showed retention of the significance of the olfactory cues for up to 4 weeks. Furthermore, the results suggest that in both species tested, illness is not a necessary prerequisite for food avoidance learning but that the presumably innate rejection responses toward highly concentrated but nontoxic bitter and sour tastants are sufficient to induce robust learning and retention.

Smelling home: a good solution for burrow-finding in nocturnal petrels?

2002 ◽  
Vol 205 (16) ◽  
pp. 2519-2523 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Bonadonna ◽  
Vincent Bretagnolle
Keyword(s):  
Olfactory System ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Zinc Sulphate ◽  
Olfactory Cues ◽  
Nocturnal Activity ◽  
Complete Darkness ◽  
Visual Guidance ◽  
Nest Recognition ◽  
Return Home ◽  
Nesting Habits

SUMMARY Many burrowing petrels are able to return to their nests in complete darkness. The well-developed anatomy of their olfactory system and the attraction that food-related odour cues have for some petrel species suggest that olfaction may be used to recognize the burrow. In contrast,surface-nesting petrels may rely on visual cues to recognise their nest. We performed experiments on nine species of petrel (with different nesting habits) rendered anosmic either by plugging the nostrils or by injecting zinc sulphate onto the nasal epithelium. Compared with shamtreated control birds,we found that anosmia impaired nest recognition only in species that nest in burrows and that return home in darkness. Therefore, petrels showing nocturnal activity on land may rely on their sense of smell to find their burrows, while petrels showing diurnal activity or surface nesters may disregard olfactory cues in favour of visual guidance.

scholarly journals Does the Rarity of a Flower’s Scent Phenotype in a Deceptive Orchid Explain Its Pollination Success?

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herbert Braunschmid ◽  
Stefan Dötterl
Keyword(s):  
Floral Scent ◽  
Dynamic Headspace ◽  
Pollinator Attraction ◽  
Frequency Dependent ◽  
Frequency Dependent Selection ◽  
Pollination Success ◽  
Cypripedium Calceolus ◽  
Negative Frequency Dependent Selection ◽  
Plant Pollinator ◽  
Two Populations

Floral scent, a key mediator in plant–pollinator interactions, varies not only among plant species, but also within species. In deceptive plants, it is assumed that variation in floral scents and other traits involved in pollinator attraction is maintained by negative frequency-dependent selection, i.e., rare phenotypes are more attractive to pollinators and hence, have a higher fitness than common phenotypes. So far, it is unknown whether the rarity of multivariate and/or continuous floral scent traits influences the pollination success of flowers. Here, we tested in the deceptive orchid Cypripedium calceolus, whether flowers with rarer scent bouquets within a population have a higher chance to getting pollinated than flowers with more common scents. We collected the scent of more than 100 flowers in two populations by dynamic headspace and analyzed the samples by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC/MS). From the same flowers we also recorded whether they set a fruit or not. We introduced rarity measures of uni- and multivariate floral scent traits for single flowers, which allowed us to finally test for frequency-dependent pollination, a prerequisite for negative frequency-dependent selection. Our results do not show rarity has an effect on the likelihood to set fruits in neither of the two populations and in none of the scent characteristics analyzed. Hence, there is no evidence of negative frequency-dependent pollination mediated by the floral scent of C. calceolus. We discuss that our approach to determine rarity of a scent is applicable to any univariate or multivariate (semi)quantitative trait.

scholarly journals Negative Effects of the Neonicotinoid Clothianidin on Foraging Behavior and Antennal Sensitivity in Two Common Pollinator Species, Osmia bicornis and Bombus terrestris

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Straub ◽  
Ihotu Joy Orih ◽  
Judith Kimmich ◽  
Manfred Ayasse
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Behavior ◽  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Osmia Bicornis ◽  
Pollinator Species ◽  
Species Richness And Abundance ◽  
Major Factors ◽  
Insect Species Richness ◽  
Foraging Flight

Insect species richness and abundance has declined rapidly over the last few decades. Various stressors, such as the conversion of natural habitats, climate change, land-use intensification, agrochemicals and pathogens, are thought to be major factors in this decline. We treated female bees of two common pollinator species in Europe, Osmia bicornis and Bombus terrestris, with a field-realistic dose of the neonicotinoid clothianidin. We tested its effects on the foraging behavior of O. bicornis under semi-natural conditions and on the antennal sensitivity of both bee species to common floral volatiles by using electroantennography. Clothianidin negatively affected the foraging behavior in O. bicornis by decreasing the number of flowers visited per foraging flight and by increasing the time per flower visit and the searching time between two flowers. It also decreased the antennal sensitivity to 2-phenylethanol in the two bee species. Thus, clothianidin is clearly a threat for bees via its effects on their foraging behavior and antennal sensitivity and is hence probably detrimental for pollination and the reproductive success of bees.

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