A review of brood-site pollination mutualism: plants providing breeding sites for their pollinators

Byline: S. Sakai (1) Keywords: Key wordsaHerbivore; Plant reproduction; Pollination; Speciation; Tropical forest Abstract: aIn this paper, I review pollination systems in which plants provide breeding sites as a reward for pollination. I divide the pollinators into three groups based upon ovipositing sites and the larval food of insects. The first group consists of ovule parasites found in only five plant lineages, e.g., the fig wasps and yucca moths, pollination systems in which pollinator specificity is very high. The second group is pollen parasitism, primarily by thrips (Thysanoptera), but specificity of the pollinators is low. In the third group, pollinator larvae (Coleoptera and Diptera) develop in decomposed flowers and inflorescences of plants and these adaptations evolved repeatedly via different pathways in various plant taxa. Pollinator specificity varies, and shifts in pollinators may occur between related or unrelated insects. Author Affiliation: (1) Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan Tel. +81-75-753-6853 Fax +81-75-753-2999 e-mail: sakai@bio.h.kyoto-u.ac.jp, JP Article note: Received: December 26, 2001 / Accepted: January 22, 2002