Abstract
BackgroundFragmentation of plant populations may affect mating patterns and female and male reproductive success. To improve understanding of fragmentation effects on plant reproduction, we investigated the pollen flow patterns in six adjacent local populations of Magnolia stellata, an insect-pollinated, threatened tree species in Japan, and assessed effects of maternal plant (genet) size, local genet density, population size and neighboring population size on female reproductive success (seed production rates), and effects of mating distance, paternal genet size, population size and separation of populations on male reproductive success.ResultsThe seed production rate, i.e. the proportion of ovules that successfully turned into seeds, varied between 1.0 and 6.5%, and increased with increasing population size and neighboring population size, and with decreasing maternal genet size and local genet density. The selfing rate varied between 3.6 and 28.9%, and increased with increasing maternal genet size and with declining local genet density. Male reproductive success increased with increasing paternal genet size, and decreased with increasing mating distance and separation of population. Pollen flow between the populations was low (6.1%) and highly leptocurtic.ConclusionsOur results indicate that habitat fragmentation, separation and reduced size of populations, affected mating patterns and reproductive success of M. stellata. Local competition for pollinators and plant display size were likely to alter the reproductive success.
Highlights
Fragmentation of plant populations may affect mating patterns and female and male reproductive success
It is especially difficult to predict the effects of population fragmentation on mating patterns and seed production of animal-pollinated trees, since the abundance and behavior of pollinators may change as the size and isolation of their populations change [11,12]
Female reproductive success The mean seed production rate for each population ranged from 0.98% to 6.50% and was 4.00% for the six populations on average (Table 1)
Summary
Fragmentation of plant populations may affect mating patterns and female and male reproductive success. To improve understanding of fragmentation effects on plant reproduction, we investigated the pollen flow patterns in six adjacent local populations of Magnolia stellata, an insect-pollinated, threatened tree species in Japan, and assessed effects of maternal plant (genet) size, local genet density, population size and neighboring population size on female reproductive success (seed production rates), and effects of mating distance, paternal genet size, population size and separation of populations on male reproductive success. The fragmentation of plant populations may decrease seed production and outcrossing rates due to limitations of mates and pollinators in the remaining, fragmented populations, potentially reducing reproductive success [1,2]. The size of trees, which is related to floral display size and resource availability, is likely to affect pollination rates and seed production
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