Reproductive biology of Aristolochia trilobata L. (Aristolochiaceae)

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Abstract Aristolochia trilobata is a medicinal and ornamental liana that is distributed along the Caribbean coast of Central America and all over the West Indies. This species is a valuable component of the biotope, since its leaves serve as the only food for caterpillars of the vulnerable butterfly Parides ascanius. Because of rapid deforestation, the number of A. trilobata plants is decreasing. Hence, studying of A. trilobata reproductive biology is important to preserve this valuable species. We studied reproductive biology of this species in greenhouse conditions in Vladivostok. Our results indicate that the ontogeny of A. trilobata ex situ consists of the latent, pre-reproductive, and reproductive ontogenetic periods. The plants enter the reproductive period at ~3.5 years after seedling. The flowering process of each flower includes three phases: female, intermediate, and male. Protogynous flowers are adapted to cross-pollination by insects and bloom for 3 days. Their stigmas are receptive for the first 2 days of flowering. Pollen grains are spheroidal, inaperturate. When anthers open, the pollen grains rapidly germinate and this determines the fertilization success at the female phase of the anthesis. The plants can self-pollinate by geitonogamy, but the presence of a pollination agent is required. The fruit contains about 350 seeds. Rapid and synchronous seed germination, plant development to reproductive state, the regular flowering, high percentage of normal pollen, and rapid development of fruits with a high number of viable seeds indicate the high reproductive ability of A. trilobata and plants’ ability to adapt to ex situ conditions.