Scent divergence in functionally distinct floral and vegetative organs in carnivorous pitcher plants (Sarraceniaceae)

Abstract

Plant biochemistry often reflects trade-offs arising from interactions with different insect functional guilds, including pollinators and herbivores. In carnivorous pitcher plants, plants must mediate interactions between not only pollinators and specialist herbivores, but must simultaneously attract prey insects for supplemental nutrition. This provides an ideal system to explore the extent to which volatile biochemistry is shaped by constraints imposed by animal sensory systems. Here, we examine the sensory ecology of the New World pitcher plants and ask (i) how volatile profiles of flowers and traps covary and evolve along the Sarraceniaceae phylogeny (ii) whether scent signals show plastic changes in response to reproductive and nutritive services provided by insects, and (iii) if pollinators, prey, and herbivores vary in their ability to detect the volatiles produced by floral and vegetative trapping organs.