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Does pollen limitation affect population growth of the endangered Dracocephalum austriacum L.?

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Population Ecology

Abstract

Reproductive strategies can have significant consequences for the viability of plant populations. Still, the effects of lower fruit set due to pollen limitation on plant demography and population persistence have rarely been explored. The objectives of this study were to assess the ecological factors determining female reproductive success and to study the impact of pollen limitation on population growth of Dracocephalum austriacum L. (Lamiaceae), a critically endangered species with a discontinuous distribution across Europe. Despite the significant background information gathered on the population dynamics and genetic diversity of D. austriacum, little is known about its reproductive strategy and the effect it has on population growth. Thus, the reproductive system, pollinator assemblage and pollen limitation were studied in natural populations and the impact of pollen-limited seed production on population growth was assessed using existing transition matrix models. The results revealed that D. austriacum is protandrous self-compatible species that produces very few seeds in the absence of pollinators. The flowers are visited by several insects, including legitimate pollinators (e.g., Bombus hortorum, Osmia spp.) and nectar robbers (other Bombus spp., O. aurulenta). Fruit and seed production was significantly pollen-limited in all populations studied. However, despite the positive effect of pollen supplementation on seed production, the resulting increase in seed number did not significantly increase population growth rates in any of the studied populations. Hence, we conclude that populations are demographically stable and current natural seed production is sufficient for the species’ persistence.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by GAČR P505/10/0593, postdoc GAČR project 13-10850P, by a long-term research development project no. RVO 67985939, institutional project MŠMT and by FCT and European Social Fund with the fellowship FCT/BPD/41200/2007 and IF/01267/2013 Starting grant to SC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CFE, Centre for Functional Ecology and Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal

    Sílvia Castro

  2. Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Zámek 1, 252 43, Průhonice, Czech Republic

    Sílvia Castro, Tomáš Dostálek & Zuzana Münzbergová

  3. Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Benátská 2, 128 01, Prague, Czech Republic

    Sílvia Castro, Tomáš Dostálek & Zuzana Münzbergová

  4. Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), University of Amsterdam, PO Box 94062, 1090 GB, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Sascha van der Meer & Gerard Oostermeijer

  5. Department of Plant Conservation and Population Biology, KU Leuven, University of Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 31, 3001, Heverlee, Belgium

    Sascha van der Meer

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  1. Sílvia Castro
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  2. Tomáš Dostálek
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Correspondence to Sílvia Castro.

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Castro, S., Dostálek, T., van der Meer, S. et al. Does pollen limitation affect population growth of the endangered Dracocephalum austriacum L.?. Popul Ecol 57, 105–116 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10144-014-0458-x

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