Plant Ecology

, Volume 193, Issue 1, pp 59–69 | Cite as

Pollination biology of a disjunct population of the endangered sandhills endemic Penstemon haydenii S. Wats. (Scrophulariaceae) in Wyoming, USA

  • Vincent J. Tepedino
  • Trent R. Toler
  • Brosi A. Bradley
  • Jessica L. Hawk
  • Terry L. Griswold
Original Paper
First Online:
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Accepted:

Abstract

We studied the breeding system and flower visitors of the endangered plant, Penstemon haydenii, at several south-central Wyoming, USA occurrences. In agreement with earlier studies of the species 300 km to the east in Nebraska, we found Wyoming plants to be self-incompatible and pollinator-dependent for sexual reproduction. Flower visitors were several species of native bees in the families Apidae (particularly bumblebees), Halictidae (small sweat bees), and Megachilidae (especially in the genus Osmia); and the masarid wasp Pseudomasaris vespoides. Especially important was Osmia brevis, an abundant megachilid bee, and one of only two species (the sweat bee Lasioglossum (Dialictus) pruinosum was the other) present at all five sites. As in Nebraska, fruit set did not differ between our experimental cross-pollination treatment and an open-pollinated control. However, unlike Nebraska, open-pollinated treatments in Wyoming produced significantly fewer seeds per fruit than the experimental out-crossing treatment. We discuss several possible explanations for seed limitation: (1) a scarcity of pollinators early in the flowering season; (2) resource competition for developing ovules on open-pollinated inflorescences but not on experimental inflorescences; (3) the deposition of self pollen through intra-inflorescence and intra-genet pollinator movements; (4) few S-alleles and mating types in the Wyoming metapopulation compared to the Nebraska metapopulation, from which it likely derives.

Keywords

Breeding system Reproductive limitation Bees Pollinators Beardtongue Rare Conservation 
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Notes

Acknowledgements

Funding was supplied by USDI-Bureau of Land Management in Rawlins WY. We especially thank Frank Blomquist of that office for discovering the plant in Wyoming in 1996, for initiating the study that made this project possible, and for providing support throughout. Bonnie Heidel, Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, Univ. of Wyoming, Laramie, was also instrumental in facilitating this research. Alice Bain helped with the fieldwork.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2006

Authors and Affiliations

  • Vincent J. Tepedino
    • 1
  • Trent R. Toler
    • 2
  • Brosi A. Bradley
    • 3
  • Jessica L. Hawk
    • 4
  • Terry L. Griswold
    • 1
  1. 1.USDA ARS Bee Biology & Systematics Lab, Department of BiologyUtah State UniversityLoganUSA
  2. 2.Department of BiologyUtah State UniversityLoganUSA
  3. 3.Juniata CollegeHuntingdonUSA
  4. 4.New OrleansUSA

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