Pollination Ecology of Impatiens section Trimorphopetalum (Balsaminaceae) in Madagascar - Comparison of species with and without nectar reward

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Eberhard Fischer
• Subject Area: Ecology and Biodiversity of Plants and Ecosystems ; Evolution and Systematics of Plants and Fungi
• Term: from 2017 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 383680617

Madagascar is one of the global diversity centers for Impatiens with more than 260 recognized species. With 125 species a particularly large number, belonging to the section Trimorphopetalum lacks a spur, and some taxa are even cleistogamous. The aim of the project is to study the pollination biology of Impatiens rivularis, a species where already preliminary data were obtained in Madagascar (Masoala peninsula) and in cultivation in the Botanical Garden, and which is supposed to represent a deceptive flower exhibiting brood site deception. Detailed field observation of this taxon and another non-rewarding species (Impatiens silviana) together with observations of two rewarding species from the Impatiens elatostemoides group from the section Trimophopetalum (Impatiens spec. nov. A, I. spec. nov. B) will be carried out in the study site of Mt. Ambohitsitondroina, Masoala during 3 weeks. The potential pollinators will be collected and subsequently identified. Additional data on floral scent, pollen/ovule ratio, nectar production and floral morphology and display will be gathered on plants in cultivation. Brood site deception may be important among the drivers for hyperdiversification of Impatiens in Madagascar, resulting in one of the largest groups of deceptive species in core eudicots.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigator: Privatdozent Dr. Stefan Abrahamczyk