Pollination and Wind Dispersal of Pollen in Arceuthobium
1979
Player, Glade
The mode of pollination was studied in 2 dwarf mistletoes, Arceuthobium douglasii and A. strictum, from Utah and northern Mexico. Insect visitations to the staminate flowers of A. strictum were common. Visits were found to be rare, however, to the pistillate flowers and to either sex of A. douglasii. Pollen was found to be consistently liberated by the wind from the well—exposed anthers. Air—borne pollen concentration decreased rapidly with distance from the source. No inferences, however, could be made from the data as to dispersal distance. The paucity of insect visitations, the abundance of air—borne pollen, and the moderate to high seed set combined with the absence of apomixis (in A. douglasii) were considered evidence for an anemophilous pollination syndrome. The genus as a whole appears to be anemophilous based on the uniformity of the reproductive morphology. The floral characteristics of Arceuthobium were reevaluated with respect to their suggested role in wind pollination.
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