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Plant Biol (Stuttg) 2004; 6(6): 683-688
DOI: 10.1055/s-2004-830331
Research Paper

Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart KG · New York

Reduced Fecundity in Small Populations of the Rare Plant Gentianopsis ciliate (Gentianaceae)

M. Kéry1 , 2 , 3 , D. Matthies1 , 4
  • 1Institut für Umweltwissenschaften, Universität Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland
  • 2Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey, 11510 American Holly Drive, Laurel, MD 20708, USA
  • 3Present address: Swiss Ornithological Institute, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland
  • 4Present address: Department of Biology, Plant Ecology, University of Marburg, 35032 Marburg, Germany
Further Information

Publication History

Received: November 21, 2003

Accepted: September 1, 2004

Publication Date:
29 November 2004 (online)

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Abstract

Habitat destruction is the main cause for the biodiversity crisis. Surviving populations are often fragmented, i.e., small and isolated from each other. Reproduction of plants in small populations is often reduced, and this has been attributed to inbreeding depression, reduced attractiveness for pollinators, and reduced habitat quality in small populations. Here we present data on the effects of fragmentation on the rare, self-compatible perennial herb Gentianopsis ciliata (Gentianaceae), a species with very small and presumably well-dispersed seeds. We studied the relationship between population size, plant size, and the number of flowers produced in 63 populations from 1996 - 1998. In one of the years, leaf and flower size and the number of seeds produced per fruit was studied in a subset of 25 populations. Plant size, flower size, and the number of seeds per fruit and per plant increased with population size, whereas leaf length and the number of flowers per plant did not. The effects of population size on reproduction and on flower size remained significant if the effects were adjusted for differences in plant size, indicating that they could not be explained by differences in habitat quality. The strongly reduced reproduction in small populations may be due to pollination limitation, while the reduced flower size could indicate genetic effects.

Key words

Fecundity - Gentianopsis ciliata - habitat fragmentation - rare species - population size - reproduction.

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M. Kéry

Institut für Umweltwissenschaften
Universität Zürich

Winterthurerstrasse 190

8057 Zürich

Switzerland

Email: marc.kery@vogelwarte.ch

Editor: F. R. Scarano