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Plant Biol (Stuttg) 2002; 4(3): 352-359
DOI: 10.1055/s-2002-32325
Original Paper
Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart ·New York

Pollination of Angelonia cornigera Hook. (Scrophulariaceae) by Long-Legged, Oil-Collecting Bees in NE Brazil

I. C. Machado 1 , S. Vogel 2 , A. V. Lopes 1
  • 1 Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Nelson Chaves, 50.372-970 Recife, PE, Brazil
  • 2 Institut für Botanik der Universität Wien, Rennweg 14, 1030 Wien, Austria
Further Information

Publication History

June 1, 2001

January 4, 2002

Publication Date:
20 June 2002 (online)

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Abstract

The pollination of Angelonia cornigera Hook. (Scrophulariaceae) was studied in Caatinga vegetation, in the municipality of Buíque, Pernambuco state, northeastern Brazil. The plant is a perennial of open areas. Up to 60 flowers are produced in terminal, leafy racemes. The flowers are violet, strongly zygomorphic, of gullet type, with a pair of posterior pockets. Each pocket contains a patch of oil-producing glandular hairs (elaiophore). The flowers were only visited, and pollinated, by oil-collecting female bees of the Apidae-Apinae: Centris hyptidis and Tapinotaspis spec. nov. 1. These two bees differ considerably in size but they share the peculiarity of possessing one pair of disproportionately elongate legs suitable to gain access to the concealed elaiophores. In C. hyptidis, it is the front pair, whereas in T. spec. nov. 1 the mid pair of legs is elongated. T. spec. nov. 1 exhibited two modes of visiting behaviour. Angelonia cornigera is self-incompatible; it does not set fruits from spontaneous or manual self-pollination. This is the fifth observed species of the genus Angelonia whose flowers are adapted to oil-collecting bees in the Caatinga formation. Its flowers deviate in several aspects from the other studied Angelonia spp. regarding pollination relationships. New data on A. hirta and A. tomentosa are appended.

Key words

Melittophily - oil flowers - elaiophores - long-legged bees - Apidae-Apinae - Centridini - Tapinotaspidini - Caatinga

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I. C. Machado

Departamento de Botânica
Universidade Federal de Pernambuco

Av. Prof. Nelson Chaves
50.372-970 Recife
PE, Brazil

Email: imachado@npd.ufpe.br

Section Editor: G. Gottsberger

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