Insects (May 2021)
Warm Temperatures Reduce Flower Attractiveness and Bumblebee Foraging
Abstract
(1) Background: Plants attract pollinators using several visual signals, mainly involving the display, size, shape, and color of flowers. Each signal is relevant for pollinators foraging for floral rewards, pollen, and nectar. Changes in floral signals and rewards can be induced by an increase in temperature, drought, or other abiotic stresses and are expected to increase as global temperatures rise. In this study, we explored how pollinators respond to modified floral signals and rewards following an increase in temperature; (2) Methods: We tested the effects of warmer temperatures on bee-pollinated starflower (Borago officinalis, Boraginaceae) and determined the behavior of one of its main pollinators, the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris). We measured visual floral traits (display and size) and rewards (nectar and pollen) for plants cultivated at 21 °C or 26 °C. We investigated bumblebee behavior by tracking insect visits in a binary choice experiment in an indoor flight arena; (3) Results: Plants cultivated at 26 °C exhibited a smaller floral area (i.e., corolla sizes summed for all flowers per plant, 34.4 ± 2.3 cm2 versus 71.2 ± 2.7 cm2) and a greater flower height (i.e., height of the last inflorescence on the stem, 87 ± 1 cm versus 75 ± 1 cm) compared to plants grown at 21 °C. Nectar production per flower was lower in plants grown at 26 °C than in plants grown at 21 °C (2.67 ± 0.37 µL versus 4.15 ± 0.22 µL), and bumblebees visited flowers from plants grown at 26 °C four times less frequently than they visited those from plants grown at 21 °C; (4) Conclusions: These results show that warmer temperatures affect floral signals and reduce overall floral resources accessible to pollinators. Thus, the global increases in temperature caused by climate change could reduce plant pollination rates and reproductive success by reducing flower visitation.
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