ORCID Profile
0000-0003-2446-8794
Current Organisations
University of Naples Federico II
,
Curtin University
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Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 31-01-2023
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 31-08-2021
DOI: 10.1101/2021.08.30.458254
Abstract: Natural pollination of species belonging to the pantropical orchid genus Vanilla remains poorly understood. Based on sporadic records, euglossine bees have been observed visiting flowers of Neotropical Vanilla species. Our research aimed at better understanding the pollinator attraction mechanism of the Neotropical species Vanilla pompona , a crop wild relative with valuable traits for vanilla crop improvement programs. Using video footage, we identified floral visitors and examined their behavior. The flowers of V. pompona attracted Eulaema cingulata males, which distinctively displayed two behaviors: floral scent collection and nectar search with the latter leading to pollen removal. Morphological measurements of floral and visitor traits showed that other Eulaema species may also act as potential pollinators. Additionally, we recorded natural fruit set in three populations and over a period of two years, tested for nectar presence and analyzed floral fragrances through gas chromatography - mass spectrometry. We observed a low natural fruit set (2.42%) and did not detect nectar. Twenty floral volatile compounds were identified, with the dominant compound trans-carvone oxide previously found to attract Eulaema cingulata males. We hypothesize a dual attraction of Eulaema cingulata males to V. pompona flowers, based on floral fragrance reward as the primary long-distance attraction, and food deception for successful pollen removal. Further research confirming this hypothesis is recommended to develop appropriate conservation policies for Vanilla crop wild relatives, which are the primary reserves of this crop’s genetic variation.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 22-07-2020
DOI: 10.3390/D12080286
Abstract: Floral deception has been observed in several genera in angiosperms, but is most common in the Orchidaceae. Pollination mechanisms in food deceptive plants are often difficult to assess, as visitation frequency by insects requires numerous hours of field observations to ascertain. Here, for the first time, we describe in detail and validate a simple and effective method that extends previous approaches to increase the effectiveness of pollination studies of food deceptive orchids. We used an orchid of southwest Australia, Diuris brumalis (Orchidaceae), that visually mimics model plants belonging to the genus Daviesia (Faboideae). Arrays of orchid flowers were placed and moved systematically in proximity to model plants, resulting in rapid attraction of the pollinators of D. brumalis. We compared pollinaria removal (as an indicator of pollination success) in naturally growing orchids with pollinaria removal in arrays of orchid flowers in the same sites. We showed that the proposed method greatly enhances pollinator attractiveness in food deceptive systems with very low pollination rates, and we compared its efficiency with other similar methods. The approach can be used for observing pollinator behavioural patterns and confirming effective pollinators for food deceptive species with low insect visitation rates.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 30-06-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0253838
Abstract: Bee venom (BV) is the most valuable product harvested from honeybees ($30 - $300 USD per gram) but marginally produced in apiculture. Though widely studied and used in alternative medicine, recent efforts in BV research have focused on its therapeutic and cosmetic applications, for the treatment of degenerative and infectious diseases. The protein and peptide composition of BV is integral to its bioactivity, yet little research has investigated the ecological factors influencing the qualitative and quantitative variations in the BV composition. Bee venom from Apis mellifera ligustica (Apidae), collected over one flowering season of Corymbia calophylla (Myrtaceae marri) was characterized to test if the protein composition and amount of BV variation between sites is influenced by i) ecological factors (temperature, relative humidity, flowering index and stage, nectar production) ii) management (nutritional supply and movement of hives) and/or iii) behavioural factors. BV s les from 25 hives across a 200 km-latitudinal range in Southwestern Australia were collected using stimulatory devices. We studied the protein composition of BV by mass spectrometry, using a bottom-up proteomics approach. Peptide identification utilised sequence homology to the A . mellifera reference genome, assembling a BV peptide profile representative of 99 proteins, including a number of previously uncharacterised BV proteins. Among ecological factors, BV weight and protein ersity varied by temperature and marri flowering stage but not by index, this latter suggesting that inter and intra-year flowering index should be further explored to better appreciate this influence. Site influenced BV protein ersity and weight difference in two sites. Bee behavioural response to the stimulator device impacted both the protein profile and weight, whereas management factors did not. Continued research using a combination of proteomics, and bio-ecological approaches is recommended to further understand causes of BV variation in order to standardise and improve the harvest practice and product quality attributes.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-11-2021
DOI: 10.1111/BTP.13034
Abstract: Natural pollination of Vanilla species remains poorly understood. Our research aimed at better understanding the pollinator attraction mechanism of the Neotropical species Vanilla pompona . Based on our results, we hypothesize that the identified pollinator Eulaema cingulata is attracted via a dual mechanism combining floral fragrance rewards and food deception. Abstract in Spanish is available with online material.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.9759
Abstract: Flowers have many traits to appeal to pollinators, including ultraviolet (UV) absorbing markings, which are well‐known for attracting bees at close proximity (e.g., m). While striking UV signals have been thought to attract pollinators also from far away, if these signals impact the plant pollinia removal over distance remains unknown. Here, we report the case of the Australian orchid Diuris brumalis , a nonrewarding species, pollinated by bees via mimicry of the rewarding pea plant Daviesia decurrens . When distant from the pea plant, Diuris was hypothesized to enhance pollinator attraction by exaggeratedly mimicking the floral ultraviolet (UV) reflecting patterns of its model. By experimentally modulating floral UV reflectance with a UV screening solution, we quantified the orchid pollinia removal at a variable distance from the model pea plants. We demonstrate that the deceptive orchid Diuris attracts bee pollinators by emphasizing the visual stimuli, which mimic the floral UV signaling of the rewarding model Daviesia . Moreover, the exaggerated UV reflectance of Diuris flowers impacted pollinators' visitation at an optimal distance from Da. decurrens , and the effect decreased when orchids were too close or too far away from the model. Our findings support the hypothesis that salient UV flower signaling plays a functional role in visual floral mimicry, likely exploiting perceptual gaps in bee neural coding, and mediates the plant pollinia removal at much greater spatial scales than previously expected. The ruse works most effectively at an optimal distance of several meters revealing the importance of salient visual stimuli when mimicry is imperfect.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-08-2020
No related grants have been discovered for Daniela Scaccabarozzi.