Pollen limitation and pollinator preferences in Scorzonera hispanica

The plant life cycle is often affected by animal-plant interactions. In insect-pollinated plants, interaction with pollinators is very important. When pollen transfer due to a lower abundance of pollinators limits seed production, selection pressures on plant traits related to plant attraction to pollinators might occur, e.g. on flowering phenology, height or number of flowerheads. Landscape changes (e.g. habitat fragmentation or changed habitat conditions) may cause plant-pollinator systems to lose balance and consequently affect population dynamics of many plant species. We studied the relationship between measured plant traits, environmental variables and pollinator preferences in Scorzonera hispanica (Asteraceae), a rare perennial, allogamous herb of open grasslands. We estimated the pollen limitation by comparing seed set of supplemental-pollinated plants with that of open-pollinated ones. Pollinators selected plants based on position within the locality (isolated plants close to trees) rather than on their traits. In spite of a high proportion of undeveloped seeds on the plants, we demonstrated that they are not pollen limited. Instead, seed set and weight of seeds was correlated with plant size traits (height and flowerhead number), with larger plants producing more and larger seeds. This suggests that the studied plants are likely resource limited. Overall, the results suggest that pollinators are not a selection factor in this system, in contrast to studies on various plant species, including self-compatible species of the Asteraceae. The lack of any effect of pollinators in the system may be caused by a strong negative effect of ungulate herbivores, which could play a decisive role in functioning of the system.