Includes bibliographical references (p. [663]-750) and indexes.
Contents:
Essentials of flower design and function -- Why pollination is interesting -- Floral design and function -- Pollination, mating, and reproduction in plants -- Evolution of flowers, pollination, and plant diversity -- Floral advertisements and floral rewards -- Advertisements 1: visual signals and floral color -- Advertisements 2: olfactory signals -- Rewards 1: the biology of pollen -- Rewards 2: the biology of nectar -- Other floral rewards -- Rewards and costs: the environmental economics of pollination -- Pollination syndromes? -- Types of flower visitors: syndromes, constancy, and effectiveness -- Generalist flowers and generalist visitors -- Pollination by flies -- Pollination by butterflies and moths -- Pollination by birds -- Pollination by bats -- Pollination by nonflying vertebrates and other oddities -- Pollination by bees -- Wind and water: abiotic pollination -- Syndromes and webs: specialists and generalists -- Floral ecology -- The timing and patterning of flowering -- Living with other flowers: competition and pollination ecology -- Cheating by flowers: cheating the visitors and cheating other flowers -- Flower visitors as cheats and the plants' responses -- The interactions of pollination and herbivory -- Pollination using florivores: from brood site mutualism to active pollination -- Pollination in different habitats -- The pollination of crops -- The global pollination crisis.
Summary:
his beautifully illustrated book describes how flowers use colors, shapes, and scents to advertise themselves; how they offer pollen and nectar as rewards; and how they share complex interactions with beetles, birds, bats, bees, and other creatures. The ecology of these interactions is covered in depth, including the timing and patterning of flowering, competition among flowering plants to attract certain visitors and deter others, and the many ways plants and animals can cheat each other. --from publisher description.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.