Abstract Detail

Reproductive Processes

Mendoza-Pérez, Ana Luz [1], Figueroa-Castro, Dulce [2].

Resource availability and vegetative reproduction of Pinguicula heterophylla (Lentibulariaceae) in south Mexico.

Asexual reproduction is a common phenomenon in plants. In several species, clones are produced on specialized horizontal stems such as rhizomes or stolones. Diverse studies have found a positive relationship between resource availability and the development of clonal growth. Both aerial and underground biomass have been found to be positively correlated with the number or the size of the clones produced. In carnivore plants, a positive relationship between the number of preys captured and clonal growth has been documented. However, there are not studies evaluating the importance of resource availability (measured as plant biomass) and the development of clonal growth in plants with the carnivore habit. Pinguicula heterophylla (Lentibulariaceae) is a carnivorous plant endemic to Mexico, which produces clones on the tip of the leaves. The objective of this study was to evaluate the importance of resource availability (measured as both aerial and underground plant biomass) on clonal growth of P. heterophylla. The study was conducted in the town of Santa Catarina Lachatao, within the state of Oaxaca, in south Mexico. Forty individuals with size and clonal growth condition (presence vs. absence) variable were collected. Number of clones, as well as diverse measures of both aerial (number of leaves; leaf length, width and area; and total leaf area per individual plant) and underground (hibernacle length, width, depth, area and volume; and dry weight) biomass were quantified from each individual plant. To establish if resource availability was associated with the clonal growth condition (presence vs. absence) of each individual, independent samples t-tests were applied for each variable. Moreover, a stepwise regression was used to determine which biomass variables were associated with the production of clones. Leaf number, total leaf area per individual, as well as hibernacle length and area were significantly greater in plants with clonal growth. All other variables were not significantly different between individuals with contrasting clonal growth condition. Regression analysis showed that leaf length and number of leaves per individual were the biomass variables that explained most (43%) of the variation in the number of clones produced by each individual plant. Our results suggest that resources available within both aerial and underground plant organs have an important role favoring asexual reproduction in P. heterophylla; however, it seems that the number of clones produced by each plant is exclusively dependent from aerial biomass.

1 - Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Laboratorio de Interacciones Ecológicas, lhili15.19a@gmail.com, lhili15@hotmail.com, Puebla, Puebla, 72570, México
2 - Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Laboratorio de Interacciones Ecológicas, figgery@gmail.com, dulce.figueroa@correo.buap.mx, Puebla, Puebla, 72570, México

Keywords:
clonal growth
aerial biomass
underground biomass
carnivorous plant.

Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P3, Reproductive Processes Posters
Location: Virtual/Virtual
Date: Wednesday, July 21st, 2021
Time: 5:00 PM(EDT)
Number: P3RP002
Abstract ID:496
Candidate for Awards:None