Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, United States.
Curr Opin Insect Sci. 2016 Jun;15:53-60. doi: 10.1016/j.cois.2016.03.007. Epub 2016 Mar 19.
Floral scents act as long-distance signals to attract pollinators, but volatiles emitted from the vegetation and neighboring plant community may modify this mutualistic communication system. What impact does the olfactory background have on pollination systems and their evolution? We consider recent behavioral studies that address the context of when and where volatile backgrounds influence a pollinator's perception of floral blends. In parallel, we review neurophysiological studies that show the importance of blend composition and background in modifying the representation of floral blends in the pollinator brain, as well as experience-dependent plasticity in increasing the representation of a rewarding odor. Here, we suggest that the efficacy of the floral blend in different environments may be an important selective force shaping differences in pollinator olfactory receptor expression and underlying neural mechanisms that mediate flower visitation and plant reproductive isolation.
花香作为远距离信号吸引传粉者，但植被和邻近植物群落散发的挥发性物质可能会改变这种互利共生的通讯系统。嗅觉背景对授粉系统及其进化有什么影响？我们考虑了最近的行为研究，这些研究探讨了挥发性背景在何时何地影响传粉者对花卉混合物的感知的问题。同时，我们回顾了神经生理学研究，这些研究表明混合成分和背景在改变传粉者大脑中花卉混合物的表示以及与经验相关的可塑性方面的重要性，后者可以增加对有奖励气味的表示。在这里，我们认为在不同环境中花香混合物的功效可能是塑造传粉者嗅觉受体表达差异和介导花朵访问和植物生殖隔离的潜在神经机制的重要选择力量。
