Becker Rafael, Báez Oscar Perdomo, Singer Rosana Farias, Singer Rodrigo Bustos
Laboratory of Systematics of Vascular Plants, Postgraduate Program in Botany, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 91509-900, RS, Brazil.
Porto Alegre Botanical Garden, Secretaria do Meio Ambiente e Infraestrutura do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90119-900, RS, Brazil.
Plants (Basel). 2023 Mar 13;12(6):1298. doi: 10.3390/plants12061298.
Brazil is one of the centers of diversity of Cactaceae, yet studies addressing both pollination biology and the breeding system in Brazilian cacti are scarce. We herein present a detailed analysis of two native species with economic relevance: and . The first species produce edible, sweet, spineless fruits and the second species produces leaves with high protein content. Pollination studies were undertaken through fieldwork observations in three localities of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, over two flowering seasons, totaling over 130 observation hours. Breeding systems were elucidated utilizing controlled pollinations. is solely pollinated by nectar-gathering species of Sphingidae hawk moths. In contrast, the flowers of are pollinated by predominantly native Hymenoptera but also by Coleoptera and Diptera, which gather pollen and/or nectar. Both cacti species are pollinator-dependent; neither intact nor emasculated flowers turn into fruit, yet whereas is self-incompatible, is fully self-compatible. In sum, is more restrictive and specialized regarding its pollination and breeding system, whereas is more generalist. Understanding the pollination needs of these species is a necessary starting point towards their conservation but also for their proper management and eventual domestication.
巴西是仙人掌科植物多样性中心之一，但针对巴西仙人掌授粉生物学和繁殖系统的研究却很匮乏。我们在此对两种具有经济价值的本土物种进行详细分析：[物种一]和[物种二]。第一种物种结出可食用、味甜且无刺的果实，第二种物种长出蛋白质含量高的叶子。授粉研究是通过在巴西南里奥格兰德州的三个地点进行的实地观察开展的，历时两个开花季节，总计观察时长超过130小时。利用控制授粉来阐明繁殖系统。[物种一]仅由天蛾科采集花蜜的天蛾授粉。相比之下，[物种二]的花朵主要由本土膜翅目昆虫授粉，但也有鞘翅目和双翅目昆虫参与，它们采集花粉和/或花蜜。这两种仙人掌物种都依赖传粉者；完整花朵和去雄花朵都不会结果，但[物种一]是自交不亲和的，而[物种二]是完全自交亲和的。总之，[物种一]在授粉和繁殖系统方面更为严格和特殊，而[物种二]则更为通用。了解这些物种的授粉需求是对其进行保护的必要起点，同时对于它们的合理管理和最终驯化也是如此。
