Algae and prey associated with traps of the Australian carnivorous plant Utricularia volubilis (Lentibulariaceae : Utricularia subgenus Polypompholyx) in natural habitat and in cultivation
2014; CSIRO Publishing; Volume: 62; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1071/bt14176
ISSN1444-9862
AutoresBartosz J. Płachno, Konrad Wołowski, Andreas Fleischmann, Allen Lowrie, Magdalena Łukaszek,
Tópico(s)Plant Molecular Biology Research
ResumoThe carnivorous plant genus Utricularia comprises three monophyletic subgenera, Polypompholyx, Bivalvaria, and Utricularia; however, all Utricularia species produce sophisticated suction traps. Most studies on the interactions between this genus and algae were performed on the derived aquatic bladderworts from Utricularia subgenus Utricularia, section Utricularia, thus our knowledge about phytotelmata in bladderworts is still limited. The main aim of our study was to examine the composition of algae and prey in phytotelmata of U. volubilis R.Br., the Australian species from subgenus Polypompholyx, that has different construction of the trap door and trigger mechanism than species studied so far within the context of trapped organisms. We examined the contents of traps collected at a natural site in Western Australia, and from cultivated material grown in a botanical garden. The traps from the natural site in Australia contained predominantly diatoms, mainly of the genus Frustulia. Young traps from the botanical garden contained mainly diatoms, xanthophytes and green algae, while in the older traps, cyanobacteria prevailed. In general these observations were in agreement with the data obtained for aquatic bladderworts from section Utricularia, thus suggesting that the type of trigger mechanism has a minor influence on the composition of the trapped algae and prey.
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