Ecological Fitting: Use of Floral Nectar in Heliconia stilesii Daniels by Three Species of Hermit Hummingbirds
1987; Oxford University Press; Volume: 89; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/1368525
ISSN1938-5129
Autores Tópico(s)Insect-Plant Interactions and Control
ResumoThree species of hermit hummingbirds—a specialist (Eutoxeres aquila), a generalist (Phaethornis superciliosus), and a thief (Threnetes ruckeri)—visited the nectar-rich flowers of Heliconia stilesii Daniels at a lowland study site on the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. Unlike H. pogonantha Cufodontis, a related Caribbean lowland species with a less specialized flower, H. stilesii may not realize its full reproductive potential at this site, because it cannot retain the services of alternative pollinators such as Phaethornis. The flowers of H. stilesii appear adapted for pollination by Eutoxeres, but this hummingbird rarely visited them at this site. Lek male Phaethornis visited the flowers frequently in late May and early June, but then abandoned this nectar source in favor of other flowers offering more accessible nectar. The strong curvature of the perianth prevents access by Phaethornis to the main nectar chamber; instead they obtain only small amounts of nectar that leaks anteriorly into the belly of the flower.
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