Bird-pollination: How birds have shaped the patterns in flowering times of plants in the south-eastern summer rainfall region of South Africa
When we think of pollination, insects are often the first thing that come to mind. However, birds play a significant role in the pollination of many plant species and these plants have their own characteristic suite of floral traits adapted for this interaction. Flowers that are bird-pollinated tend to be bright colours, lack scent, have a robust structure and a large volume of nectar. There is growing evidence that the traits of these plants are more specific than just being bird-adapted and that floral traits differ between the species pollinated by specialist nectivorous birds (such as sunbirds and sugarbirds) and more generalist birds (weavers, orioles, starlings etc.). The timing of flowering during the year (known as flowering phenology) is a trait that is known to be important in insect-pollination systems. Might this also be important in bird-pollination systems? How does this differ depending on if the pollinators are specialist or generalist birds? In this talk, I will present my research on the flowering phenology of bird-pollinated plant species in the south-eastern summer rainfall region of South Africa. My findings show that plants pollinated by generalist birds have a different pattern of following times to those pollinated by specialist nectivorous birds, suggesting that the specific requirements of different birds may have impacted the time when plants flower.
Additional Details
Webinar link - https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84680712240?pwd=N0ZlQ0czOVlFU2NjVkE3Tk0rK0pnUT09
Meeting ID - 846 8071 2240
Passcode - 5JufUZ
Event platform - zoom
Organizer
Lauren James is a young South African botanist, passionate about the natural world and understanding how the interactions between organisms and their environment have produced the biodiversity we have today.
Lauren started her university studies at Rhodes University where she obtained her BSc in botany and entomology, and Honours in botany. Here her botanical research focussed on pollination biology, leading to her studying bird-pollination, specifically, how different plant species are adapted to be pollinated by different types of birds.
After completing her Honours degree, Lauren was selected for an internship at the Compton Herbarium at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens in Cape Town. This grew her interest in taxonomy and systematics and led to her persuading her Masters degree at the University of Cape Town, where she is studying the systematics and evolutionary ecology of daisies in the genus Osteospermum L. (Asteraceae).
Though particularly inspired by the rich floral diversity of South Africa, Lauren has great interest in all aspects of the natural world and is keen to learn more about birds.