Structural diversity of elaiophores in Argentine species of Malpighiaceae: morphology, anatomy, and interaction with pollinators

Abstract

Most Neotropical Malpighiaceae species are characterized by having zygomorphic flowers and oil glands in the sepals called elaiophores; these floral characteristics are associated with a particular pollination syndrome through oil-collecting bees. This work proposes a study about the structural characteristics of elaiophores in 18 species of Malpighiaceae present in Argentina. The main objectives are to describe the morphology and anatomy of the elaiophores, to detect variation in the number of glands, to compare similarities or differences in elaiophores of species belonging to different lineages, and to know about the potential pollinators and their association with the structural traits of the elaiophores. The morphology and the anatomy were studied using traditional methods of scanning electron and bright-field microscopes. Field trips were carried out to capture oil-collecting bee species on flowers, in different natural populations. Different measurements were taken in the flowers, elaiophores, and oil-collecting bees and were statistically analyzed. Although elaiophores showed a common pattern, some particularities in number, morphology, and anatomy were detected; few of these seem to be restricted to some groups of species phylogenetically related. As regards pollinators, a positive tendency was observed between the size of the flowers, elaiophores, and oil-collecting bees. However, the thickness of the cuticle presented a negative association with the size of the elaiophore and consequently with the floral diameter, which could be presumably related to the foraging behavior and/or the structure of oil-collecting apparatus of the bee species.