Breeding systems of the Japanese-endemic carnivorous sundew species Drosera makinoi and Drosera toyoakensis (Droseraceae)

In response to unfavorable environmental conditions, some Drosera species in the northern hemisphere do not open their flowers but form bud-like flowers. The bud-like flowers exhibit pseudo-cleistogamous behavior and produce similar numbers of seeds as open flowers. However, it is not clear how common this type of reproduction is in the genus Drosera. In this study, we examined the effects of flowering (opening flowers/forming bud-like flowers) and pollinator visitation on seed production in Drosera makinoi and D. toyoakensis, two endemic species in Japan. D. makinoi and D. toyoakensis plants did not open 20%-40% chasmogamous flowers to form bud-like flowers. The numbers of mature seeds produced by bud-like flowers were significantly lower than those produced by open flowers (0%-2% of open flowers). In D. makinoi, the percentage of bud-like flowers correlated negatively with the seed production per plant, suggesting that the production of bud-like flowers decreased the lifetime reproductive success. In both D. makinoi and D. toyoakensis, pollinator-excluded flowers produced similar numbers of seeds as control flowers. Our results suggest that pseudo-cleistogamy does not occur in D. makinoi and D. toyoakensis, and they produce seeds without pollinator visits once flowers open.

Automated summary

This study found that the production of bud-like flowers in two endemic Drosera species in Japan negatively affects seed production per plant, and that pollinator-excluded flowers produce similar numbers of seeds as control flowers.