Visual constraints in foraging bumblebees: Flower size and color affect search time and flight behavior

In optimal foraging theory, search time is a key variable defining the value of a prey type. But the sensory-perceptual processes that constrain the search for food have rarely been considered. Here we evaluate the flight behavior of bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) searching for artificial flowers of various sizes and colors. When flowers were large, search times correlated well with the color contrast of the targets with their green foliage-type background, as predicted by a model of color opponent coding using inputs from the bees' UV, blue, and green receptors. Targets that made poor color contrast with their backdrop, such as white, UV-reflecting ones, or red flowers, took longest to detect, even though brightness contrast with the background was pronounced. When searching for small targets, bees changed their strategy in several ways. They flew significantly slower and closer to the ground, so increasing the minimum detectable area subtended by an object on the ground. In addition, they used a different neuronal channel for flower detection. Instead of color contrast, they used only the green receptor signal for detection. We relate these findings to temporal and spatial limitations of different neuronal channels involved in stimulus detection and recognition. Thus, foraging speed may not be limited only by factors such as prey density, flight energetics, and scramble competition. Our results show that understanding the behavioral ecology of foraging can substantially gain from knowledge about mechanisms of visual information processing.

Brandon/Hill selected list of print books and journals for the small medical library*

After thirty-six years of biennial updates, the authors take great pride in being able to publish the nineteenth version (2001) of the “Brandon/Hill Selected List of Print Books and Journals for the Small Medical Library.” This list of 630 books and 143 journals is intended as a selection guide for health sciences libraries or similar facilities. It can also function as a core collection for a library consortium. Books and journals are categorized by subject; the book list is followed by an author/editor index, and the subject list of journals, by an alphabetical title listing. Due to continuing requests from librarians, a “minimal core list” consisting of 81 titles has been pulled out from the 217 asterisked (*) initial-purchase books and marked with daggers (†*) before the asterisks. To purchase the entire collection of 630 books and to pay for 143 2001 journal subscriptions would require $124,000. The cost of only the asterisked items, books and journals, totals $55,000. The “minimal core list” book collection costs approximately $14,300.

Dynamics of Cytokinins in Apical Shoot Meristems of a Day-Neutral Tobacco during Floral Transition and Flower Formation1

This study considered cytokinin distribution in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) shoot apices in distinct phases of development using immunocytochemistry and quantitative tandem mass spectrometry. In contrast to vegetative apices and flower buds, we detected no free cytokinin bases (zeatin, dihydrozeatin, or isopentenyladenine) in prefloral transition apices. We also observed a 3-fold decrease in the content of cytokinin ribosides (zeatin riboside, dihydrozeatin riboside, and isopentenyladenosine) during this transition phase. The group concluded that organ formation (e.g. leaves and flowers) is characterized by enhanced cytokinin content, in contrast to the very low endogenous cytokinin levels found in prefloral transition apices, which showed no organogenesis. The immunocytochemical analyses revealed a differing intracellular localization of the cytokinin bases. Dihydrozeatin and isopentenyladenine were mainly cytoplasmic and perinuclear, whereas zeatin showed a clear-cut nuclear labeling. To our knowledge, this is the first time that this phenomenon has been reported. Cytokinins do not seem to act as positive effectors in the prefloral transition phase in tobacco shoot apices. Furthermore, the differences in distribution at the cellular level may be indicative of a specific physiological role of zeatin in nuclear processes.

Negative frequency-dependent selection maintains a dramatic flower color polymorphism in the rewardless orchid Dactylorhiza sambucina (L.) Soò

The orchid Dactylorhiza sambucina shows a stable and dramatic flower-color polymorphism, with both yellow- and purple-flowered individuals present in natural populations throughout the range of the species in Europe. The evolutionary significance of flower-color polymorphisms found in many rewardless orchid species has been discussed at length, but the mechanisms responsible for their maintenance remain unclear. Laboratory experiments have suggested that behavioral responses by pollinators to lack of reward availability might result in a reproductive advantage for rare-color morphs. Consequently, we performed an experiment varying the relative frequency of the two color morphs of D. sambucina to test whether rare morph advantage acted in the natural habitat of the species. We show here clear evidence from this manipulative experiment that rare-color morphs have reproductive advantage through male and female components. This is the first demonstration, to our knowledge, that negative frequency-dependent selection through pollinator preference for rare morphs can cause the maintenance of a flower-color polymorphism.

Flower color variation: A model for the experimental study of evolution

We review the study of flower color polymorphisms in the morning glory as a model for the analysis of adaptation. The pathway involved in the determination of flower color phenotype is traced from the molecular and genetic levels to the phenotypic level. Many of the genes that determine the enzymatic components of flavonoid biosynthesis are redundant, but, despite this complexity, it is possible to associate discrete floral phenotypes with individual genes. An important finding is that almost all of the mutations that determine phenotypic differences are the result of transposon insertions. Thus, the flower color diversity seized on by early human domesticators of this plant is a consequence of the rich variety of mobile elements that reside in the morning glory genome. We then consider a long history of research aimed at uncovering the ecological fate of these various flower phenotypes in the southeastern U.S. A large body of work has shown that insect pollinators discriminate against white phenotypes when white flowers are rare in populations. Because the plant is self-compatible, pollinator bias causes an increase in self-fertilization in white maternal plants, which should lead to an increase in the frequency of white genes, according to modifier gene theory. Studies of geographical distributions indicate other, as yet undiscovered, disadvantages associated with the white phenotype. The ultimate goal of connecting ecology to molecular genetics through the medium of phenotype is yet to be attained, but this approach may represent a model for analyzing the translation between these two levels of biological organization.

Eucalypt MADS-Box Genes Expressed in Developing Flowers

Three MADS-box genes were identified from a cDNA library derived from young flowers of Eucalyptus grandis W. Hill ex Maiden. The three egm genes are single-copy genes and are expressed almost exclusively in flowers. The egm1 and egm3 genes shared strongest homology with other plant MADS-box genes, which mediate between the floral meristem and the organ-identity genes. The egm3 gene was also expressed strongly in the receptacle or floral tube, which surrounds the carpels in the eucalypt flower and bears the sepals, petals, and numerous stamens. There appeared to be a group of genes in eucalypts with strong homology with the 3′ region of the egm1 gene. The egm2 gene was expressed in eucalypt petals and stamens and was most homologous to MADS-box genes, which belong to the globosa group of genes, which regulate organogenesis of the second and third floral whorls. The possible role of these three genes in eucalypt floral development is discussed.

Tomato Flower Abnormalities Induced by Low Temperatures Are Associated with Changes of Expression of MADS-Box Genes1

Flower and fruit development in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were severely affected when plants were grown at low temperatures, displaying homeotic and meristic transformations and alterations in the fusion pattern of the organs. Most of these homeotic transformations modified the identity of stamens and carpels, giving rise to intermediate organs. Complete homeotic transformations were rarely found and always affected organs of the reproductive whorls. Meristic transformations were also commonly observed in the reproductive whorls, which developed with an excessive number of organs. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that meristic transformations take place very early in the development of the flower and are related to a significant increase in the floral meristem size. However, homeotic transformations should occur later during the development of the organ primordia. Steady-state levels of transcripts corresponding to tomato MADS-box genes TM4, TM5, TM6, and TAG1 were greatly increased by low temperatures and could be related to these flower abnormalities. Moreover, in situ hybridization analyses showed that low temperatures also altered the stage-specific expression of TM4.

Accumulation of a Clock-Regulated Transcript during Flower-Inductive Darkness in Pharbitis nil1

To clarify the molecular basis of the photoperiodic induction of flowering in the short-day plant Pharbitis nil cv Violet, we examined changes in the level of mRNA in cotyledons during the flower-inductive photoperiod using the technique of differential display by the polymerase chain reaction. A transcript that accumulated during the inductive dark period was identified and a cDNA corresponding to the transcript, designated PnC401 (P. nil C401), was isolated. RNA-blot hybridization verified that levels of PnC401 mRNA fluctuated with a circadian rhythm, with maxima between 12 and 16 h after the beginning of the dark period) and minima of approximately 0. This oscillation continued even during an extended dark period but was damped under continuous light. Accumulation of PnC401 mRNA was reduced by a brief exposure to red light at the 8th h of the dark period (night-break treatment) or by exposure to far-red light at the end of the light period (end-of-day far-red treatment). These results suggest that fluctuations in levels of PnC401 mRNA are regulated by phytochrome(s) and a circadian clock and that they are associated with photoperiodic events that include induction of flowering.

Brandon/Hill selected list of print books and journals in allied health*

This list of 424 books and 77 journals is intended as a selection guide for print literature to be used in a library supporting allied health educational programs or allied health personnel in either an academic or health care setting. Because of the impossibility of covering the large number and wide variety of allied health professions and occupations, the recommended publications are focused primarily on the educational programs listed and recognized by the American Medical Association and other accrediting bodies. Books and journals are categorized by subject; the book list is followed by an author/editor index, and the subject list of journals by an alphabetical title listing. Items suggested for initial purchase (167 books and 31 journals) are indicated by asterisks. To purchase the entire collection of books and journals (2000 subscriptions) would require an expenditure of about $31,970. The cost of only the asterisked items totals $12,515.

Expression of a flower-specific Myb protein in leaf cells using a viral vector causes ectopic activation of a target promoter.

The promoter of the bean PAL2 gene (encoding phenylalanine ammonia-lyase; EC 4.3.1.5) is a model for studies of tissue-restricted gene expression in plants. Petal epidermis is one of the tissues in which this promoter is activated in tobacco. Previous work suggested that a major factor establishing the pattern of PAL2 expression in tobacco petals is the tissue distribution of a protein closely related to Myb305, which is a Myb-like transcriptional activator from snapdragon. In the present work, we show that Myb305 expression in tobacco leaves causes ectopic activation of the PAL2 promoter. To achieve Myb305 expression in planta, a viral expression vector was used. This approach combines the utility of transient assays with the possibility of direct biochemical detection of the introduced factor and may have wider application for studying the function of plant transcription factors.