March 2014
Period 1 Biomedia
Summary:
A group of ecologists set out to see how wind moves pollen through isolated patches of habitat carved into a longleaf pine plantation, by staining pollen with florecent die that would drift with the wind much like native pollen. This "pollen" was inserted into boxes mounted on poles, then released as the scientists monitored local wind conditions. They were able to locate more than 80 percent of the fake pollen, which glowed under the ultraviolet light at night, discovering that both wind and the corridors between the patches of habitat matter to pollen dispersal in the longleaf pine forest. The paths of this glowing pollen were matched with output from a computer model to produce the first accurate picture of how wind moves pollen through corridors linking two patches of habitat. Conservation biologists have wanted to build conservation corridors to link isolated patches of protected land, as they are designed to improve conditions for uncommon native species living in separated habitats. Small populations in these "islands" of habitat may be killed by storms or disease. They may lack genetic diversity and be prone to inbreeding, unable to reach new habitat. The study demonstrates that influences on wind-dispersed species are more complex than previously thought. Furthermore, a research group of meteorologists and ecologists found that corridors increased the movement of wind and of their glowing artificial pollen. When the scientists counted newly dispersed plants over the 12-year experiment, they found that a corridor linking two patches of land indeed promotes the diversity of plants dispersed by wind - especially if the corridor is oriented roughly parallel to the prevailing winds. Wind speeds up in certain areas of the patches, creating an uplift of pollen, which is important because the wind tends to be faster higher above the ground. The results are especially relevant to threatened Midwestern ecosystems like grasslands, prairies and savannas, where big bluestem and milkweed are two of many native plants that loft their pollen on the wind. In conservation science, it is often assumed that wind-dispersed pollen can go everywhere, but that's not true. Wind direction, and the shape of the habitat, control where pollen goes.
Connection:
This article greatly connects with the current biology curriculum. In the status quo, we are learning how gymnosperms and angiosperms pollinate differently. Gymnosperms are wind pollinators with cones, like the longleaf pines tests in this study. They produce massive amounts of pollen that is transported by wind to other trees. The article outlines a study that shows that pollen isn’t just simply spread out in random directions, but wind direction, and the shape of the habitat. The problem is that these plants are many times spread out and isolated from each other. Thus, conservation biologists have suggested implementing corridors to ease the passage of pollen. This would allow gymnosperms to pollinate more like the angiosperms we learned about. Many angiosperms pollinate use vector pollination, that is, they expend more energy creating attractive flowers, rather than large amounts of pollen. This is so that they will attract animal pollinators such as bats and bees to pollinate their flowers for them. By implementing corridors, pollen will have a more direct route of travel to other plants, similar to the vector pollination used by angiosperms.
Author: Ellen Damschen
Published: February 24, 2014
Can you explain how the corridors work?
ReplyDeleteDear Patrick Nero,
DeleteA wildlife corridor is simply any area of habitat connecting wildlife populations separated by human activities or structures (such as roads, development, or logging). This allows an exchange of individuals between populations, which may help prevent the reduced genetic diversity that often occur within isolated populations. For example, deer commonly cross roads in order to get to other grazing land. In Alberta, Canada, an overpass was constructed to keep animals off of the busy highway.The top of the bridge is covered in the native grass of the area so that it blends in better and animals will not know the difference. Gates were also put of on either side of the overpass to help guide animals in the right direction. Thus, the deer were not limited in the locations they could repoduce.
What made the fake pollen similar to the real pollen?
ReplyDelete