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Brood pollination mutualism between cryptic‐flower Aspidistra and pollen‐parasite midges.

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Title: Brood pollination mutualism between cryptic‐flower Aspidistra and pollen‐parasite midges.
Authors: Sun, Zhong‐Yi1 (AUTHOR), Lin, Chun‐Rui2 (AUTHOR), Huang, Shuang‐Quan1 (AUTHOR) hsq@ccnu.edu.cn
Source: New Phytologist. Mar2026, Vol. 249 Issue 5, p2588-2597. 10p.
Subjects: Gall midges, Pollination by insects, Mycetophilidae, Pollen viability, Asparagaceae, Insect pollinators, Flowers, Angiosperms
Abstract: Summary: Brood pollination mutualisms are obligate interactions in which the specialized insect generally evolves parasitism of its pollinated flower, but whether pollen parasitism could also evolve in nursery pollination systems remains little known.Aspects of pollination, particularly floral phenology and anthesis, as well as feeding habits and life cycles of pollinators, were examined in seven species of Aspidistra (Asparagaceae), in which flowers of most species are cryptic, usually covered by forest litter.The 9‐yr field study found that at least six species were pollinated by fungus gnats (Mycetophilidae, Sciaridae) or gall midges (Cecidomyiidae), and their larvae were pollen parasites of the pollinated flowers. As illustrated here, Aspidistra saxicola was exclusively pollinated by a female midge, whose adults fed on pollen and oviposited in flowers, and whose larvae developed in 3–4 d on a diet of the pollen within the corolla. The timing of the midges' life cycle matched the flowering phase of pollen provision for 4–7 d.Unlike previously reported obligate brood pollination mutualisms, in which larvae are seed predators, the sole pollinators, gall midges or fungus gnats, are completely dependent on pollen in multiple species of Aspidistra, illustrating a new fly‐pollinated pollen‐parasite mutualism in angiosperms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of New Phytologist is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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DbLabel: Engineering Source
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  Data: Brood pollination mutualism between cryptic‐flower Aspidistra and pollen‐parasite midges.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Sun%2C+Zhong‐Yi%22">Sun, Zhong‐Yi</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lin%2C+Chun‐Rui%22">Lin, Chun‐Rui</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Huang%2C+Shuang‐Quan%22">Huang, Shuang‐Quan</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> hsq@ccnu.edu.cn</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22New+Phytologist%22">New Phytologist</searchLink>. Mar2026, Vol. 249 Issue 5, p2588-2597. 10p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Gall+midges%22">Gall midges</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pollination+by+insects%22">Pollination by insects</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mycetophilidae%22">Mycetophilidae</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pollen+viability%22">Pollen viability</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asparagaceae%22">Asparagaceae</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Insect+pollinators%22">Insect pollinators</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Flowers%22">Flowers</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Angiosperms%22">Angiosperms</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Summary: Brood pollination mutualisms are obligate interactions in which the specialized insect generally evolves parasitism of its pollinated flower, but whether pollen parasitism could also evolve in nursery pollination systems remains little known.Aspects of pollination, particularly floral phenology and anthesis, as well as feeding habits and life cycles of pollinators, were examined in seven species of Aspidistra (Asparagaceae), in which flowers of most species are cryptic, usually covered by forest litter.The 9‐yr field study found that at least six species were pollinated by fungus gnats (Mycetophilidae, Sciaridae) or gall midges (Cecidomyiidae), and their larvae were pollen parasites of the pollinated flowers. As illustrated here, Aspidistra saxicola was exclusively pollinated by a female midge, whose adults fed on pollen and oviposited in flowers, and whose larvae developed in 3–4 d on a diet of the pollen within the corolla. The timing of the midges' life cycle matched the flowering phase of pollen provision for 4–7 d.Unlike previously reported obligate brood pollination mutualisms, in which larvae are seed predators, the sole pollinators, gall midges or fungus gnats, are completely dependent on pollen in multiple species of Aspidistra, illustrating a new fly‐pollinated pollen‐parasite mutualism in angiosperms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of New Phytologist is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1111/nph.70859
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 10
        StartPage: 2588
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      – SubjectFull: Gall midges
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pollination by insects
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mycetophilidae
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pollen viability
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Asparagaceae
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Insect pollinators
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Flowers
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Angiosperms
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Brood pollination mutualism between cryptic‐flower Aspidistra and pollen‐parasite midges.
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            NameFull: Sun, Zhong‐Yi
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            NameFull: Lin, Chun‐Rui
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            NameFull: Huang, Shuang‐Quan
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            – D: 01
              M: 03
              Text: Mar2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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