Nectaries and Nectar [Paperback]

Nectar is the most important reward offered by plants to pollinating animals. This book is a modern and interdisciplinary text on nectar and nectaries, prompted by the expansion of knowledge in ecological and molecular fields, and the strong recent interest in pollination biology. The topics covered vary widely: they include historical aspects, the structure and ultrastructure of nectaries and relationships to plant systematics, the dynamics of nectar secretion, nectar chemistry and the molecular biology of defence proteins, and more.

Nectar is the most important reward offered by plants to pollinating animals. This book is a modern and interdisciplinary text on nectar and nectaries, prompted by the expansion of knowledge, especially in the more ecological and now molecular fields, and the strong recent interest in pollination biology. The topics covered vary widely: they include historical aspects, the structure and ultrastructure of nectaries and relationships to plant systematics, the dynamics of nectar secretion, nectar chemistry and the molecular biology of defence proteins, adaptations to insect and vertebrate nectar consumers and consequences for pollination ecology, and broad-scale studies of nectar resources at the community level.

Contributing Authors. Preface. 1. Introduction; E. Pacini, S.W. Nicolson. 1.1 Evolutionary origins. 1.2 Secretions analogous to nectar. 1.3 Floral and extrafloral nectarines. 1.4 Nectar components. 1.5 Organization of this volume. 2. A Systematic Survey of Floral Nectaries; G. Bernardello. 2.1 Introduction. 2.2 Nectaries in gymnosperms. 2.3 Nectaries in angiosperms. 2.3.1 Diversity. 2.3.1.1 Nectar presentation. 2.3.1.2 Structure. 2.3.1.3 Fate. 2.3.1.4 Symmetry. 2.3.1.5 Number. 2.3.1.6 Colour. 2.3.2 Factors influencing nectary diversity. 2.3.3 Basic types of floral nectarines. 2.3.4 Nectariferous spurs. 2.3.5 Patterns of variability in nectarines. 2.3.5.1 Asteraceae. 2.3.5.2 Brassicaceae. 2.3.5.lc¥