Bee-flies (Bombylius spp., Bombyliidae, Diptera) and the pollination of flowers
Abstract
The paper reviews briefly the presently available information on bee-flies (Bombylius, Bombyliidae, Diptera) and their role in the pollination of flowers. It combines literature data and the results of field studies carried out over three consecutive flowering seasons in the surroundings of Vienna (Lower Austria). Field work concentrated on factors affecting flower visit frequencies of bee-flies to evaluate their role as potential pollinators. The results indicate that the significance of bee-flies in pollination is commonly undervalued. Though there are no plants that are exclusively pollinated by bee-flies and though a clearly defined type of "bee-fly flower" does not exist, significant relations between bee-flies and flower size, shape and coloration can be recognized. Bee-flies visit numerous taxa of different families, but prefer groups with hypocrateriform, tubular, disk and lip flowers, while other floral types, such as keel and funnel flowers, receive less attention. The preferred colours of the flowers visited are purple, violet, blue and white. Yellow flowers, and still more reddish or pink flowers are much less attractive. The hitherto existing records on plants visited by bee-flies in Europe are summarized (Tab. 7). The activity of the bee-flies depends strongly on weather conditions; a significant correlation was found between visit frequency and solar irradiation. Low flight activity in shade and shade-avoidance explains why plants pollinated predominantly by bee-flies (e.g., Pulmonaria officinalis) show a markedly different seed set in forest and in open habitats.
- Publication:
-
Flora: Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants
- Pub Date:
- January 2001
- DOI:
- 10.1016/S0367-2530(17)30015-4
- Bibcode:
- 2001FMDFE.196....3K
- Keywords:
-
- Diptera;
- Bombyliidae;
- Bombylius;
- bee-flies;
- flower attraction;
- pollination;
- pollination syndromes