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Causes of limitation of plant reproduction by pollen and resource availability
Kalousková, Petra ; Janovský, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Sklenář, Petr (referee)
Plant seed production depends on many factors: their life history, the environment they grow in, and other factors such as biotic interactions. However, the immediate cause of the reduction in seed production is the lack of partners or the lack of resources available for seed production. This bachelor thesis aims to summarize and analyze the mechanisms of action and the relative importance of individual causes of limitation of plant seed production. Most plants are pollen limited at least in some seasons or in some localities, in the rest of the situations are plants resource limited. Pollen limitation can be quantitative (low pollen deposition) or qualitative (low quality of pollen). Existing theoretical models of pollen and resource limitation compare use of resources either to attract pollinators (increased flower size, increased number of rewards) and increase the chances of encountering them (change of phenology or prolongation of flowering) or to produce seeds. Plants can sometimes be seemingly pollen limited, with the pollen supplementation increasing seed production at the cost of reducing reproductive effort in the upcoming years. However, the most significant feature of pollination, which is often reflected in the alternation of reduced seed production due to insufficient pollen...
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