Transcontinental patterns in floral pigment abundance among animal-pollinated species

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Narbona, Eduardo ; Del Valle, Jose C. ; Whittall, Justen B. ; Leon-Osper, Melissa ; Buide, M. Luisa ; Pulgar, Inigo ; Camargo, Maria Gabriela Gutierrez ; Morellato, Leonor Patricia Cerdeira ; Rodriguez-Castaneda, Nancy ; Rossi, Victor ; Conrad, Katie ; Hernandez-Mena, Joey ; Ortiz, Pedro L. ; Arista, Montserrat

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: SCIENTIFIC REPORTS; v. 15, n. 1, p. 14-pg., 2025-05-07.

Abstract

Flower color arises primarily from pigments that serve dual functions: attracting pollinators and mitigating environmental stresses. Among major pigment types, anthocyanins and UV-absorbing phenylpropanoids (UAPs) fulfill one or both roles and should be widespread. Our review of the UV-vis absorption profiles of major floral pigments demonstrates that UAPs are the primary UV protectants. Next, we analyzed the floral pigment composition of 926 animal-pollinated species from California, Southern Spain, and Southeastern Brazil. UAPs were ubiquitous (the "dark matter" of the flower). Among the remaining pigment types, similar to 56% of species had anthocyanins, similar to 37% had carotenoids, and similar to 17% had chlorophylls (some species had > 1 pigment type). Pigment abundance varied in response to abiotic and biotic factors, particularly with pollinator type in California. Despite regional differences in environmental filtering, pollination guilds, and relatedness, UAPs are omnipresent and there is a transcontinental stable distribution of flower colors and their underlying floral pigments. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 21/10639-5 - Center for Research on Biodiversity Dynamics and Climate Change
• Grantee: Leonor Patricia Cerdeira Morellato
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers - RIDC
• FAPESP's process: 18/21646-0 - Ecological relationships in time and space: flower signal standardization in congeneric species
• Grantee: Maria Gabriela Gutierrez de Camargo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• FAPESP's process: 10/51307-0 - Floristic diversity and seasonal patterns of rupestrian fields and cerrado
• Grantee: Leonor Patricia Cerdeira Morellato
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research Partnership for Technological Innovation - PITE
• FAPESP's process: 09/54208-6 - Multi-User Centralized Laboratory at the São Paulo State University Center for Biodiversity Studies
• Grantee: Célio Fernando Baptista Haddad
• Support Opportunities: Multi-user Equipment Program
• FAPESP's process: 15/10754-8 - Spatio-temporal variations in the flower-color spectra according to the pollinators' visual systems
• Grantee: Maria Gabriela Gutierrez de Camargo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 13/50155-0 - Combining new technologies to monitor phenology from leaves to ecosystems
• Grantee: Leonor Patricia Cerdeira Morellato
• Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - University-Industry Cooperative Research (PITE)