Cognition-mediated coevolution – context-dependent evaluations and sensitivity of pollinators to variability in nectar rewards

In this paper we emphasize the role of pollinator perception and decision-making processes in mediating floral nectar distribution strategies. Since pollinator choice behavior is guided by how the pollinator perceives and evaluates floral rewards, we hypothesize that plants have evolved strategies t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPlant systematics and evolution Vol. 238; no. 1-4; pp. 195 - 209
Main Authors Shafir, S, Bechar, A, Weber, E. U
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Heidelberg Springer Vienna 01.05.2003
Springer-Verlag
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects
Animals
Coefficient of variation
Coevolution
Cognition
Cognition & reasoning
Cognitive ability
Decision making
ecology
Economics
Evolution
Flowers
Foraging
Literature reviews
Nectar
Plants
Pollinating insects
Pollination
Pollinators
Profitability
Psychophysics
Sensitivity analysis
Skewed distribution
Skewed distributions
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Summary:In this paper we emphasize the role of pollinator perception and decision-making processes in mediating floral nectar distribution strategies. Since pollinator choice behavior is guided by how the pollinator perceives and evaluates floral rewards, we hypothesize that plants have evolved strategies that maximize their perceived profitability, through pollinator cognition-mediated coevolution. We focus on two classes of cognitive phenomena, context-dependent evaluations and risk-sensitivity. These phenomena are of interest to psychologists and biologists. Our paper is an attempt to show the value of cross-disciplinary exchange of theories and ideas. A review of the ecology literature suggests that pollinators evaluate variability in nectar volume in proportion to the mean, and thus choice behavior is guided by the coefficient of variation (standard deviation/mean) of the distribution. This functional relationship is predicted by Weber's law, which describes a wide range of psychophysical phenomena. Simulations show that this phenomenon also affects how pollinators perceive skewed nectar distributions. Cognition-mediated coevolution theory should be a fruitful approach to understanding the evolution of pollinator-plant interactions.
Bibliography:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00606-003-0280-y
ISSN:0378-2697
1615-6110
2199-6881
DOI:10.1007/s00606-003-0280-y