Effectiveness of Native Nectar-Feeding Birds and the Introduced Apis Mellifera As Pollinators of the Kangaroo Paw, Anigozanthos
1 Effectiveness of native nectar-feeding birds and the introduced Apis mellifera as 2 pollinators of the kangaroo paw, Anigozanthos manglesii (Haemodoraceae) 3 Bronwyn M. Ayre1,2, *, David G. Roberts2,5, Ryan D. Phillips2,3,4, Stephen D. Hopper5, Siegfried L. Krauss1,2 4 1School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia, 2Kings Park 5 Science, Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Perth, WA 6005, Australia, 3Department of 6 Ecology, Environment and Evolution, La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC 3086, Australia, 4Ecology and 7 Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia 8 and 5Centre for Excellence in Natural Resource Management, School of Agriculture and Environment, 9 University of Western Australia, Albany, WA 6330, Australia 10 Running title: Birds, bees and Kangaroo Paw pollination 11 Summary text (table of contents): Plants pollinated by vertebrates are often visited by native and 12 introduced insect species foraging for pollen and nectar, with potentially negative consequences for 13 plant fitness. European Honeybees are the most common visitor to the Red and Green Kangaroo Paw 14 but primarily steal nectar and pollen, with native nectar-feeding birds critical for high reproductive 15 success. For many plant species, the relative importance of bird-pollinators and exotic insect species 16 remains largely unknown. 1 17 Abstract: 18 Plants pollinated by vertebrates are often visited by native and exotic insects foraging for pollen and 19 nectar. We compared flower visitation rates, foraging behaviour, and the contribution to reproduction 20 of nectar-feeding birds and the introduced honeybee Apis mellifera in four populations of the bird- 21 pollinated Anigozanthos manglesii (Haemodoraceae).
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