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Irene Vega
Interactions that relate all species of flowering plants in the same territory with the animals that pollinate them can be considered, metaphorically, as a complex "network". In this network, the different species of plants and insects maintain a reciprocal relationship in the pollination process. We thus speak of the network of plant-pollinator interactions. Although moths are known as nocturnal pollinators, their role in the interaction networks between flowering plants and these insects is virtually unknown. In the last two decades, most of the cases studied have focused mainly on diurnal pollinators, such as bees or butterflies. However, nightlife also plays an important role in the functioning of ecosystems.
To learn more about this nocturnal side of pollination, a scientific team from the Evolutionary Ecology group of the URJC has studied for three years the interaction networks of pollination in three high mountain areas, located in the north (Picos de Europa). , in the center (Sierra de Guadarrama) and in the south (Sierra Nevada) of the Iberian Peninsula. “The objectives of this study have been to understand if the general patterns of the network of interactions observed in diurnal pollinators are modified when also taking into account that 'night part' that has been left aside,” explains Marcos Méndez, researcher at the Evolutionary Ecology group and co-author of the study.
The results obtained, recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, reveal two findings. On the one hand, the scientific team has observed that many plants that apparently have flowers adapted to attract daytime pollinators are also visited by nocturnal pollinators. On the other hand, the structure that makes up the pollination relationships is modified by adding this nocturnal component. “Traditional pollination studies are missing that 'night side' of pollination,” highlights the URJC researcher. “Therefore, we will not understand the real structure of pollination interaction networks unless we take into account the night side,” he adds.
Preventing species loss
Nocturnal pollinators also face human disturbances, some specific such as light pollution and others shared with diurnal pollinators such as habitat degradation and destruction. In the midst of a global pollinator crisis, this study points out the need not to forget about nocturnal pollinators and better understand their global role in pollination because, as Marcos Méndez points out, “the structure of a network of interactions is defined , among other things, due to its robustness to small changes, that is, if the entire network is resistant or sensitive to specific losses of species, since they could cause a cascade effect of extinction of other species.
In total, during this research, more than 140 plant species and more than 300 pollinators have been studied, with more than 600 accumulated hours of observation in the field. To achieve this, meticulous work has been carried out, using light traps at night to attract the moths, which were captured individually to extract the pollen they carried.
This work has been carried out within the framework of three research projects, thus having its own funding from the URJC and also with funds from the Autonomous Organization of National Parks for the study of pollination in Picos de Europa and Sierra Nevada (project led by Marcos Méndez) and the National Plan for the study of pollination in the Sierra de Guadarrama (project led by José Mª Iriondo).