Contents
Foreword
Preface
Chapter 1. Plot
1.1 I Put a Spell on You. Brief history of pollination studies in orchids
1.2 Us and Them. Orchid diversity and floral morphology
1.3 Something to Believe in. Pollination syndromes and strategies
Chapter 2. Deceit
2.1 Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love. Sexual deception in the European genus Ophrys
2.2 First Date. Sexual deception in Australian orchids
2.3 Your Latest Trick. Sexual deception in the Neotropics
2.4 Perfect Strangers. Non-insect-like orchids and the importance of pheromones
2.5 A Million Miles Away. Generalised food deception
2.6 Down Under. Food deception by means of Batesian mimicry
2.7 Never Enough. Epidendrum: an ecological conundrum
2.8 Original Prankster. The food-deceptive spider orchid and its spider-hunting pollinator
2.9 Fear of the Dark. Fungal mimicry and the pollination of Dracula
2.10 It’s a Long Way to the Top. Aphid mimicry, oviposition and pollination of slipper orchids
Chapter 3. Reward
3.1 Everybody Knows. Darwin’s famous prediction about the nectary length of Angraecum sesquipedale, and the discovery of the moth that pollinates it
3.2 Linger. Pollination by fruit flies employing aggregation pheromones and nectar rewards
3.3 Misunderstood. Hummingbird pollination
3.4 Madness. Pollen as a reward
3.5 Two out of Three Ain’t Bad. Pseudopollen and its nutritional value
3.6 Dark Necessities. Protein secretion and a pollination strategy based on kleptoparasitism
3.7 You’Re so Vain. Fragrance collection by euglossine bees
3.8 That Smell. The pollination of Gongora by bees capable of recognising species by scent
3.9 What Have I Done to Deserve This? The highly unusual ecology of the bucket orchid
3.10 Hurt. On the sadistic means by which Catasetum and Mormodes are pollinated
3.11 Whole Lotta Love. Fragrances in the fly’s rectum and the pollination of Bulbophyllum
3.12 Gimme Shelter. The cozy flowers of Serapias offer an unexpected form of reward
Chapter 4. Misfits
4.1 You Can’t Always Get What You Want. Ant pollination
4.2 With a Little Help from My Friends. Beetle pollination
4.3 What You’re Proposing. Aphid- and thrip-assisted pollination
4.4 Secret Garden. Termite pollination in Rhizanthella
4.5 Imagine. Cricket pollination in Angraecum
4.6 Lady in Black. Bat pollination in Vanilla
4.7 What If. Lizard and rodent pollination
Chapter 5. Redesign
5.1 Comfortably Numb. Poisonous nectar and inebriated pollinators
5.2 Thunderstruck. Mass synchronic flowering in orchids, and the gregarious flowering of Dendrobium crumenatum
5.3 Trigger. Touch-mediated triggered movement and its relation to pollination
5.4 Patience. Protandry and pollinaria transformations
5.5 Nothing Else Matters. Self-pollination
5.6 Riders on the Storm. Rain-assisted pollination
5.7 Blowin’ in the Wind. Wind-mediated pollination
Chapter 6. Fallacies
6.1 Stray Cat Strut. The deadly mimicry of the orchid mantis
6.2 Everywhere. Anti-pollinators and their effect on orchid pollinators
6.3 Worth Fighting for. Pseudoantagonism as a pollination strategy
6.4 Paranoid. Pseudoparasitism as a pollination strategy
6.5 Nice Guys Finish Last. The relative importance of bees, flies and others as pollinators
6.6 Somebody Told Me. Specificity of orchid–pollinator relationships
6.7 Diamonds and Rust. The evolution of orchids inferred from pollinator fossils
6.8 You Only Live Once. Ghost orchids and the importance of field studies
Chapter 7. Change
7.1 Under Pressure. Climate change and its effect on orchid pollination
7.2 It’s the End of the World as We Know it. The effect of forest fragmentation and habitat loss
7.3 Beautiful Day. Is there hope for orchids and their pollinators?
Acknowledgements
Glossary
References
Index
