The Importance of Bats to Agaves
Howell DJ and Roth BS. The Importance of Bats to Agaves
The success of sexual reproduction in paniculate agaves is strongly dependent on nectar-feeding bats. Since bat populations have declined, Agave seed set has been reduced to less than 5% of its maximum potential. Where bats remain. agaves in dense patches show higher seed set than do outlying plants, suggesting that the pollinators favor grouped plants. This behavior may reinforce the plants' tendency toward a clumped dispersal pattern
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Howell, D; Roth, Barbara
- Units
- BIBE
- Keywords
- Agave, Agave palmeri, Bats, Leptonycteris, pollinators, Sonoran Desert