helleborus foetidus/sucrose

We experimentally tested the hypothesis that the extensive within-plant variation of nectar sugar composition in Helleborus foetidus (Ranunculaceae) and other species results from differences between flowers and nectaries in pollinator visitation history. Experiments were conducted to mimic

Variation in nectar chemistry among plants, flowers, or individual nectaries of a given species has been only rarely explored, yet it is an essential aspect to our understanding of how pollinator-mediated selection might act on nectar traits. This paper describes variation in nectar sugar

The ecology of nectarivorous microbial communities remains virtually unknown, which precludes elucidating whether these organisms play some role in plant-pollinator mutualisms beyond minor commensalism. We simultaneously assessed microbial abundance and nectar composition at the individual nectary