Gelechiidae Moths Are Capable of Chemically Dissolving the Pollen of Their Host Plants

Background: Many insects feed on pollen surface lipids and contents accessible through the germination pores. Pollen walls, however, are not broken down because they consist of sporopollenin and are highly resistant to physical and enzymatic damage. Here we report that certain Microlepidoptera chemically dissolve pollen grains with exudates from their mouthparts. Methodology/Principal Findings: Field observations and experiments in tropical China revealed that two species of Deltophora (Gelechioidea) are the exclusive pollinators of two species of Phyllanthus (Phyllanthaceae) on which their larvae develop and from which the adults take pollen and nectar. DNA sequences placed the moths and plants phylogenetically and confirmed that larvae were those of the pollinating moths; molecular clock dating suggests that the moth clade is younger than the plant clade. Captive moths with pollen on their mouthparts after 2-3 days of starvation no longer carried intact grains, and SEM photographs showed exine fragments on their proboscises. GC-MS revealed cis-b-ocimene as the dominant volatile in leaves and flowers, but GC-MS analyses of proboscis extracts failed to reveal an obvious sporopollenindissolving compound. A candidate is ethanolamine, which occurs in insect hemolymphs and is used to dissolve sporopollenin by palynologists. Conclusions/Significance: This is the first report of any insect and indeed any animal chemically dissolving pollen

Conservation Status and Medicinal Plants of the Family Euphorbiaceae in Tirunelveli Hills, Southern India

Tirunelveli hills of Tamil Nadu harbour over 2000 species of plants, of which 25% are endemic and 3% are under various categories of threat. An ethnobotanical survey was carried out among the tribal people (kani/kanikaran) inhabiting the Tirunelveli hills of Tamil Nadu and the study revealed that, they are using more than 350 plants to prepare medicine, of which 8% (30 species) are belongs to the family Euphorbiaceae and it is consistent with the claim by the floristic diversity of this family. In floristic survey, Euphorbiaceae is one of the best-represented families in Tirunelveli hills of Tamil Nadu with 124 species of plants belonging to 34 genera and ranks third followed by Leguminosae and Poaceae in terms of number of species. The largest genera in Euphorbiaceae are Phyllanthus, Euphorbia and Mallotus, each with 21, 18 and 11 species respectively. Euphorbiaceae includes more number of endemic plants with 31 sps. and the genus Phyllanthus includes five endemic species; Blachia, Drypetes, Euphorbia, Glochidion and Mallotus with three species. The plants such as Blachia calycina Benth., Blachia umbellata Baill., Dimorphocalyx lawianus (M.Arg.) Hk.f., Mallotus stenanthus M.Arg., Phyllanthus baillonianus M.Arg. and Baccaurea courtallensis M.Arg. are identified as endemic medicinal plants. Majority of the plants present in these hills are rapidly threatened by anthropogenic activities due to several pilgrim and tourist places within the forest area. Its biodiversity is vulnerable due to different factors, and its conservation should be paid enormous attention by involving the local communities and forest representatives in preservation and conservation aspects. Key words: Tirunelveli hills, Endemism, Euphorbiaceae, Medicinal plants, Threat status ---1Division of Biodiversity and Biotechnology, Department of Botany, Pachaiyappa’s College, Chennai - 600030, Tamil Nadu, India; 2Entomology Research Institute, Loyola college, Chennai – 600 034; Tamil Nadu, India---Please Cite This Article As: M. Ayyanar and S. Ignacimuthu. 2010. Diversity, Conservation Status and Medicinal Plants of the Family Euphorbiaceae in Tirunelveli Hills, Southern India. J. Exp. Sci. 1(6):12-16

The Composition of Forest Type and Structure at Bung Hatta Forest Park Conservation Area, West Sumatera

Menurut Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 5 Tahun 1990, Taman Hutan Raya adalah kawasan pelestarian alam untuk tujuan koleksi tumbuhan dan atau satwa yang alami atau buatan. Komposisi dan struktur tegakan dapat digunakan untuk memperkirakan kepadatan pohon pada berbagai kelas diameter. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui komposisi dan struktur vegetasi yang terdapat pada blok kawasan pemanfaatan, perlindungan, dan koleksi. Penelitian dilaksanakan pada bulan Januari sampai Februari 2021 di Taman Hutan Raya Dr. Moh. Hatta Padang, Sumatera Barat. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa jenis yang dominan di blok kawasan perlindungan terdapat pada tingkat pohon adalah Glochidion obscurum. Pada blok kawasan pemanfaatan jenis dominan adalah Pinus merkusii, kemudian pada blok kawasan koleksi didominasi jenis Swietenia macrophylla. Nilai indeks keanekaragaman jenis (H') pada ketiga blok kawasan tersebut tergolong sedang dengan nilai H' antara 1-2. Sementara, nilai indeks kekayaan jenis tergolong rendah dengan nilai R1 < 3,5. Hasilnya ditemukan bahwa pola sebaran spesies bersifat mengelompok. Stratifikasi tajuk di Taman Hutan Raya Dr. Moh. Hatta berada pada stratum B dan C. Kata Kunci:  indeks keanekaragaman (H'), tipe dominan, komposisi, indeks kekayaan (R1), struktur vegetasiAccording to Law of Republic of Indonesia No. 5 of 1990, the Forest Park is a nature conservation area which collects natural and unnatural plants and animals. The composition and structure of stands can be used to estimate the density of trees in various diameter classes. This study aims to determine the composition and structure of the vegetation contained in the block protection, utilization, and collection. The research was conducted from January to February 2021 at Bung Hatta Forest Park Conservation Area Padang, West Sumatera. The research result show that dominant type found in the protection block for the tree’s level was Glochidion obscurum. In the utilization block, the dominant type called Pinus merkusii, then in the collection block dominated by Swietenia macrophylla. The diversity index value (H') on the three blocks is classified as the moderate with H' value between 1-2. Meanwhile, the wealth index is classified as the low with a value of R1 <3.5. The result also found that the pattern of species distribution is clumped. The stratification of Bung Hatta Forest Park Conservation Area’s crown is in the B and C stratum. Keywords: diversity index (H'), dominant type, composition, richness index (R1), vegetation structur