Jw. Friedman et A. Shmida, POLLINATION, GATHERING NECTAR AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLOWER SPECIES, Journal of theoretical biology, 175(2), 1995, pp. 127-138
A model of pollination, having one species of bee and several species
of flower, is presented. The foraging bee monitors the size of the nec
tar standing crops of the various flower species and, using a learning
procedure described in the paper, tends to visit more frequently the
species with the larger nectar standing crops. The differential visita
tion rates affect the relative reproductive success of the flower spec
ies. Steady-state flower distributions are derived and it is proved th
at such equilibria exist. The model explains some general features fou
nd in the pollination market, such as why bees lack innate preferences
for certain flower species, the equilibrium allocation of flower reso
urces between display and reward, and the conditions that permit decep
tive flowers. (C) 1995 Academic Press Limited