FLORAL BIOLOGY AND POLLINATION OF THE DIOECIOUS PALM PHYTELEPHAS-SEEMANNII IN COLOMBIA - AN ADAPTATION TO STAPHYLINID BEETLES

We studied the inflorescence phenology, floral biology,, insect visita tion, and pollen transport of the vegetable ivory palm Phytelephas see mannii in tropical rain forest at the Pacific coast of Colombia. Inflo rescences warm up before and during anthesis. Male inflorescences open mostly by day and females at night. Visitors include Coleoptera (Stap hylinidae, Nitidulidae, Curculionidae, Scarabaeidae), Diptera (Drosoph ilidae, Sphaeroceridae), Hymenoptera (Apidae, Vespidae), and Acarina, which are attracted to the male inflorescences by pollen and breeding opportunities. Female inflorescences apparently offer no reward, and t hey attract visitors by odor mimicry. Pollination rakes place from daw n and throughout the daytime, and is mostly carried our by three speci es of pollen-eating Amazoncharis (Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae) and by their predators, Xanthopygus (Staphylinidae: Staphylininae). Amazoncha ris reproduces in the male inflorescences by constructing egg chambers in the fleshy receptacle of the flowers. This reproductive behavior r esembles that of beetles in the closely related subtribe Gyrophaenina that reproduce in fleshy mushrooms, whose spores they eat. We suggest that the fleshy structure of the male flowers' receptacle in this spec ies is an adaptation to the pollination by egg chamber constructing Al aeocharinae.