Despite plant sexual systems have been widely studied, more information is needed about the particular reproductive strategies of the individuals. A biennial flowering can allow resource storage favouring massive flowering for all the individuals diluting their relationship with size.Īnimal reproductive strategies have been widely studied for many decades for different taxonomic groups, and the implications of particular phenotypic characteristics (e.g., body mass) in the reproductive success of the individuals are understood for many species (Andersson 1994). A proportional increase in the reproductive output with size exists only for the annual flowering species. The biennial flowering at individual level is a novelty among reproductive patterns in plants, separating the population in two reproductive subgroups. Sex ratios are not different from 1:1 in the two species, and in the two segregated reproductive subgroups in the biennial flowering species. Flowering is massive and highly synchronized in the biennial species. Only for the annual flowering species the reproductive output is related to tree size and large trees present proportionally higher flower coverage, and lower synchronization than smaller ones. Two distinct strategies in flowering timing and intensity were found between species (annual versus biennial flowering), and among individuals in the annual flowering species (extended versus peak flowering). We quantified the flowering intensity, length, and reproductive synchronization of two sympatric dioecious Wild Nutmeg tree species ( Virola, Myristicaceae) in the Brazilian Atlantic forest, and analyzed its relationships with tree size. Variability in flowering phenology among individuals has direct impact on their fitness, but how reproductive phenology is affected by the size of the individuals needs further study. Reproductive strategies, sexual selection, and their relationship with the phenotype of individuals are topics widely studied in animals, but this information is less abundant for plants. A biennial flowering can allow resource storage favouring massive flowering for all the individuals diluting their relationship with size. ![]() We quantified the flowering intensity, length, and reproductive synchronization of two sympatric dioecious Wild Nutmeg tree species (Virola, Myristicaceae) in the Brazilian Atlantic forest, and analyzed its relationships with tree size. ![]() ![]()
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