Ernest H. Williams, Jr.

William R. Kenan Professor of Biology Emeritus

The Nature HandbookThe Nature Handbook

Chapter 1, Flowers & Seeds

References

  • Altshuler, D.L. 2001. Ultraviolet reflectance in fruits, ambient light composition and fruit reward in a tropical forest. Evol. Ecol. Res. 3:767-778.
  • Armbruster, W.S. 1982. Seed production and dispersal in Dalechampia (Euphorbiaceae): divergent patterns and ecological consequences. Amer. J. Bot. 69:1429-1440.
  • Bleher, B., & K. Bohning-Gaese. 2001. Consequences of frugivore diversity for seed dispersal, seedling establishmenrt and the spatial pattern of seedlings and trees. Oecologia 129:385-394.
  • Brody, A.K. 1997. Effects of pollinators, herbivores, and seed predators on flowering phenology. Ecology 78:1624-1631.
  • Brown, L. 1979. Grasses: An Identification Guide. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.
  • Burns, K.C., & J.L. Dalen. 2002. Foliage color contrasts and adaptive fruit color variation in a bird-dispersed plant community. Oikos 96:463-469.
  • Culley, T.M., S.G. Weller, & A.K. Sakai. 2002. The evolution of wind pollination in angiosperms. Trends Ecol. Evol. 17:361-369.
  • Darley-Hill, S., & W.C. Johnson. 1981. Acorn dispersal by the blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata). Oecologia 50:231-232.
  • Faegri, K., & L. van der Pijl. 1979. The Principle of Pollination Ecology, 3rd ed. Pergamon Press, London.
  • Gamberale-Stille, G., & B.S. Tullberg. 2001. Fruit or aposematic insect? Context-dependent colour preferences in domestic chicks. Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. B 268:2525-2529.
  • Garland, M.S. 1997. Watching Nature: A Mid-Atlantic Natural History. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
  • Havera, S.P., & K.E. Smith. 1979. A nutritional comparison of selected fox squirrel (Sciurus niger rufiventer) foods. J. Wildlife Managem. 43:691-704.
  • Heinrich, B. 1976. Flowering phenologies: Bog, woodland, and disturbed habitats. Ecology 57:890-899.
  • Hensen, I., & C. Mueller. 1997. Experimental and structural investigations of anemochorous dispersal. Plant Ecol. 133:169-180.
  • Hou, J.Q., & G.M. Simpson. 1992. The adaptive significance of awns and hairs in grasses. J. Biol. Educ. 26:10-11.
  • Johnson, W.C., & C.S. Adkisson. 1986. Airlifting the oaks. Nat. Hist. (Oct 1986):41-46.
  • Johnson, J.R., & J.T. Nichols. 1982. Plants of South Dakota Grasslands: A Photographic Study. Bull. 566, Agr. Ext. Sta., South Dakota State Univ., Brookings, SD.
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  • Marchand, P.J. 2000. First with a flower. Nat. Hist. (Mar 2000): 12-13.
  • McEvoy, P.B. 1984. Dormancy and dispersal in dimorphic achenes of tansy ragwort, Senecio jacobea (Compositae). Oecologia 61:160-168.
  • Motten, A.F. 1986. Pollination ecology of the spring wildflower community of a temperate deciduous forest. Ecol. Monogr. 56:21-42.
  • Nathan, R., et al. 2002. Mechanisms of long-distance dispersal of seeds by wind. Nature 418:409-413.
  • Ollerton, J., & A.J. Lack. 1992. Flowering phenology: An example of relaxation of natural selection? Trends Ecol. Evol. 7:274-276.
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Photo Information

Fig. 1.1. Diverse floral shapes and colors:

  1. windflower, Anemone multifida; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 27 Jun 1977; EHW
  2. larkspur, Delphinium nuttallianum; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 8 Jul 1975; EHW
  3. glacier lily, Erythronium grandiflorum; Yellowstone Nat’l Pk, WY; 28 Jun 1975; EHW
  4. Indian paintbrush, Castilleja sp.; Cody-Southfork Rd, Park Co., WY; 17 Jun 1975; EHW
  5. fairyslipper orchid, Calypso bulbosa; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 5 Jun 1981; EHW
  6. blue penstemon, Penstemon cyaneus; Beartooth Mtns WY; 6 Jul 1979; EHW
  7. hibiscus, Hibiscus sp.; St. Thomas, VI; 1 Jul 2002; EHW
  8. wild passionflower, Passiflora incarnata; Huntingdon Beach St Pk, SC; 16 Jun 2002; EHW

Fig. 1.2. Flowers of composites:

  1. fleabane, Erigeron sp.; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 12 Jul 1974; EHW
  2. arrowleaf balsamroot, Balsamorhiza sagittata; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 1979; EHW
  3. dandelion, Taraxacum officinale; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 12 Jul 1974; EHW
  4. hoary chaenactis, Chaenactis douglasii; Yellowstone Nat’l Pk, WY; 14 Jul 1974; EHW

Fig. 1.3. Wind-pollinated flowers:

  1. smooth brome grass, Bromus inermis; Clinton, NY; mid June 2001; EHW
  2. maple, Acer sp.; Clinton, NY; 26 Apr 2001; EHW
  3. meadow rue, Thalictrum venulosum; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 10 Jul 1975; EHW
  4. sagebrush, Artemesia tridentate; Beartooth Mtns, WY; 2 Sep 1974; EHW

Fig. 1.4. Skunk cabbage, Symplocarpus foetidus; Clinton, NY; 10 Apr 2001; EHW

Fig. 1.5. Montane meadow; Beartooth Mtns, Park Co., WY:

  1. 27 Jun 1975 (mostly spring beauties, Claytonialanceolata); ; EHW
  2. 27 Jul 1975 (mostly sticky geranium, Geranium viscosissimum, and lupine, Lupinus spp.); EHW
  3. 6 Sep 1975 (mostly yampah, Perideridia gairdneri); EHW
  4. data from an alpine meadow, 1980; EHW

Fig. 1.6. Flowers of the eastern forest floor (NY):

  1. large white trillium, Trillium grandiflorum; Clinton, NY; early May 2002; EHW
  2. spring beauty, Claytonia virginica; Clinton, NY; 4 May 2003; EHW
  3. round-leaved hepatica, Hepatica americana; Clinton, NY; 17 Apr 2002; EHW
  4. bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis; Clinton, NY; 30 Apr 2003; EHW
  5. trout lily, Erythronium americanum; Clinton, NY; late Apr 2001; EHW
  6. Dutchman’s breeches, Dicentra cucullaria; Wellesley, MA; 1978; EHW

Fig. 1.7. Seeds and fruits blown by wind:

  1. common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca; Clinton, NY; 16 Oct 2001; EHW
  2. goatsbeard, Tragopogon pratensis; Dead Indian Hill, Park Co., WY; 27 Jul 2002; EHW
  3. bull thistle, Cirsium vulgare; Clinton, NY; 31 Aug 2002; EHW
  4. red maple, Acer rubrum; Big Moose Lk, NY; 2 Aug 2002; EHW

Fig. 1.8. Seeds in floral structures that attach:

  1. burdock, Arctium minus; Clinton, NY; 15 Sep 2001; EHW
  2. many-flowered stickseed, Hackeliafloribunda; Dead Indian Hill, Park Co., WY; 27 Jul 2002; EHW
  3. sandbur, Cenchrus longispinus; Rome Sand Plains, Oneida Co., NY; 6 Sep 2003; EHW

Fig. 1.9. Seeds in fleshy fruits:

  1. American mountain-ash, Sorbus americana; Whiteface Mtn, NY; 29 Sep 2002; EHW
  2. honeysuckle, Lonicera sp., and raspberry, Rubus sp.; Utica Marsh, Oneida Co., NY; 20 Jul 2001; EHW
  3. winterberry holly, Ilex verticellata; Piseco Lk., Hamilton Co., NY; 8 Nov 2002; EHW

Fig. 1.10. Nuts stored by small mammals:

  1. acorns of northern red oak, Quercus rubra; Clinton, NY; 31 Oct 2002; EHW
  2. nuts of bitternut hickory, Caryacordiformis; Clinton, NY; 14 Oct 2002; EHW

Fig. 1.11. Flower pods with ballistic seeds:

  1. orange jewelweed, Impatiens capensis; Clinton, NY; 8 Sep 2002; EHW
  2. orange jewelweed with exploded and unexploded pods and seeds; Clinton, NY; Sep 2003; EHW
  3. wild geranium, Geraniummaculatum; David Liebman

Fig. 1.12. Twisting seeds of needlegrass, Stipa spartea:

  1. seed and awn; MN; 2003; Jennifer Winkelman
  2. seedhead; MN; 2003; Jennifer Winkelman
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