Ecological aspects of the floral phenology of the cork-oak (Q suber L): why do annual and biennial biotypes appear?

Abstract

Phenological observations (periods of flowering and pollination, floral structures, etc) were made over a 3-year period in natural populations of Q suber. We demonstrated the existence of 2 different types of seed cycles in the cork-oak. The 'annual biotype', requires only 1 season to complete its reproductive cycle (ie, similar to that of the Lepidobalanus group), whereas the 'biennial biotype' requires 2 full years (similar to Erythrobalanus). The variability observed in the cork-oak, during the reproductive cycle, and the meaning of the existence of 2 different reproductive strategies in the same species, are discussed