Pollination Ecology Characteristics of Barringtonia racemosa (L.) Spreng. (Lecythidaceae)

Abstract

Barringtonia racemosa is an evergreen mangrove associate. It is an year-round bloomer that produces attractive pinkish-white flowers on long, hanging racemes. The flowers open during evening-night time during which only hawk moths swiftly visit them for nectar collection effecting both self- and cross-pollination. Fruits are large, single-seeded, indehiscent and buoyant, and disperse in the direction of tidal or ocean currents. Seeds are exposed only when fruits rot; when anchored in the muddy substratum, they germinate within two or three weeks to produce new plants.