Diversity of Floral Glands and Their Secretions in Pollinator Attraction

Abstract

Floral glands that produce substances related to the attraction and reward of pollinators are crucial for the reproductive success of angiosperms. These structures may include nectaries, osmophores, elaiophores, and resin glands and are quite diverse in flowering plants. This chapter presents the diversity of morphologies and substances produced by the floral glands and how they improve the pollinator’s attraction. We also describe how some angiosperms and floral visitors may have coevolved leading to specific pollination systems in some groups of plants. The integration of morphological, chemical, and ecological studies allows for a better understanding of the relationships that evolved between flowers and pollinators along their evolutionary histories. These comprehensive approaches provide opportunities to dissect the evolution of secondary metabolites produced by specialized secretory structures in flowers, including the origin and subsequent modification of these glands and their produced compounds.