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BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES / EVOLUTION
Conifer ovulate cones accumulate pollen principally by simple impaction
*School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Hatherly Laboratories, Prince of Wales Road, Exeter EX4 4PS, United Kingdom; Institut Catholique d'Arts et Métiers, 6 rue Auber, 59046 Lille Cedex, France; and School of Engineering, Computer Science and Mathematics, Harrison Building, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QF, United Kingdom
Edited by Ronald R. Sederoff, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, and approved September 25, 2007 (received for review July 9, 2007)
In many pine species (Family Pinaceae), ovulate cones structurally resemble a turbine, which has been widely interpreted as an adaptation for improving pollination by producing complex aerodynamic effects. We tested the turbine interpretation by quantifying patterns of pollen accumulation on ovulate cones in a wind tunnel and by using simulation models based on computational fluid dynamics. We used computer-aided design and computed tomography to create computational fluid dynamics model cones. We studied three species: Pinus radiata, Pinus sylvestris, and Cedrus libani. Irrespective of the approach or species studied, we found no evidence that turbine-like aerodynamics made a significant contribution to pollen accumulation, which instead occurred primarily by simple impaction. Consequently, we suggest alternative adaptive interpretations for the structure of ovulate cones.
aerodynamics | computational fluid dynamics | computed tomography | wind pollination
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: j.e.cresswell{at}ex.ac.uk
© 2007 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA
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