Seasonal phenology and pollinator similarity of two species of Hohenbergia Schult. & Schult.f. (Bromelioideae: Bromeliaceae) in distinct Atlantic Forest fragments

Abstract

Evaluations of vegetative and reproductive phenology have yielded significant insights into how biotic and abiotic factors affect the phenological rhythms of plants and the impact of climate change on ecosystems. The aim of this study was to characterize the phenological patterns of vegetative growth, flowering, and fruiting of H. amargosensis and H. stellata in Atlantic Forest fragments, analyzing their relationships with climatic variables and pollinators. Periodic visits were made to the forest fragments where H. amargosensis and H. stellata are found to observe the development of the plants at each development stage. Hohenbergia amargosensis flowered every two years (supra-annual flowering), while H. stellata did so annually. Both species reproduced both asexually and sexually, and their phenophases were seasonal, except for the emission of young leaves by H. stellata. Eight pollinator species and two robbers were recorded in H. amargosensis, while four pollinator species and one robber were recorded in H. stellata. The main pollinating agents were hummingbirds (Trochilidae) and bees (Apidae). The data obtained on the phenology aspects of Hohenbergia species and their pollinators are important to support studies aiming the conservation of these species.