3月15日13時に第15期公募情報を公開いたしました。
4月1日13時より応募者登録サイトへの登録が可能です。
Information on the 15th call for applications was opened at 13:00 on 15 March.
Applicants can register on the registration website from 1 April at 13:00.
Mysterious life of plants that have lost their photosynthetic ability and eat fungi
Heterotrophic plants have long attracted interest due to their bizarre morphological features. However, while much is known about their host associations, there are only a few reports regarding other life history traits, such as pollination biology and seed dispersal system. Heterotrophy has often been considered an adaptation to low-irradiance niches that possess few autotrophic competitors. However, such an environment presents further problems for the plant because (i) effective pollinators such as bees are scarce in habitats with low light intensity and (ii) wind seed-dispersal system is ineffective below closed canopies where wind flow is limited. I will introduce several novel pollination and seed dispersal systems which are likely the results of transitions to heterotrophic life style.