Data from: The pollen dispersal kernel and mating system of an insect-pollinated tropical palm, Oenocarpus bataua

Pollen dispersal shapes the local genetic structure of plant populations and determines the opportunity for local selection and genetic drift, but has been well-studied in few animal-pollinated plants in tropical rainforests. Here, we characterize pollen movement for an insect-pollinated Neotropical canopy palm, Oenocarpus bataua, and relate these data to adult mating system and population genetic structure. The study covers a 130 ha parcel in which all adult trees (n=185) were mapped and genotyped at 12 microsatellite loci, allowing us to positively identify the source tree for 90% of pollination events (n=287 of 318 events). Mating system analysis showed O. bataua was effectively outcrossed (tm=1.02) with little biparental inbreeding (tm-ts=-0.005) and an average of 5.4 effective pollen donors (Nep) per female. Dispersal distances were relatively large for an insect-pollinated species (mean = 303 m, max = 1263 m), and far exceeded nearest neighbour distances. Dispersal kernel modelling indicated a thin-tailed Weibull distribution offered the best fit to the genetic data, which contrasts with the fat-tailed kernels typically reported for pollen dispersal in trees. Preliminary analyses suggest that our findings may be explained, at least in part, by a relatively diffuse spatial and temporal distribution of flowering trees. Comparison with previously reported estimates of seed movement for O. bataua suggests that pollen and seed dispersal distances may be similar. These findings add to the growing body of information on dispersal in insect-pollinated trees, but underscore the need for continued research on tropical systems in general, and palms in particular.

花粉扩散（pollen dispersal）塑造植物种群的局域遗传结构，并决定了局域选择与遗传漂变的发生机遇，但目前针对热带雨林中的动物传粉植物，该过程的深入研究仍寥寥无几。本研究针对一种昆虫传粉的新热带冠层棕榈——Oenocarpus bataua开展花粉运动特征解析，并将相关数据与成年植株的交配系统及种群遗传结构相结合。本研究覆盖面积达130公顷的样地，对样地内所有成年植株（n=185）进行了定位，并基于12个微卫星（microsatellite）位点开展基因分型，由此可明确鉴定出318个传粉事件中90%的花粉源树（n=287）。交配系统分析结果显示，O. bataua以异交为主（tm=1.02），双亲近交程度极低（tm-ts=-0.005），且每株雌性植株平均拥有5.4个有效花粉供体（effective pollen donors, Nep）。对于昆虫传粉植物而言，该物种的花粉扩散距离相对较大（平均303米，最大1263米），且远大于植株间的最近邻距离。扩散核（dispersal kernel）建模结果表明，薄尾威布尔分布对本研究的遗传数据拟合效果最佳，这与此前树木花粉扩散研究中普遍报道的厚尾扩散核特征形成鲜明对比。初步分析结果显示，本研究的发现至少可部分归因于开花植株在空间与时间上的相对弥散式分布。通过与此前报道的O. bataua种子扩散距离估算值进行对比，本研究发现花粉与种子的扩散距离可能较为相近。本研究结果丰富了昆虫传粉树木扩散模式的相关研究数据，但同时也强调，针对热带生态系统乃至棕榈科植物的相关研究仍有待进一步开展。