Optimal concentrations in nectar feeding
Name
Bush-2011-Oct-Optimal concentrations.pdf
Size
927.73 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
7d391bef08d7763f7e7a09b11fbcb996
Author(s)
Kim, Wonjung
Gilet, Tristan
Bush, John W. M.
Date Issued
October 2011
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Publisher
National Academy of Sciences
Citation
Kim, W., T. Gilet, and J. W. M. Bush. “Optimal Concentrations in Nectar Feeding.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108.40 (2011): 16618–16621. © 2012 by the National Academy of Sciences.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Nectar drinkers must feed quickly and efficiently due to the threat of predation. While the sweetest nectar offers the greatest energetic rewards, the sharp increase of viscosity with sugar concentration makes it the most difficult to transport. We here demonstrate that the sugar concentration that optimizes energy transport depends exclusively on the drinking technique employed. We identify three nectar drinking techniques: active suction, capillary suction, and viscous dipping. For each, we deduce the dependence of the volume intake rate on the nectar viscosity and thus infer an optimal sugar concentration consistent with laboratory measurements. Our results provide the first rationale for why suction feeders typically pollinate flowers with lower sugar concentration nectar than their counterparts that use viscous dipping.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mathematics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1108642108
