Heterogeneity Among Floral Visitors Leads to Discordance Between Removal and Deposition of Pollen

Flowers are often visited by many species of animals. sometimes differ in size, behavior, and other that translate into differences in their effectiveness as pollinators. The differences be manifest in their effect on reproductive either through female or through male function. A number of recent studies have measured removal as a component of male function however, high pollen removal need not result in high deposition of the removed pollen or in high at siring seeds. Here we provide an example in pollen-collecting bees remove more pollen but less of it than nectar-collecting bees. The pollen are antagonists with regard to the male reproductive success of the plants, at least relative to the beneficent nectar collectors. Our results underscore need to study pollen deposition in conjunction pollen removal.