07 July 2011

Mimulus

Last summer someone told me that the stigma of Mimulus flowers move quite rapidly when touched, in order to prevent further pollination. I was challenged to try and take photos of this.

Yesterday we found some Mimulus flowers by a nearby river. Touching the stigmas produced an immediate reaction, though it seemed to be necessary to touch the stigma twice to trigger this.

Before

After

I was surprised to find that the stigma returned to its original position after about 15 minutes. This seems to be a response to lack of pollen so that the flower gets another chance at pollination.

I took some videos of this which can be seen on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8qtIinYx4c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2RPIMoz7Mg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEli7hany10

See also
Stigma behavior in Mimulus auranticus (Scrophulariaceae) by A. Elizabeth Fetscher and Joseph R. Kohn

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