POLLINATION IN ALPINE NORWAY - FLOWERING PHENOLOGY, INSECT VISITORS, AND VISITATION RATES IN 2 PLANT-COMMUNITIES

Pollination studies in European alpine communities are few. The objective of this study was to describe the pollination ecology in two alpine plant communities at Finse, southwestern Norway. Because of late snowmelt and early winter at Finse, the time available for flowering and seed maturation is restricted. Flowering was concentrated at the beginning of the season in both communities, and large overlaps in flowering time were found for most species. In one of the communities, flowering peaks were significantly clumped, whereas in the other they were randomly distributed through the season. However, in this community, five insect-pollinated species flowered simultaneously early in the season. Diptera almost exclusively dominated the visitor assemblage. Most plant species pairs had high overlaps in flower visitor species. Species flowering simultaneously attracted the same visitor species. In one community, eight species pairs flowered sequentially and shared visitors. Visitation rates were highest at the lowest elevated site. The results are compared with those obtained in other alpine areas. It is argued that selection for an early flowering is probably stronger than selection pressures resulting from interspecific interactions.