Botany: Scent of death attracts coffin flies to pipevine flowers

(Technische Universit ä t Dresden) In a new study, an international team of plant researchers including the Institute of Botany at TU Dresden has discovered an unusual and previously unknown reproductive strategy in plants: the Greek pipevine species 'Aristolochia microstoma' produces a unique mixture of volatiles that resembles the smell of dead and decaying insects to attract the pollinating fly genus 'Megaselia' (also known as 'coffin flies') to its trap-flowers. The study was recently published in the open-access journal 'Frontiers'.

Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - June 10, 2021 Category: Biology Source Type: news