How bad are the bad guys? Investigating factors driving the costs imposed by floral exploiters to animal-pollinated plants

Abstract

The evolution of mutualistic interactions depends on mechanisms that reduce the individual's chance to interact with exploiters (i.e. individuals providing none or little benefits). Despite verbal and mathematical models predicting some of these mechanisms for several types of mutualistic interactions, these models neglect two important features of mutualist-exploiter interactions: (1) the outcome of this interaction is variable and context-dependent, and (2) the effect of exploiters are not restricted to the mutualistic interaction itself - it can spill over other ecological processes in which the individuals are involved. Here, I am proposing two studies that bridge that gap by investigating: (1) how variable are the outcomes of exploiter-mutualistic interactions and which factors can predictably drive such variation; (2) how the influence of exploiters on mutualistic interactions spill over to other interactions in which mutualists are involved. In these studies, I will use mutualistic interactions between pollinators and flowering plants as a model system. In the first study, I will investigate the role of exploiter, pollinators, and plant species traits on the outcome of flower interaction with nectar thieves and robbers. For that, I will use a macro-ecological meta-analytical approach. In the second study, I will use an experimental approach to evaluate a novel link between exploitation at the pollination stage and dispersal at the seed stage in plants dispersed by ants. The acceptance of this proposal will allow me to expand my collaboration network, connecting my research group to three of the most productive and renowned research groups in mutualism ecology. This experience will largely improve my contributions to the projects I am enrolled in, as well as the quality of the research I have been conducting at UNIFESP. Finally, the proposal will also result in the publishing of, at least, three manuscripts in Ecological and/or Evolutionary journals of high impact and in the elaboration of an international funding proposal to be submitted to FAPESP. (AU)