The Fungus-Mimicking Mouse Plant


The mouse plant (Arisarum proboscideum) is, to me, one of the most charming aroids in existence. Its small stature and unique inflorescence are a joy to observe. It is no wonder that this species has attained a level of popularity among those of us who enjoy growing oddball plants. Its unique appearance may be reason enough to appreciate this little aroid but its pollination strategy is sure to seal the deal.

The mouse plant is native to shaded woodlands in parts of Italy and Spain. It is a spring bloomer, hitting peak flowering around April. It has earned the name “mouse plant” thanks to the long, tail-like appendage that forms at the end of the spathe. That “tail” is the only part of the inflorescence that sticks up above the arrow-shaped leaves. The rest of the structure is presented down near ground level. From its stature and position, to its color, texture, and even smell, everything about the inflorescence is geared around fungal mimicry.


The mouse plant is pollinated by fungus gnats. However, it doesn’t offer them any rewards. Instead, it has evolved a deceptive pollination syndrome that takes advantage of a need that all living things strive to attain - reproduction. To draw fungus gnats in, the mouse plant inflorescence produces compounds that are said to smell like fungi. Lured by the scent, the insects utilize the tail-like projection of the spathe as a sort of highway that leads them to the source.

Once the fungus gnats locate the inflorescence, they are presented with something incredibly mushroom-like in color and appearance. The only opening in the protective spathe surrounding the spadix and flowers is a tiny, dark hole that opens downward towards the ground. This is akin to what a fungus-loving insect would come to expect from a tiny mushroom cap. Upon entering, the fungus gnats are greeted with the tip of the spadix, which has come to resemble the texture and microclimate of the underside of a mushroom.

Anatomy of a mouse plant inflorescence  [SOURCE]

Anatomy of a mouse plant inflorescence [SOURCE]

This is exactly what the fungus gnats are looking for. After a round of courtship and mating, the fungus gnats set to work laying eggs on the tip of the spadix. Apparently the tactile cues are so similar to that of a mushroom that the fungus gnats simply don’t realize that they are falling victim to a ruse. Upon hatching, the fungus gnat larvae will not be greeted with a mushroomy meal. Instead, they will starve and die within the wilting inflorescence. The job of the adult fungus gnats is not over at this point. To achieve pollination, the plant must trick them into contacting the flowers themselves.

Both male and female flowers are located down at the base of the structure. As you can see in the pictures, the inflorescence is two-toned - dark brown on top and translucent white on the bottom. The flowers just so happen to sit nicely within the part of the spathe that is white in coloration. In making a bid to escape post-mating, the fungus gnats crawl/fly towards the light. However, because the opening in the spathe points downward, the lighted portion of the structure is down at the bottom with the flowers.

The leaves are the best way to locate these plants.

The leaves are the best way to locate these plants.

Confused by this, the fungus gnats dive deeper into the inflorescence and that is when they come into contact with the flowers. Male and female flowers of the mouse plants mature at the exact same time. That way, if visiting fungus gnats happen to be carrying pollen from a previous encounter, they will deposit it on the female flowers and pick up pollen from the male flowers all at once. It has been noted that very few fungus gnats have ever been observed within the flower at any given time so it stands to reason that with a little extra effort, they are able to escape and with any luck (for the plant at least) will repeat the process again with neighboring individuals.

The mouse plant does not appear to be self-fertile so only pollen from unrelated individuals will successfully pollinate the female flowers. This can be a bit of an issue thanks to the fact that plants also reproduce vegetatively. Large mouse plant populations are often made up of clones of a single individual. This may be why rates of sexual reproduction in the wild are often as low as 10 - 20%. Still, it must work some of the time otherwise how would such a sophisticated form of pollination syndrome evolve in the first place.

Photo Credit: [1] [2] [3]

Further Reading: [1] [2]

Flower Mimics The Smell of Dying Bees to Attract Pollinators






Photo Credits: [1] [2]

Further Reading: [1]

Shhhh... Let Him Finish

Sexual deception is rampant in the orchid family. Orchid genera all over the world produce flowers that trick sexually charged male insects into failed mating attempts. The orchids go to great lengths to resemble females both in appearance and smell. Indeed, many sexually deceptive orchid species emit odors that precisely mimic the pheromones of specific insect species. 

In many instances, the orchids ruse is so powerful that male insects will often preferentially visit the flower over an actual female. For many of the sexually deceptive orchids, all that is required is the male to pay a visit. No attempt at copulation is necessary, though that doesn't stop vigorous attempts. Because of this, it is easy to see how the minute cost incurred to the insects is not enough to drive evolution away from deception. However, there is a group of tongue orchids (genus Cryptostylis) from Australia that seem to throw a wrench into this finely tuned system.... or do they?

The tongue orchids rely on deceiving male wasps in the genus Lissopimpla into mating with their flowers. As mentioned above, the males simply cannot resist the attempt. However, unlike many other reported cases, the male wasps actually mate to completion, depositing their sperm onto the flower. This should be disastrous for the wasps since males not only prefer flowers to wasp females, but they also waste their precious few mating attempts. How could this have evolved?

Most sexually deceptive orchids rely on bees and wasps (family Hymenoptera) for their pollination. Thus, the answer to this evolutionary conundrum lies in the mating system of these insects. Queens are genetically haplodiploid. I will spare you the details on that but basically what it means for Hymenoptera is that female offspring are produced via fertilized eggs whereas male offspring are produced via unfertilized eggs. 

The orchids have (unknowingly of course) tapped into this system to their benefit. If by mating with the flower and not a female wasp meant that no offspring were produced, this system surely would not have evolved to the level that it has. Instead, female wasps that have not been mated with or received less sperm than usual end up producing a higher amount of male offspring.

The orchids are effectively skewing the sex ratio of their pollinators! "How is this a sustainable system?" you may be asking. Well, by causing female wasps to produce more males, the orchids are ensuring that there will be more naive males in the population the next time they are in bloom. Also, by skewing the sex ratio towards males, there are now fewer females to mate with so that males become less choosy and more readily mate with orchids. Finally, with more sexually charged males flying around, each female has a greater chance of being fertilized. Because of the unique mating system that has evolved in Hymenoptera, the orchids have thus been able to evolve this pollination strategy with little harm to the pollinators.

Photo Credit: photobitz

Further Reading: