Articles | Volume 26, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/we-26-83-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/we-26-83-2026
Standard article
 | 
11 Jun 2026
Standard article |  | 11 Jun 2026

Blueberry floral morphology influences pollinator visitation and behavioural patterns

Helena Castro, Ana Margarida Branco, Bruna Chaves, Hugo Gaspar, João Loureiro, and Sílvia Castro

Cited articles

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Cane, James H. and Payne, Jerry A.: Foraging Ecology of the Bee Habropoda laboriosa (Hymenoptera: Anthophoridae), an Oligolege of Blueberries (Ericaceae: Vaccinium) in the Southeastern United States, Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am., 75, 419–427, 1988. 
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Short summary
Flower morphology, playing a key role in determining which visitors are pollinators, is known to vary among species and cultivars within species. Blueberry flowers have morphology that limits access to rewards, constraining pollination to specific species. We identified the main pollinators of several blueberry cultivars, along with related visitors and visit rates to flower morphology. Our results indicate that cultivar flower morphology and pollinator proboscis size are important in blueberry pollination.
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