NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1366387
60 Nebraskaland • May 2021 MIXED BAG BALLISTICS AND BRIBERY By Chris Helzer "Ballistics and Bribery" sounds like a great title for a novel or action movie. It's also a pretty apt description of the two-pronged seed dispersal strategy of violets. Seventeen diff erent species of violet (Viola sp) are listed in The Flora of Nebraska, including both annuals and perennials and fl owers of blue, purple, white and yellow. Almost everyone has seen violets growing in their yard or in a nearby prairie or woodland, but few people are aware of the fascinating ways they move their seeds around. When a violet seed pod opens, it splits into three sections, each of which holds rows of seeds. The seeds don't stay there for long. As the pods dry and shrink, they squeeze those seeds more and more tightly until they are explosively ejected into the air. If they don't hit leaves or other obstacles, the tiny seeds can travel several feet away from their parent. I highly recommend a quick internet search on this topic so you can watch videos of this happening. Dispersing seeds three to four feet away is an impressive feat for an unassuming little plant like a violet. Over time, populations can expand pretty quickly that way. However, most violet species have evolved a second strategy to help their seeds embark upon even longer journeys. Violet seeds have what looks like a small, fl eshy appendage (called an elaiosome) outside the hard seed coat that is rich in lipids and proteins. As it happens, ants really like to feed lipids and proteins to their babies. As a result, when an ant comes across a violet seed, it often decides to carry the seed back to its colony. Once the ant gets the seed to the nest, the nutritious elaiosome is fed to ant larvae, and the rest of the seed (still intact within its hard seed coat) is deposited in the colony's "compost" pile. That compost pile is full of rotting vegetation and animal matter. In other words, it's a damp and rich environment for violet seeds to germinate and grow. In short, violets launch baited seeds into their neighborhoods as a way to trick ants into transporting them to ideal germination spots. It sounds like a dastardly scheme except that everyone benefi ts. The ants get healthy treats for their kids, the seeds end up in a dark fertilized place, and we get to admire the whole process. The seed pod splits open into three sections, each containing rows of seeds. CHRIS HELZER The individual seeds show the small, fl eshy appendages which ants feed to their larvae. CHRIS HELZER Blue violets (Viola sororia) in the Nature Conservancy's Platte River Prairies. CHRIS HELZER