Andromonoecy is a breeding system of plant species in which
male
Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization.
A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to ...
and
hermaphrodite
In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes.
Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...
flowers are on the same plant. It is a monomorphic
sexual system
A sexual system is a pattern of sex allocation or a distribution of male and female function across organisms in a species. Terms like reproductive system and mating system have also been used as synonyms.
The distinction between sexual systems ...
alongside
monoecy
Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy.
Monoecy is conne ...
,
gynomonoecy Gynomonoecy is defined as the presence of both female and hermaphrodite flowers on the same individual of a plant species. It is prevalent in Asteraceae but is poorly understood.
It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside monoecy, andromonoecy ...
and
trimonoecy
Trimonoecy, also called polygamomonoecious, is when male, female, and hermaphrodite flowers are on the same plant. Trimonoecy is rare.
It is a monomorphic sexual system along with monoecy, gynomonoecy, and andromonoecy. It is hypothesized that t ...
. Andromonoecy is frequent among
genera
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...
with
zygomorphic flowers, however it is overall rare and occurs in less than 2% of plant species. Nonetheless the breeding system has gained interest among biologists in the study of sex expression.
Etymology
The word andromonoecious is a combination of andr- (meaning male) and monoecious and was first used in 1877.
Prevalence
It is uncommon and has been estimated to occur in less than 2% of plant species.
In angiosperms, it occurs in 1.7% of angiosperms making up around 4000 species in 33 families.
It is common in the grass subfamily
Panicoideae
Panicoideae is the second-largest subfamily of the grasses with over 3,500 species, mainly distributed in warm temperate and tropical regions. It comprises some important agricultural crops, including sugarcane, maize (or corn), sorghum, and swit ...
.
Andromonoecious species
*
''Cucumis melo'' subsp
* ''
Cucumis melo
''Cucumis melo'', also known as melon, is a species of ''Cucumis'' that has been developed into many cultivated varieties. The fruit is a pepo. The flesh is either sweet or bland, with or without a musky aroma, and the rind can be smooth (such as ...
''
* ''
Chaerophyllum bulbosum''
* ''
Erophaca baetica
''Erophaca'' is a monotypic genus of the tribe Galegeae. Its only species ''Erophaca baetica'' is a perennial plant distributed in disjunct populations in the Mediterranean Region.
According to nrDNA ITS analysis, ''Erophaca'' is monophyletic a ...
''
* ''
Silene tibetica
''Silene tibetica'' is a species of plant which is a member of the family Caryophyllaceae. The species can be found in Tibet.
According to Bengt Oxelman, Magnus Lidén, and Nicholas J. Turland this species is not similar to any other species of ...
''
''
Solanum
''Solanum'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants, which include three food crops of high economic importance: the potato, the tomato and the eggplant (aubergine, brinjal). It is the largest genus in the nightshade family Solanaceae ...
''
* ''
Solanum agnewiorum
''Solanum agnewiorum'' is a species of ''Solanum''. The species is andromonoecious. It is native to Kenya and occurs in 4 locations.
''Solanum agnewiorum'' is currently listed as endangered by the IUCN
The International Union for Conservatio ...
''
* ''
Solanum aureitomentosum
''Solanum'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants, which include three food crops of high economic importance: the potato, the tomato and the eggplant (aubergine, brinjal). It is the largest genus in the nightshade family Solanaceae ...
''
* ''
Solanum campylacanthum
''Solanum campylacanthum'' is a species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in whic ...
''
*''
Solanum carolinense
''Solanum carolinense'', the Carolina horsenettle, is not a true nettle, but a member of the Solanaceae, or nightshade family. It is a perennial herbaceous plant, native to the southeastern United States, though its range has expanded throughou ...
''
* ''
Solanum cerasiferum
''Solanum cerasiferum'' is a species of plant in the nightshade family. It is native to tropical Africa.
The species is andromonoecious. However, the species overall has a weaker andromonoecy than its relatives. The is morphological of this spe ...
''
* ''
Solanum incanum''
* ''
Solanum insanum
Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit.
Mo ...
''
* ''
Solanum lichtensteinii
Solanum lichtensteinii is a species of plant in the family Solanaceae. The IUCN lists the species as least concern.
The species is named after Hinrich Lichtenstein. The species is andromonecious.
It can occur in arid areas and overgrazed are ...
''
* ''
Solanum linnaeanum
''Solanum linnaeanum'' is a nightshade species known as devil's apple and, in some places where it is introduced, apple of Sodom. The latter name is also used for other nightshades and entirely different plants elsewhere, in particular the po ...
''
* ''
Solanum melongena
Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit.
Mo ...
''
* ''
Solanum rigidum
''Solanum rigidum'' is a species of plant in the family Solanaceae. It goes by the common names ''olho de vaca'' or ''olho de boi''.
''Solanum rigidum'' is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. It grows at sea levels at 100 meters.
Genetics
Th ...
''
* ''
Solanum umtuma
''Solanum umtuma'' is a species of plant in the Solanaceae family.
The species is related to tomatoes. The species is andromonoecous.
It can be found in South Africa in areas like Cape Province and KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also re ...
''
* ''
Solanum usambarsense
''Solanum'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants, which include three food crops of high economic importance: the potato, the tomato and the eggplant (aubergine, brinjal). It is the largest genus in the nightshade family Solanace ...
''
Evolution
Some authors view andromonoecy as a transitional state from hermaphroditism to monoecy.
It has been suggested that andromonoecy evolved from hermaphroditism due to the loss of female structures.
Andromonoecy is also considered an evolutionary step towards
dioecy
Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...
. If
female
Female (Venus symbol, symbol: ♀) is the sex of an organism that produces the large non-motile ovum, ova (egg cells), the type of gamete (sex cell) that fuses with the Sperm, male gamete during sexual reproduction.
A female has larger gamet ...
flowers are better at producing seeds than hermaphroditic ones, andromonoecy could evolve towards monoecy.
References
{{Reflist
Plant reproduction
Sexual system