Valley Oak pollen limitation paper accepted in Ecology

Ian Pearse, my predecessor as Walt Koenig's postdoc at Hastings, just spearheaded the publication of our newest paper in Ecology. Initiated by my good friend Kyle Funk, this work on pollen availability, and its interaction with flower production and abortion in the valley oak (Quercus lobata) provides an important contribution towards the lively scientific discussion about the drivers of masting behavior in wind-pollinated species. Using a clever mix of pollen addition experiments, flower counts and acorn counts, the paper shows that in years that are suitable for acorn production, pollen addition can increase acorn crop significantly, thus suggesting that these oaks are indeed pollen-limited to some degree!

http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/14-0297.1