Flower visits of cockroaches (Insecta: Blattodea) in the Iberian Peninsula: are they neglected pollinators?
Description
We have reviewed all photographs of cockroaches visiting wildflowers in the Iberian Peninsula uploaded on Biodiversidad Virtual (BV; https://www.biodiversidadvirtual.org/) and iNaturalist (iNat; https://www.inaturalist.org/) until 31th September of 2022. This data was complemented with our own records or photographs provided by other authors specifically for this study. All cockroaches were identified attending to diagnostic characters of the Iberian fauna. In all the flower-visit events, we have tried to include the cockroach and the plant species (or, at least, the lowest taxonomic level possible), the month of the observation, the location and whether the cockroaches are carrying pollen grains. Furthermore, we measured the floral reflectance spectra in the UV and visible light spectrum of plant species visited by cockroaches in the Iberian Peninsula with a spectrophotometer. Reflectance data was processed using PAVO package in R Studio. We also assesed the presence of UV or visible colour patterns in flowers and measure its reflectance spectra.
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Steps to reproduce
Methodology for reproduction explained in the paper of: Pérez-Gómez, Á., León-Osper, M., Pareja, D. & Robla, J. (2023). Flower visits of cockroaches (Insecta: Blattodea) in the Iberian Peninsula: are they neglected pollinators? Journal of Applied Entomology. Under review.