 Forget
the birds and bees. In San Diego, it’s all about hummingbirds
and hawkmoths. UCSD biologists
have discovered that those two animals are determining the future
of red and yellow varieties of a San Diego
wildflower. They report in the current issue of the Journal of Evolutionary
Biology that monkeyflowers have
two different animal pollinators. The red form, common along the
coast, is strongly preferred by hummingbirds, while yellow monkeyflowers,
found east of I-15, are favored by hawkmoths.
The researchers suspect the recent increase in San Diego’s
hummingbird population, fueled by the growth of suburban developments
and gardens, will eventually favor the
red over the yellow variety.
 “The shift between the red- and yellow-flowered forms along any road
running from the coast inland in San Diego county is one of the sharpest
natural patterns residents can view in the late spring,” says
Joshua Kohn, an associate professor of biology at UCSD,
who conducted the study with Matthew Streisfeld. “The abundance
of at least one of these
pollinators, hummingbirds, has recently increased dramatically
and may well favor an
eastern expansion of the red-flowered form.” 
Contributors to Making Waves: Mario Aguilera, '89, Marnette Federis, '06, Beverly Gallagher, '98, Raymond Hardie and Inga Kiderra.
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