Abstract
Little is known about the ecology of Victoria amazonica outside its native area and there is lack of studies on its reproduction and management in ex situ conditions, so the aim of this study was to determine the fauna of beetles trapped inside flowers of V. amazonica grown in the Municipal Botanical Garden of Bauru/SP and evaluate the efficiency of these as pollinators. Beetles inside the flowers were monitored through focal observation, and fruit production efficiency and seed viability were tested. Beetles Cyclocephala epistomalis Bates, 1888 were found trapped inside the floral chambers, being the first record of this species in the state of São Paulo. The fruit production occurred only in the flowers that had beetles trapped inside the floral chambers, and of the 20 flowers observed, only 10 had beetles and 9 produced viable fruits with 335.88 seeds on average, hich exhibited 88% of germination rate. Due to the behavior of the beetles, higher number of seeds per fruit and high germination rate, it can be inferred that the beetles behaved as effective pollinators.
Key words:
beetles; ex situ conservation; pollination; Victoria amazonica
