The role of spontaneous selfing in the pioneer species Saxifraga aizoides

A large variety of reproductive patterns is present among alpine plants to ensure the persistence of populations in such harsh environments. In the present study, the role of spontaneous selfing and its contribution to the actual reproductive success of an alpine pioneer plant was investigated. The results showed that Saxifraga aizoides is clearly self-compatible. Open-pollinated flowers exhibited higher seed numbers per capsules than selfing flowers, albeit the difference was not significant. Although seed weight seemed to be independent from the kind of pollination, open-pollinated flowers had a significantly higher proportion of germinated seeds than selfed ones. Furthermore, the ability of fast germination found in S. aizoides enables the seeds to take advantage of all possible opportunities for germination. In summary, S. aizoides exhibits a successful recruitment strategy for an alpine pioneer species.