A pollinator is the biotic agent (vector) that moves pollen from the male anthers of a flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish fertilization or syngamy of the female gamete in the ovule of the flower by the male gamete from the pollen grain. In Epidemiology, a vector is an Organism that does not cause Disease itself but which transmits Infection by conveying Pathogens from Pollen is a fine to coarse powder consisting of microgametophytes ( pollen grains) which produce the male Gametes (sperm cells of The stamen ( Plural stamina or stamens, from Latin stamen meaning "thread of the warp " is the male A flower, also known as a bloom or Blossom, is the reproductive structure found in Flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also A gynoecium (from Ancient Greek gyne, "woman" is the Female reproductive part of a Flower. For soil improvement see Fertilization (soil. A gamete (from Ancient Greek γαμέτης; translated gamete = wife gametes = husband is a cell that fuses with another gamete Ovule literally means "small egg." In Seed plants the ovule is the structure that gives rise to and contains the female reproductive cells Though the terms are sometimes confused, a pollinator is different from a pollenizer, which is a plant that is a source of pollen for the pollination process. A pollenizer or polleniser, sometimes pollinizer or polliniser (see spelling differences) is a Plant that provides Pollen Pollination in angiosperms and Gymnosperms is the process that transfers pollen grains, which contain the male Gametes (sperm to where the female
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Types of pollinators
The most recognized pollinators are the various species of bees, which are plainly adapted to pollination. Bees are flying Insects closely related to Wasps and Ants Bees are a Monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea Bees typically are fuzzy and carry an electrostatic charge. Electrostatics is the branch of Science that deals with the Phenomena arising from what seems to be stationary Electric charges Since Classical Both features help pollen grains adhere to their bodies, but they also have specialized pollen-carrying structures; in most bees, this takes the form of a structure known as the scopa, which is on the hind legs of most bees, and/or the lower abdomen (e. The term scopa is used to refer to any of a number of different modifications on the body of a non-parasitic Bee that form a Pollen -carrying apparatus g. , of megachilid bees), made up of thick, plumose setae. The Megachilidae are a Cosmopolitan family of (mostly solitary Bees whose pollen-carrying structure (called a scopa) is restricted to the Seta (plural setae) is a biological term derived from the Latin word for " Bristle " Honey bees, bumblebees, and their relatives do not have a scopa, but the hind leg is modified into a structure called the corbicula (also known as the "pollen basket"). This article refers collectively to all true honey bees for the "common" domesticated honey bee see European honey bee Honey bees A bumblebee (or bumble bee) is any member of the Bee Genus Bombus, in the family Apidae; there are over 250 known species primarily The pollen basket or corbicula is part of the tibia on the hind legs of the four related lineages of apid bees that used to comprise the family Apidae Most bees gather nectar, a concentrated energy source, and pollen, which is high protein food, to nurture their young, and inadvertently transfer some among the flowers as they are working. Nectar is a Sugar -rich liquid produced by plants It is produced either by the Flowers in which it attracts pollinating animals or by extrafloral Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Eusocial bees such as honey bees need an abundant and steady source of pollen to multiply. Eusociality ( Greek eu: "good" + "social" is a term used for the highest level of social organization in a hierarchical classification The term pollen source is often used in the context of Beekeeping and refers to flowering plants as a source of Pollen for bees or other insects
Euglossine bees pollinate orchids, but these are male bees collecting floral scents rather than females gathering nectar or pollen. Euglossine bees, also called orchid bees, are the only group of corbiculate bees whose non-parasitic members do not all possess eusocial behavior. Female orchid bees act as pollinators, but of flowers other than orchids.
Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) also pollinate to a small degree. Lepidoptera is an order of Insect that includes Moths and butterflies. A butterfly is an Insect of the order Lepidoptera. Like all Lepidoptera butterflies are notable for their unusual life cycle with a A moth is an Insect closely related to the Butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. They are not major pollinators of our food crops, but various moths are important for some wildflowers, or other commercial crops such as tobacco. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture Tobacco is an Agricultural product recognized as an addictive drug processed from the fresh Leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana.
Many other insects accomplish pollination. Wasps (esp. A wasp is any Insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a Bee nor Ant. Sphecidae and Vespidae), bombyliid flies and syrphid flies are important pollinators of some plants. Sphecidae ( Latreille, 1802) is a cosmopolitan family of Wasps that include Digger wasps Mud daubers and other familiar types that all The Vespidae are a large (nearly 5000 species diverse cosmopolitan family of Wasps including nearly all the known Eusocial wasps and many Solitary Bombyliidae is a large Family of flies with hundreds of genera, although their life cycles are not well known Flies in the Diptera family Syrphidae are commonly known as hoverflies, flower flies, or Syrphid flies. Beetles, midges, and even thrips or ants can sometimes pollinate flowers. Beetles are the group of Insects with the largest number of known Species. Midges comprise many kinds of very small two-winged flies The term does not encapsulate a well-defined taxonomic group but includes animals in several families of Nematoceran Ants are social Insects of the family Formicidae and along with the related families of Wasps and Bees belong to the order Green bottle or carrion flies are important for some flowers, usually ones that exude a fetid odor. The name green bottle fly (or greenbottle fly) is applied to numerous species of Blowfly, in the genera Lucilia and Phaenicia Carrion flowers or Stinking flowers are flowers that emit an odor that smells like rotting flesh Some male Bactrocera fruit flies are exclusive pollinators of some wild Bulbophyllum orchids that have a specific chemical attractant present in their floral fragrance[1][2]. Bactrocera is a large genus of tephritid fruit flies with more than 500 species currently described Bulbophyllum is the largest genus in the orchid family Orchidaceae. Some Diptera (flies) may be the main pollinators in higher elevations of mountains whereas Bombus species are the only pollinators among Apoidea in alpine regions at timberline and beyond. True flies are Insects of the Order Diptera ( Greek: di = two and pteron = wing possessing a single pair of A bumblebee (or bumble bee) is any member of the Bee Genus Bombus, in the family Apidae; there are over 250 known species primarily Other insect orders are rarely pollinators, and then typically only accidentally (e. g. , Hemiptera such as Anthocoridae, Miridae)
Bats are important pollinators of some tropical flowers. Hemiptera is an order of Insects comprising around 80000 Species of Cicadas Aphids Planthoppers Leafhoppers The Anthocoridae are a family of bugs commonly called minute pirate bugs or flower bugs. The large and diverse insect family Miridae contains the plant bugs, leaf bugs, and grass bugs, and may also be known as capsid bugs. Birds, particularly hummingbirds, honeyeaters and sunbirds also accomplish much pollination, especially of deep-throated flowers. Hummingbirds are Birds in the family Trochilidae, and are endemic to the Americas. The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family of small to medium sized birds most common in Australia and New Guinea, The sunbirds and '''spiderhunters''' are very small Passerine Birds which feed largely on Nectar, although they will also take insects especially Other vertebrates, such as monkeys, lemurs, possums, rodents and lizards[3] have been recorded pollinating some plants.
Plants fall into pollination syndromes that reflect the type of pollinator being attracted. Pollination syndromes are suites of traits of Flowers aimed at attracting a particular type of Pollinator (Faegri & van der Pijl 1979 Proctor et al These are characteristics such as: the size, the depth of the corolla, the color (including patterns called nectar guides that are visible only in ultraviolet light), the scent, amount of nectar, composition of nectar, etc. Nectar is a Sugar -rich liquid produced by plants It is produced either by the Flowers in which it attracts pollinating animals or by extrafloral Ultraviolet ( UV) light is Electromagnetic radiation with a Wavelength shorter than that of Visible light, but longer than X-rays [4] For example, birds visit red flowers with long narrow tubes and lots of nectar, but are not as strongly attracted to wide flowers with little nectar and copious pollen, which are more attractive to beetles. When these characteristics are experimentally modified (altering colour, size, orientation), pollinator visitation may decline[5],[6].
Humans can be pollinators, as many gardeners have discovered that they must hand pollinate garden vegetables, whether because of pollinator decline (as has been occurring in parts of the U. A gardener is any person involved in the growing and maintenance of plants notably in a Garden. Hand pollination (also called "mechanical pollination" is a technique used when natural or Open pollination is insufficient or undesirable The term " vegetable " generally means the edible parts of Plants The definition of the word is traditional rather than Scientific, however The term Pollinator decline refers to the reduction in abundance of Pollinators in many Ecosystems worldwide during the end of the twentieth century S. since the mid-20th century) or simply to keep a strain genetically pure. This can involve using a small brush or cotton swab to move pollen, or to simply tap or shake tomato blossoms to release the pollen for the self pollinating flowers. Cotton is a soft staple Fibre that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant ( Gossypium sp The tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum, syn Lycopersicon lycopersicum) is a herbaceous usually sprawling plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family Self-pollination is a form of Pollination that can occur when a Flower has both Stamen and a Carpel in which the Cultivar or Tomato blossoms are self fertile, but (with the exception of potato-leaf varieties) have the pollen inside the anther, and the flower requires shaking to release the pollen through pores. The stamen ( Plural stamina or stamens, from Latin stamen meaning "thread of the warp " is the male This can be done by wind, by humans, or by a sonicating bee (one that vibrates its wing muscles while perched on the flower), such as a bumblebee. Sonication or buzz pollination is a technique used by some bees to release pollen which is more or less firmly held by the anthers which makes Pollination more efficient Sonicating bees are extremely efficient pollinators of tomatoes, and colonies of bumblebees are quickly replacing humans as the primary pollinators for greenhouse tomatoes. A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse or hothouse) is a building where plants are cultivated
Millions of hives of honey bees are contracted out as pollinators by beekeepers, and honey bees are by far the most important commercial pollinating agents, but many other kinds of pollinators, from bluebottle flies, to bumblebees, orchard mason bees, and leaf cutter bees are cultured and sold for managed pollination. A beehive is in a general sense an enclosed structure in which some species of Honey bees (genus Apis) live and raise their young A contract is an exchange of promises between two or more parties to do or refrain from doing an act which is enforceable in a court of law Beekeeping (or apiculture, from Latin apis, Bee) is the maintenance of Honey bee colonies commonly in Hives The orchard mason bee, Osmia lignaria, is a megachilid Bee that makes nests in reeds and natural holes creating individual cells for their brood that The Alfalfa Leafcutter Bee ( Megachile rotundata) is a European species of bee that has been cultured in the United States for Pollination Pollination Management is the label for horticultural practices that accomplish or enhance Pollination of a crop to improve yield or quality by understanding of the particular
Gallery
 Scopa (pollen holder) of a Megachilid bee |
 Halictid bee, showing adhering pollen |
 Syrphid fly, showing some adhering pollen |
 Halictid bee |
References
- ^ Tan, K. The Megachilidae are a Cosmopolitan family of (mostly solitary Bees whose pollen-carrying structure (called a scopa) is restricted to the Halictidae is a cosmopolitan family of the order Hymenoptera consisting of small (> 4 mm to midsize (> 8 mm Bees which are usually dark-colored Flies in the Diptera family Syrphidae are commonly known as hoverflies, flower flies, or Syrphid flies. H. & R. Nishida. 2005. Synomone or Kairomone? - Bulbophyllum apertum (Orchidaceae) flower releases raspberry ketone to attract Bactrocera fruit flies. Journal of Chemical Ecology. 31(3): 509-519.
- ^ Tan, K. H. & R. Nishida. 2007. Zingerone in the floral synomone of Bulbophyllum baileyi (Orchidaceae) attracts Bactrocera fruit flies during pollination. Biochemical Systematics & Ecology 35: 334-341.
- ^ Olesen, J. M. & A. Valido. 2003. Lizards as pollinators and seed dispersers: an island phenomenon. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 18: 177-181.
- ^ Faegri, K. and L. van der Pijl. 1979. The principles of pollination ecology. Oxford: Pergamon.
- ^ Fulton M, Hodges SA. 1999. Floral isolation between Aquilegia formosa and A. pubescens. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B 266: 2247–2252.
- ^ Hodges SA, Whittall JB, Fulton M, Yang JY. 2002. Genetics of floral traits influencing reproductive isolation between Aquilegia formosa and A. pubescens. American Naturalist 159: S51–S60.
Bibliography
- SPRENGEL, C K. Das entdeckte Geheimnis der Natur im Bau und in der Befruchtung der Blumen. Berlin, 1793.
- Faegri, K, and L. van der Pijl. The Principles of Pollination Ecology. New York: Pergamon Press, 1979.
- Percival, Mary S. Floral Biology. New York: Pergamon Press, 1965.
- Real, Leslie. Pollination Biology. New York: Academic Press, 1983.
See also
- Endangered arthropod
- List of plants pollinated by bees
- Pollination
- Pollination syndromes
- Self-pollination
External links
- New "Pollinator Garden Wheel" from the National Academies provides information on pollination and tips on building a pollinator-friendly garden.
- Pollinator & Visitor Image Database (for Orchidaceae)
Dictionary
pollinator
-noun
- (biology) the agent that pollinates a plant; often an insect
- the plant that is the source of pollen for cross-pollination
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