PollinatorA pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are the major pollinators of most plants, and insect pollinators include all families of bees and most families of aculeate wasps; ants; many families of flies; many lepidopterans (both butterflies and moths); and many families of beetles.
Pollination managementPollination management is the horticultural practice that accomplishes or enhances pollination of a crop, to improve yield or quality, by understanding of the particular crop's pollination needs, and by knowledgeable management of pollenizers, pollinators, and pollination conditions.
PollenPollen is a powdery substance produced by most types of flowers of seed plants for the purpose of sexual reproduction. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophytes during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants, or from the male cone to the female cone of gymnosperms.
PlantPlants are the eukaryotic organisms that constitute the kingdom Plantae (/'plænteɪ/). They are predominantly photosynthetic or came from photosynthetic ancestors, meaning that they obtain their energy from sunlight by using the green pigment chlorophyll in their chloroplasts to produce sugars from carbon dioxide and water. Over the course of time, some plants have evolved to be parasitic, meaning they take energy from other organisms.
BeeClade of insectsBees are winged insects that form a monophyleticcladeAnthophila within the superfamily Apoidea of the orderHymenoptera, with over 20,000 known species in seven recognized families. Some species – including honey bees, bumblebees, and stingless bees – are social insects living in colonies, whereas over 90% of bee species – including mason bees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, and sweat bees – are solitary.
List of pollen sourcesThe 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. Bees collect pollen as a protein source to raise their brood. For the plant, the pollinizer, this can be an important mechanism for sexual reproduction, as the pollinator distributes its pollen.
MothMoths are a group of winged insects of the order Lepidoptera, the other well-known members of which are butterflies; they are characterized by dark or dull patterned wings. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (suborder Rhopalocera) and neither subordinate taxon is used in modern classifications. Moths make up the vast majority of the order.
BatOrder of flying mammalsBats (orderChiroptera) are winged mammals, the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, using long, spread-out digits covered with a thin membrane or patagium. The smallest bat, and one of the smallest extant mammals, is Kitti's hog-nosed bat, which is 29–33 mm (1.1–1.3 in) in length, 150 mm (5.9 in) across the forearm and 2 g (0.071 oz) in mass.
BirdWarm-blooded animals with wings and feathersBirds are vertebrate animals constituting the classAves, characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. They are warm-blooded, live worldwide, and range in size from the 5.5 cm (2.2 in) bee hummingbird to the 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) common ostrich. There are over 11,000 living species of birds, classified in 44 orders.
American and British English spelling differencesDespite the various English dialects spoken from country to country and within different regions of the same country, there are only slight regional variations in English orthography, the two most notable variations being British and American spelling. Many of the differences between American and British or Commonwealth English date back to a time before spelling standards were developed.
PollinationBiological process occurring in plantsDiagram illustrating the process of pollinationFemale carpenter bee with pollen collected from a night-blooming cereusPollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, for example bees, beetles or butterflies; birds, and bats; water; wind; and even plants themselves.
EcosystemCommunity of living organisms together with the nonliving components of their environmentLeft: Coral reef ecosystems are highly productive marine systems. Right: Temperate rainforest, a terrestrial ecosystem.An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by organisms in interaction with their environment, where the biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Ecosystems are controlled by external and internal factors.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.