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A rufous hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) is attracted to brightly colored flowers and assists the pollination of the plant.Zoophily, or zoogamy, is a form of pollination whereby pollen is transferred by animals, usually by invertebrates but in some cases vertebrates, [1] particularly birds and bats, but also by other animals.
Interspecific sexual mimicry can also occur in some plant species, especially orchids. In plants employing sexual mimicry, flowers mimic mating signals of their pollinator insects. These insects are attracted and pollinate the flowers through pseudocopulations or other sexual behaviors performed on the flower.
This leads to shifts in pollination syndromes and to some genera having a high diversity of pollination syndromes among species, suggesting that pollinators are a primary selective force driving diversity and speciation. [5] [6] Ophrys apifera is an orchid species that has a highly evolved plant-pollinator relationship. This specific species ...
The color or odor of flowers promotes this isolation as plants effectively manipulate the behavior of their animal pollinators. An example of this type of manipulation is found in orchids as they mimic female bees and wasps in order to attract male pollinators as a form of sexual deception referred to as pseudocopulation. [2]
Plants fall into pollination syndromes that reflect the type of pollinator being attracted. These are characteristics such as: overall flower size, the depth and width 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. [2] For example, birds visit red flowers with long, narrow ...
For example, many flowers use mimicry to attract pollinators, while others may trick insects into dispersing their seeds. Nonetheless, most mimicry in plants [ b ] would not be classified as aggressive, as although luring pollinators is similar to cases above, they are certainly not eaten by the plant.
Pollination is necessary for plants to continue their populations and 3/4 of the plant species that contribute to the world's food supply are plants that require pollinators. [78] Insect pollinators, like bees, are large contributors to crop production, over 200 billion dollars worth of crop species are pollinated by these insects. [ 71 ]
Nectar is produced by flowering plants to attract pollinators to visit the flowers and transport pollen between them. Flowers often have specialized structures that make the nectar accessible only for animals possessing appropriate morphological structures, and there are numerous examples of coevolution between nectarivores and the flowers they ...