Term:
Pollen guide
Pollen guide
Definition:
Markings on a flower that apparently serve to guide pollinators to pollen which is the reward they receive for visiting the flower. Some pollen guides are visible to humans, but others are apparent to humans only through ultraviolet photography.
Markings on a flower that apparently serve to guide pollinators to pollen which is the reward they receive for visiting the flower. Some pollen guides are visible to humans, but others are apparent to humans only through ultraviolet photography.
Notes:
The yellow anthers (also the summit of the ovary in some species of Gustavia) are hypothesized to attract bee pollinators to the pollen grain reward that they subsquently feed to their larvae. In some species, the flower also produces nectar but it is not known if the bees take both pollen and nectar from that type of flower (e.g., Eschweilera cuadiculata).
The yellow anthers (also the summit of the ovary in some species of Gustavia) are hypothesized to attract bee pollinators to the pollen grain reward that they subsquently feed to their larvae. In some species, the flower also produces nectar but it is not known if the bees take both pollen and nectar from that type of flower (e.g., Eschweilera cuadiculata).