Welcome to the Pollination Department

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Every place on Earth is an ecosystem, including our club site.

In today’s club adventure we will investigate pollination eco-services…

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provided at our club site.

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bees even do headstands for it! 5

Pollination is so much fun…,

Pollination is:1) Another name for the country of Polli

2) A new way to take a survey

3) How plants reproduce 6

If you guessed…. how most plants reproduce

You were right! 7

Let’s look at the parts of a flower.Male parts: stamens (anther and filament)

Female parts: pistil (stigma, style, ovary)

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Flower Parts

Most flowers have both male and female parts, and it is best if pollen goes from one plant to the stigma of a different plant.

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Here’s another

kind of flower, an Easter lily.

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How do plants make sure that pollen goes from one plant to another?

Separate male and female flowers

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Or plants might make sure that the male & female flower parts mature at different times.

Pollination Department

In Garden Earth, Suga Magnolia oversees the department.

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Suga has lots of workers.Let’s meet some of them.

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Bees

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Wasps

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Butterflies

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Beetles

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Flies

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Birds

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Bats

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Breezes (yes, the wind can pollinate)

Johnsongrass

Red Maple

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Why do pollinators visit flowers?

• To collect pollen. It is used as food for bee larvae.

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Why do pollinators visit flowers?

• To collect nectar. It provides energy for the pollinator or its young.

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What attracts pollinators to flowers?

•Flower color

•Flower odor

•Deception

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Let’s stand up and pretend we are bees.

Adaptations for Pollinators:

• Red color• Flowers with

a tube shape• Large

amounts of sweet nectar

• Open during day

Hummingbirds often visit flowers that have:

Adaptations for Pollinators:

• White color• Flowers with a

tube shape• Large

amounts of sweet nectar

• Open during night

Hawkmoths often visit flowers that have:

Adaptations for Pollinators:Butterflies

• Many colors• Flower clusters

to land on• Odorless• Small floral

tubes with nectar

Adaptations for Pollinators:

•Tiny flowers•Many flower

parts missing

•No nectar•Open during

day or night

Wind pollinated plants have:

Adaptations for Pollinators:Bees are the most common and

important pollinators.

• Color: yellow, blue, white

• Short tube• Sweet scent• Ultraviolet

patterns

From Gronquist, Matthew et al. (2001) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 98, 13745-13750.

Bees & Flowers: Lots of Variation

How will we learn about pollination ?

34Bees! Hardworking Pollination department

workers!

How will we learn about the Pollination Department?

35Parts of a Flower

What could hurt pollinators at our site?

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Threats to Pollinators

Pollinators are threatened by:

• Use of pesticides

• Lack of host plants

• Destruction of habitat

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How can you help pollinators?• Don’t use pesticides

in areas where pollinators are visiting.

• Plant many different kinds of plants to provide nectar during the entire growing season.

• Leave some bare areas as homes for ground nesting bees.

What can we do to help the Pollination Department at our

site?