Pollination: Test Your Understanding
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What is the source and destination of pollen grains during pollination of seed plants?
In pollination of seed plants, pollen grains move from the male pollen sacs to the female reproductive
organs of a plant (ovule-bearing organs or ovules).
Name five external transport mechanisms for pollen.
External agents for pollen transport can be insects, wind, birds, mammals, or water.
Critical Thinking: Why is it highly unlikely that hummingbirds and bats would pollinate the same
plant species?
Hummingbirds pollinate flowers that are open in the daytime and have little to no odor. However,
bats are active at night, so they pollinate flowers that are open in the evening and that have a dank
or musty odor.
Critical Thinking: Master gardeners recommend only some kinds of plants to attract butterflies. Why?
What features would these plants have?
Sample answer: Only some flowers have adapted to attract butterflies that transport their pollen.
These flowers likely have a fragrance that attracts butterflies and may have narrow flower tubes that
only allow entry of the butterfly's slender proboscis.
