Pollination
Pollination by a dronefly
Wild "canola" flowers (Brassica rapa) and a nectar drinking
hoverfly. In this case it is a male of the tapered dronefly (Eristalis pertinax). The anthers of the flowers are touching the hoverfly while it is nectar drinking. Droneflies look like honeybees, especially the male drones. It has the same size and the same proboscis length.
The pollen on the insect (the small yellow dots) will be transported to the next flower where it will be deposited on the stigma. In the visited flower the stigma is the small nob next to the proboscis. The pollen deposition is quite precise, it happens only on certain parts of the insect. This contributes to make it an effective pollinator.
In the flower in the left upper corner a green dot at the bottom of the flower is visible. This is one of the 4 nectar glands each flower provides.
In the population where I took the image, different Eristalis species were the main pollinators of this plant species. This population were situated along a rail road in a city in the middle of the Netherlands.
Many people think, that honeybees and bumblebees are the main pollinators of flowers. But for wild plants very different insects and also flies can play an important role. It is good visible in this image that the length of the flower's anthers and the length of the proboscis of the dronefly match roughly in their size. The fly was also visiting many flowers. Both are an important prerequisite for an effective pollination process.
Pollination
Pollination by a dronefly
Wild "canola" flowers (Brassica rapa) and a nectar drinking
hoverfly. In this case it is a male of the tapered dronefly (Eristalis pertinax). The anthers of the flowers are touching the hoverfly while it is nectar drinking. Droneflies look like honeybees, especially the male drones. It has the same size and the same proboscis length.
The pollen on the insect (the small yellow dots) will be transported to the next flower where it will be deposited on the stigma. In the visited flower the stigma is the small nob next to the proboscis. The pollen deposition is quite precise, it happens only on certain parts of the insect. This contributes to make it an effective pollinator.
In the flower in the left upper corner a green dot at the bottom of the flower is visible. This is one of the 4 nectar glands each flower provides.
In the population where I took the image, different Eristalis species were the main pollinators of this plant species. This population were situated along a rail road in a city in the middle of the Netherlands.
Many people think, that honeybees and bumblebees are the main pollinators of flowers. But for wild plants very different insects and also flies can play an important role. It is good visible in this image that the length of the flower's anthers and the length of the proboscis of the dronefly match roughly in their size. The fly was also visiting many flowers. Both are an important prerequisite for an effective pollination process.