Pollination and

Dispersal
Form and Function
 Pollination
• Pollination is how gymnosperms (cone-bearing
seed plants) and angiosperms (flowering plants)
carry out sexual reproduction.
• Pollen carries the male sex cells from one plant
to the next, allowing plants to cross with other
plants far away.
• A vector is a means of moving pollen from plant
to plant. Vectors may be wind or animals.
 Wind Pollination
• All gymnosperms are
wind-pollinated.
• Flowering plants that
are wind-pollinated
have flowers that
lack showy petals.
• Anthers and stigma
are often long and
sticky or feathery.
 Bee Pollination
• Honeybees seek nectar and
pollen.

• Bees can see ultraviolet, and

home in on flowers that are
blue, purple, or have UV
markings. They have well-
developed sense of smell.

• Bees prefer flat platform-

shaped flowers or large,
open tubes.
 Hummingbird Pollination
• Hummingbirds seek
nectar - LOTS of nectar.

• Hummingbirds don’t have

a good sense of smell.
They see orange and red
the best.

• Hummingbirds sip from

pendulous tube-shaped
flowers that other nectar-
feeders can’t access.
 Butterfly Pollination
• Butterflies seek nectar.

• Butterflies are attracted

to platform-shaped
flowers or clusters of
very small, upright,
tubular flowers.

• Butterflies have a keen

sense of smell, and can
see orange, yellow,
blues, and purples.
 Moth Pollination
• Moths seek nectar.

• Moths have a well-

developed sense of
smell.

• Moths are attracted

to highly-scented,
tubular, bright white
flowers.
Who is the Pollinator?
Scarlet Gilia

Unscented, nectar-rich
 Moonflower

Evening-blooming, highly scented

 Aster

Nectar and pollen rich

Ceanothus

Pollen rich
 Nicotiana

Evening-blooming, highly scented

 Fuchsia

Unscented, nectar-rich
 Borage

Good pollen and nectar source

 Echniacea

Abundant pollen, good nectar source

 Asclepias

Good source of nectar and pollen

 Foxglove

Good nectar and pollen source

 Yucca

Scented, nectar-rich
 Buddleia

Highly-scented, nectar rich

Agastache

Nectar-rich
 Liatris

Good source of nectar and pollen

 Rudbeckia

Abundant pollen, good nectar source

 Observe these two
W
gardens. What have
O
they been planted to
R
attract?
K

T
O
G
E
T
H
E
R
Fruit Dispersal
 Dispersal
• Once a fruit and seeds have formed, it’s
essential for the seed to be moved away from
the parent plant to avoid competition.
• As with pollination, seed dispersal involves
many different vectors.
• Adaptations that we see on fruits and seeds
helps tell us what the dispersal vector is.
 Ballistic dispersal
• Some plants disperse
their seeds
themselves.

• Explosive dry fruits

that shatter on contact
or when shaken throw
seeds far from the
parent plant. Some
fruits use build up
hydraulic pressure
until they burst.
 Wind dispersal

• Lightweight dry
fruits with wings,
parachutes, and
similar wind-
catching structures
can be blown away
from the parent
plant.
 Water dispersal

• Hollow, water-
resistant fruits can
be dispersed long
distances by moving
water.
 Animal dispersal
• Two types of fruits are
animal dispersed:

• Fruits that can cling

to fur.

• Edible fruits whose

seeds can go
through a digestive
system, or may get
discarded when the
animal eats.
How is it dispersed?
 Mangrove

Hollow, floating fruits. This tree grows in salt

water swamps.
 Cherry

Fleshy, sweet-tasting fruit with a hard pit.

 Thistle

Small, dry fruits have long feathery threads

extending from them.
 Bedstraw

Fruits are small, sticky, with small barbs.

Squirting Cucumber
Pressure builds
inside of the fruit
until it finally pops
off of the stem.
Juices with
slippery seeds
squirt out.