AboutOrchids

Bee Orchids know how to appeal to bees. In the first video below, a botanist from London’s Natural History Museum explores the elaborate deceptions of these fascinating plants. Also known as Ophrys apifera, Bee Orchids mimic the appearance and pheromones of their namesake bugs to trick them into pollinating their flowers. The video also shows a related species, the Late Spider Orchid, Ophrys fuciflora, which is another insect mimic.

Like many orchids, Bee Orchids attract only one species of pollinator. That may not seem like an efficient strategy, but it helps the plants deliver their pollen to flowers of the same species. The next video shows another Ophrys variety, the False Spider Orchid, which also has great bee-appeal.

To learn more about orchid pollination strategies, check out this great Oxford University Press blog post about orchid deception.

Explore posts in the same categories: Cool Growers, Videos

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 10th, 2015 at 9:30 pm and is filed under Cool Growers, Videos.

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