Biotic pollination

Pollination is the transfer of pollen (male microgametophyte) to receptive female stigmas for reproduction. There are two types of pollination, abiotic and biotic.

Biotic pollination is the result of the movement of pollen by living organisms; it is the most common form of pollination and accounts for an estimated 90% of pollination of all flowering plants.

Biotic pollination requires biotic pollinators: organisms that carry or move the pollen grains from the anther to the receptive part of the carpel or pistil. The various flower traits (and combinations thereof) that differentially attract one type of pollinator or another are known as pollination syndromes.

It is clear that the majority of flowering plants are pollinated by insects and other animals, with a minority utilizing abiotic pollen vectors, mainly wind.

There are roughly 200,000 varieties of animal pollinators in the wild, most of which are insects. ''Entomophily'', pollination by insects, often occurs on plants that have developed colored petals and a strong scent to attract insects such as, bees, wasps and occasionally ants (Hymenoptera), beetles (Coleoptera), moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera), and flies (Diptera).

Biotic pollination can be essential (i.e., essential for reproduction), or where reproduction occurs through other methods (e.g., self- or abiotic pollination, or asexual reproduction), biotic pollination can still be beneficial by enhancing fruit / seed quantity / quality, enhancing population viability and / or persistence, or by greater genetic diversity through outbreeding.
Biotic pollination