Functional adaptation
Pollen release triggered by bird landing: mistletoe
"Another species in the same family [of tropical mistletoe] stores its pollen in the roof of its flower. As a bird lands, its weight triggers the chamber so that it opens explosively and showers pollen all over the bird's forehead." (Attenborough 1995:117)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
The roof of some mistletoe flowers releases pollen when the weight of a landing bird triggers the explosive opening of a storage chamber.
"Another species in the same family [of tropical mistletoe] stores its pollen in the roof of its flower. As a bird lands, its weight triggers the chamber so that it opens explosively and showers pollen all over the bird's forehead." (Attenborough 1995:117)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
- Attenborough, D. 1995. The Private Life of Plants: A Natural History of Plant Behavior. London: BBC Books. 320 p.
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