Pollinators are organisms that mediate the transfer of pollen between the male and female reproductive structures of seed plants, thereby enabling sexual reproduction and gene flow within and among plant populations. They encompass a diverse set of taxa, including many insects (notably bees, flies, butterflies, moths, beetles), some vertebrates (such as birds and bats), and other animals that incidentally or actively collect floral resources like nectar and pollen. In ecological and evolutionary research, pollinators are central to studies of plant–animal mutualisms, floral trait adaptation, community assembly, and ecosystem functioning, as well as to analyses of network structure, coevolutionary dynamics, and the stability and resilience of plant–pollinator interaction webs.
Hummingbirds make bromeliad plants split into new species twice as fast as other pollinators do, scientists at the University of Reading have found. The research team gathered records of which animals pollinate 403 types ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 6, 2026
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72
The warblers—those harbingers of spring in the U.K.—have an unappreciated talent of a different sort. Common U.K. birds, including chiffchaffs and blackcaps, are playing a real role in the pollination of plants, according ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 5, 2026
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20
Abandoned farmland can be transformed into wildflower-rich grassland habitat without the need for expensive and labor-intensive seeding, a new study by UCL researchers finds.
Plants & Animals
Jul 2, 2026
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218
Spider venoms contain ingredients that could lead to a new treatment to protect honeybees from the deadly Varroa destructor mite, according to a study led by the University of the Sunshine Coast. Researchers identified components ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 2, 2026
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54
When we think of bees, we often think of flowers. The more flowers, the better, right? Well, not exactly. Like us, bees need to consume specific nutrients in suitable amounts and combinations.
Plants & Animals
Jun 26, 2026
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11
Bumblebees are only an inch long, but they help power the global food system. Roughly one-third of the food we grow depends on pollinators like bees—and those bees are regularly decimated by pesticides.
Ecology
Jun 23, 2026
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19
Researchers have identified "DNA switches" that become active as honeybee larvae grow into worker bees, offering new insight into the development of these important pollinators and the ecosystems they support.
Ecology
Jun 23, 2026
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11
The honeybee mite, Varroa destructor, finally breached Australia's biosecurity defenses four years ago, and is here to stay. Even more concerning, our standard treatments—such as specialized pesticides—are already failing.
Ecology
Jun 22, 2026
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19
A new white paper from eight major EU-funded pollinator projects warns that the resilience of Europe's vital societal functions and food security are at stake if the EU fails to halt and reverse wild pollinator declines and ...
Ecology
Jun 22, 2026
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10
The European Commission has presented a new legislative package. It is intended to reform key provisions that have hitherto governed the approval of pesticides. The "Food and Feed Safety simplification package" is part of ...
Ecology
Jun 22, 2026
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11
