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.
A yellow disk with rays of white—an icon of childhood drawings and a flower with healing properties. We have picnics on it, play football on it and make daisy chains out of it.
Plants & Animals
Feb 28, 2026
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75
Should you ever find yourself playing a trivia game on the topic of moths and butterflies, here are a few facts that might help. Collectively called Lepidoptera, moths and butterflies account for nearly 10% of all animal ...
Evolution
Feb 26, 2026
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51
A study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology has revealed the toxic "forever chemical," PFOS, can accumulate in exposed honeybee colonies and transfer to their honey, threatening pollinator viability, ...
Environment
Feb 26, 2026
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66
Climate change has caused some tropical plants to flower earlier or later than they used to; in some cases by a matter of weeks or even months, according to a study of 8,000 flowers across more than two centuries, published ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 25, 2026
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20
The Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) is one of the most dreaded insects to have invaded North America and parts of Europe. Accidentally introduced to the United States in the early twentieth century, it can now be found ...
Ecology
Feb 25, 2026
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14
The world has far more bees than anyone realized. Scientists have, for the first time, estimated just how many species of bees are out there on a global scale, offering a clearer look at how these vital pollinators are distributed ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 24, 2026
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182
Can students be on the front lines of conservation? A new Canada-wide study, published in Metabarcoding and Metagenomics, suggests they can. The efforts of some 5,000 students produced data detailed enough to reveal complex ...
Ecology
Feb 23, 2026
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11
In the realm of entomology, few creatures command as much fascination as the mantis. Throughout history, these striking insects have been deeply woven into local myths and legends, sometimes respected as mystical soothsayers ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 19, 2026
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Though superbloom is not a scientific term, that doesn't stop legions from hoping for a giant display of wildflowers come springtime. UC Riverside plant ecologist Loralee Larios weighs in here on the outlook for such a show ...
Ecology
Feb 13, 2026
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49
A multi-institutional team of researchers led by Virginia Tech's Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC has for the first time identified specific patterns of brain chemical activity that predict how quickly individual ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 11, 2026
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