A new study published today in the journal Current Biology from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Royal Holloway, University of London, has discovered that a natural nectar chemical in Calluna heather called callunene can ...
Ecology
Oct 11, 2019
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How flowers have evolved particular colours, shapes and scents to attract pollinators has long fascinated ecologists. Now, using artificial flowers and high-speed video, researchers have gained intriguing insights into the ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 20, 2012
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For many people, the best start to the day is a nice, fresh cup of joe. Now, researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on October 15 find that honey bees find caffeinated beverages—er, nectar—irresistible ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 15, 2015
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307
Across the western Cape of South Africa can be found small plants in the Iris family called Babiana. Flitting between them are sunbirds, small colourful birds like the African version of hummingbirds, that drink the nectar ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 6, 2011
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A new study reveals how enzymes in the honey bee gut detoxify pesticides commonly used to kill mites in the honey bee hive. This is the first study to tease out the precise molecular mechanisms that allow a pollinating insect ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 20, 2011
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A team of researchers affiliated with multiple institutions in the U.S., has found adding sodium to floral nectar increased both visits by pollinators and their diversity. In their paper published in the journal Biology Letters, ...
Ants play a variety of important roles in many ecosystems. As frequent visitors to flowers, they can benefit plants in their role as pollinators when they forage on sugar-rich nectar. However, a new study reveals that this ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 24, 2013
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Botanists from Trinity College Dublin's School of Natural Sciences have discovered that the nectar from a common, non-native plant, is toxic to some Irish bees. These effects vary based on the species of bee consuming the ...
Ecology
Nov 9, 2015
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775
A new study has mapped food specialization in hummingbird communities across the Americas, leading to a rare documentation of a large scale ecological pattern. It reveals that communities with high levels of food specializations ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 2, 2016
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676
Rapeseed is one of the ten most important agricultural crops worldwide. In spring, the rapeseed fields with their bright yellow flowers are widely visible: this year winter rapeseed is being cultivated on 1.46 million hectares ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 29, 2010
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