Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Pollination and Flower Structure

Pollination and Flower Structure

Flowers are the reproductive, seed-producing structures of angiosperms. Typically, flowers consist of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Sepals and petals are the vegetative flower organs. Stamens and carpels are the reproductive organs.

Communication

Communication

Communication between two animals occurs when one animal transmits an information signal that causes a change in the animal that receives the information. Organisms communicate with one another in a host of different ways. Signals can be auditory, chemical, visual, tactile, or a combination of these. Communication is a critical behavioral adaptation that promotes survival, growth, and reproduction.

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Bacteria Accumulate Quicker on Shorter Lived Flowers, but Abiotic Factors Affect Flower Aging and Bacterial Accumulation.

Integrative and comparative biology·2025

Same author

Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology.

BMC biology·2025

Same author

NRF2 translation block by inhibition of cap-dependent initiation sensitizes lymphoma cells to ferroptosis and CAR-T immunotherapy.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024

Same author

Correction to: Hold tight or loosen up? Functional consequences of a shift in anther architecture depend substantially on bee body size.

Oecologia·2023

Same author

Hold tight or loosen up? Functional consequences of a shift in anther architecture depend substantially on bee body size.

Oecologia·2022

Same author

Anther cones increase pollen release in buzz-pollinated Solanum flowers.

Evolution; international journal of organic evolution·2022

Same journal

The role of sex in structuring aggression, rank, and hierarchy in monk parakeets.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

Same journal

Modeling Probiotic-Associated Growth Dynamics in Juvenile Red Drum.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

Same journal

Sharing stress, shifting strategies: Social context during stress shifts collective thermoregulation behaviors in honeybees.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

Same journal

BatLog: open-source passive integrated transponder (PIT) tag logger for wildlife behavioral studies.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

Same journal

Symbiont identity impacts prokaryotic microbiome dynamics during heat stress in a model system for corals.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

Same journal

Special issue: Bee Aware-behavioral plasticity, dysregulation, and cross-species integration in a changing world Social bee communication in a changing world.

Integrative and comparative biology·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 10, 2025

Collection and Identification of Pollen from Honey Bee Colonies

Collection and Identification of Pollen from Honey Bee Colonies

Published on: January 19, 2021

Pollen-Microbe Interactions in Nectar Weakly Influence Bee Foraging Behavior.

Success C Ekemezie¹, Charlotte C Davis¹, Marco V Russo¹

¹Department of Biology, Missouri State University, Springfield, MO 65897, USA.

Integrative and Comparative Biology

|April 25, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Flower microbes and pollen interactions in nectar did not alter bee flower preference or constancy. However, bees rejected nectar contaminated with microbes and pollen, suggesting minor impacts on pollinator foraging behavior.

More Related Videos

A 3D Printed Pollen Trap for Bumble Bee Bombus Hive Entrances

A 3D Printed Pollen Trap for Bumble Bee Bombus Hive Entrances

Published on: July 9, 2020

Empirical, Metagenomic, and Computational Techniques Illuminate the Mechanisms by which Fungicides Compromise Bee Health

Empirical, Metagenomic, and Computational Techniques Illuminate the Mechanisms by which Fungicides Compromise Bee Health

Published on: October 9, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 10, 2025

Collection and Identification of Pollen from Honey Bee Colonies

Collection and Identification of Pollen from Honey Bee Colonies

Published on: January 19, 2021

A 3D Printed Pollen Trap for Bumble Bee Bombus Hive Entrances

A 3D Printed Pollen Trap for Bumble Bee Bombus Hive Entrances

Published on: July 9, 2020

Empirical, Metagenomic, and Computational Techniques Illuminate the Mechanisms by which Fungicides Compromise Bee Health

Empirical, Metagenomic, and Computational Techniques Illuminate the Mechanisms by which Fungicides Compromise Bee Health

Published on: October 9, 2017

Area of Science:

Ecology
Microbiology
Behavioral Ecology

Background:

Floral microbes, including bacteria and yeast, commonly inhabit nectar.
Nectar microbes can interact with pollen, potentially altering nutrient availability for pollinators.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the impact of nectar microbes (yeast Metschnikowia reukaufii, bacteria Acinetobacter nectaris) on pollen germination and bursting.
To determine how these pollen-microbe interactions affect bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) foraging behavior.

Main Methods:

Artificial nectar experiments were used to assess pollen germination and bursting in the presence of microbes.
Bumble bee foraging behavior was observed in response to nectar treatments with varying levels of pollen and microbial contamination.

Main Results:

Both yeast and bacteria reduced intact pollen, with bacteria causing the most germination and bursting.
Bees did not show altered flower preference or constancy towards microbe-contaminated nectar.
Bees significantly rejected flowers with nectar contaminated by pollen and yeast, or pollen, yeast, and bacteria.

Conclusions:

Pollen-microbe interactions in nectar may have limited direct effects on pollinator preference and constancy.
Floral nectar contamination by microbes and pollen can lead to nectar rejection by pollinators.
These findings contribute to understanding plant-pollinator ecology and the role of microbial communities.