Where to find them
The hummingbirds are a colorful view throughout North and South America, flying from flower to flower in gardens and parks. When the hummingbirds They visit flowers, not only feeding on nectar, but also pollinating the flowers, which in turn allows the plants to produce fruits or seeds.
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Hundreds of species of hummingbirds
There is more than 300 species of hummingbirdswhich are found exclusively in the Americas from Alaska until Chili. These small birds fly up to 1,000 kilometers or more, quite a journey for a bird that weighs mere grams.
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The hummingbird consumes nectar as the main part of its diet.
The hummingbirds They eat some small insects, such as ants or gnats, and flower nectar is a vital part of their diet. A hummingbird hungry may visit between 1000 and 3000 flowers a day to maintain adequate caloric intake.
Plant Reproduction
While some plants are wind-pollinated or self-pollinated, the vast majority depend on the hummingbirdsbees, butterflies and bats to transport pollen from one individual plant to another.
Like animals, plants have male and female parts, and in order for plants to produce seeds in order to reproduce, pollen grains must be transferred from one plant to the ovary of another plant of the same species. Pollen and ovary are packaged inside the flowers with bright colors or attractive scents to help attract pollinators to visit the flowers.
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Although the hummingbird looks for nectar in almost all flowers, it prefers red or orange ones.
Most pollinators flock to flowers to feed on the sugary, calorie-rich nectar.and assistance in pollination is simply a coincidence.
How hummingbird pollination occurs
The hummingbirds They have long beaks and even longer tongues, allowing them to feed on flowers that are too long and thin for anything else. When a hummingbird inserts its beak into a flower to drink the nectar, sticky pollen grains stick to the side of its beak.
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The hummingbird uses its beak to reach nectar from tubular flowers.
When the hummingbird visits its next flower, some of the pollen grains are transferred and, if both flowers are of the same species, pollination occurs.
The flowers that attract hummingbirds They include red flowers, although pink, orange or other colored flowers are also common. They also prefer tube- or trumpet-shaped flowers.