Credits

Created by Alli Kenlan, Explore Natural Communities Intern Summer 2017, NatureServe. Additional voices by Christine Stephens, Kerry Skiff, Matt Jones, Michael Lee, and Rickie White.

Music: Carefree, and Monkeys Spinning Monkeys, by Kevin Macleod (freemusicarchive.org). Licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0.

Photo: Honeybee on Blue Aster, Matt Jones. Licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0.

References:
Insects & Pollinators
How Bees See and Why it Matters
What Do Honey Bees Collect?

Transcript

Podcast time: 3:30 minutes

[Clips of different voices] Pollinators! Pollinators! Pollinators! Pollinators! Pollinators! Pollinators!

[Voice 1] Pollinators! You've probably heard the word before, but what does it mean? And, why does it matter? [music starts] Pollinators are insects, birds, reptiles, and mammals that spread plant pollen from flower to flower, allowing the plant to produce fruits and seeds. In return, the pollinator may be provided with nectar or pollen to eat and a cozy spot to rest. This win-win situation is called a “symbiotic relationship,” where both plant and pollinator benefit.

Plants advertise to their pollinating partners. This relationship may be wide open to all pollinators, or it may be unique and involve a specific animal. You can tell by some common characteristics what kind of pollinator a plant is trying to attract!

Let's play a game of “I Spy”...[upbeat, fast temp music starts] Do you see any brightly colored flowers as you look around? Daytime pollinators, like bees, butterflies, and birds, are attracted to bright colors. Some birds love red flowers. Bees, on the other hand, can't see the color red at all. They prefer yellow, purple, and even ultra-violet that we can't see.

Now, look at the shapes of the flowers and how they are arranged. Some flowers have large petals that act as landing pads for small insects, while trumpet-shaped flowers or flowers with long spurs are perfect for the long beaks of hummingbirds or the long, uncurling tongues of butterflies. Flowers come in bouquets or as singles, all by themselves. A whole bush of flowers is that much more attractive!

Are you smelling anything fragrant or pungent in the air? Night pollinators such as moths and bats are drawn to pale colored flowers with strong scents. Some plants even smell like rotting meat to attract flies. The better a plant is at drawing in pollinators, the better chance it has at reproducing. [music stops]

So why does that matter to us? [original music starts again] When plants are pollinated, they produce fruits, which wildlife and humans need. In fact, scientists estimate that one out of every three bites of food you take was pollinated by animals. Both native ecosystems and human agriculture are dependent on pollinators, which is why they are so incredibly important. That's also why pesticides are such a hot topic today, with growing research about whether certain chemicals can wipe out entire colonies of bees.

But perhaps the biggest threat pollinators face is loss of habitat and food sources due to growing cities and urban sprawl. In the past, native flowering trees, shrubs, and wildflowers found in natural communities were enough to support pollinators. Today, however, many pollinator species are in distress. As forests and meadows are replaced by buildings, cities, and suburbs, there are fewer natural spaces for pollinators to inhabit.

This is where National Parks and you come in! All of the parks in the National Capital Region protect natural communities and may have planted meadows or gardens full of pollinator-attracting flowers. The rest of us can do our part by adding native plants to our backyard gardens that make birds, bees, bats, and butterflies feel at home. How do you get started? Just type "native pollinator gardens" into your search bar and you'll find thousands of resources! The more local the source, the better it will be for pollinators in your area! Is there room in your yard?

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