Uncover how flowers attract their pollinators

Since most plants are rooted in place, they can't reproduce by attracting other members of their species. Instead, they rely on outside forces to transport their tiny pollen grains from male flower parts to female ones. One of nature's weirdest flowers, the stinking corpse lily, mimics rotting meat to lure carrion flies from one plant to another.

The vibrant yellows and blues of other flowers match up with the parts of the color spectrum where a bee's vision is most sensitive. And many bee-pollinated plants offer convenient ultraviolet-marked landing pads where the pudgy pollinators can rest while snagging nectar and pollen. Because bees are stellar smellers, these flowers also spritz out a tempting perfume to draw them in.

Hummingbirds, on the other hand, have a lousy sense of smell but an excellent memory for food sources. So flowers that cater to them keep them coming back by churning out a steady supply of sweet nectar, which they stash in deep tubes to ensure a pollen swap with each visit. These flowers hues keep their nectar safe from red-blind bees who might otherwise steal the sugary reward without picking up pollen.

Other flowers bloom at night, bearing bright white petals and potent smells that draw moths and bats in the dark. Still others grow close to the ground and give off a yeasty scent to lure in rodent pollinators. And some plants forego animals entirely, instead making it easy for wind or water to spread their pollen far and wide.

Of course, many plants have multiple pollinators, and most pollinators tend to more than one kind of plant. But almost every plant is continuously evolving to maximize its pollination potential, and as a result, their flowers hint at who or what moves most of their pollen. Because for plants, the birds and the bees really is all about the birds and the bees-- and the carrion flies.