Bees are dependent on pollen as a protein source and on flower nectar or oils as an energy source. Adult females collect pollen primarily to feed their larvae. The pollen they inevitably lose in going from flower to flower is important to plants because some pollen land on the pistils. (reproductive structures) of other flowers of the same species, resulting in cross-pollination. Bees are, in fact, the most important pollinating insects, and their interdependence with plants makes them an excellent example of the type of symbiosis known as mutualism, an association between unlike organisms that is beneficial to both parties.
- pollen [ˈpɔlin] n.花粉
- nectar [ˈnektə] n.花蜜
- larva [ˈlɑ:və] n.(昆虫的)幼虫,
- pistil [ˈpistil] n.雌蕊
- cross-pollination [ˌkrɔ:sˌpɔləˈneɪʃən, ˌkrɔs-] n.异花传粉
- interdependence [ˌɪntədiˈpendəns] n.相互依赖
- symbiosis [ˌsimbaiˈəusis] n.共生(现象)
- mutualism [ˈmju:tjuəlizəm,ˈmju:tʃuəlizəm] n.共生
- beneficial [ˌbeniˈfiʃəl] adj.有益的
