Orchids and Pollinators...together

         One of the reason why plants and flowers evolved in terms of their shape, form, colours and fragrance, is because of their need to reproduce, to make sure that their offspring spread and exists as long as they could..Plants can reproduce in many ways such as through cuttings, rhizomes, plantlets and seeds..

         Pollinators plays an important part to achieve this important task...Orchidacea family is one of the most unique in terms of their relationship with their pollinators..In orchids, insects plays an important part in pollination..Some uses the usual method such as bright colours and sweet or foul smell, but the most unique is the one that mimicking the insects itself, in shape and even in their scents. In other words insects are deceived by their looks thinking that the flower is their mate!

        All of the pictures in this post showing the portrait of orchids with their pollinators together, which I feel that we seldom see this kind of interaction being captured by lens.. 

         Salah satu sebab kenapa tumbuhan dan bunga berubah dari segi rupa dan bentuk, warna dan juga bau ialah untuk berkembang biak..bagi memastikan generasi yang seterusnya terus kekal..Tumbuhan membiak dengan berbagai cara antaranya melalui keratan batang, rizom, ubi, anak pokok dan biji benih..

         Proses pendebungaan perlu berlaku untuk memastikan terjadinya biji benih..Keluarga Orchidacea adalah antara yang paling unik apabila dikaitkan dengan hubungannya dengan serangga iaitu agen pendebungaan utama.. Melalui bunganya orkid menggunakan bermacam-macam kaedah untuk menarik minat serangga sama ada dengan menggunakan warna terang, berbau wangi atau busuk, manakala yang paling unik ialah menggunakan kaedah penyamaran mengikut rupa dan bau serangga tertentu..dengan kata lain serangga itu tertipu dengan menganggap orkid itu ialah pasangannya!

        Semua gambar di bawah menunjukkan rakaman lensa orkid bersama dengan agen pendebungaannya..Saya membuat pos ini ialah disebabkan kita jarang melihat interaksi fauna dan orkid yang seganding serta saling bergantung antara satu sama lain di pentas alam..

 A bee inside a 'pouch' of a phragmipedium flower.

 A wasp thinking that the orchid is their mate..

 Butterfly feasting on Epidendrum flowers.

 A group of fly species on Masdevallia flower.

 A bee being deceived by the Ophrys flowers.

 A group of wasps swarming towards this Australian orchid species.

 A pair of euglossine bees hovering towards a Gongora.

 Hummingbird with Elleanthus species.

 A hawkmoth searching nectar on European Orchis species..

 A moth pollinating this terrestrials orchids.

 A butterfly on Disa uniflora..

 Again. this wasp is being tricked into thinking that the orchid is their female companion.

 A bee visiting this Stanhopea flowers..

You're only here for a short visit. Don't hurry, don't worry. 

And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.. 

- Walter Hagen