nectar
Sign in to savethumb|Nectar of camellia thumb|Orange-yellow nectaries and greenish nectar in buckwheat flowers thumb|An Australian painted lady feeding on a flower's nectar thumb|Gymnadenia conopsea flowers with nectar-filled spur Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists, which in turn provide herbivore protection. Common nectar-consuming pollinators include mosquitoes, hoverflies, wasps, bees, butterflies and moth
AI overview
Nectar is a sweet, sugar-rich liquid that plants produce in special glands called nectaries, using it to attract pollinating animals like bees, butterflies, and other insects. In exchange for feeding on this nectar, these animals pollinate the flowers or help protect the plant from pests, creating a mutually beneficial relationship.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
10 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Floral nectaries
- Secretion
- Extrafloral nectaries<!-- [[Extrafloral nectary]] redirects to this heading -->
- Components
- Similar attractive substances
- See also
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
thumb|Nectar of camellia thumb|Orange-yellow nectaries and greenish nectar in buckwheat flowers thumb|An Australian painted lady feeding on a flower's nectar thumb|Gymnadenia conopsea flowers with nectar-filled spur Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists, which in turn provide herbivore protection. Common nectar-consuming pollinators include mosquitoes, hoverflies, wasps, bees, butterflies and moths, hummingbirds, honeyeaters and bats. Nectar is an economically important substance as it is the sugar source for honey.
Nectar is also useful in agriculture and horticulture because the adult stages of some predatory insects feed on nectar. For example, a number of predacious or parasitoid wasps (e.g., the social wasp species Apoica flavissima) rely on nectar as a primary food source. In turn, these wasps then hunt agricultural pest insects as food for their young.