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- Herausgeber: Creative Homeowner
- Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
Have fun while making an impact! Jam-packed with tons of awesome information all about nature, World of Pollinators teaches children the importance of pollinators, along with exciting outdoor DIY projects and activities that make a difference! Engaging and fun, kids will read and learn about important pollinating insects and other valuable nature topics, from what pollen is and how it works to why some insects and birds are pollinators while some are not. Also included are illustrated guides showing different types of birds, insects, and flowering plants that attract pollinators, regional maps, and awesome fun facts on state birds across the United States! This educational and hands-on book also provides exciting outdoor projects for kids that are fun as they get involved in nature while also protecting it, including how to make a butterfly house, how to plant a pollinator haven in a flowerpot and more. World of Pollinators is an excellent resource for parents and teachers to encourage, educate, and inspire children about pollinators and helping the environment, all while having fun!
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Special Thanks to Our Technical Reviewers:
Brian Cunningham, Wild Birds Unlimited
Robert Frank
BS, Biology & Environmental Science
Environmental Educator
Pennsylvania Watershed and Forest Conservationist
Jennifer L.J. Miller
Commercial Perennial Plant Advisor, Native Plant Specialist
Copyright © 2023
This book may not be reproduced, either in part or in its entirety, in any form, by any means, without written permission from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts for purposes of radio, television, or published review. All rights, including the right of translation, are reserved. Note: Be sure to familiarize yourself with manufacturer’s instructions for tools, equipment, and materials before beginning a project. Although all possible measures have been taken to ensure the accuracy of the material presented, neither the author nor the publisher is liable in case of misinterpretation of directions, misapplication, or typographical error.
Creative Homeowner® is a registered trademark of New Design Originals Corporation.
Managing Editor: Gretchen Bacon
Editor: Joseph Borden
Designer: Joe Rasemas
Indexer: Jay Kreider
Proofreader: Kurt Heinrich
World of Pollinators
ISBN (softcover): 978-1-58011-596-4
ISBN (hardcover): 978-1-58011-599-5
eISBN: 978-1-63741-245-9
The Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the Library of Congress.
We are always looking for talented authors. To submit an idea, please send a brief inquiry to [email protected].
Creative Homeowner®, www.creativehomeowner.com, is distributed exclusively in North America by Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc., 800-457-9112, 903 Square Street, Mount Joy, PA 17552, and in the United Kingdom by Grantham Book Service, Trent Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire, NG31 7XQ.
Introduction
Thread Waist Wasp
Monarch Butterfly
Welcome to the wonderful world of pollinators—a world of buzzing bees, fluttering butterflies, and humming hummingbirds that are not only amazing to watch, but are also extremely important to our survival on Earth.
It’s hard to believe, but it’s true, the world as we know it would be mostly desert if it weren’t for the hard work billions of insects, birds, and small animals do every day on our farms and in our fields, gardens, and forests pollinating the world’s greatest resource…plants!
Plants from the largest trees to the tiniest wildflowers provide the world with many important things, including the oxygen we breathe, fruits and vegetables we eat, food for our pets and farm animals, and ingredients for life-saving medicines. Most plants can’t survive and produce seeds to grow new plants without pollination, the process in nature that moves very small, powder-sized molecules called pollen from flower blossom to flower blossom.
Although a small number of plants can pollinate on their own with help from the wind, many need the help of insects and animals who transfer pollen as they go from one plant to another. These small insects and animals are called pollinators, the hardest-working creatures in nature.
As the world’s human population grows—with more land being used for growing cities, new roads, neighborhoods, parking lots, and factories—less land is available for plants and pollinators. The result is a shrinking population of these important creatures.
Noctuid Moth
Wheel Bug Nymph
Bumblebee
Flower Longhorn Beetle
Tiger Swallowtail
But there’s good news! As we learn about the important work pollinators do, people of all ages are planting flowering plants and trees, along with pollinator shelters, to help pollinators survive despite many of the challenges they face today. And no matter where you live, a busy city or out in the country, you can make a difference.
In this book, you’ll find a lot of great facts and photos featuring some of the world’s most popular and helpful pollinators and the plants they love the most, along with a few simple projects to help feed and protect pollinators.
A simple small patch of wildflowers can attract and feed hundreds of small pollinating insects and animals. The images of pollinators in these pages were all taken within 15 minutes of each other on an early summer day, all visiting a small wildflower garden, some just making a quick stop on their way to a nearby farm or orchard, while some stayed through the season, laying eggs and producing the next generation of pollinators. This little wildflower patch is one very small garden that has become a wonderful food source and shelter for insects and birds, and it will see hundreds of different pollinators visiting throughout the spring, summer, and early fall months.
Whether a small flowerpot on a balcony or small garden in the backyard, pollinators will greatly appreciate your help as they continue their hard work helping to keep our forests, farms, fields, and vegetable gardens healthy and strong year after year.
We thank you for learning about the world of pollinators and doing your part to protect and preserve Earth’s most fascinating and important helpers!
Black Swallowtail
Duskywing Skipper
Table ofContents
All About Pollen
About Flowers
How Pollen Moves
Wind
By Hand
Pollinators
Where Pollination Happens
In the Forest
In the City
In the Desert
On the Farm
At the Orchard
Our Favorite Foods—Courtesy of Pollinators
Wildflowers
Black-Eyed Susan
The Sunflower
Flowers That Attract Bees
Flowers That Attract Butterflies
Flowers That Attract Hummingbirds
Make a Pollination Station
All About Bees and Wasps
Wasps
Bees
The Honeybee
The Bumblebee
The Mason Bee
Building a Soup Can Bee House
Make a Pollinator Water Station
Make a Bug Hotel
All About Butterflies and Moths
Popular Butterflies
The Monarch Butterfly
Monarch’s Favorite Flowers
Marvelous Moths
The Hummingbird Moth
Bird Pollinators
All About Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds around the World
How to Build a Hummingbird Feeder
Beetles
Ladybugs
Hoverflies
Longhorn Beetles
Bats and Four-Legged Pollinators
All AboutPollen
Close-up of a beautiful purple tulip bloom full of pollen.
Did You KNOW?
Tulips are considered self-pollinating plants, meaning they can survive and make new tulips without their pollen being transferred to another tulip.
Did You KNOW?
There are over 3,000 different types of tulips around the world. They come in many brilliant colors including purple, white, yellow, red, and pink (but not blue).
Most people believe that pollen is only yellow in color, but it can be found in many different colors including red, purple, white, and brown. Over thousands of years, flowers have adapted the color of their pollen to attract the insects and animals they need to successfully pollinate every year. For example, insects such as bees can’t see red, so many plants produce yellow pollen to attract them. Certain birds and butterflies are attracted to bright red colors, so some plants produce red pollen to attract specific birds and butterflies, which help with their pollination process every year.
Microscopic close-up of a single pollen molecule.
What is pollination?
Pollination is the transfer of pollen—tiny, dust-size particles—either within a flower blossom or between flowers. Pollination is essential for plants to produce seeds. Wind and rain can help move pollen, but birds, bees, butterflies, and other animals and insects play an even more important role. These pollinators visit flowers every day—mostly for sweet nectar—and pick up pollen that they transfer to other flowers without even knowing it!
Pollen is a very fine powder produced by many of the plants around the world, often found in the blossoms of trees and flowers of plants on the ground. Without pollen and the help of animals and insects to move the fine pollen powder from one flower or blossom to another, many of the plants we see every day in our neighborhoods would not be able to reproduce. And without plants, people, our pets, and animals that live in forests and on farms would not have enough food to eat.
Did You KNOW?
A single pollen particle is nearly impossible to see without the help of a microscope or powerful magnifying glass. Scientists have learned over the years that each type of plant produces its own unique pollen shape, similar to human fingerprints.
Who invented the microscope?
It’s not clear who invented the microscope. Many believe that Hans and Zacharias Janssen, a father-and-son-team of spectacle makers, created the first microscope in 1590. Scientists continued to refine the design over time, using different combinations of lenses and light sources, eventually creating the modern microscopes used today in laboratories around the world.
Most of the pollen that causes allergic reactions comes from trees, grasses, and weeds. These plants make very small, light, and dry pollen grains that travel by the wind. They then can easily find their way into your eyes, nose, and lungs, causing your eyes to itch and nose to run. For some people, spring and early summer are difficult times to breathe easily, as pollen is in the air due to the wind blowing through the forests and flower fields.
Did You KNOW?
Most insects visit flowers for the sweet nectar that is usually found deep inside the flower bloom. From butterflies to bats, there are thousands of animals and insects that visit flowers for this resource, which is full of sugar, vitamins, salt, and other nutrients that make for a high-energy food source.
Although bees seek out pollen for protein, they also love nectar, which they use as a food source and turn into honey. Bees also use pollen as food for their larvae, which are similar to small grubs at this stage, without legs, wings, or many other features. The pollen is combined with bee saliva to make “bee bread,” which is high in the nutrients growing bees need.
Why do bees like pollen?
Bees are hardworking insects and burn up a lot of calories nearly every minute of every day. Pollen is filled with protein, fat, and other nutrients that help bees keep up their energy levels. Bees require both pollen and nectar to survive. Bees also have the amazing ability to turn nectar from flowers into sweet-tasting honey.
An Empress Brilliant Hummingbird sucking sweet nectar from a red flower.
AboutFlowers
Parts of a Flower
Close-up of a vibrant tiger lily, a favorite for many hummingbirds and bees.
Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create energy in the form of sugar, which plants use as food. A byproduct of this process is oxygen, which all animals need to survive. The main function of flower petals is to attract insects for pollination and to protect the reproductive organs located in the center of the flower.
Why are flower petals different for different species?
Petals are essentially modified leaves. Plants have different leaf patterns depending on their strategy for moisture conservation and use of sunlight for photosynthesis.
Cross-Pollination vs. Self-Pollination
When flowering plants need the assistance of pollinators to transfer the pollen from the stamen to the anther, it is called cross-pollination.
Some flowering plants can self-pollinate, meaning they can use the pollen that they produce without the assistance of bees, butterflies, and bugs. In self-pollinating flowers, the pollen produced by the stamen can fall directly onto the anthers without any help other than a gentle breeze.
True Blue?
Although every color from bright red to black can be found, true-blue flowers are very rare in nature. Some scientists believe a true-blue flower doesn’t exist at all due to the lack of blue pigment in the plant world. Often, people mistake shades of purple and violet for blue.
Did You KNOW?
There are over 400,000 flowering plant species across the world, producing a variety of flower types in a range of colors, shades, shapes, and sizes. The shape, size, and color of a flower’s petals is the easiest way to identify a flower. The flower’s color, shape, and even number of petals are important for pollinators when they decide which flower to visit when looking for nectar or pollen. A flower’s petal size and variety depend on the plant’s strategy for pollination.
FlowerShapes
Pollinators are attracted to different types of flowers for different reasons, including a flower’s color, shape, and the smell of its nectar. Certain insects look for flower blossoms that are easy landing pads, while hummingbirds look for more tube-shaped flowers so they can easily stick their beak and tongue in to suck out the nectar while staying airborne.
1. Bell shaped. Bell-shaped flowers, such as the foxglove, have a wide tube and flared petal tips or lobes that vary in length. These are often visited by hummingbirds.
2. Funnel shaped. Funnel-shaped flowers have a narrow base and gradually widen in a flared or open shape. One example of these types is the morning glory, a flower visited by bees, small butterflies, and hummingbirds.
3. Trumpet shaped. Trumpet-shaped flowers are similar to the end of a trumpet, narrow at the bottom, with the petals opening gently out. Pollinators with long tongues, such as the hummingbird moth, can easily suck out the nectar from these.
4. Bowl shaped. Bowl-shaped blooms have a symmetrical, deep-dish shape similar to a cup shape, but deeper. They have straight sides or a slight flare to the tips of the petals. The poppy is one example of this type and is the perfect flower for butterflies and bees.
5. Saucer shaped.
