What Parts of the Flower Are Broad, Leaflike and Attract Animals?
Flowers depend on insects and other animals to help in the plant's reproductive efforts. By providing attractive scents and colorful leaflike appendages, the flower becomes more appealing and the greater chance that plant has for pollination.
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Petals
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Petals are bright, colorful leaflike parts of the flower that are meant to attract animals and insects by sight. They come in all shapes, sizes and many colors.
The Corolla
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Petals form the corolla, which is the large colorful part of the flower. Sometimes the individual petals are large and distinctive; other times they are tiny and called corolla lobes.
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Fragrance
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Flowers are also the source of a plant's special fragrance, also intended to invite visitors that may help with pollination.
Pollination
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Flowers contain both male and female reproductive parts. The male part, the stamen, holds the pollen which must be transported to the female part, the pistil.
Animal Aid
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Insects and animals that are attracted by scents and the flower's corolla or petals brush against the stamen while feeding. Pollen sticks to the animals and is then transferred to the pistil of either the same flower or another one that is visited.
Fragrant Fun Fact
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Though most flowers use a combination of scent and colorful petals to attract animals and insects, the titan arum, dubbed the world's smelliest flower depends on scent. Its petals are unremarkable but its scent which mimics decaying flesh is meant to attract sweat flies as pollinators.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of B Balaji
