[Pollinator] BBC News: New cricket species filmed pollinating orchids

[Krupnick, Gary]

New cricket species filmed pollinating orchids

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8391540.stm

A new species of cricket has been caught on camera - and its bizarre behaviour has surprised scientists.

Far from living up to the cricket's plant-destroying reputation, this species lends a helping hand to flora by acting as a pollinator.

Scientists say this is the first time a cricket has been spotted pollinating a flower - in this case, an orchid.

A study of the nocturnal insect, which was found on the island of Reunion, has been published in the Annals of Botany.





Gary Krupnick, Ph.D.
Head of the Plant Conservation Unit
Department of Botany
Smithsonian Institution
PO Box 37012
NMNH, MRC-166
Washington, DC 20013-7012 USA
Tel: 202-633-0940
Fax: 202-786-2563
E-mail: KrupnickG at si.edu<mailto:KrupnickG at si.edu>
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