[Pollinator] And Even More Head-banging bee videos!

[Peter Bernhardt]

Shortly after viewing the first video of the head-banging Amegilla (Apidae)
a series of head-banging bee videos appeared on my Youtube page (as in...
"You may be interested").  These videos are much better than the one
embedded in the online newspaper.  You can clearly see the bees ramming
their heads against the anthers.  The first video shows the bee on a native
Australian species of blue flax lily (Dianella; Phromiaceae).  The second
is on the flower of a domesticated tomato (Lycopersicon; Solanaceae).



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlFcQrfutIA



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBr9apX9KpA


As a matter of fact, I published a paper on the pollination of one species
of blue flax lily back in 1995 recording buzz-pollination.  There are
several species, and subspecies, in this genus and I doubt that the species
I studied is the same one that's in the above, video.  Dr Buchmann will be
happy to tell all of you that many genera of Australian monocots and
eudicots are buzz-pollinated by native bees. Unfortunately Bernhardt (1995)
is not online but here is the full citation.


*Bernhardt, P..  1995.  The floral ecology of Dianella caerulea var. assera
(Phormiaceae).  Cunninghamia 4: 1-17.*


Australian buzz-pollination videos on Youtube must be taken with the
proverbial "grain of salt."  There is a third video of a small bee
(halictid?, colletid?) on a Dianella.  Dr Walker will identify her for us.
She is happily harvesting pollen from one anther but note she is not
contacting the receptive stigma (too small) so the act of pollination
(viable pollen on a receptive stigma) has not occurred.  There's no audio
either so I'm unsure whether she is actually using vibration to shake
pollen out of the anther.



Peter
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