Some flowers need birds to help them make seeds. Just like insects, some birds go to brightly coloured flowers in search of nectar. The pollen rubs off onto their beaks and feathers. They carry the pollen to other flowers.

 

 

 

Colourful flowers attract birds.

Birds are heavier than insects and a bird’s beak is hard. Because of this, bird-pollinated flowers are firm and tough. Birds have a poor sense of smell so these flowers don’t need to have a strong scent. Unlike bees, birds are not sensitive to ultra-violet light so flowers must be brightly coloured to attract them.

 

 

 

 

 

Humming-birds drink nectar from some flowers.

Some flowers need humming-birds to carry pollen to help them make seeds. Humming-birds also need flowers. They need the sugary nectar in these flowers for energy so that they can beat their wings up to 80 times a second!

 

 

 

 

Some bats and small animals like to drink nectar.

This tiny honey possum has a long snout and tongue for lapping up nectar from eucalyptus flowers. Its tongue can extend two centimeters from its body even though honey possums are only half the size of a mouse. Pollen rubs off onto the possum’s snout and is carried from one flower to another in this way.