Self vs. Cross Pollination and Flower Types

Pollination is when an animal moves pollen from one plant to another, and the animals that carry pollen are called pollinators.

Butterflies use a long, skinny mouthpart called a proboscis to drink nectar from flowers, while tube-lipped bats use their long tongue to reach nectar deep inside flowers.

Hummingbirds have a thin, curved beak that allows them to reach the nectar inside certain flowers, dusting their heads and bodies with pollen in the process.