JULY 2015 • NEBRASKAland 41
to go. First, the insect has to make the
same mistake it made earlier and stick
its leg into another anther slit. Not only
that, but also it has to step in the slit
with the same leg as before – the leg
with the pollinia attached. Then, when
it pulls its leg out again (assuming
it can) it needs to leave the pollinia
behind in just the right place, a small
spot at the base of the stigma lobe, so
pollination can occur.
To review, here are the steps needed:
1. Insect attracted to flower.
2. Insect accidentally steps into
anther slit.
3. Insect pulls both its leg and
pollinia out of the slit.
4. Insect visits another flower.
5. Insect accidentally sticks the same
leg into another anther slit.
6. Insect successfully extracts its leg
and leaves the pollinia at the base
of the stigma lobe.
This is the actual pollination strategy
for milkweed, one that has somehow
allowed milkweed to survive and
produce seeds for many thousands
of years. While it seems crazy to
rely on the missteps of others for
success, it's hard to argue with the
results. Milkweed, and its many insect
"partners" can make plenty of seeds.
But it's up to us to make sure there
are places for those seeds to land
and grow. We can also help increase
the number of milkweed plants by
tweaking land management practices
and adding milkweeds to landscaping
and restoration projects. ■
Chris Helzer is the Eastern Nebraska
Program Director for the Nature
Conservancy.
He has been a
contributor to
NEBRASKAland
since 1994 and
his first full-
length article
was"The Closer
View" in June
1995.
This paper wasp tried to clean the pollinia from its legs but wasn't having any luck. It was sliding its leg through its mouthparts, but
the pollinia remained afterward.
POLLINIA
The anther slits on a milkweed flower. This is the tiny hole an insect must step into
and out of (twice) in order for pollination to occur.
r
"
B
a
a
t
t
a
a
P
C
H
c
N
s
h
l
w
V
The anther slits on a milkweed flower. This is the tiny hole an insect must step into
ANTHER SLITS
ANTHER SLITS
