wind water anemophilous grasses birch trees Fagales ragweeds sedges protein insects catkin Pendulous pollinators entomophilous scent nectar stigma pollen nectaries anther
Flowers that use abiotic, or non-living, vectors use the wind or, much less commonly, water, to move pollen from one flower to the next. In wind-dispersed (anemophilous) species, the tiny pollen grains are carried, sometimes many thousands of kilometres, by the wind to other flowers. Common examples include the grasses, birch trees, along with many other species in the order Fagales, ragweeds, and many sedges. They have no need to attract pollinators and therefore tend not to grow large, showy, or colorful flowers, and do not have nectaries, nor a noticeable scent. Because of this, plants typically have many thousands of tiny flowers which have comparatively large, feathery stigmas; to increase the chance of pollen being received. Whereas the pollen of entomophilous flowers is usually large, sticky, and rich in protein (to act as a "reward" for pollinators), anemophilous flower pollen is typically small-grained, very light, smooth, and of little nutritional value to insects. In order for the wind to effectively pick up and transport the pollen, the flowers typically have anthers loosely attached to the end of long thin filaments, or pollen forms around a catkin which moves in the wind. Rarer forms of this involve individual flowers being moveable by the wind (Pendulous), or even less commonly; the anthers exploding to release the pollen into the wind.
