Page 113 - The Miracle of the Honeybee

THE BUCKET ORCHID AND BEES

One example of the harmony be- two living things, plant and insect, is
tween insects and flowers is that be- proof that they are both created by
tween bees and the bucket orchids. our Almighty Lord.
The plant secretes a liquid that drips
into the orchid’s bucket. A bee drawn
Natural History,
by the fragrance of the flower falls
March 1999, pp. 72-74.
into the slippery part of the flower
that contains the liquid. The bee has
only one way out: a narrow tunnel,
with pollen on its entrance. As the
bee strives to escape, the pollen rubs
off and sticks to its back. Shortly af-
terward, it escapes out of the trap
and goes to another orchid, leaving
behind some of the pollen stuck to its
back, thus fertilizing the flower. The
bee also acquires an aromatic sub-
stance with which to attract female
bees. The harmony between these

Upper wall
of flower

Secretory
glands
Lateral
calyx leaf
Droplet

Narrow Intermediate sec-
tunnel tion
containing
pollen

Bucket