Exhibition ‘The Island of Pollinators’ [ENGLISH]

Aug 1, 2024 | Exposición La Isla de los Polinizadores

 

Animated short film

POSTER 1

The Island of Pollinators

 

Comic: 

 

  • Science journalism… Bah! And, on top of that, I’m the only one they’ve sent here.

I’m not gonna lie… This isn’t the kind of internship I had in mind, really.

It’s all a bit too much.

Ahem, so…

  • I think you’d better put your mask on.
  • No, there’s no need. Let’s see… Why are these bugs so important again?
  • ‘Bugs’… Can you see any plants around here? 
  • Well, no…
  • What about ‘bug pollinators’?
  • No, none.
  • There you go. I’m going to give you a crash course so that you don’t publish any old thing.

Let’s see… You do know what a pollinator is, don’t you?

  • Erm… sure…
  • Ok, then. Pollinators are animals that help plants reproduce.
  • I see…
  • They basically transport pollen from one flower to the next.
  • Right…

 

This is a critical time in the planet’s history, where human interference is severely threatening the ecological and evolutionary processes that have governed life on Earth for millennia. This story is a wake-up call for us all, a stark reminder we are all part of a vibrant world teeming with life, and our actions can have unpredictable, catastrophic consequences. It also forces us to think about the legacy we want to leave for future generations and our individual roles in protecting and preserving the planet.

 

POSTER 2

 

  • This pollen deposited by pollinators on the flowers’ stigmas fertilises the ovules, creating the fruit that bears the seeds to perpetuate the cycle of life. This is how plants…
  • Hold on, you’re going too fast! The what of the flower?
  • On the stigmas. The pollen deposited on the stigmas fertilises the ovules, and so the fruit bearing the seeds to perpetuate the cycle of life is created.
  • That’s amazing!
  • That’s how plants stay alive and remain functional. And, as you well know, plants are essential for all beings on the planet, including humans. They provide us with food, wood, resin, rubber and fibres for textiles.
  • I would never have guessed.
  • What if I told you that plants produce oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide? They also retain soil moisture, help regulate temperatures and sustain the food chain. 
  • Damn, I guess plants really are important!

 

POSTER 3

  • Don’t you see every plant species needs a pollinator with a specific size and shape to match each flower?
  • Yup… sizes and shapes.
  • You need to understand there was a huge variety of species in the past.
  • Oh! I see. Different species.
  • That’s right. And our ancestors didn’t appreciate them enough.
  • Are you trying to tell me our problems stem from such tiny creatures?
  • And are you trying to tell me you still think they are inconsequential, after everything I’ve said?

We used to have lots more lepidoptera here. Like butterflies and moths, they pollinated tubular flowers.

As well as bees. Although carnivorous and stingers when threatened, they were also efficient and prolific plant pollinators.

  • All right, fine, I get it.
  • And syrphids! Flies that could mimic certain bees and wasps, hovering in the air.
  • And let’s not forget about bombyliidae: hairy-bodied flies with an elongated mouthpart. They were essential pollinators for many plants.

And coleoptera! Highly efficient open-flower pollinators. And what about our friends, the bees? There were over 20,000 different species in all shapes and sizes.

  • But why here? What makes this place so special compared to others?
  • This island was a natural ‘laboratory’. You can’t begin to imagine how many different species there were. It was spectacular!
  • Here? I find that hard to believe.
  • Science has taught us that islands are highly fragile and vulnerable ecosystems. Any disturbance has rapid and irreversible consequences.
  • It would’ve been nice to see it all. Well, shall we call it a day?
  • Sure. It’s coming up to 11 and we won’t be able to carry on.

 

POSTER 4

  • It must’ve been truly something…
  • It was all so precious, but they didn’t fight to protect it. (Beep, beep) And to make matters worse, there’s a sandstorm today and it’s coming in fast. We need to hurry up!
  • Oh, it’s so nice in here. I was burning up out there!
  • Get moving and buckle up! We’ve got a bigger problem to deal with out there!
  • Let’s go! It’s all good. We’re pushing it, but we’ll make it.
  • See? If we’d cared enough, we wouldn’t need to go to so much trouble to eat decent strawberries.
  • I’ve never eaten a strawberry…
  • There are now so many plants unable to bear fruit.
  • Does that mean they’ll die out?

 

POSTER 5

 

  • Yeah. Some colleagues are working on efficient robotic pollinators for those plants, to somehow replace the species whose remains you saw me dig up. 
  • That kicks ass!
  • Right, well, we’ll be the ones getting our arses kicked if we don’t manage to find some kind of fix.

 

Did you know…?

 

  • Over 80% of flowering plants need pollinators to transfer pollen and produce fruit and seeds? If you think about how important flowering plants are, you will get an idea of how important this number is when it comes to conservation, and drafting environmental and social policies 
  • Estimates point to there currently being over 200,000 animal species who can act as plant pollinators. These include bees, flies, beetles, wasps, butterflies, bats, many species of birds, marsupials, rodents, lizards and many more. Each of these functional groups has an efficient link to just a few plant groups. There is no universal pollinator for all plants. This is why it is no use thinking about conservation by entrusting a single species with the entire pollination process for flowering plants. We need to conserve all pollinators!
  • Generally, although robotic pollinators are an exciting area of fieldwork, they should not be seen as a full replacement for natural pollinators. Instead, they should be considered an extra tool to help in highly specific circumstances. Conserving and protecting natural pollinators and their habitats remains the best way to ensure proper sustainable pollination for crops and ecosystems.

 

POSTER 6

 

What are pollinators?

 

There are an estimated 200,000 animal pollinators around the globe. These mainly include insects such as bees, butterflies, flies, beetles and wasps. Nonetheless, bird species, bats, lizards, rodents, marsupials and other animals also play a major role in pollinating plants.

 

Pollinators can be placed into functional groups to help study and identify them in the field. These groups are based on features such as body size and shape, foraging behaviour, structural features of the mouth and the plant preferences of certain pollinators. Some of the most common functional pollinator groups are: 

 

MOTHS

These nocturnal creatures have more discrete, less striking wing colours. However, when there is no light pollution their work as pollinators is essential, albeit not very well known. Many are drawn to sweet-smelling flowers.

 

BUTTERFLIES

Butterflies have a long slim body with two pairs of large colourful wings. As they generally have an elongated mouthpart (proboscis), they can visit narrow tubular flowers where nectar is hidden at the base of the tube.

 

BEES

Bees are highly efficient plant pollinators thanks to their ability to transport large amounts of pollen when they move between flowers in search of food. Bees generally have a strong hairy body, and feed on nectar and pollen from flowers. As the pollen sticks to their hairs during flight, they are able to deposit seeds collected from a plant onto the flowers of another one located much farther away. This is important as they help increase genetic diversity in the plants they visit. There are many different sizes of bees to match different flower morphologies: some have a long proboscis enabling them to reach nectar hidden inside tubular plants, whilst others have a shorter mouthpart and specialise in shallow, open-headed flowers.

 

POSTER 7

 

…But did you know that these other insects also play an essential role in pollinating plants?

WASPS

Although wasps get a bad reputation for their carnivorous habits and painful stings, the truth is certain wasps are excellent pollinators of open-headed and easily accessible flowers. These wasps feed on nectar from flowers and efficiently transfer pollen between them whilst they feed.

 

FLIES

Although lesser known pollinators, flies are also hugely important for many ecosystems. Some are known as bee-flies, as they mimic certain bees with their hairy bodies and elongated proboscises. They feed on pollen and nectar, and can be particularly important for pollinating tubular flowers. Another highly important and abundant fly group is hoverflies. They mimic bee and wasp coloration, and are hugely important in pollinating agricultural crops. Finally, other more common flies are also good pollinators of flowers with strong sweet scents, such as certain umbellifers.

 

BEETLES

Beetles are important pollinators for many flowers with open petals (corolla) which provide abundant pollen as a reward. Moreover, they are attracted by flowers with strong sweet scents. Although they seem to have limited movement, their flight capacity means they are able to transport pollen stuck to their bodies over long distances.

Learning to differentiate between these functional pollinator groups will be incredibly useful for understanding the mutual dependence between plants and animals, as well as how these interactions are structured in order to ensure proper plant pollination and reproduction.

 

POSTER 8

 

DECLINING POLLINATION

What is happening to pollinators?

INTENSIVE FARMING

Two-thirds of crops rely on pollinators, especially wild ones. Insecticides kill many pollinators. Fungicides affect bacterial flora and herbicides reduce flower numbers—the main food source for many pollinators. There are no weeds as far as pollinators are concerned!

HABITAT DESTRUCTION

Over 40% of landmass has been altered by human activity, causing damage to habitat biodiversity. Many pollinators are unable to thrive in these environments as they cannot find food or places to nest.

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change alters the patterns of plant and pollinator activity, leading to a mismatch between when both emerge. Certain species are even migrating to colder climes such as mountains, in order to escape high temperatures. Nevertheless, available habitats for proper interaction to take place are shrinking, especially in mountains.

THE INTRODUCTION OF EXOTIC SPECIES

Exotic species compete for resources, alter pollination patterns and introduce pathogens and diseases to native pollinator populations.

EXPANDED BEEKEEPING

Apiculture can be a type of intensive farming focused on using a single domesticated bee species: Apis mellifera. When handled in large quantities, this social bee species may lead to overexploitation of natural resources (pollen and nectar), displacing other wild bee populations.

Will you help us improve knowledge and awareness about pollinators?

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