Butterflies and moths collect enough static electricity while flying to pull pollen from flowers across gaps of several millimeters or centimeters. This likely makes them more efficient pollinators, as the Journal of the Royal Society Interface reports.
The University of Bristol team found that different species carry varying amounts of static electricity, depending on their ecology, such as flower visits, tropical habitats, or daytime or nighttime activity. This is the first evidence that static electricity can be an adaptive trait influenced by natural selection.
Lead author Dr. Sam England from Bristol’s School of Biological Sciences explained, “We knew animals, like bees and hummingbirds, accumulate static electricity while flying, which might help them attract pollen. However, it wasn’t clear if this applied to other pollinators like butterflies and moths. So, we tested 269 butterflies and moths from 11 species across five continents to see if they also accumulate charge and attract pollen. We found that different species carry different amounts of static electricity based on their ecological niches, suggesting that evolution can influence this trait.”
Credit: Dr Sam England
Dr. England stated that static electricity’s role in pollination is likely widespread and significant. This study shows that static charge is a trait influenced by evolution, raising questions about its benefits and drawbacks for animals.
Practically, this could lead to technologies that boost electrostatic charges in pollinators or pollen to improve pollination in nature and agriculture. He concluded, “Butterflies and moths collect so much static electricity when flying that pollen is pulled through the air towards them as they approach flowers.”
“This means butterflies and moths don’t need to touch flowers to pollinate them, making them excellent pollinators and crucial to our ecosystems. I want to study more animal species to see how much static electricity they accumulate and how it relates to their ecology and lifestyle. This will help us understand the link between evolution and static electricity,” Dr. England said.
credit: Dr Sam England
The study concludes that butterflies accumulate enough static electricity to attract poll without touching the flowers, making them highly effective pollinators.
This finding highlights the importance of butterflies in pollination. It opens new avenues for research on how static electricity influences pollination and evolution.
Journal reference :
- Sam J. England, Daniel Robert et al., Electrostatic pollination by butterflies and moths. Journal of Royal Society Interface. DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2024.0156.
