Which Insects Pollinate Gerber Daisies?

Butterflies

• Butterflies prefer large petaled flowers that make landing easy, like the gerbera. Unlike bees, butterflies can see the red, one of the possible gerbera daisy colors. Butterflies don't gather as much pollen as bees, but they do visit more flowers, according to Galveston County master gardeners. Butterflies are in decline due to pesticide use and habitat destruction. Planting butterfly friendly flowers like the gerbera daisy helps their numbers recover.

Bees

• There are about 4,000 species of bees native to North America. Bumblebees are skilled pollinators. They grab a flower's anthers and buzz their flight muscles to shake loose the pollen. This technique helps them gather large amounts of pollen. Sweat bees are common throughout the United States and are good general pollinators that visit gerbera daisies. They are not easily recognized because they do not have the classic yellow and black stripes of the honeybee. Sweat bees are typically black to metallic green or brassy yellow.

Wasps

• Wasps are beneficial for humans in many ways. Not only are the important predators of common pests, but also they pollinate flowers. While pollination is not their main benefit, wasps are likely to be drawn to the large and enticing gerbera daisy. Yellowjackets and hornets like the bald or white-faced hornet are also occasional pollinators visit gerbera daisies.

Flies

• Fossil evidence shows that flies have been pollinating flowers for at least 150-million years. According the Galveston County master gardeners, flies visit more than 1,100 different types of flowers. With the gerbera daisy being such an easy flower on which to feed from and pollinate, it is a likely candidate for fly pollination. Hover flies, also called flower flies, resemble bees and are important pollinators. Houseflies and even the male mosquito, which feeds only on nectar, are also pollinators.