Daisy pollen (Bellis perennis) Science Image

Ref: 80013582



Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of pollen grains of a common Daisy (Bellis perennis). The outer wall (exine) has many small spiky projections. These get caught in the body hairs of insects. The insects then fly to other flowers to feed and so pollen is transferred. Pollen contains the male reproductive cells of a plant. When the pollen grain, containing the male gametes, lands on the stigma of a flower, it germinates. A pollen tube grows out from the germinal pore, down through the stigma, to the ovary. The male nuclei pass down the tube, fertilize the ovules and seed is formed. Magnification: x1,200 at 5x7cm size. x3000 at 5x7"