Nectar: A sweet reward from plants to attract pollinators
Evolution is based on diversity, and sexual reproduction is key to creating a diverse population that secures competitiveness in nature. Plants had to solve a problem: they needed to find ways to spread their genetic material. Flying pollinators—insects, birds, and bats—were nature's solution. Charles Darwin's "abominable mystery" highlighted the coincidence of flowering plant and insect diversification about 120 million years ago and ascribed it to the coordinated specialization of flowers and insects in the context of insects serving as pollen carriers. To make sure the flying pollinators would come to the flowers to pick up pollen, plants evolved special organs called nectaries to attract and reward the animals. These nectaries are secretory organs that produce perfumes and sugary rewards. Yet despite the obvious importance of nectar, the process by which plants manufacture and secrete it has largely remained a mystery.