Anther

Pollination is vital to the approximately 250,000 species of flowering plants that depend on the transfer of pollen from flower anther to stigma to reproduce.

The anther is the top-most part of the stamen, the flower’s male reproductive portion.

Normally made up of four pollen sacs, the anther produces and releases pollen.

Depending on the specific plant species, the transfer of pollen from anther to stigma is achieved by wind, gravity, water, birds, bats, or insects.

Upon entering a flower, an insect such as a honey bee, brushes against the pollen on the outside of the anther and carries it to the stigma.