Image by @joelsartore | Today is #pollinatormonday! This flashy pollinator from the @columbus_zoo is called the Rainbow Lorikeet, native to Australia and Indonesia. Nicknamed the “brush-tongued parrot”, this lorikeet has a highly specialized tongue equipped with small hair-like appendages called papillae that work like a brush to collect nectar and pollen when the tongue is extended. This feature, unique to lorikeets, allows it to soak up as many nutrients as possible from the blossom in very little time. The pollen that collects on its throat and tongue and is then transferred to the next flower on the lorikeet’s menu, allowing pollination to occur. It is unable to process hard foods like many nuts and seeds, and has a nearly all-liquid diet of soft foods and nectar from flowers like this grevillea honey gem it's perched on. . . #pollinators #pollinator #lorikeets #birds #colorful #pretty #nectar #flowers #plants #flora #fauna #wildlife #wildlifephotography #nature #animalfacts #photoark #natgeo #savetogether

A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on Jun 5, 2017 at 8:24am PDT