Sexual Deception in the Eucera-Pollinated Ophrys leochroma: A Chemical Intermediate between Wasp- and Andrena-Pollinated Species.

Ophrys flowers mimic sex pheromones of attractive females of their pollinators and attract males, which attempt to copulate with the flower and thereby pollinate it. Virgin females and orchid flowers are known to use the same chemical compounds in order to attract males. The composition of the sex pheromone and its floral analogue, however, vary between pollinator genera.