An entomologist studies 240 insects: 140 pollinate roses, 120 pollinate daisies, and 60 pollinate both. How many pollinate only one type of flower?

Sun, 03 May 2026 07:25:36 +0000

Understanding Insect Pollination: A Study of 240 Insects and Their Flower Preferences In the intricate world of plant-animal interactions, insects play a vital role as pollinators. A recent entomological study sheds light on how various insects interact with two popular garden flowers—roses and daisies—revealing fascinating patterns in their feeding behavior. With 240 insects observed, this research uncovers how many pollinators specialize in one flower type, rather than both. The study found that 140 insects pollinate roses, 120 pollinate daisies, and 60 insects pollinate both roses and daisies. This overlap indicates that these 60 bees, beetles, or butterflies serve dual pollination roles, supporting two key plant species. But how many insects focus exclusively on just one type of flower—either roses or daisies? To calculate this, we apply basic set theory. The number of insects pollinating only roses is found by subtracting those that pollinate both from those that pollinate roses:
Only roses = Total pollinating roses – Both = 140 – 60 = 80 insects