Mangoes are insect pollinated, meaning that they are pollinated and bear fruit with the help of bees and flies. Mango flowers emit a putrid smell after flowering, and this smell attracts flies and other insects (photo). In Thailand, Laos, and other countries where orchards are cultivated in the open, insects are naturally available, so artificial pollination is not used and fruit is produced even if the orchards are left alone.

　In Japan, where greenhouse cultivation is common, insects are raised and released inside the greenhouse for efficient pollination. Bees and flies are used as pollinators. Flies do not go around collecting pollen like bees do, but they do play a role in "pollination" by touching the stamens and pistils on their bodies when they approach a flower to lick the sweet nectar (see photo).

JIRCAS / JIRCAS Mango Genetic Resources Site / Mango-pedia