The ecological role of the Lepidoptera in pollination has been questioned. iNaturalist observations and other documentation demonstrates that pollen is transported by the Lepidoptera. The role of this taxa in pollination may be a variable one depending on both the species of host and vector. The role of the nectar flower may be of greater importance to the Lepidoptera then the host. I have noted that many if not most of the butterfly and moth observations demonstrate active nectoring by the presence of the proboscis inserted into the flower. In order to study the importance of nectar feeding in the Lepidoptera an observation field "Proboscis Inserted:" https://www.inaturalist.org/observation_fields/9603 has been attached to the project. This observation field has been attached to the project Pollinator Associations. There it appears that nearly all of the Lepidoptera appear to be actively nectar feeding. The Apoidea appear to be actively nectar feeding but only about 10% clearly demonstrate a inserted mouth-part into the corolla.

The observation field "Proboscis Inserted:" is not a required field. It is being made available to observers that wish to document the active feeding in their observations. For observers wishing to document pollen attached to their observations I recommend the observation field "Pollen on insect" https://www.inaturalist.org/observation_fields/6322. These fields are meant to be used as affirmative observations. There is no need to enter a "No" value if the feature is not observed.