the transfer of pollen grains from the anther to the stigma of the same flower

also called heterogamy, type of pollination in which sperm-laden pollen grains are transferred from the cones or flowers of one plant to egg-bearing cones or flowers of another.Cross-pollination is found in both angiosperms (flowering plants) and gymnosperms (cone-bearing plants) and facilitates cross-fertilization and outbreeding. This movement of pollen may occur by wind, as in conifers, or via symbiotic relationships with various animals (e.g., bees and certain birds and bats) that