eli5: How do flowers come in a wide variety of colors besides green, despite most plants’ chlorophyll reflecting green light?

Question

I might have it mixed up, but do flower pedals not have chlorophyll? Or does their chlorophyll absorb green light and reflect other lights? Where do flower pedals get their color from?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Flowers aren’t for photosynthesizing, so they don’t need chlorophyll. They need to be bright, contrasting colors so pollinating animals (bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, etc) can find them more easily.