Landscape Composition and Forage Availability as Predictors of Bumblebee Abundance and Species Richness in Agricultural and Forested Settings in Western Massachusetts

Landscape Composition and Forage Availability as Predictors of Bumblebee Abundance and Species Richness in Agricultural and Forested Settings in Western Massachusetts PDF Author: Caroline A. Scully
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Bumblebees
Languages : en
Pages : 108

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Bumblebees

Bumblebees PDF Author: Dave Goulson
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN: 0199553068
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 330

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Book Description
This book provides a concise and readable summary of the ecology and behaviour of bumblebees, with a particular focus on practical issues such as conservation strategies, management of bumblebees for crop pollination, and the possible impacts of bumblebees as non-native invasive species.

Environmental Impacts on Native Bumble Bee Pollinators in an Agricultural Landscape of Western Oregon

Environmental Impacts on Native Bumble Bee Pollinators in an Agricultural Landscape of Western Oregon PDF Author: Kimberly M. Skyrm
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Bumblebees
Languages : en
Pages : 151

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Book Description
Bumble bees provide vital pollination services in both native and agricultural landscapes. However, in recent years, bumble bee populations have experienced global population declines. The primary causes of these declines have been attributed to the environmental impacts of pathogens, pesticide use and habitat fragmentation. While research has examined the impacts of pathogens, there is limited information on the effects of pesticides and habitat fragmentation on native bumble bees. Hence, the objectives of my dissertation research were to: 1) assess the toxicological impacts of pesticides used in two important bee-pollinated crops on queens and workers; 2) determine the impacts of forage resource availability on bumble bee colonies; 3) examine pollen foraging behavior of bumble bees in a late season mass-flowering agricultural landscape; and 4) document observations on trends towards bivoltinism in three western North American bumble bees. This research was conducted in the lab using wild and lab reared colonies, and in an agricultural landscape in the Willamette Valley of Western Oregon. In pesticide bioassays the impacts of residual toxicity of five classes of pesticides used in highbush blueberry and red clover cropping systems, were tested on queen and worker bumble bees, respectively. The results indicated variation in responses to the same insecticide by queens and workers, and to the same class of compounds by workers. Also, toxic effects were documented for both queens and workers to pesticides considered to be "safe" for bees. The impacts of forage resource availability were evaluated by exposing bumble bee colonies to four quantities of pollen, four quantities of nectar and three feeding frequencies of pollen. The study documented an inverse relationship between larvae and workers to resource type and availability. In addition, the type of larval mortality displayed by colonies, larval ejection or within clump mortality, was dependent on worker mortality. The individual and colony-level pollen foraging behavior of bumble bees was examined by placing colonies in red clover. Observations in the field on forager abundance, and at the colony-level on the duration and number of pollen trips and weight of stored pollen documented that red clover is an important resource for bumble bees. Pollen analysis revealed that in addition to red clover, Himalayan blackberry was also a key forage resource for bumble bees. Red clover resources at the end of the season may also benefit bumble bees by allowing for the creation of a second generation. Observations on both field and lab-reared queens document a trend towards bivoltinism in three species of western North American bumble bees. Agricultural habitats are vital for sustaining bumble bee populations. However, given the potential for pesticide impacts and temporal availability of flowering plants, these landscapes must be managed to provide maximum benefit to bumble bees. Results from this research should assist growers and researchers in developing landscape management and production practices geared toward the conservation and enhancement of native Bombus spp. populations in western Oregon.

The pollination services of forests

The pollination services of forests PDF Author: Krishnan, S., Wiederkehr Guerra, G., Bertrand, D., Wertz-Kanounnikoff, S. and Kettle, C.J.
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251328137
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description
Most flowering plants, including wild species and many food crops, are pollinated by animals and are vital, therefore, for biological production and the maintenance of biodiversity. Pollinators benefit from diverse natural habitats for forage and nesting, especially when these are limited in plant production systems. Landscape and forest management practices can help ensure the continued availability of pollinators and thereby increase resilience and the productivity of forestry and agriculture. The extent of forests and other natural habitats in a landscape plays a role in determining the species composition of pollinators. Agricultural landscapes adjoining fragmented forests and natural areas benefit from pollinator services, and animal-pollinated crops therefore achieve higher fruit set. Forest management practices can have significant effects on pollinator abundance and diversity. They affect forest variables such as structure, species composition, soil dynamics, hydrology and light availability, all of which can affect pollinator species composition and diversity and plant–pollinator networks. Indigenous and local knowledge can contribute to the conservation of pollinators through traditional management practices. This working paper, which is aimed at forest practitioners, landscape planners and land-use decision-makers, reviews published literature on the impacts of forest and landscape management practices on pollinators. It also addresses the implications of climate change, collates 36 case studies, and makes recommendation on measures for maintaining pollinator diversity and abundance in forests and landscapes

The Bee Genera of North and Central America (Hymenoptera:Apoidea)

The Bee Genera of North and Central America (Hymenoptera:Apoidea) PDF Author: Charles Duncan Michener
Publisher: Smithsonian Books (DC)
ISBN:
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
"The first identification key to cover all bees in the whole of the New World north of the equator. Parallel columns of English and Spanish text, and 500 drawing and photographs detail the distinguishing features of 169 genera and provide additional information such as range, number of species and subgenera, and references to any revisionist studies. Includes a guide to using the key. Field tested. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or." -- PUBLISHER.

Where Have All the Flowers Gone ?

Where Have All the Flowers Gone ? PDF Author: Jeremy Hemberger
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 198

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Book Description
Bumble bees are a critical group of flower-visiting insects that provide pollination services to a diversity of wild and commercial plants. Recently, a number of formerly common species of North American bumble bees have shown evidence of precipitous declines in range and relative abundance, adding ongoing concern regarding the stability of pollinator populations writ large. While a number of factors have been implicated in bumble bee declines, the loss of habitat as a result of expansion and intensification of agricultural lands is of utmost concern. As agricultural lands have supplanted flower-rich natural habitat such as prairies and wetlands, the location, amount, and timing of floral resource availability has been dramatically altered. Thus far, our understanding of how the combination of where flowers are in space and time is poorly understood, particularly in the context of how changes have impacted the bumble bees dependent on floral resources. As such, the objective of this dissertation is to enhance our understanding of how changes in spatiotemporal resource abundance impact bumble bee behavior, colony growth and reproduction, and population trends over the course of agricultural change in US midwestern landscapes - with a particular focus on Wisconsin agroecosystems using the common eastern bumble bee (Bombus impatiens Cresson) as a model species in laboratory and field experiments. Throughout this work, I have revealed that the temporal availability of floral resources in agricultural landscapes impacts bumble bee foraging behavior and colony growth and reproduction. Specifically, foraging bumble bees utilize the resource pulses that are commonplace in modern agricultural landscapes - foraging for less time, and more frequently to exploit resources when they are available, regardless of the context of the surrounding landscape. I also found that colonies of B. impatiens grow faster, and often gain more mass when food resources are continuously available, as contrasted with when resources are only available as short, but comparatively large pulses. However, the number of reproductive individuals produced by colonies is identical regardless of the temporal presentation of food. This result was consistent in both laboratory queenless microcolonies and free-foraging, queen-right field colonies. In addition, I explored the methods commonly used to estimate floral resource abundance in foraging landscapes, and compared them in their ability to both accurately describe actual floral abundance, as well as their capacity to predict bumble bee abundance from a commonly used survey method. I found that the ability of land cover, expert opinion, and empirical methods for floral resource estimation to predict bumble bee abundance was largely similar. However, estimates of floral abundance varied greatly - especially between expert opinion and empirical estimates. Lastly, I examined trends in historical agricultural intensification metrics and their relationship to changes in bumble bee relative abundance and community composition. Here, I found that metrics of increasing agricultural intensity are clearly associated with the decline of a 40% of bumble bee species in the US Midwest. Additionally, I document several species increasing in relative abundance that positively associate with agricultural intensity, suggesting our agricultural practices have inadvertently selected winners and losers in the bumble bee community over the last century. The research herein enhances our understanding of how the availability of floral resources over time influence bumble bee behavior, colony growth and reproduction, abundance, and historical population trends. While focusing largely on Bombus impatiens, the range of organismal scales covered in this dissertation, from behavior to populations and communities, provides a framework to evaluate the response of less common species to spatiotemporal resource availability. Applications of this work range from understanding how landscape changes in floral abundance might affect bumble bee species persistence, to the large-scale changes in agricultural practices needed to stem further loss of bumble bee species.

Status of Pollinators in North America

Status of Pollinators in North America PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309102898
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 327

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Book Description
Pollinators-insects, birds, bats, and other animals that carry pollen from the male to the female parts of flowers for plant reproduction-are an essential part of natural and agricultural ecosystems throughout North America. For example, most fruit, vegetable, and seed crops and some crops that provide fiber, drugs, and fuel depend on animals for pollination. This report provides evidence for the decline of some pollinator species in North America, including America's most important managed pollinator, the honey bee, as well as some butterflies, bats, and hummingbirds. For most managed and wild pollinator species, however, population trends have not been assessed because populations have not been monitored over time. In addition, for wild species with demonstrated declines, it is often difficult to determine the causes or consequences of their decline. This report outlines priorities for research and monitoring that are needed to improve information on the status of pollinators and establishes a framework for conservation and restoration of pollinator species and communities.

The Solitary Bees

The Solitary Bees PDF Author: Bryan N. Danforth
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691189323
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 488

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Book Description
The most up-to-date and authoritative resource on the biology and evolution of solitary bees While social bees such as honey bees and bumble bees are familiar to most people, they comprise less than 10 percent of all bee species in the world. The vast majority of bees lead solitary lives, surviving without the help of a hive and using their own resources to fend off danger and protect their offspring. This book draws on new research to provide a comprehensive and authoritative overview of solitary bee biology, offering an unparalleled look at these remarkable insects. The Solitary Bees uses a modern phylogenetic framework to shed new light on the life histories and evolution of solitary bees. It explains the foraging behavior of solitary bees, their development, and competitive mating tactics. The book describes how they construct complex nests using an amazing variety of substrates and materials, and how solitary bees have co-opted beneficial mites, nematodes, and fungi to provide safe environments for their brood. It looks at how they have evolved intimate partnerships with flowering plants and examines their associations with predators, parasites, microbes, and other bees. This up-to-date synthesis of solitary bee biology is an essential resource for students and researchers, one that paves the way for future scholarship on the subject. Beautifully illustrated throughout, The Solitary Bees also documents the critical role solitary bees play as crop pollinators, and raises awareness of the dire threats they face, from habitat loss and climate change to pesticides, pathogens, parasites, and invasive species.

Attracting Native Pollinators

Attracting Native Pollinators PDF Author: The Xerces Society
Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 1603427473
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 385

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Book Description
With the recent decline of the European honey bee, it is more important than ever to encourage the activity of other native pollinators to keep your flowers beautiful and your grains and produce plentiful. In Attracting Native Pollinators, you’ll find ideas for building nesting structures and creating a welcoming habitat for an array of diverse pollinators that includes not only bees, but butterflies, moths, and more. Take action and protect North America’s food supply for the future, while at the same time enjoying a happily bustling landscape.

Ecology of Cities and Towns

Ecology of Cities and Towns PDF Author: Mark J. McDonnell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521861128
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 747

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Book Description
Assesses the current status, and future challenges and opportunities, of the ecological study, design and management of cities and towns.