Bumble Bee Fauna of Palouse Prairie: Survey of Native Bee Pollinators in a Fragmented Ecosystem

T. D. Hatten; C. Looney; J. P. Strange; N. A. Bosque-Pérez

doi:10.1673/031.013.2601

Native Bees, Honeybees, and Pollination in Oregon Cranberries

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.46.6.885 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 46 (6) ◽

pp. 885-888 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Melissa Broussard ◽

Sujaya Rao ◽

William P. Stephen ◽

Linda White

Keyword(s):

Multivariate Regression ◽

Dry Mass ◽

Bumble Bees ◽

Vaccinium Macrocarpon ◽

Bumble Bee ◽

Native Bees ◽

Insect Pollination ◽

Pollination Services ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Native Bee

Cultivated cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton) relies on insect pollination for berry production. Honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) have historically provided this service, but their recent decline has underscored the need for additional pollinators. The objective of this study was to determine the richness and abundance of native bees in the cranberry-growing area of southern coastal Oregon and compare foraging behaviors of honeybees and native bees. In a 2-year study, we collected over 27 native bee species in traps set out during and after bloom (mid-May to mid-June). During 67 2-min observations, honeybees (68.1%) and three species of bumble bees (Bombus spp.; 31.6%) comprised 99.7% of foragers. The dominant bumble bee was Bombus vosnesenskii Radoszkowski (56.0%). Multivariate regression of temperature and wind speed data indicated that both were significantly predictive of honeybee and bumble bee foragers (P < 0.001). The interquartile range for foraging was 18.3 to 22.2 °C for bumble bees and 21.1 to 26.7 °C for honeybees. Over 75% of honeybees were seen foraging above the average observed temperature (19.5 °C). Bumble bee pollen loads had a greater dry mass (6.8 ± 12.9 mg) than those of honeybees (2.0 ± 3.6 mg; P < 0.001), and the latter were observed collecting nectar but no pollen more often (during 37.2% of visits) than bumble bees (11.3% of visits). Based on our results, bumble bees in general, and B. vosnesenskii in particular, may be providing significant pollination services for Oregon cranberry farms. However, to maintain current native bumble bee populations, conservation efforts are recommended.

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The native bee fauna of the Palouse Prairie (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)

Journal of Melittology ◽

10.17161/jom.v0i66.5703 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 1-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Paul R Rhoades ◽

Terry Griswold ◽

Harold Ikerd ◽

Lisette Waits ◽

Nilsa Bosque-Pérez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Conservation Status ◽

Native Bees ◽

Land Use Pattern ◽

The North ◽

Native Bee ◽

Level Information ◽

Palouse Prairie ◽

Conservation Concern ◽

Northern Idaho ◽

Bee Communities

While synoptic collections provide data on the range and general composition of the North American bee fauna, bee communities associated with specific habitats are largely uncharacterized. This report describes the community of native bees currently found in remnant fragments of the Palouse Prairie of northern Idaho and southeastern Washington State. Native bees were collected using standardized collection techniques including blue vane traps, colored pan traps and aerial netting. More than 13,000 individuals were collected, representing at least 174 species and 36 morphospecies in 29 genera. These data provide the most thorough characterization of the bee fauna of this vulnerable ecosystem, as well as community level information on bee species of unknown conservation status. These results are relevant to regional conservation efforts and, more broadly, are representative of conditions in fragmented grasslands surrounded by intense agriculture, a common global land use pattern of conservation concern.

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Observations of native bumble bees inside of commercial colonies ofBombus impatiens(Hymenoptera: Apidae) and the potential for pathogen spillover

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/tce.2018.28 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 150 (4) ◽

pp. 520-531 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

B.J. Hicks ◽

B.L. Pilgrim ◽

E. Perry ◽

H.D. Marshall

Keyword(s):

Newfoundland And Labrador ◽

Bumble Bees ◽

Bumble Bee ◽

Native Bees ◽

Chain Reaction ◽

Nosema Bombi ◽

Crithidia Bombi ◽

Native Bee ◽

Bee Diversity ◽

Polymerase Chain

AbstractMany fruit producers use commercial colonies ofBombus impatiensCresson (Hymenoptera: Apidae) to supplement crop pollination by native bees. A small number of Newfoundland (Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada) farmers forego purchasing new colonies and, instead, purchase previously used colonies from crops in other provinces. This practice has potentially dangerous implications that may adversely affect future native bee diversity in Newfoundland. This study is the first to record the presence of native bumble bee species inside the colonies of new and pre-used commercialB. impatiensand the first to look at diseases in native bumble bees from Newfoundland. Polymerase chain reaction and taxon-specific oligonucleotides were used to screen the commercial and native bumble bee species for pathogens.Crithidia bombi(Lipa and Triggiani), Apicystis bombi(Liu, Macfarlane, and Pengelly),Nosema bombiFantham and Porter, Nosema ceranaeFrieset al., and species ofAscosphaeraOlive and Spiltoir, were detected in native bumble bees that were collected from inside the new and pre-used commercialB. impatiens.Crithidia bombi,A. bombi, andN. bombiwere also detected among native bees that were collected away from the commercial colonies.Nosema apis(Zander) andMelissococcus plutonius(White) were not detected in any of the bees tested. The mixing of native bumble bees inB. impatienscolonies increases the potential for pathogen spillover and spillback that may threaten the small and vulnerable island bee fauna.

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Big city Bombus : using natural history and land-use history to find significant environmental drivers in bumble-bee declines in urban development

Royal Society Open Science ◽

10.1098/rsos.170156 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 4 (5) ◽

pp. 170156 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Paul Glaum ◽

Maria-Carolina Simao ◽

Chatura Vaidya ◽

Gordon Fitch ◽

Benjamin Iulinao

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Urban Development ◽

Foraging Strategies ◽

Environmental Drivers ◽

Bumble Bee ◽

Clear Understanding ◽

Native Bees ◽

Bee Conservation ◽

Native Bee ◽

Abundance And Diversity

Native bee populations are critical sources of pollination. Unfortunately, native bees are declining in abundance and diversity. Much of this decline comes from human land-use change. While the effects of large-scale agriculture on native bees are relatively well understood, the effects of urban development are less clear. Understanding urbanity's effect on native bees requires consideration of specific characteristics of both particular bee species and their urban landscape. We surveyed bumble-bee ( Bombus spp.) abundance and diversity in gardens across multiple urban centres in southeastern Michigan. There are significant declines in Bombus abundance and diversity associated with urban development when measured on scales in-line with Bombus flight ability. These declines are entirely driven by declines in females; males showed no response to urbanization. We hypothesize that this is owing to differing foraging strategies between the sexes, and it suggests reduced Bombus colony density in more urban areas. While urbanity reduced Bombus prevalence, results in Detroit imply that ‘shrinking cities’ potentially offer unique urban paradigms that must be considered when studying wild bee ecology. Results show previously unidentified differences in the effects of urbanity on female and male bumble-bee populations and suggest that urban landscapes can be managed to support native bee conservation.

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