Promoting Native Bumblebees in Agricultural systems for conservation and ecosystem service

Promoting Native Bumblebees in Agricultural systems for conservation and ecosystem service

Summary

During 2010 much progress was made on the project despite some setbacks. I was able to complete much of the nutritional assessment of pollen grains, collect additional data on plant pollen production, begin analysis of results and perform three outreach activities to farmers and state resource managers. Additionally, I completed four professional talks about my work to growers, scientists and farmers. Research activities were conducted with the Xerces Society. To date we have been able to make significant progress on the original objectives and over the next year will complete analysis, publications and outreach.

Objectives/Performance Targets

1) Collect morphological data on plant species

2) Determine pollen production by plant species

3) Determine pollen quality and the effect this had on preference of Bombus

4) Perform outreach activities with Xerces society

Accomplishments/Milestones

1) Completed collecting morphological data on plant species

2) Collected significant pollen collection which was used for protein and amino acid analysis

3) Completed analysis of preference and reasons for pollen collection

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

1) Performed three outreach presentations to native seed growers, farmers in the Napa Country Resource Conservation District and natural resource managers in California

2) Performed three professional presentations (two invited) about preliminary findings at the Ecological Society of America, Entomological Society of America and International Pollinator Conference on Pollinator Biology, Health and Policy.

3) Determined which pollen species are most preferred by Bombus vosnesenskii and mechanisms behind choice which could potentially change the way we perform conservation planning in agricultural and natural systems.

4) Created new method for evaluating preference of bees

5) Used new method to determine factors affecting choice and preference

6) Created new method for determining plant pollen production and site level pollen availability

7) Determined that B. vosnesenskii prefers species with moderate protein content and lower than expected amino acid content

8) Also determined that plants make more pollen of higher quality if they are more dependent on pollen for reproduction

Collaborators: