[Pollinator] FW: Wild Bees Can Be Effective Pollinators

Tue Mar 24 13:31:47 PDT 2009

Of interest

Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications Specialist
Department of Entomology
396A Briggs Hall
One Shields Ave.
University of California, Davis
Davis, CA 95616
Phone: (530) 754-6894
Fax: (530) 752-1537
kegarvey at ucdavis.edu 
http://entomology.ucdavis.edu/home.cfm
http://ucanr.org/blogs/bugsquad/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pho-tog/

  _____  

From: Entomological Society of America [mailto:sro at entsoc.org] 
Sent: Tuesday, March 24, 2009 12:25 PM
To: kegarvey at ucdavis.edu
Subject: Wild Bees Can Be Effective Pollinators

Wild Bees Can Be Effective Pollinators

Lanham, MD; March 24, 2009 - Over the past few years, honey bee keepers have
experienced problems due to Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), which has hurt
honey bee populations, causing some growers of fruits, nuts and vegetables
to wonder how their crops will be pollinated in the future. A new study
<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102520895624&e=0013kFYuf8Rk4ujF5dU3cPsdRxOuGNUWqx
m8ZF6tP12END31XbrcCWgLSvawStg2LMATaPvZzMb4y0HzZt3cBL9oabXtc_F9HMjmS4tzi6WZaW
iO9b982EOowQbjweep3d9N2t7EE5Bd_8KVf2PfSvApzHzQxCyC71LooZYoa1GRqDBDPt2sohJM9n
P3NTEnl6tW1juA72tV9JyL1X-0mRxdg==>  published in the Annals of the
Entomological Society of America shows that wild bees, which are not
affected by CCD, may serve as a pollination alternative. 

In the article "Wild Bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila) of the Michigan
Highbush Blueberry Agroecosystem," authors Julianna K. Tuell (Michigan State
University), John S. Ascher (American Museum of Natural History), and Rufus
Isaacs (Michigan State University) report the results of a three-year study
which took place on 15 southwestern Michigan blueberry farms. Using traps
and direct observation, the authors identified 166 bee species, 112 of which
were active during the blueberry blooming period. Many of these species
visit more flowers per minute and deposit more pollen per visit than honey
bees (Apis mellifera L.), and most of them are potential blueberry
pollinators.

"This should help growers know what kinds of bees are in the fields so that
they can make informed decisions about whether they should modify crop
management practices in order to help conserve natural populations of bees,"
said Dr. Julianna Tuell.

Unlike honey bees, which live together in hives, most of the bees found by
the authors were solitary bees that nest in the soil or in wood cavities.
While soil-nesting bees may be difficult to manage, the authors see
potential for cavity-nesting bees, such as several species of mason bees, to
be managed by growers who can support their populations by providing nesting
materials.

"Untreated bamboo or reeds are good materials because they provide natural
variation in hole diameter to attract the broadest range of species," said
Dr. Tuell. "There are also a number of commercially manufactured options
that growers can use, such as foam blocks with pre-drilled holes and
cardboard tubes made to a particular diameter to suit a particular species
of interest. Drilling different sized holes in wood is another option. If a
grower is interested in trying to build up populations of a particular
species, there are also details about how to do so available online."

Besides blueberries, many of the species in this study also visit cherries,
apples, and cranberries, and managed mason bees are already being used to
pollinate cherry orchards.

Full text of the article is available at
<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102520895624&e=0013kFYuf8Rk4sqovKKJLGx2zt0lb_jUHB
2tSb4uk_ohSBl5cMpoGgqMxxqC08lcelo7JSROttgtjNZxysIO2b5kGosJuc2ToJslLNZRRktpR-
zVN7BmaTxf_H9G9ZXAurQ> http://www.entsoc.org/wildbees.htm.  

Annals of the Entomological Society of America, which is published quarterly
by the Entomological Society of America (ESA), was recently named one of the
100 most influential
<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102520895624&e=0013kFYuf8Rk4uiY3gvPkw2mWLQ9dETWpb
zYfzr28uzPLgb6doqH1A6bYuR0pl7WTRBUEl8g0qfW6nTQdDG1k21aVYRkVmp0Ake2N_ucclfDn2
TtplsM5JIedbjth1zrUv8Ts5SQZchTlrBkPkAZ5W7r-_76AOia5ry1_6tF__Zn2icEkYRDFTM4Bo
16te9byMO>  journals in biology and medicine over the last 100 years by the
Special Libraries Association. 

Founded in 1889, ESA is a non-profit organization committed to serving the
scientific and professional needs of nearly 6,000 entomologists and
individuals in related disciplines. ESA's membership includes
representatives from educational institutions, government, health agencies,
and private industry. More information on ESA is available at
http://www.entsoc.org
<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102520895624&e=0013kFYuf8Rk4u_vEO9s8zuhVeEUiZHXKr
AvsTiRzaWawSZH72bW09kGghaHABWmt8pitUbsN5Soq0ptgZ6yhmUYi62Z9GmYQfOxlhJEF3RnKc
flQ7DPZVZ3A==> .  

Contact: Richard Levine, 301-731-4535, ext. 3009, or rlevine at entsoc.org.   

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