Comparing the pollination services of honey bees and wild bees in a watermelon field

2016 ◽  
Vol 204 ◽  
pp. 138-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikos Garantonakis ◽  
Kyriaki Varikou ◽  
Athanasia Birouraki ◽  
Mike Edwards ◽  
Voula Kalliakaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bees ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Pollination Services

scholarly journals Review on Sublethal Effects of Environmental Contaminants in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera), Knowledge Gaps and Future Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agata Di Noi ◽  
Silvia Casini ◽  
Tommaso Campani ◽  
Giampiero Cai ◽  
Ilaria Caliani
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Sublethal Effects ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Anthropogenic Contamination ◽  
Knowledge Gaps ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
General Decline ◽  
Polycyclic Aromatic ◽  
The Impact

Honey bees and the pollination services they provide are fundamental for agriculture and biodiversity. Agrochemical products and other classes of contaminants, such as trace elements and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, contribute to the general decline of bees’ populations. For this reason, effects, and particularly sublethal effects of contaminants need to be investigated. We conducted a review of the existing literature regarding the type of effects evaluated in Apis mellifera, collecting information about regions, methodological approaches, the type of contaminants, and honey bees’ life stages. Europe and North America are the regions in which A. mellifera biological responses were mostly studied and the most investigated compounds are insecticides. A. mellifera was studied more in the laboratory than in field conditions. Through the observation of the different responses examined, we found that there were several knowledge gaps that should be addressed, particularly within enzymatic and molecular responses, such as those regarding the immune system and genotoxicity. The importance of developing an integrated approach that combines responses at different levels, from molecular to organism and population, needs to be highlighted in order to evaluate the impact of anthropogenic contamination on this pollinator species.

scholarly journals Landscape structure affects the sunflower visiting frequency of insect pollinators

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Károly Lajos ◽  
Ferenc Samu ◽  
Áron Domonkos Bihaly ◽  
Dávid Fülöp ◽  
Miklós Sárospataki
Keyword(s):  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Edge Density ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Mass Flowering ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Pollinator Community ◽  
Foraging Ranges

AbstractMass-flowering crop monocultures, like sunflower, cannot harbour a permanent pollinator community. Their pollination is best secured if both managed honey bees and wild pollinators are present in the agricultural landscape. Semi-natural habitats are known to be the main foraging and nesting areas of wild pollinators, thus benefiting their populations, whereas crops flowering simultaneously may competitively dilute pollinator densities. In our study we asked how landscape structure affects major pollinator groups’ visiting frequency on 36 focal sunflower fields, hypothesising that herbaceous semi-natural (hSNH) and sunflower patches in the landscape neighbourhood will have a scale-dependent effect. We found that an increasing area and/or dispersion of hSNH areas enhanced the visitation of all pollinator groups. These positive effects were scale-dependent and corresponded well with the foraging ranges of the observed bee pollinators. In contrast, an increasing edge density of neighbouring sunflower fields resulted in considerably lower visiting frequencies of wild bees. Our results clearly indicate that the pollination of sunflower is dependent on the composition and configuration of the agricultural landscape. We conclude that an optimization of the pollination can be achieved if sufficient amount of hSNH areas with good dispersion are provided and mass flowering crops do not over-dominate the agricultural landscape.

Sequential generations of honey bee (Apis mellifera) queens produced using cryopreserved semen

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 1079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brandon K. Hopkins ◽  
Charles Herr ◽  
Walter S. Sheppard
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Eastern Asia ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Instrumental Insemination ◽  
Diploid Female ◽  
Frozen Semen

Much of the world’s food production is dependent on honey bees for pollination, and expanding food production will further increase the demand for managed pollination services. Apiculturists outside the native range of the honey bee, in the Americas, Australia and eastern Asia, have used only a few of the 27 described subspecies of honey bees (Apis mellifera) for beekeeping purposes. Within the endemic ranges of a particular subspecies, hybridisation can threaten native subspecies when local beekeepers import and propagate non-native honey bees. For many threatened species, cryopreserved germplasm can provide a resource for the preservation of diversity and recovery of endangered populations. However, although instrumental insemination of queen honey bees is well established, the absence of an effective means to cryopreserve honey bee semen has limited the success of efforts to preserve genetic diversity within the species or to develop repositories of honey bee germplasm for breeding purposes. Herein we report that some queens inseminated with cryopreserved semen were capable of producing a substantial number of fertilised offspring. These diploid female larvae were used to produce two additional sequential generations of new queens, which were then back-crossed to the same stock of frozen semen. Our results demonstrate the ability to produce queens using cryopreserved honey bee spermatozoa and the potential for the establishment of a honey bee genetic repository.

scholarly journals Improving Habitat Quality at the Local and Landscape Scales Increases Wild Bee Assemblages and Associated Pollination Services in Apple Orchards in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Panlong Wu ◽  
Piaopiao Dai ◽  
Meina Wang ◽  
Sijie Feng ◽  
Aruhan Olhnuud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Wild Bee ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Bee Diversity ◽  
Landscape Scales

Bees provide key pollination services for a wide range of crops. Accumulating evidence shows the effect of semi-natural habitats at the landscape level and local management practices on bee diversity in fields. However, most of the evidence is derived from studies in North America and Europe. Whether this paradigm is applicable in China, which is characterized by smallholder-dominated agricultural landscapes, has rarely been studied. In this study, we aimed to investigate how bee diversity affected apple production, and how landscape and local variables affected bee diversity and species composition on the Northern China Plain. The results showed that bees significantly increased apple fruit set compared to bagged controls. Wild bee diversity was positively related to apple seed numbers. Higher seed numbers reduced the proportion of deformed apples and thus increased fruit quality. Wild bee abundance was positively correlated with flowering ground cover, and both the abundance and species richness of wild bees were positively affected by the percentage of semi-natural habitats. We conclude that apple quality can benefit from ecological intensification comprising the augmentation of wild bees by semi-natural habitats and flowering ground cover. Future pollination management should therefore reduce the intensification level of management at both the local and landscape scales.

scholarly journals Wild Bee Toxicity Data for Pesticide Risk Assessments

Data ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen A Lewis ◽  
John Tzilivakis
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Dietary Exposure ◽  
Risk Assessments ◽  
Toxicity Data ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Wild Bee ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Pollinating Insects ◽  
Regulatory Risk Assessment

Pollination services are vital for agriculture, food security and biodiversity. Although many insect species provide pollination services, honeybees are thought to be the major provider of this service to agriculture. However, the importance of wild bees in this respect should not be overlooked. Whilst regulatory risk assessment processes have, for a long time, included that for pollinators, using honeybees (Apis mellifera) as a protective surrogate, there are concerns that this approach may not be sufficiently adequate particularly because of global declines in pollinating insects. Consequently, risk assessments are now being expanded to include wild bee species such as bumblebees (Bombus spp.) and solitary bees (Osmia spp.). However, toxicity data for these species is scarce and are absent from the main pesticide reference resources. The aim of the study described here was to collate data relating to the acute toxicity of pesticides to wild bee species (both topical and dietary exposure) from published regulatory documents and peer reviewed literature, and to incorporate this into one of the main online resources for pesticide risk assessment data: The Pesticide Properties Database, thus ensuring that the data is maintained and continuously kept up to date. The outcome of this study is a dataset collated from 316 regulatory and peer reviewed articles that contains 178 records covering 120 different pesticides and their variants which includes 142 records for bumblebees and a further 115 records for other wild bee species.

scholarly journals Advances and perspectives in selecting resistance traits against the parasitic mite Varroa destructor in honey bees

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthieu Guichard ◽  
Vincent Dietemann ◽  
Markus Neuditschko ◽  
Benjamin Dainat
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Varroa Destructor ◽  
Selection Strategy ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Colony Losses ◽  
New Host ◽  
Parasitic Mite ◽  
Resistance Traits

Abstract Background In spite of the implementation of control strategies in honey bee (Apis mellifera) keeping, the invasive parasitic mite Varroa destructor remains one of the main causes of colony losses in numerous countries. Therefore, this parasite represents a serious threat to beekeeping and agro-ecosystems that benefit from the pollination services provided by honey bees. To maintain their stocks, beekeepers have to treat their colonies with acaricides every year. Selecting lineages that are resistant to infestations is deemed to be a more sustainable approach. Review Over the last three decades, numerous selection programs have been initiated to improve the host–parasite relationship and to support honey bee survival in the presence of the parasite without the need for acaricide treatments. Although resistance traits have been included in the selection strategy of honey bees, it has not been possible to globally solve the V. destructor problem. In this study, we review the literature on the reasons that have potentially limited the success of such selection programs. We compile the available information to assess the relevance of selected traits and the potential environmental effects that distort trait expression and colony survival. Limitations to the implementation of these traits in the field are also discussed. Conclusions Improving our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying resistance to V. destructor to increase trait relevance, optimizing selection programs to reduce environmental effects, and communicating selection outcomes are all crucial to efforts aiming at establishing a balanced relationship between the invasive parasite and its new host.

Wild Bee Visitation Rates Exceed Pollination Thresholds in Commercial Cucurbita Agroecosystems

2019 ◽  
Vol 113 (2) ◽  
pp. 562-574 ◽  
Author(s):  
C M McGrady ◽  
R Troyer ◽  
S J Fleischer
Keyword(s):  
Management Strategies ◽  
Field Size ◽  
Bee Pollination ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Variation ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Wild Bee ◽  
Visitation Rates ◽  
Field Edge ◽  
Temporal And Spatial

Abstract Wild bees supply sufficient pollination in Cucurbita agroecosystems in certain settings; however, some growers continue to stock fields with managed pollinators due to uncertainties of temporal and spatial variation on pollination services supplied by wild bees. Here, we evaluate wild bee pollination activity in wholesale, commercial pumpkin fields over 3 yr. We identified 37 species of bees foraging in commercial pumpkin fields. Honey bees (Apis mellifera L. [Hymenoptera: Apidae]), squash bees (Eucera (Peponapis) Say, Dorchin [Hymenoptera: Apidae]), and bumble bees (Bombus spp., primarily B. impatiens Cresson [Hymenoptera: Apidae]) were the most active pollinator taxa, responsible for over 95% of all pollination visits. Preference for female flowers decreased as distance from field edge increased for several bee taxa. Visitation rates from one key pollinator was negatively affected by field size. Visitation rates for multiple taxa exhibited a curvilinear response as the growing season progressed and responded positively to increasing floral density. We synthesized existing literature to estimate minimum ‘pollination thresholds’ per taxa and determined that each of the most active pollinator taxa exceeded these thresholds independently. Under current conditions, renting honey bee hives may be superfluous in this system. These results can aid growers when executing pollination management strategies and further highlights the importance of monitoring and conserving wild pollinator populations.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Selected Ornamental Asteraceae as a Pollen Source for Urban Bees

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Wróblewska ◽  
Ernest Stawiarz ◽  
Marzena Masierowska
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bees ◽  
Pollen Grains ◽  
Bumble Bees ◽  
Floral Resources ◽  
Tagetes Patula ◽  
Single Plant ◽  
Calendula Officinalis ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Se Poland ◽  
Urban Conditions

Abstract Offering more floral resources for urban bees can be achieved by growing ornamental bee plants. The aim of the present study was to evaluate selected Asteraceae (Calendula officinalis ‘Persimmon Beauty’ and ‘Santana’, Centaurea macrocephala, Cosmos sulphureus, Dahlia pinnata, Tagetes patula, Tithonia rotundifolia, and Zinnia elegans) as pollen sources for pollinators. Under urban conditions in Lublin, SE Poland, the investigated plants flowered from late June to the end of October. The mass of pollen produced in florets and capitula was found to be species-related. The highest pollen amounts per 10 florets (10.1 mg) as well as per capitulum (249.7 mg) were found for C. macrocephala. The mass of pollen yielded by a single plant depended on both the pollen mass delivered per disk florets and the proportion of disk florets in capitulum, and the flowering abundance of the plants. A single plant of D. pinnata and a single plant of T. rotundifolia each produced the largest pollen mass. Mean pollen yield per 1m2 of a plot ranged from 6.2 g (Z. elegans) to 60.7 g (D. pinnata). Pollen grains are tricolporate, with echinate exine, medium or small in size. They can be categorised as oblatespherical, spherical, and prolatespherical. The principal visitors to C. macrocephala, C. sulphureus, and C. officinalis were honey bees, whereas bumble bees dominated on T. rotundifolia and D. pinnata. A magnet plant for butterflies was Z. elegans. Among the investigated species, D. pinnata, C. macrocephala, and T. rotundifolia were found to be the most valuable sources of pollen flow for managed and wild bees.

scholarly journals Wild bees enhance honey bees' pollination of hybrid sunflower

2006 ◽  
Vol 103 (37) ◽  
pp. 13890-13895 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. S. Greenleaf ◽  
C. Kremen
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bees ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Hybrid Sunflower

scholarly journals Delivery of crop pollination services is an insufficient argument for wild pollinator conservation

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Kleijn ◽  
Rachael Winfree ◽  
Ignasi Bartomeus ◽  
Luísa G Carvalheiro ◽  
Mickaël Henry ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Common Species ◽  
Crop Pollination ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Bee Communities

Abstract There is compelling evidence that more diverse ecosystems deliver greater benefits to people, and these ecosystem services have become a key argument for biodiversity conservation. However, it is unclear how much biodiversity is needed to deliver ecosystem services in a cost-effective way. Here we show that, while the contribution of wild bees to crop production is significant, service delivery is restricted to a limited subset of all known bee species. Across crops, years and biogeographical regions, crop-visiting wild bee communities are dominated by a small number of common species, and threatened species are rarely observed on crops. Dominant crop pollinators persist under agricultural expansion and many are easily enhanced by simple conservation measures, suggesting that cost-effective management strategies to promote crop pollination should target a different set of species than management strategies to promote threatened bees. Conserving the biological diversity of bees therefore requires more than just ecosystem-service-based arguments.

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