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Native Pollinators: Bees in our Backyard
Paige Hickman and Erica MorettiAdvisor Beth Choate
Allegheny College Environmental Science
The Benefits of Bees
• 75% of all flowering plants require animals for pollination– Small mammals, birds, beetles, flies, moths, butterflies, and
bees• Honey bees (Apis mellifera) remain the most
economically important pollinator– Easy to transport and study– Native to Europe
• What about Native Bees?– Any of the 4,000 species of bees native to the United States
What is a native pollinator?
Squash beehttp://heritageharvestfestival.com/2012/03/22/farming-for-pollinators-with-nancy-adamson/
Solitary bee nests
http://www.xerces.org/providing-nest-sites-for-pollinators/
• Common: Bumble bees and sweat bees
• Specialization• 90% of natives are
solitary– Generally less aggressive– Nest in ground or wood– Pollen and nectar
collection for young
Declines in Native Bees
• Climate change• Pesticide use• Disease• Habitat loss– Agricultural
intensification– Urbanization
Megachile spp.
What are we doing?• Previous summer research– Hillary Krill Summer 2014– Diversity and abundance on Allegheny College campus
• Evaluating diversity and abundance across Meadville
Agapostemon spp.
Our Project• Extended sites– 17 sites– North to South across
Meadville
• Sampling method:– Bee bowls– Vane traps
• Within a 5 m radius:– Estimated land use– Assessed flower diversity & number of open
blooms
Bee IdentificationFly: 1 set of wings, halteres, no ocelli
Wasp: thinner waist, longer legs, no scopa
Bee: scopa
http://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?guide=Bee_genera
http://www.ourhabitatgarden.org/creatures/wasps.html
http://php.democratandchronicle.com/blog/birds/?p=2117
http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/collections/terrestrial-zoology/entomology-insect-collection/entomology-factsheets/native-bees
Ocelli
USGS Bee Inventory. (2013). Retrived from https://www.flickr.com/photos/usgsbiml/10825248485
Important Characteristics• Wing venation• Mouth parts• Location of Scopa
Goulet & Huber (Editors). (1993). Hymenoptera of the World: An Identification Guide to Families. Retrieved from http://www.esc-sec.ca/aafcmonographs/hymenoptera_of_the_world.pdf
http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/collections/terrestrial-zoology/entomology-insect-collection/entomology-factsheets/native-bees
Short-tongued Bee
Long-tongued Bee
http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/collections/terrestrial-zoology/entomology-insect-collection/entomology-factsheets/native-bees
So… what have we found so far?
• 5 out of 6 families present in northwestern PA identified
• 17 genera
• 180 native bees collected– June: 106– July: 74
Anthophora spp.
Bombus spp.
Megachile spp.Augochlora spp.
Halictus spp.
Native Bee Abundance at Each Site Type
Robertson Houses Campus Downtown0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Mea
n Be
e Ab
unda
nce
A
A
A
A
Genera Richness at Each Site Type
Robertson Houses Campus Downtown0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
Mea
n Ge
nera
Ric
hnes
s
A
AB
AB
B
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 160
2
4
6
8
10
Floral Diversity
Gene
ra R
ichn
ess
R2=0.3119Campus
Genera Richness vs Floral Diversity
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 160
2
4
6
8
10
Floral Diversity
Gene
ra R
ichn
ess
Downtown R2=0.0295
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 160
2
4
6
8
10
Floral Diversity
Gene
ra R
ichn
ess
R2=0.662Houses
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 160
2
4
6
8
10
Floral Diversity
Gene
ra R
ichn
ess
R2=0.6646Robertson
What Can You Do?
1. Plant a variety of native plants– Blooms available from spring until
late autumn
3. Avoid the use of pesticides
2. Create Nest sites– Provide old, dry wood or reeds for
wood and cavity-nesters– Clear away vegetation to expose
bare ground for ground-nesters
What can you do?
For more information visit : Xerces.org
Embrace the Clover!
Thank You
Professor Beth ChoateHillary Krill
Professor Lee Coates and Aimee KnupskyProvost’s Office
Edward David Class of 1961 Faculty Support FundChristine Scott Nelson Faculty Support Fund
Downtown MeadvilleAll of the professors who let us put traps in their yards!
