Foraging and Nesting Behavior of the Leaf-cutter Bee Megachile Rotundata (Fabricius) PDF Download
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Author: Charles Edgar Osgood Publisher: ISBN: Category : Bees Languages : en Pages : 208
Book Description
The study provides the details of the ethology of Megachile rotundata (Fabricius), and presents preliminary observations on its foraging and nesting behavior. Development from prepupae to adults proceeds most rapidly at 32 degrees C., and is retarded when held at lower and higher temperatures. Male behavior is distinct from that of the female. Mating, including the copulation process arid sleeping, are described. Requirements necessary for nesting are presented. These included: types of nesting places, natural and artificial; size range of tunnels; and the effects of competition on nesting. Females used leaf sections from a variety of plant species in construction of their cells. Description included desirable leaf characteristics, cutting procedures used to remove leaf sections from plants and return of bees to given leaf sources. The construction of the cell cup is detailed as to leaf placement, number of leaves used, cell dimensions, and arrangement of cells under various nesting conditions. After formation of the cell cup it is provisioned with pollen and nectar. Procedures of pollen collection, removal of pollen from the scopa, and the use of nectar for moistening the pollen mass were included as were descriptions of oviposition and cell capping. Upon completion of a cell series, the entrance to the tunnel was sealed, using leaf cuttings. All procedures of cell construction were influenced by the age of the bee and behavioral changes noted toward the end of the flight season. It was found that orientation to the nesting site is largely through visual association with gross characteristics of the area and that markers aided in orientation. Preliminary observations on color discrimination indicated that bees could distinguish between colors. Foraging studies were conducted in the presence and absence of alfalfa and included notes on flower preference and pollen collecting. Flight range studies indicated that bees forage plants closest to their nesting site and increase their range as close bloom is no longer available. Attempts made to relocate bees in new areas met with only limited success. Morning and evening behavior of bees were characterized and climatic conditions responsible for commencement and cessation of flight outlined.
Author: Charles Edgar Osgood Publisher: ISBN: Category : Bees Languages : en Pages : 208
Book Description
The study provides the details of the ethology of Megachile rotundata (Fabricius), and presents preliminary observations on its foraging and nesting behavior. Development from prepupae to adults proceeds most rapidly at 32 degrees C., and is retarded when held at lower and higher temperatures. Male behavior is distinct from that of the female. Mating, including the copulation process arid sleeping, are described. Requirements necessary for nesting are presented. These included: types of nesting places, natural and artificial; size range of tunnels; and the effects of competition on nesting. Females used leaf sections from a variety of plant species in construction of their cells. Description included desirable leaf characteristics, cutting procedures used to remove leaf sections from plants and return of bees to given leaf sources. The construction of the cell cup is detailed as to leaf placement, number of leaves used, cell dimensions, and arrangement of cells under various nesting conditions. After formation of the cell cup it is provisioned with pollen and nectar. Procedures of pollen collection, removal of pollen from the scopa, and the use of nectar for moistening the pollen mass were included as were descriptions of oviposition and cell capping. Upon completion of a cell series, the entrance to the tunnel was sealed, using leaf cuttings. All procedures of cell construction were influenced by the age of the bee and behavioral changes noted toward the end of the flight season. It was found that orientation to the nesting site is largely through visual association with gross characteristics of the area and that markers aided in orientation. Preliminary observations on color discrimination indicated that bees could distinguish between colors. Foraging studies were conducted in the presence and absence of alfalfa and included notes on flower preference and pollen collecting. Flight range studies indicated that bees forage plants closest to their nesting site and increase their range as close bloom is no longer available. Attempts made to relocate bees in new areas met with only limited success. Morning and evening behavior of bees were characterized and climatic conditions responsible for commencement and cessation of flight outlined.
Author: Charles Edgar Osgood Publisher: ISBN: Category : Bee culture Languages : en Pages : 258
Book Description
The leaf- cutter bee Megachile rotundata (Fabricius) is an important alfalfa pollinator in western North America. This study was designed to provide information on methods of orientation used by M. rotundata in order to make recommendations regarding the parameters within which adult nesting populations may be relocated. Preliminary studies suggest that this bee species may possess a sun compass although they depend predominantly on landmarks for orientation. Color discrimination experiments with bees conditioned to various colors (i.e., red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple) showed that they could distinguish all colors except red from 22 shades of gray, black and white, Tests with yellow indicate that it was a much stronger stimulus for homing bees than other colors I) . tested. Bees appeared to be unable to distinguish red from black and therefore are thought to be color blind to red. Figure studies indicated that bees could discriminate between a variety of configurations including squares, circles, triangles, crosses, stars, I's and Y's. In these studies, bees were conditioned to a cross - shaped figure and tested for their ability to discriminate between it and triangles, squares and circles, all of three -inch maximum diameters. The data indicate that bees are quite able to make the distinction. Adult relocation studies indicated that population losses were high (50 per cent or more) when bees were moved from nesting sites possessing many landmarks (e. g., buildings, rows of trees) into alfalfa fields with few prominant landmarks; from field situations providing an abundance of foraging blossoms into fields with little bloom; and when strong winds prevailed. Conditions favoring minimum relocation population losses were moving bees with their original shelters into areas similar in landmark composition to original nesting sites; moving them in progressive steps of 20 -100 yards when relocating populations over short distances; color conditioning bees to shelters painted various colors before short distance moves; moving bees into areas with sufficient bloom to maintain themselves; and conducting moves when strong winds did not exist. General orientation was discussed with respect to flight range, landmark importance, nest entrance location and orientation inside the nest. With the advent of commercial nesting boards containing hundreds of similar nesting tunnels, bees experience major orientation difficulties. Recommendations are outlined in this study regarding methods to ameliorate proximate orientation problems using combinations of figures and colors applied to the surface of nesting boards.
Author: Margaret Rei Scampavia Publisher: ISBN: 9780355763522 Category : Languages : en Pages :
Book Description
Bee visitation benefits reproduction of most flowering plants, including crop species. Bee populations depend on nesting resources for reproduction. Most bee species excavate nests in the soil, although many species utilize above ground cavities. My dissertation examines effects of bee nest substrate variation on nest material selection and potential reproductive consequences. Chapter One evaluates the impact of foliar insecticide residues on Megachile rotundata. M. rotundata, cavity-nesting bees with nests lined with leaf cuttings, are commercially managed in North America for alfalfa pollination. In cages with uncontaminated floral resources, I examined the effect of chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate used in alfalfa pest control, on M. rotundata leaf preference and reproduction. The number of adult offspring per female did not differ between treatments. While females provisioned fewer cells in cages with treated leaves, offspring mortality was greater in cages with untreated leaves. In a choice assay, preference for treated leaves increased with days from chlorpyrifos application. Chapter Two describes the effects of tillage, drip irrigation, and presence of the pyrethroid insecticide esfenvalerate on nest site selection by native soil-nesting bees in California. I compare nest incidence and nesting bee density between treatments in an experimental matrix of farming practices. Irrigation positively influenced nest initiation and bee density. Combined irrigation and tillage had the greatest positive effect. Esfenvalerate application did not affect nesting rates. Lasioglossum (Dialictus) spp. were the most abundant nesting bees, although we also reported results for Halictus ligatus, H.tripartitus, Melissodes tepida, and Svastra obliqua expurgata. Bee species responded differently to variations in edaphic properties. L. (Dialictus) spp. responded positively to soil moisture and negatively to soil hardness. Low nesting rates in tilled, dry soils suggest a lower threshold of compaction necessary for nest structural integrity. Chapter Three reviews the literature on the effects of abiotic factors on nest site preference of soil-nesting bees. Though most studies described conditions at nest sites with no statistical analysis, this review builds an understanding of bee nesting behavior in a range of conditions. The literature suggests bee preferences for irregular surfaces, compact and warmer soils, and soil moisture. Reported nest sites of smaller bees had less bare ground and soils with higher clay content than reported nest sites of larger bees. Study designs influenced reported responses of bees to bare ground and soil hardness. Inferring nest site preference from landscape or descriptive studies requires careful interpretation. Factors influencing nest locatability and tradeoffs between excavation ease versus structural integrity likely determine nest site suitability. My dissertation demonstrates that variation in substrates affects nest site preference and reproduction of bees. Agricultural intensification and human-induced climate change differentially affect nest site availability for different bee taxa. My research can be used to formulate testable predictions of mechanisms underlying bee abundance at the landscape level and responses to disturbance. These findings can inform both predictions of nest site preferences of soil-nesting bee species with undescribed nests as well as agricultural management decisions to promote bee pollination.
Author: John P. Ballas Publisher: ISBN: Category : Alfalfa leafcutting bee Languages : en Pages : 54
Book Description
First, I described the physical characteristics of leaves found on a reclaimed mine in order to determine traits associated with leaf choice. This study focused on a representative species of leaf-cutter bee, Megachile rotundata, because of its abundance at the study site and the availability of published data on the species of leaves it uses for nesting. The 59 surveyed species of leaves were divided into two groups: those which are used by M. rotundata at the study site or in the literature, and those that are not used. By measuring the toughness, trichome density, useable area, and other traits of each leaf, species used and not used by M. rotundata were compared via ordination. The physical characteristics of used and unused leaves differed, but no one trait completely distinguished the two groups. Other untested traits may contribute to preference. The interactions of traits are complex, but toughness is a large factor determining usability. By ordinating leaf species from their traits, differences were clearly visualized. This study also documented species of plants used by M. rotundata that have not yet been observed, including the petals of multiple forbs.
Author: Charles Edgar Osgood
Author: Charles Edgar Osgood
Author: Siu-Lam Lee
Author: Charles Edgar Osgood
Author: Margaret Rei Scampavia
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