Brittain, C.,
Williams, N., Kremen, C., & Klein, A. M.
2013. Synergistic effects of non-Apis bees and honey bees for pollination services. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 280: 20122767.
Insect pollination is an effective
and prolific method of augmenting agricultural output without overexerting the
land or providing additional input.
Because of their typical roles, honey bees (Apis mellifera) are optimal pollinators for agricultural and non-agricultural
plants. However, honey bees are not the
only insect that occupies the pollination functional group. There are many non-Apis bees that coexist with honey bees within pollination systems. Because they fill very similar roles, the
specific plants of which honey bees feed and pollinate vary as bee biodiversity
also varies. Despite the seemingly
inherent need for competition, different bee species may complement each
other. Brittain et al. 2013 specifically address these issues in
their study. The researchers hypothesize
that biodiversity enhances the amount and effectiveness of pollination by bee species.
Brittain
et al. 2013 conducted their study in 2008 to 2011 on 25 almond orchards in
northern California. The researchers
studied the movement of honey bees among trees, single pollination visit
effectiveness, fruit development, and an extensive cage experiment; all of
which carried a variable of honey bee, non-honey bee, none, or multiple
species. The cage experiment
demonstrated that Apis mellifera is
the stronger, more dominant pollinator of the bee species, but with the
addition of the weaker, Osmia lignaria. The researchers demonstrated that the
presence of non-Apis species enhanced
fruit setting, pollen tube development, successful pollination, and movement amongst
rows for honey bees. Brittain et al.
2013 achieved results that demonstrated a positive relationship between
biodiversity and successful pollination.
The researchers also found that with multiple species present, honey
bees traveled among more trees and promoted better pollen deposition and pollen
tube growth within the pistil.
Brittain et al. 2013 successfully demonstrated
a positive correlation between biodiversity of pollinator species and
pollination services such as pollen tube growth, fertilization, and fruit
development. With the use of honey bees
and non-Apis species, pollination
services can be augmented. Biodiversity which
includes species that occupy the same functional group often leads to
competition. However, the biodiversity
in this experiment has clearly demonstrated that there can be a positive correlation
between ecosystem production and biodiversity.
This critical information could be relevant for farmers of orchards and
production crops that could enhance their output and augment pollination
services. Honey bees and other species
of pollinators could also be useful for non-agricultural species of plants in
need of a boost in fertilizations. Honey
bees and other species of bees are not necessary for successful plant species,
however, they can enhance plant production.
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