Douglas-fir beetle, Dendroctonus pseudotsugae Hopkins (DFB), is the most damaging insect pest of Douglas-fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco, in western North America. Individual high-value trees and stands can be protected during DFB outbreaks using the beetle's anti-aggregation pheromone, 3-methylcyclohex-2-en-1-one (MCH), which is available in several commercial formulations. However, other methylcyclohexanones similar in molecular structure to MCH have been shown to repel bees from agricultural areas. In forest systems, wild bees (Hymenoptera: Apiformes) provide essential pollination services to many forb and shrub species. Therefore, it is important to determine whether resident wild bee communities are affected in forests treated with MCH. To address this, the bee community was sampled within experimental sites located in Idaho and Montana, USA in 2016. At both sites, there was no significant difference in overall bee abundance, species richness, or diversity between MCH-treated plots and untreated control plots. Overall, these results indicate that treatment of Douglas-fir with MCH does not negatively impact the resident wild bee community.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jee/toab142 | DOI Listing |
Pathogens
January 2025
Biology Department, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA.
Bumblebees, the most important wild pollinators in both agricultural and natural ecosystems, are declining worldwide. The global decline of bumblebees may threaten biodiversity, pollination services, and, ultimately, agricultural productivity. Several factors, including pesticide usage, climate change, habitat loss, and species invasion, have been documented in the decline of bumblebee species, but recent studies have revealed the dominating role of pathogens and parasites over any of these causes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInsects
January 2025
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
The four honeybee species native to Cambodia-, , , -play a vital role in ecosystem health and agricultural productivity through their pollination activities. Beekeeping in Cambodia has primarily developed around the introduced species . However, it remains underdeveloped compared to neighboring countries, with wild honey collection continuing to play a significant role.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
January 2025
Agroecology and Environment, Agroscope, Reckenholzstrasse 191, Zürich, 8046, Switzerland.
Solitary wild bees play a key role as pollinators of wild plants and crops, but they are increasingly at risk from anthropogenic global change, such as climate warming. However, how warmer temperature during overwintering affects reproductive success of those bees remains largely unknown. In a semi-field experiment we assessed individual life-long reproductive success of 144 females of the solitary bee species Osmia bicornis that had been wintered at three different temperatures.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Microbiol
January 2025
Cellular and Organismic Networks, Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany.
Introduction: The global decline in biodiversity and insect populations highlights the urgent need to conserve ecosystem functions, such as plant pollination by solitary bees. Human activities, particularly agricultural intensification, pose significant threats to these essential services. Changes in land use alter resource and nest site availability, pesticide exposure and other factors impacting the richness, diversity, and health of solitary bee species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEcol Appl
January 2025
Ecology labs, Department of Zoology, Central University of Kerala, Periya, Kerala, India.
Wild solitary bees face a host of challenges from the simplification of landscapes and biodiversity loss to invasive species and urbanization. Pollinator researchers and restoration workers thus far gave much attention to increase flower cover to reduce the impact of these anthropogenic pressures. Over 30% of bee species need nonfloral resources such as leaves and resin for their survival and reproduction.
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