![]() ![]() Given the numerous challenges facing bees, a better understanding of bee foraging over time and space, and for distinct species would facilitate the development of sound conservation strategies.īees are central place foragers, implying that they must depart a nesting site, locate and gather resources, and return with these resources to the hive or nesting area ( Charnov, 1976). Importantly, these sublethal effects of neonicotinoid pesticide exposure can further exacerbate the negative impacts of pathogens such as Nosema and black queen cell virus on bees ( Doublet et al., 2015). ![]() In addition, exposure to neonicotinoid pesticides negatively affects the ability of honey bees to navigate back to their hive following artificial displacement ( Fischer et al., 2014) and increases the foraging effort of bumble bees ( Stanley et al., 2016). ![]() ![]() Bees are limited by the area of habitat available which is essential for nesting and gathering of floral resources, and the negative impact of habitat loss on bees may be most pronounced in areas where natural habitat is already limited ( Winfree et al., 2009). Bees are important visitors to both crops and wildflowers, yet many bee species are in decline because of the combined effects of habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and pathogens ( Naug, 2009 Cameron et al., 2011 Goulson et al., 2015). These results are discussed in terms of species differences in foraging strategies, size of individuals and colonies, and temporal variation in colony needs and resource availability.Īpproximately 87% of flowering plants around the globe ( Ollerton et al., 2011) and 35% of all crops grown for human consumption ( Klein et al., 2007) benefit from animal pollination. Both bee species brought heavier pollen sacs back to the hive at the beginning and the end of the flowering season. Foraging bout duration did not vary between bee species and none of the foraging metrics varied among time periods or among sites. A greater proportion of RFID tagged bumble bees foraged each day and bumble bees brought heavier pollen sacs to the hive compared to honey bees. Relative to honey bees, individual bumble bees made more foraging trips each day, resulting in a greater time spent foraging. Linear mixed effect models determined the impact of bee species, time of season (period) and site, and their interactions, on multiple foraging metrics calculated from the RFID data and on pollen dry weight. We compared the European honey bee, Apis mellifera, and the common eastern bumble bee, Bombus impatiens. Pollen pellets were also collected from bees returning to the hive. Using miniaturized radio frequency identification (RFID), we tracked the foraging activity of individual bees to and from hives at three sites and over five time periods. Finally, spatial variation in resource availability may impact bumble bees to a greater extent than honey bees due to their smaller foraging range. Moreover, variation in resource availability and in colony needs over the flowering season, can affect bee foraging activity. We expect such differences among bee species to engender differences in foraging activity. Bumble bees exploit patches individually and develop trapline foraging patterns. Honey bees use their unique dance language to recruit foragers to the most profitable patches. Foraging range, body size, and division of labor also vary between these two bee species. Honey bees have large perennial colonies while bumble bee colonies are annual and considerably smaller. Honey bees and bumble bees are eusocial central place foragers. 3Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United StatesĬentral place foragers depart from and return to a central location with enough resources for themselves, and in many cases, for the group.2USDA–Agricultural Research Service, Vegetable Crop Research Unit, Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United States.1Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United States. ![]()
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