Seas of Bees: Astonishing Native Bee Richness at Pinnacles National Monument Joan Meiners Terry Griswold and Ted Evans USDA Bee Biology and Systematics Laboratory Utah State University
Invertebrates as a Park Resource: some examples Decomposers Seed Dispersers http://naturemanchester.wordpress.com/2010 /02/04/ecological-services-of-insects/# Food http://myrmecos.net/2012/01/09/english-majorsdiscover-a-new-species-in-manhattan-everywhere/ Soil Aerators http://today.uci.edu/news/2010/04/nr_inse cts_100407.php http://www.neighborhoodnotes.com/news/2010/11/vermi cultureworm_ranching_is_all_the_rage/
Bees => Floral Diversity 20,000 species worldwide, coevolved with Angiosperms Most are ground-nesting, solitary, nonhoney bees http://allthingsfadra.com/2011/01/honey-bees-are-disappearing/ Many are pollen specialists (=more consistent pollinators)
Park Bee Monitoring Programs Yosemite NP John Muir NHS Zion NP Grand Staircase Escalante NM Death Valley NP Grand Canyon NP Carlsbad Caverns NP
Pinnacles National Monument Bee Monitoring Project: Past 1996-1999 Initial Inventory, mostly opportunistic trail net collecting => 400 species in 25mi 2 (one of most densely diverse areas in world) 2002 pan trapping in bottomlands
Pinnacles National Monument Bee Monitoring Project: Present 2011-2012 flowering seasons (Feb June) 10 1-hectare plots representing a diversity of habitats across monument (Blue Oak Woodland, Live Oak Woodland, Grassland, Alluvial/Sandy) Biweekly sampling to track phenology of bee communities in different habitats (each site visited 9 times in 2011)
Field Methods Two collectors Timed net collections in AM, PM Record floral host of net-caught bees Pan traps (blue, white, yellow) Vegetation transects track floral resource phenology and richness and compare habitat composition
And Then For the approx. 15,000 Pinned Bee Specimen from 2011: Enter Location, Date, Time, Collector, Floral Record, Climatic Data for each bee into Relational Database -> print label Visual Sort Microscope Identifications Enter species ID, add label Analyze Bee Population, Community Dynamics, Phenology, Floral Preference, and Resource Usage
Abundance in Pan Traps Pinnacles 2011 Preliminary Results PINN 2011 Pan Trapped Bees: Spatial Distribution and Abundance of Three Most Abundant Bee Species and Season Bee Totals by Plot and Habitat Type Social generalist 800 700 600 500 400 300 Halictus (Seladonia) tripartitus Hesperapis (Panurgomia) regularis Solitary specialist 200 100 0 MC (1) MC (2) Alluvial PV (3) SW (4) NG (6) Live Oak Woodland NG (5) WG (7) Blue Oak Woodland HP (10) DG (8) NW (9) Grassland Osmia (Mystacosmia) nemoris Plot Season Pan Trap Totals Solitary generalist Plot Number and Habitat Type
Bee Abundance Pinnacles 2011 Preliminary Results continued Phenology of Pan Trap Caught Bees in Needlegrass Live Oak Woodland (LOW) and Blue Oak Woodland (BOW) 1400 1200 1000 Needlegrass LOW Total 800 600 400 200 Needlegrass BOW Total 0 1-Mar 15-Mar 29-Mar 12-Apr 26-Apr 10-May 24-May 7-Jun Dates Sampled in 2011
Bee Abundance Pinnacles 2011 Preliminary Results 700 continued Phenology of 2011 Pan Trap Caught Bees in Blue Oak Woodland (BOW) Habitats 600 500 Needlegrass BOW Total 400 300 200 100 0 4-Mar 18-Mar 1-Apr 15-Apr 29-Apr 13-May 27-May 10-Jun West BOW Total High Peaks BOW Total Dates Sampled in 2011
Bee Richness Pinnacles 2011 Preliminary Results continued 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 PINN 2011 Pan Trap Bees: Season Total Bee Richness (# species) by Plot and Habitat Type MC (1) MC (2) PV (3) SW (4) NG (6) NG (5) WG (7) HP (10) DG (8) NW (9) Alluvial Live Oak Woodland Blue Oak Woodland Grassland Plot Number and Habitat Type
Management Implications Long term, repeatable monitoring efforts = only way to detect changes in resource populations (Bombus) Identification of particular habitats or flowers that support a high bee abundance/richness could shape conservation, construction, fire, revegetation decisions Phenological data on bee activity can inform timing of management actions Can monitor specific indicator species for more rapid assessments Issues of how to manage invasive resources (plants and bees): track complex bee-plant interactions
Thank you National Park Service Funding Utah State University: Dr. Terry Griswold & Dr. Ted Evans Pinnacles National Monument Support: Paul Johnson, Denise Louie, Brent Johnson Field technician: Therese Lamperty Lab support: Harold Ikerd, Skyler Burrows