Apple orchards feed honey bees during, but even more so after, bloom

Many of the fruits that add diversity and nutrition to our diet are wholly or partially dependent upon flower‐visiting insects. For example, apples (Malus spp.) are self‐incompatible and therefore rely on insect pollinators for fruit development and seed production. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecosphere (Washington, D.C) D.C), 2022-09, Vol.13 (9), p.n/a
Main Authors: Steele, Taylor N., Schürch, Roger, Ohlinger, Bradley D., Couvillon, Margaret J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural production
agroecosystems
Apis mellifera
apple orchards
Apples
Beekeeping
Bees
Cameras
Crops
Data collection
Food
Forage
Foraging behavior
foraging ecology
Fruits
Honey
Insects
Orchards
Plant nectar
Plant reproduction
Pollen
Pollinators
Seasons
Understory
waggle dance
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Summary:Many of the fruits that add diversity and nutrition to our diet are wholly or partially dependent upon flower‐visiting insects. For example, apples (Malus spp.) are self‐incompatible and therefore rely on insect pollinators for fruit development and seed production. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are often migrated into these orchards when the apples are in bloom. While previous studies have focused on the impact of honey bees to fruit orchards, fewer studies have examined the reciprocal relationship of the orchards to honey bees, particularly if the bees are in the orchard for the entire foraging season, not just during bloom. Here we investigated the foraging dynamics of honey bees in apple orchards in Virginia for two full foraging seasons (April–October, 2018–2019). We decoded, mapped, and analyzed the waggle dances (n = 3710) made by returning foragers, which communicate the distance and direction from the hive to valuable resources, usually nectar or pollen. We found that bees foraged locally at
ISSN:2150-8925
2150-8925
DOI:10.1002/ecs2.4228