Pollinators such as wild bees, butterflies, and hoverflies are in trouble worldwide. A major new study, published in Science and led by Gabriella Bishop and other scientists at Wageningen Universit…

Canada Excellence Research Chair in Biodiversity Genomics

Journals and funders are trying to boost the speed and effectiveness of review processes that are under strain.

What happens when you spend an entire year watching hummingbirds and the plants they visit in one of Brazil’s most unique ecosystems? You begin to unravel the complex, ever-changing relationships t…

Increasing atmospheric CO2 levels change the elemental composition in plants, altering their nutritional quality and affecting consumers and ecosystems. Ecological stoichiometry provides a framework for investigating how CO2-driven nutrient dilution in pollen affects bees by linking changes in pollen chemical element proportions to the nutritional needs of bees. We investigated the consequences of five years of Free Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) in a mature oak-dominated temperate forest on the elemental composition of English oak (Quercus robur) pollen. We measured the concentrations and proportions of 12 elements (C, N, P, S, K, Na, Ca, Mg, Cu, Zn, Fe, and Mn) in Q. robur pollen-bearing flowers collected from the Birmingham Institute for Forest Research (BIFoR) FACE facility. An elevated CO2 (eCO2) level of 150 ppm above ambient significantly reduced the S, K, and Fe levels and altered the multi-element ratio, with different elements behaving differently. This shift in pollen multi-element composition may have subsequent cascading effects on higher trophic levels. To assess the impact on bees, we calculated the stoichiometric mismatch (a measure of the discrepancy between consumer needs and food quality) for two bee species, Osmia bicornis (red mason bee) and Apis mellifera (honey bee), that consume oak pollen in nature. We observed stoichiometric mismatches for P and S, in pollen under eCO2, which could negatively affect bees. We highlight the need for a comprehensive understanding of the changes in pollen multi-element stoichiometry under eCO2, which leads to nutrient limitations under climate change with consequences for bees.

The number of wild bees has fallen dramatically since 1990. UiB professor Jeroen van der Sluijs urges researchers to assume their responsibility and help save the insects who hold the key to upholding human food production.