Document Type
Dissertation
Date of Award
5-31-2018
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Biology - (Ph.D.)
Department
Federated Department of Biological Sciences
First Advisor
Daniel E. Bunker
Second Advisor
Karen Goodell
Third Advisor
Claus Holzapfel
Fourth Advisor
Gareth J. Russell
Fifth Advisor
Kimberly N. Russell
Sixth Advisor
Jessica Lee Ware
Abstract
Bees are important pollinators, critical for the continued survival of plants in both natural and agricultural ecosystems. Diverse bee communities have been shown to increase richness in plant communities and plant reproduction depends upon bee community richness. Yet there is growing concern that pollinators, especially bees, are declining globally. This dissertation focuses on evaluating the mechanisms responsible for bee community composition in order to promote bee conservation in natural systems and their restoration in human-dominated urban and agricultural landscapes.
Bee populations are impacted directly by three things: floral resources, nesting resources and risk, primarily from natural enemies. Bees are indirectly affected by abiotic factors, like climate, that influence both their behavior and the resources available. Relationships between bees and their floral resources have received the most attention, providing evidence of floral resources structuring bee communities and controlling bee population dynamics. The first investigation described in this dissertation determines the universality of this relationship through a meta-analysis of the effects of plant community composition on bee community composition.
The second and third investigations described in this dissertation focus on the management of two species of cavity nesting bees, Osmia cornifrons and O. taurus, in terms of their utilization of artificial nesting substrate (Chapter 3) and the influence of temperature on their emergence timing (Chapter 4). This information is useful whether they need to be managed for their pollination services or to reduce their impacts as non-native species. The overall aim of this dissertation work is to promote bee restoration and conservation by adding to the understanding of the roles of both direct and indirect controls on bee community composition.
Recommended Citation
DeVan, Caroline Marie, "Direct and indirect controls on bee community composition" (2018). Dissertations. 1590.
https://digitalcommons.njit.edu/dissertations/1590
