Fire Frequency and Great Plains Bees
Advisor Information
Thomas Bragg
Location
MBSC 201
Presentation Type
Poster
Start Date
6-3-2020 9:00 AM
End Date
6-3-2020 10:15 AM
Abstract
There are approximately 4,000 species of bees native to the United States with 20,000 world-wide. Bees are responsible for pollinating 75-95% of the worlds flowering plants and approximately 30% of the world’s agricultural products. Unfortunately, there are world-wide reports of bee declines with the decline linked to habitat loss, agricultural chemicals, disease, and competition from introduced species. One way to support our remaining bee populations is to manage land in a way that benefit bees. Fire is a land management technique that is common in grasslands such as those in the Great Plains. Few studies have been conducted on bee diversity and bee abundance in these grasslands with those assessing fire effects focusing on burns that occurred 2-30 years post burn. Many grasslands, however, are managed regularly by burning sub-units every 3-4 years. One such grassland is the University of Nebraska-Omaha’s Glacier Creek Preserve at which my study on the effect of fire and fire frequency on bee abundance and diversity was conducted. Sampling was conducted in 2018 using sweep nets and colored bee bowls. My four study areas had been burned one, two, and three springs prior to my sampling (2016, 2017, and 2018) with the fourth burned in the spring of both 2017 and 2018. Preliminary results indicate that bees recover quickly from spring buns since the four study areas had similar numbers of bee species and abundance. Individual bee species, however, were found in particular habitats possibly due to differences in flower type or density.
Fire Frequency and Great Plains Bees
MBSC 201
There are approximately 4,000 species of bees native to the United States with 20,000 world-wide. Bees are responsible for pollinating 75-95% of the worlds flowering plants and approximately 30% of the world’s agricultural products. Unfortunately, there are world-wide reports of bee declines with the decline linked to habitat loss, agricultural chemicals, disease, and competition from introduced species. One way to support our remaining bee populations is to manage land in a way that benefit bees. Fire is a land management technique that is common in grasslands such as those in the Great Plains. Few studies have been conducted on bee diversity and bee abundance in these grasslands with those assessing fire effects focusing on burns that occurred 2-30 years post burn. Many grasslands, however, are managed regularly by burning sub-units every 3-4 years. One such grassland is the University of Nebraska-Omaha’s Glacier Creek Preserve at which my study on the effect of fire and fire frequency on bee abundance and diversity was conducted. Sampling was conducted in 2018 using sweep nets and colored bee bowls. My four study areas had been burned one, two, and three springs prior to my sampling (2016, 2017, and 2018) with the fourth burned in the spring of both 2017 and 2018. Preliminary results indicate that bees recover quickly from spring buns since the four study areas had similar numbers of bee species and abundance. Individual bee species, however, were found in particular habitats possibly due to differences in flower type or density.