Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-20T06:26:13.217Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Native pollinators alone provide full pollination on small-scale commercial cranberry (Ericaceae) farms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 September 2019

Geena Arul Jothi
Affiliation:
Crop Sciences Division, Bayer Canada, 900, One Research Road, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3T 6E3, Canada
Julie Sircom*
Affiliation:
School of Science and the Environment, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland, P.O. Box 2000, Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, A2H 6P9, Canada
*
1Corresponding author (e-mail: [email protected]).

Abstract

Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton (Ericaceae)) requires insect pollen vectors to maximise fruit yield. In many areas, commercial producers use managed bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) to supplement native pollinators. On the island of Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, due to the small number of available honey bee hives and import restrictions on commercially reared bumble bees, the use of supplemental pollinators is rare. Four farms were studied for two years to identify key pollinators and determine the relationship between fruit yield and bee abundance. The most commonly collected bees were species of Bombus Latreille (Hymenoptera: Apidae), which buzz-pollinate and are likely the primary pollinator on these farms; thus, fruit yield was examined with respect to total Bombus abundance. Stigma loading was also used as a measure of pollinator effectiveness. Contrary to expectation, there was no relationship between Bombus abundance or stigma loading and either fruit set or weight, but there was significant year-to-year variation. Other factors were likely more important in determining yield, and further research is needed to identify those. Under current conditions, native bees provide ample pollination services for maximal yield.

Type
Behaviour and Ecology
Copyright
© Entomological Society of Canada 2019 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Subject editor: Shelley Hoover

References

Bates, D., Maechler, M., Bolker, B., and Walker, S. 2013. lme4: linear mixed-effects models using Eigen and S4. R package version 1.0-4. Available from http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lme4 [accessed 15 February 2017] .Google Scholar
Baum, K.A. and Wallen, K.E. 2011. Potential bias in pan trapping as a function of floral abundance. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society, 84: 155159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blaauw, B.R. and Isaacs, R. 2014. Flower plantings increase wild bee abundance and the pollination services provided to a pollination-dependent crop. Journal of Applied Ecology, 51: 890898. http://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12257.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Broussard, M., Rao, S., and Stephen, W.P. 2011. Native bees, honeybees, and pollination in Oregon cranberries. HortScience, 46: 885888.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brown, A.O. and McNeil, J.N. 2006. Fruit production in cranberry (Ericaceae: Vaccinium macrocarpon): a bet-hedging strategy to optimize reproductive effort. American Journal of Botany, 93: 910916. http://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.93.6.910.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buchmann, S.L. 1983. Buzz pollination in angiosperms. In Handbook of experimental pollination biology. Edited by Jones, C.E. and Little, R.J.. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, New York, United States of America. Pp. 73113.Google Scholar
Button, L. and Elle, E. 2014. Wild bumble bees reduce pollination deficits in a crop mostly visited by managed honey bees. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 197: 255263. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2014.08.004.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cane, J.H., MacKenzie, K., and Schiffhauer, D. 1993. Honey bees harvest pollen from the porose anthers of cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon) (Ericaceae). American Bee Journal, 133: 293295.Google Scholar
Cane, J.H., Minckley, R.L., and Kervin, L.J. 2000. Sampling bees (Hymenoptera: Apiformes) for pollinator community studies: pitfalls of pan-trapping. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society, 73: 225231.Google Scholar
Cane, J.H. and Schiffhauer, D. 2001. Pollinator genetics and pollination: do honey bee colonies selected for pollen-hoarding field better pollinators of cranberry Vaccinium macrocarpon? Ecological Entomology, 26: 117123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cane, J.H. and Schiffhauer, D. 2003. Dose-response relationships between pollination and fruiting refine pollinator comparisons for cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon [Ericaceae]). American Journal of Botany, 90: 14251432.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Damman, A.W.H. 1983. An ecological subdivision of the Island of Newfoundland. In Biogeography and ecology of the Island of Newfoundland. Edited by South, G.R.. Junk, The Hague, The Netherlands. Pp. 163206.Google Scholar
Dana, M.N., Steinmann, S., and Goben, L. 1989. Pollen source and fruit set of cranberry. Cranberries, 53: 1014.Google Scholar
Droege, S. (compiler). 2015. The very handy manual: how to catch and identify bees and manage a collection. Available from http://bio2.elmira.edu/fieldbio/handybeemanual.html [accessed 2 August 2017].Google Scholar
Eaton, L.J. and Murray, J.E. 1997. Relationships of pollinator numbers in blueberry fields to fruit development and yields. Proceedings, 6th International Symposium on Vaccinium Culture. Acta Horticulturae, 446: 181188.Google Scholar
Eck, P. 1990. The American cranberry. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States of America.Google Scholar
Evans, E.C. and Spivak, M. 2006. Effects of honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) and bumble bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) presence on cranberry (Ericales: Ericaceae) pollination. Journal of Economic Entomology, 99: 614620.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fulton, M., Jesson, L.K., Bobiwash, K., and Schoen, D.J. 2015. Mitigation of pollen limitation in the lowbush blueberry agroecosystem: effect of augmenting natural pollinators. Ecosphere, 6: article 235, 119. http://doi.org/10.1890/ES15-00148.1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gaines-Day, H.R. and Gratton, C. 2015. Biotic and abiotic factors contribute to cranberry pollination. Journal of Pollination Ecology, 15: 1522.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Government of Canada. 2016. Canadian climate normals, 1981–2010 [online]. Environment and natural resources. Available from http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html [accessed 6 May 2018].Google Scholar
Hicks, B.J. 2011. Pollination of lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium) in Newfoundland by native and introduced bees. Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society, 7: 108118.Google Scholar
Hicks, B.J. and Sircom, J. 2016. Pollination of commercial cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait.) by native and introduced managed bees in Newfoundland. Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society, 12: 2230.Google Scholar
Isaacs, R. and Kirk, A.K. 2010. Pollination services provided to small and large highbush blueberry fields by wild and managed bees. Journal of Applied Ecology, 47: 841849. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2010.01823.x.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laverty, T.M. and Harder, L.D. 1988. The bumble bees of eastern Canada. The Canadian Entomologist, 120: 965987.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacKenzie, K.E. 1994. The foraging behaviour of honey bees (Apis mellifera L) and bumble bees (Bombus spp) on cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait). Apidologie, 25: 375383.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCallum, R.S. and McLean, N.L. 2017. Floral resources and bumble bee abundance in lowbush blueberry field margins. Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society, 13: 3745.Google Scholar
Meades, W.J. and Moores, L. 1994. Forest site classification manual (second edition). A field guide to the forest types of Newfoundland. Canada, Forest Resource Development Agreement Report 3. Newfoundland Forest Resource Development Agreement, St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.Google Scholar
Melathopoulos, A.P., Tyedmers, P., and Cutler, G.C. 2014. Contextualising pollination benefits: effect of insecticide and fungicide use on fruit set and weight from bee pollination in lowbush blueberry. Annals of Applied Biology, 165: 387394. http://doi.org/10.1111/aab.12143.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oksanen, J., Blanchet, G.F., Friendly, M., Kindt, R., Legendre, P., McGlinn, D., et al. 2017. vegan: community ecology package. R package version 2.4–5. Available from https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=vegan [accessed 18 May 2018].Google Scholar
Packer, L., Genaro, J.A., and Sheffield, C.S. 2007. The bee genera of eastern Canada. Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification, 3: 132. http://doi.org/10.3752/cjai.2007.03.Google Scholar
Paddon, T. 2014. Cranberry industry support. Report to the House of Assembly: on review of departments and crown agencies. Auditor General of Newfoundland and Labrador, St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Pp. 165192.Google Scholar
Parrish, J. 2004. Pollination ecology: field studies of insect visitation and pollen transfer rates. Experiment #3. Teaching issues and experiments in ecology, volume 2 [online]. Available from http://tiee.ecoed.net/vol/v2/experiments/pollinate/abstract.html [accessed 28 June 2019]Google Scholar
R Core Team. 2017. R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Available from www.R-project.org [accessed 12 May 2017].Google Scholar
Ratti, C.M., Higo, H.A., Griswold, T.L., and Winston, M.L. 2008. Bumble bees influence berry size in commercial Vaccinium spp. cultivation in British Columbia. The Canadian Entomologist, 140: 348363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rigby, B. and Dana, M.N. 1972. Flower opening, pollen shedding, stigma receptivity, and pollen tube growth in the cranberry. HortScience, 7: 8485.Google Scholar
Sarracino, J.M. and Vorsa, N. 1991. Self and cross fertility in cranberry. Euphytica, 58: 129136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheffield, C.S., Kevan, P.G., and Smith, R.F. 2003. Bee species of Nova Scotia, Canada, with new records and notes on bionomics and floral relations (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society, 76: 357384.Google Scholar
Sircom, J. 2019. Discovery of overwintered non-native Bombus impatiens gynes from imported commercial nests on the island of Newfoundland, Canada. Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society, in press.Google Scholar
Statistics Canada. 2017. Table 32-10-0417-01. Fruits, berries and nuts [online]. Available at www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=3210041701 [accessed 27 June 2019].Google Scholar
Tuell, J.K. and Isaacs, R. 2010. Weather during bloom affects pollination and yield of highbush blueberry. Journal of Economic Entomology, 103: 557562. http://doi.org/10.1603/EC09387.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wickham, H. 2009. ggplot2: elegant graphics for data analysis. Springer-Verlag, New York, New York, United States of America.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, P.H., Head, K., Burgher-MacLellan, K.L., Rogers, R.E.L., and Shutler, D. 2010. Parasitic mites and microsporidians in managed western honey bee colonies on the island of Newfoundland, Canada. The Canadian Entomologist, 142: 584588.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: PDF

Arul Jothi and Sircom supplementary material

Table S1

Download Arul Jothi and Sircom supplementary material(PDF)
PDF 80.1 KB