Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Sunflower Plantings Reduce A Common Gut Pathogen And Increase Queen Production In Bumble Bee Colonies, Rosemary L. Malfi, Quinn S. Mcfrederick, Giselle Lozano, Rebecca E. Irwin, Lynn S. Adler

Data and Datasets

We evaluated whether plantings of sunflower (Helianthus annuus), whose pollen reduces infection by some pathogens when fed to bees in captivity, lowered pathogen levels and increased reproduction in free-foraging bumble bee colonies (Bombus impatiens). We placed pairs of commercial colonies of B. impatiens at 20 mixed vegetable farms in western Massachusetts between Jul-23 and Oct-6 2019. Flowering resources typically visited by bumble bees were quantified at each farm twice to characterize abundance and diversity. We also visited each farm 3-4 times and at each visit, we (a) recorded colony weights to track growth, (b) collected ~10 …

The Intersection Of Bee And Flower Sexes: Pollen Presence Shapes Sex-Specific Bee Foraging Associations In Sunflower, Justin C. Roch, Rosemary Malfi, Jennifer I. Van Wyk, Deicy Carolina Muñoz Agudelo, Joan Milam, Lynn S. Adler

Data and Datasets

We evaluated whether female or male bees were more abundant on sunflowers, whether female bees were more abundant on pollen-fertile or pollen-sterile sunflower cultivars, and whether the bee community differed between pollen-fertile and pollen-sterile sunflower cultivars. We further evaluated whether bee communities were shaped by local floral resources and landscape composition. We sampled bees visiting sunflowers (Helianthus spp.) from 14 farms in the Connecticut River Valley of western Massachusetts between 25 July to 27 September 2019, typically making two sampling visits to a farm. We also measured floral resource diversity and abundance at the farms, and categorized the landscape types …

Habitat Associations Of Priority Bird Species And Conservation Value On Small, Diversified Farms In New England, Isabel Brofsky

Masters Theses

In recent decades, New England agriculture has become increasingly characterized by small, diversified farming operations with values deeply rooted in community and conservation. In sharp contrast to large-scale, high-intensity agriculture currently typified by the majority of North American farms, New England farmers commonly prioritize ecologically beneficial production practices such as reduced chemical inputs, integrated pest management (IPM), low tillage, cover cropping and crop rotation, and retention of natural habitats like woody hedgerows and herbaceous strips. Public support and demand for local, sustainable food, evidenced by the success of CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in the region, has helped to bolster this …

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly: Pollinators As Vectors Of Mummy Berry Disease In Highbush Blueberry, Matthew Boyer

Doctoral Dissertations

Background: Many plants must balance the need for pollination services with mediating the risk of pollinator-vectored pathogens. Vaccinium corymbosum, highbush blueberry, is negatively affected by an insect-vectored, fungal plant pathogen, Monilinia vaccinii-corymosi (MVC), the cause of mummy berry disease, in which the asexual spore mimics pollen grains and is transferred from blighted tissue to flowers via pollinators, resulting in inedible, hardened fruits. Highbush blueberry plants require outcrossed pollen for maximum yield and fecundity. Therefore, yield of blueberry plants rely on a balance between adequate pollination service and disease avoidance. Approach: To explore the relationship between pollinator community and infection …

All Roads Lead To Weediness: Stories About Weedy Rice Origins, Weedy Genes And Weed Competitiveness, Zhongyun Huang

Doctoral Dissertations

Weedy rice (Oryza spp.), a weedy relative of cultivated rice (O.sativa), infests and persists in cultivated rice fields worldwide. Many weedy rice populations have evolved similar adaptive traits, considered part of the ‘agricultural weed syndrome’, making this an ideal model to study the genetic basis of parallel evolution. Using population genetics analyses of South Asian and US weedy rice, my research reveals multiple independent evolution events giving rise to weed groups in the two geographic areas. Weeds in South Asia have highly heterogenous genetic backgrounds, with contributions from both cultivated varieties (aus and indica) …

Synergistic Communities For Biochar, Albert Bates, Jonathan Bates, Peter Hirst

USBI Biochar Conferences

Biochar & Permaculture: Albert Bates

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afaKoWXsRiU

Biochar & Aquaponics: Jonathan Bates

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9c21drA2KS4

Jonathan will present his experience using biochar as a powerful growing medium in aquaponic systems. Aquaponics being the culturing of fish and plants together ecologically in closed systems (the merging of aquaculture and hydroponics). Biochar grow media benefits aquaponic systems in multiple ways, including its light weight, local sourcing, bio-chemical qualities, ecological nature, and affordable price. Through pictures and discussion he will show how his experiment has faired, and offer ideas for economic opportunities of aquaponic biochar in the Northeast.

Biochar & the Klamath Hydro Settlement: Peter Hirst …