Forest Bee - Plant Network Assessment at Great Lakes (GLKN) Parks- MWRO

Description

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES This Cooperative Agreement P17AC01093 (Agreement) is entered into by the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service (NPS), and Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey (Recipient). Bee pollinators are essential for maintaining ecosystems, because nearly 90% of plant species are animal pollinated. The habitat associations and management needs of most North American bees are poorly known. The focus of pollinator restoration efforts to date has been almost entirely in restoring open meadow-type habitats with plants that bloom in the summer. Forest provides a phenologically distinct resource/habitat that is critical (a) for the many bee species that are on the wing as adults only in the spring, and (b) for long-season species like bumblebees that use forest resources to support key portions of their life cycle. There are no known published studies that determine what forest plants are most essential to forest bee species, nor the impacts of deer density to bee communities. The objective of this work is to study pollinator and plant associations in forested ecosystems in Great Lakes parks and understand how various forest dynamics may influence bee communities. Study sites will be set up at 4-8 National Parks in the Great Lakes region. All sites will be located in extensive forested habitat, with a range of deer densities. Bees will be net-collected from all sites, curated, and identified to the species level. Pollen will be removed from the scopa and identified to the plant species used by each individual bee. Data will be analyzed to determine the forest plant species that are most relied upon by native bees during the spring season. Results will include: a plant list for forest trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants most used by forest bees for parks to use for future decisions; identity of key plant species that support forest bees when few other plant species are blooming; identification of groups of pollinator-important plants that bloom at similar times; and possibly recommendations related to deer density. This work will expand the general scientific knowledge of this subject. Results will be published for the public and other researchers that could stimulate future research. NPS will be involved in describing project goals, developing the scope and activities to be accomplished, selecting study sites, and providing technical assistance and logistic support. STATEMENT OF WORK Study sites will be set up at 4-8 National Parks in the Great Lakes region. All sites will be located in extensive forested habitat. Study sites will also include those with a range of deer densities, as determined by NPS data. Bees will be net-collected from all sites, curated, and identified to the species level. Pollen will be removed from the scopa and identified to the plant species used by each individual bee. Data will be analyzed to determine the forest plant species that are most relied upon by native bees during the spring season. Results will be provided and published to include: a plant list for forest trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants most used by forest bees for parks to use for future decisions; identity of key plant species that support forest bees when few other plant species are blooming; identification of groups of pollinator-important plants that bloom at similar times; and possibly recommendations related to deer density. This work will expand the general scientific knowledge of this subject. Results will be published for the public and other researchers that could stimulate future research. NPS will be involved in describing project goals, developing the scope and activities to be accomplished, selecting study sites, and providing technical assistance and logistic support. RECIPIENT AGREES TO: 1. Provide oversight to the project development and implementation; 2. Set up study sites at 4-8 National Parks in the Great Lakes region in consultation with NPS; 3. Net-collect bees from all sites, curate, and identify bees to species level; 4. Remove pollen from the scopa of each individual bee and identify plant species used; 5. Analyze data to determine forest plant species are most relied upon by native bees; 6. Provide analysis and summary of information collected to allow for discussions about future management options. Results will include: a plant list for forest trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants most used by forest bees; identity of key plant species that support forest bees when few other plant species are blooming; identification of groups of pollinator-important plants that bloom at similar times. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AGREES TO: 1. Assist the PI in the selection of sites, study design; 2. Provide information or data to assist PI, where available; 3. Contribute expertise and assist the recipient in collecting and analyzing data, where staff is available; 4. Provide housing or government vehicle assistance, where available; 5. Assist in scheduling with parks and obtaining permits; 6. Review and approve results reporting for NPS standards for technical reports. 7. Provide housing or government vehicle assistance, where available. 8. Assist in obtaining permits

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