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Scientists at ARS's North Central Regional Plant
Introduction Station in Ames, Iowa, encourage a range of insectsincluding
honey beesto pollinate the plants in their germplasm collection. Click
the image for more information about it.
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Pollinators as Preservationists
By Ann Perry
May 6, 2008 At the
North
Central Regional Plant Introduction Station (NCRPIS) in Ames, Iowa, the
scientists constantly fine-tune the professional relationships they have with
their pollinating colleagues. The station's successand the preservation
of thousands of plant varietiesdepend on it.
The NCRPIS maintains more than 49,000 plant accessions belonging to the
National Plant Germplasm
System, administered by the Agricultural
Research Service (ARS). Station curators periodically cultivate plants from
the stored seeds to generate plants and seeds that express the same distinct
genetic characteristics as their parent material. Periodically replenishing
stocks ensures that seeds or clonal materials contained in the NCRPIS
collections are capable of germinating, or are viable.
The NCRPIS curators team up with a range of pollinators to give plants their
best chance of success. The best-knownand one of the hardest-working
pollinatorsis the honey bee (Apis mellifera), which has been
utilized at NCRPIS since 1957.
To ensure that enough honey bees are available to meet demand, ARS
entomologist
Steve
Hanlin assembles start-up homes for queen bees and workers. If the bees
take a liking to the premises and start to reproduce, Hanlin moves them into
the field to begin working.
Other pollinators also pitch in. The alfalfa leaf-cutting bee (Megachile
rotundata), which ARS research technician
Sharon
McClurg nurtures from pupa to adult, is a solitary, more docile worker that
pollinates a range of plants in the collection.
Bumble bees (Bombus impatiens) also frequent the fields, pollinating
ornamental plants with trumpet-like flowers. The mason bees Osmia cornifrons
and Osmia lignaria are active in cool spring conditions, but after
June they call it quits for the year.
At NCRPIS, house flies (Musca domestica) and blue bottle flies
(Calliphora sp.) are no longer a nuisancethey're part of the work
plan. McClurg has them partnering with honey bees to pollinate carrots and
other plants.
Read
more about this research in the May/June 2008 issue of Agricultural
Research magazine.
ARS is the U.S. Department
of Agriculture's chief scientific research agency.