CREATING PLANT-POLLINATOR NETWORKS IN THE OREGON COAST RANGE TO INFORM EXPERIMENTAL LANDSCAPE-SCALE FLORAL ENHANCEMENTS

Jess Fan Brown; NCASI ; mycologicals@gmail.com; , Lincoln Best, Deanna Williams, Lauren Ponisio, Laura Six, Katie Moriarty, Kylie B. Weeks

Pollinators are experiencing population declines globally, including in the Pacific Northwest. Bumble bees (Bombus spp.) are of particular conservation concern. Effective pollinator conservation requires knowledge of the plant species that are important pollen and nectar resources. In the Oregon Coast Range, bumble bees and other native bees may be locating these floral resources in canopy openings created by thinning, clear cuts, and road gaps. To establish plant-bee species interactions, we actively sampled pollinators in different aged stands in the Coast Range (July-September 2020, May-September 2021). We conducted 192m of surveys within 43 stands, netting all insects that were pollinating (resulting in a collection of 286 bees). We recorded the flower species each bee was caught on and preserved the bee for identification. We accessed citizen science records from 2018 and 2019 Oregon Bee Atlas surveys for an additional 7,550 bee-flower interactions. These data represent 163 bee species. We located species of conservation concern, including B. caliginosus, B. flavidus, and B. rufocinctus. Using associated floral interaction data, we created a network of plant-bee interactions and identified the most visited flower genera and species. Our plant-pollinator networks will help select native plant species for restoration efforts in the Coast Range.

Poster Session  InPerson Presentation