Skip to main content
ARS Home » Southeast Area » Baton Rouge, Louisiana » Honey Bee Lab » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #291100
Title: Pollination Research Methods with Apis mellifera

Author
item DELAPLANE, KEITH - University Of Georgia
item DAG, ARNON - Agricultural Research Organization Of Israel
item Danka, Robert
item FREITAS, BRENO - Departamento De Zootecnia
item GARIBALDI, LUCAS - Consejo Nacional De Investigaciones Científicas Y Técnicas(CONICET)
item GOODWIN, MARK - Plant And Food Research
item HORMAZA, JOSE - Instituto De Hortofruticultura Subtropical Y Mediterranea La Mayora

Submitted to: Journal of Apicultural Research
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/12/2013
Publication Date: 9/4/2013
Citation: Delaplane, K.S., Dag, A., Danka, R.G., Freitas, B.M., Garibaldi, L.A., Goodwin, M., Hormaza, J.I. 2013. Pollination Research Methods with Apis mellifera. Journal of Apicultural Research. 52(1)#16. COLOSS BEEBOOK Volume I.

Interpretive Summary: The impact of any pollinator, whether in terms of agricultural production or plant fitness, is an interaction between at least two dynamics – the pollen vectoring capacity of the flower visitor and the genetic obligation, or responsiveness, of the plant to pollen deposition on its stigmas (Delaplane 2011). Most of this chapter is devoted to appraising pollinator vectoring capacity, but in this section we begin with the underlying demands of the plant because this is the necessary starting point for understanding and contextualizing any pollination syndrome.

Technical Abstract: This chapter describes field and lab procedures for doing experiments on honey bee pollination. Most of the methods apply to any insect for whom pollen vectoring capacity is the question. What makes honey bee pollination distinctive is its historic emphasis on agricultural applications; hence one finds a preoccupation with matters of bee densities, behaviors, and management with a view to optimizing crop yields and quality. However, the same methods can be modified to address broader questions on plant fitness and ecosystem-level interactions.