DISSERTATION RESEARCH: The effects of climate-driven phenological shifts on plant-pollinator interactions and reproductive success

大多数开花植物的繁殖，包括三分之一的农作物，都是通过蜜蜂授粉进行的。随着蜜蜂数量的持续减少，美国本土的近4000种蜜蜂可能会成为更重要的农作物传粉者。随着气候变暖的继续，人们担心植物和蜜蜂物种正在不平等地改变它们活动的时间，导致活动时间的不匹配。如果植物在蜜蜂不活跃的时候开花，繁殖可能会失败。这个项目将调查重要活动时间的变化将如何影响植物和蜜蜂的相互作用，以及对植物繁殖的影响。研究结果将有助于理解气候变化将如何影响野生植物和作物的繁殖，并对生物多样性和全球粮食生产产生影响。将通过支持博士生的教育和培训以及来自代表性不足群体的本科生的参与来加强科学队伍。气候变暖改变了共同进化的植物和授粉物种之间的物候重叠数量。利用蒙大拿州本土的杂交蜂和独生蜂物种，杂交蜂-蜜蜂群落的组成将在封闭的中围圈内进行操纵。蜜蜂的出现和植物开花的时间将通过战略越冬和温室管理来控制。在基于物候的析因设计之后，盛开的叉树和初露头角的蜜蜂将被分配到网状中胚层。物候重叠变化对叉蜂-蜜蜂相互作用模式和叉树繁殖成功的影响将通过在每个中观群落进行蜜蜂访问观察和确定每个植物物种产生的种子数量和质量来评估。这项研究产生的经验证据将有助于准确定位最容易受到气候变化负面影响的植物和传粉者物种，并为保护行动提供信息。

Reproduction in most flowering plants, including one-third of crops, is aided through pollination by bees. The nearly 4000 species of bees native to the USA may become more important pollinators of crops as honey bee populations continue to decline. As climate-warming continues, there is concern that plant and bee species are shifting the timing of their activities unequally, causing a mismatch in the time of activity. If plants flower when bees are not active, reproduction could fail. This project will investigate how shifts in the timing of important activities will affect how plants and bees interact, and the consequences for plant reproduction. Results will help to understand how climate change will affect wild plant and crop reproduction, with implications for biodiversity and global food production. The scientific workforce will be strengthened through support for the education and training of a doctoral student and participation of an undergraduate from an underrepresented group. Climate-warming has altered the amount of phenological overlap between coevolved plant and pollinator species. Using forb and solitary bee species native to Montana, forb-bee community composition will be manipulated within enclosed mesocosms. Bee emergence and plant blooming times will be controlled by strategic overwintering and greenhouse management. Blooming forbs and emerging bees will be assigned to mesh-sided mesocosms following a factorial design based on phenologies. The effects of altered phenological overlap on forb-bee interaction patterns and forb reproductive success will be assessed by conducting bee visitation observations at each mesocosm and determining the number and mass of seeds produced for each plant species. Empirical evidence generated by this study will help pinpoint plant and pollinator species most vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change, as well as inform conservation actions.