| NSF Org: |
DEB Division Of Environmental Biology |
| Recipient: |
|
| Initial Amendment Date: | September 1, 2016 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | September 1, 2016 |
| Award Number: | 1638728 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Elizabeth Blood
DEB Division Of Environmental Biology BIO Directorate for Biological Sciences |
| Start Date: | December 1, 2016 |
| End Date: | November 30, 2019 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $299,996.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $299,996.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
|
| History of Investigator: |
|
| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
200 UNIVERSTY OFC BUILDING RIVERSIDE CA US 92521-0001 (951)827-5535 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
|
| Primary Place of Performance: |
900 University Ave Riverside CA US 92521-0001 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
|
| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
|
| Parent UEI: |
|
| NSF Program(s): | MacroSysBIO & NEON-Enabled Sci |
| Primary Program Source: |
|
| Program Reference Code(s): |
|
| Program Element Code(s): |
|
| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.074 |
ABSTRACT
Pollination is a key ecosystem service vital for the survival and stability of the biosphere. Pollinators are major players in both wild and agricultural systems, as over 87% of flowering plants require pollinators in order to reproduce. Flowers are sites of interaction between plants and their pollinators, wherein pollinators receive nectar or pollen in exchange for pollination. Each flower receives multiple visits from not only multiple individuals but often multiple types of pollinators. Because many individuals feed from the same floral resource, flowers can also be sites for passing pathogens from pollinator to pollinator. Studying bees and hummingbirds, this project examines these interactions?how pollinator visits to the flower underlie regional and continental patterns of interactions among plants, pollinators, and their pathogens. This project investigates an emerging area of biology and evaluates the potential for inter-specific pathogen transmission. Furthermore, the research contributes to our understanding of how large-scale processes (biological invasion, climate change and pollinator migration) affect interactions among plants, their pollinators and their pathogens. With such information, we can make predictions and devise strategies to maintain and protect the pollination services necessary for a healthy and stable environment. In addition to promoting Science, Technology, Engineering and Math undergraduates by providing meaningful research opportunities, the researchers are developing educational materials that feature local species, habitats, and guided journaling activities for K-6 students to explore their relationship with the natural world and pollinators in particular.
The project examines interactions at the floral interface?how local foraging of pollinators at the flower scale up to drive regional and continental patterns of plant-pollinator-pathogen networks. Floral resources are utilized by a broad range of species, including both hummingbirds and bees. Each floral visit presents the opportunity for a pollinator to both obtain and transfer pathogens. This project integrates pollination biology, behavioral ecology, migration behavior, and disease ecology. Quantitative network models will be developed by combining phenology, plant diversity and abundance data with experimental, spatially replicated data on species interactions generated from direct observations and next-generation sequencing. In a novel approach, researchers will then incorporate plant-pollinator and pollinator-pathogen interactions to create plant-pollinator-pathogen networks. This permits detailed study of how pollinator foraging patterns influence pathogen transmission at the regional and continental scales and how pathogen transmission is affected by invasive floral visitors and migration. The resulting networks will be documented across a large geographic area comprising a global biodiversity hotspot, the California Floristic Province, which also experiences annual continental-scale migrations. The main project objectives are to examine how fluctuations in floral visitation due to various anthropogenic causes affect pathways of pollinator pathogen transmission. In particular, the effects of species introductions, migration, and climate change will be examined. Such a synthesis will provide insights and new understanding into the pathways of florally-transmitted pathogens and disease.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
Note:
When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external
site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a
charge during the embargo (administrative interval).
Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from
this site.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Pollination is a key service vital for the survival and stability of both wild and agricultural ecosystems. Flowers are sites of interaction between plants and their pollinators. Pollinators receive nectar or pollen in exchange for pollination. Because many individuals feed from the same flower, floral resources can be sites for passing pathogens from pollinator to pollinator. Studying bees and hummingbirds, we investigated how pollinator migration influences plant-pollinator networks and the presence of pollinator pathogens.
While bees are often the first pollinators that come to mind, hummingbirds also play key roles as pollinators. Relatively little is known about how their foraging and diet change throughout the year, especially with regard to how local hummingbirds respond to the sudden influx of migrants. We used DNA metabarcoding to analyze the diet diversity and overlap of hummingbirds in the California Floristic Province before, during, and after peak migration of the Rufous hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus), a long-distance migrant. The diets of migrant Rufous hummingbirds were consistently more diverse in terms of the number of different plants visited than locally breeding Anna's Hummingbirds (Calypte anna) and Costa's Hummingbirds (C. costae). Furthermore, we found that diet specialization was lowest in the migratory hummingbirds and that the diet of resident hummingbirds shifted in the presence of migrants.
In addition to this annual hummingbird migration, we examined how plant-pollinator interactions in the California Central Valley responded to human-mediated migration of managed honey bees into almond orchards. During peak almond bloom, nearly 75% of all managed honey bee hives in the US are brought into the Central Valley for almond pollination. We screened dozens of bee species for a diversity of pathogens and parasites. Interestingly, we found that the prevalence of the pathogen Nosema ceranae started low in local, resident honey bees, but spiked after migratory honey bees were placed in the Central Valley for almond pollination and remained high after the almond pollination was over. This finding is consistent with pathogen "spillover" from managed bees.
Hummingbirds, local and migrant alike, also share nectar resources with bees. Remarkably, we have also detected bee pathogens (most commonly Nosema) in hummingbird fecal samples. Hummingbirds ingest florally-transmitted pathogens by consuming infected nectar. While it appears that most bee pathogens pass straight through the digestive system of hummingbirds with no effect, our data show a clear connection between the likelihood of pathogen presence and the plant species the hummingbirds have visited. Birds that share most of their flowers with bees are more likely to have bee pathogens, such as Nosema, detected in their fecal material than are hummingbirds with little floral overlap with bees.
This project investigated an emerging area of biology and evaluates the potential for inter-specific pathogen transmission. This research contributes to our understanding of how large-scale processes, such as migration, affect interactions among plants, their pollinators and their pathogens. With such information, we can make predictions and devise strategies to maintain and protect the pollination services necessary for a healthy and stable environment.
Last Modified: 03/13/2020
Modified by: Erin E Wilson Rankin
Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.
