NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology: Pollinator Thermal Performance and Limitation in an Early-Blooming Crop

Desjardins, Nicole S, Tempe AZ

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2023, Broadening Participation of Groups Underrepresented in Biology. The Fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. Apple production in the Midwestern US is limited by a lack of pollinators. Apples may be particularly susceptible to pollinator limitation because they bloom in the early spring, when it may sometimes be too cold for bees to fly. Under climate change, weather conditions are likely to become increasingly unstable during the early spring, possibly exacerbating the problem of pollinator limitation. This project aims to determine the extent to which pollinator thermal performance is linked to pollinator limitation. It will determine which of the groups involved in apple pollination (honey bees, bumble bees, solitary bees, etc.) is the best at performing under unstable weather conditions. This research will help to ensure the security of the Midwestern apple crop in the face of a changing climate, and will be able to direct mitigation strategies such as increasing honey bee stocking densities or conserving wild bees. The Fellow will disseminate this work to beekeepers and growers around the Midwestern US, and will also undertake activities aimed at increasing the participation and retention of neurodivergent individuals in biological research. The Fellow will first determine whether orchard microclimate and timing of bloom influence pollinator visitation, predicting that apple orchards with warmer microclimates and later-blooming varieties will experience more pollinator visitation. Next, the Fellow will experimentally induce pollinator limitation by making flowers available for pollination only at select temperatures, predicting that the flowers available at higher temperatures will be less pollinator-limited. The Fellow will also look directly at pollinator thermal physiology, matching bee performance in a lab-based assay with the temperatures at which they are active in the field. Overall, the Fellow will seek to determine the extent to which pollinator limitation in this early-blooming crop can be explained by pollinator thermal performance. In addition to these research activities, the Fellow will prepare for an academic career by developing and teaching a module on sustainable food systems in an upper-level undergraduate biology course. The Fellow will also develop programs aimed at supporting neurodiversity in biology, including a mentorship network for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.