DOCSLIB.ORG

Bumblebee Species Differ in Their Choice of Flower Colour Morphs of Corydalis Cava (Fumariaceae)?

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Bumblebee Species Differ in Their Choice of Flower Colour Morphs of Corydalis Cava (Fumariaceae)? Do queens of bumblebee species differ in their choice of flower colour morphs of Corydalis cava (Fumariaceae)? Myczko, Ł., Banaszak-Cibicka, W., Sparks, T.H Open access article deposited by Coventry University’s Repository Original citation & hyperlink: Myczko, Ł, Banaszak-Cibicka, W, Sparks, TH & Tryjanowski, P 2015, 'Do queens of bumblebee species differ in their choice of flower colour morphs of Corydalis cava (Fumariaceae)?' Apidologie, vol 46, no. 3, pp. 337-345. DOI 10.1007/s13592-014-0326-x ISSN 0044-8435 ESSN 1297-9678 Publisher: Springer Verlag The final publication is available at Springer via https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13592-014- 0326-x This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited. Copyright 2014© and Moral Rights are retained by the author(s) and/ or other copyright owners. Apidologie (2015) 46:337–345 Original article * INRA, DIB and Springer-Verlag France, 2014. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com DOI: 10.1007/s13592-014-0326-x Do queens of bumblebee species differ in their choice of flower colour morphs of Corydalis cava (Fumariaceae)? Łukasz MYCZKO, Weronika BANASZAK-CIBICKA, Tim H. SPARKS, Piotr TRYJANOWSKI Institute of Zoology, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 71C, 60-625, Poznań, Poland Received 6 June 2014 – Revised 18 September 2014 – Accepted 6 October 2014 Abstract – Bumblebee queens require a continuous supply of flowering food plants from early spring for the successful development of annual colonies. Early in spring, Corydalis cava provides essential nectar and pollen resources and a choice of flower colour. In this paper, we examine flower colour choice (purple or white) in C. cava and verify the hypothesis that bumblebee queens differ in their choice of flower colour. A total of 10,615 observations of flower visits were made in spring 2011 and spring 2014 near Poznań, western Poland. Our results suggest that Bombus lucorum/cryptarum used purple flowers less, while Bombus terrestris used purple flowers more and Bombus hortorum showed no preference. Therefore, the colour morphs of C. cava are probably co- evolutionary adaptations to the development of another part of the insect community which has different colour preferences. Bombus lucorum / Bombus cryptarum / Bombus terrestris / Bombus hortorum / foraging behaviour / colour choice 1. INTRODUCTION (Wilson 1971; Oster and Wilson 1978). A strong selection is evident, partly caused by ergonomic Pollinators are often considered crucial species restrictions due to mismatching functional traits of in ecosystems (Williams and Osborne 2009; plants and insects (Wilson 1983). For the devel- Winfree 2010). Bumblebees pollinate a wide opment of their annual colonies, bumblebees re- range of plants in both agricultural and natural quire a continuous supply of flowering food plants habitats (e.g. Heinrich 2004; Goulson 2010; from early spring to late summer, as is usually Osgathorpe et al. 2012). They live in annual col- provided in perennial semi-natural habitats onies that are founded by single queens (Heinrich (Fussell and Corbet 1991;Corbet1995). 2004; Goulson et al. 2002). When a queen The melliferous flowers of the herb Corydalis emerges from hibernation in spring, she feeds on cava (L.) Schweigg and Koerte (Fumariaceae) pollen and nectar until her ovaries develop. She appear directly before tree foliation. They precede then tries to find a suitable nesting site. Early and supplement shrub and tree flowering, so can colony development is in fact a critical period be an important food supply for pollinators in characterised by a high rate of colony failure early spring. The complex flower morphology of the species indicates a co-evolution with Electronic supplementary material The online version of specialised pollinators (Fenster et al. 2004). The this article (doi:10.1007/s13592-014-0326-x) contains flowers have long and narrow corolla tubes and supplementary material, which is available to authorized require large-bodied, long-tongued bees for polli- users. nation. Anthophora plumipes (Pallas, 1772) Corresponding author: Ł. Myczko, (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Apiformes) is a com- [email protected] mon pollinator of C. cava within the core of the Manuscript editor: James Nieh plant’s range, e.g. Austria, and its proboscis is 338 Ł.Myczkoetal. long enough to reach the nectar legitimately. 1981), variability of nectar content (Real 1981; Queens of the long-tongued Bombus hortorum Real et al. 1982), or the effects of density on (L.) are also common pollinators within the pollinator preferences for colour morphs plant’s central range. This species forages legiti- (Smithson and Macnair 1997). Previous studies mately both for nectar and pollen (Olesen and have mainly focused only on a single bee species. Knudsen 1994). Populations of C. cava at the Nevertheless, reality is more complicated because margins of the species range exist without their plants are pollinated by the whole pollinator com- principal evolutionary pollinators but persist munity. What is interesting is the pollinator-plant through an interaction with local opportunistic relationship, especially in early spring when there flower foragers, including bees and butterflies are limited food resources. In this paper, we ex- (Olesen 1992, 1996; Olesen and Knudsen 1994). amine the pollinator community of C. cava .The However, the flowers are visited mainly by freely purpose of our study was to verify the hypothesis foraging bumblebee queens. C. cava has two that bumblebee queens differ in choice of flower colour morphs (at least as recognised by humans): colour morphs of C. cava. purple and white. It is a well-known fact that flower colour is an 2. MATERIAL AND METHODS important signal to pollinators and might influ- ence pollinator behaviour (e.g. Waser and Price 2.1. Study organisms 1983; Welsford and Johnson 2012; Schiestl and Johnson 2013). When pollinators discriminate C. cava is a perennial spring forest herb with a among colours, this may influence patterns of complex flower. The plant grows in central and south- pollen transfer, and thus gene flow and evolution- ern Europe and has either purple or white flowered ary dynamics, within and between species individuals (see Supplementary Material). The terms (Hopkins and Rausher 2012). It is often assumed “purple” and “white” refer to human colour space. that many flowering plants owe much of their According to Olesen and Knudsen (1994), ultraviolet floral polymorphism in colour, shape and odour reflection from flower parts, nectar production, pollen to the combined effects of attracting different pol- traits and scent chemistry do not differ between the two linator species and to the spatio-temporal variation morphs. in the selection regimes they are subjected to Although the colour morphs co-occur throughout the (Ollerton et al. 2006). Many species of bumble- range of the species, their frequencies vary. The fre- bees have been shown to discriminate on the basis quency of white among populations ranges between 5 of floral colour (e.g. Waser and Price 1981, 1983; and 40 %, and within individual populations, white is Lunau 1991; Lunau et al. 1996). Colour appears often aggregated (Olesen and Knudsen 1994). to be particularly important for flower recognition Precocious flowering melliferous plants are of special (Menzel and Schmidta 1993;Schiestland importance, appearing directly before tree foliation. Johnson 2013). Both honeybees and bumblebees They precede and supplement shrub and tree flowering learn colours quickly when they are rewarded and are an important food supply for early spring bees. according to colour choice (Heinrich et al. 1977; The subgenus Bombus s. str. (syn. Terrestribombus ) Gumbert 2000;Ingsetal.2009). Recent work has includes four species (Bombus terrestris , Bombus also indicated that the strength of innate colour lucorum , Bombus cryptarum and Bombus magnus ), preferences can influence foraging performance in with an additional fifth species in Fennoscandia bumblebees under natural conditions (Raine and (Bombus sporadicus ). It is a group in which the classi- Chittka 2007). Intraspecific pollinator discrimina- fication of species is especially complicated (Bertsch tion may influence genotypic frequencies as well et al. 2004). The lucorum complex from central and as the reproductive success of colour morphs in northern Europe comprises three monophyletic bumble- plants. beetaxa(B. cryptarum , B. lucorum and B. magnus ), of There have been studies focusing on bumble- which B. lucorum is the most common of the lucorum bee preferences for colour morphs where morphs complex in Poland (Banaszak and Rasmont 1994). differ in nectar content (Heinrich et al. 1977;Real Because of the difficulty in separating the lucorum Bumblebee species and flower colour morph 339 complex in the field even with freshly caught queens 2.3. Statistical analysis (e.g. in Scotland, Bertsch et al. 2005), we divided cap- tured bumblebees from subgenus Bombus s. str. into For each individual insect, the number and percentage B. terrestris and a second group of B. lucorum and of its visits to purple flowers were calculated. From each B. cryptarum . percentage, the appropriate site/year mean percentage of B. lucorum , B. cryptarum , B. terrestris , purple flowers was subtracted. This new variable, here- B. pratorum and B. lapidarius
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Poland 12 – 20 May 2018
    Poland 12 – 20 May 2018 Holiday participants Gerald and Janet Turner Brian Austin and Mary Laurie-Pile Mike and Val Grogutt Mel and Ann Leggett Ann Greenizan Rina Picciotto Leaders Artur Wiatr www.biebrza-explorer.pl and Tim Strudwick. Report, lists and photos by Tim Strudwick. In Biebrza National Park we stayed at Dwor Dobarz http://dwordobarz.pl/ In Białowieża we stayed at Gawra Pensjon at www.gawra.Białowieża.com Cover photos: sunset over Lawaki fen; fallen deadwood in Białowieża strict reserve. Below: group photo taken at Dwor Dobarz and Biebrza lower basin from Burzyn. This holiday, as for every Honeyguide holiday, also puts something into conservation in our host country by way of a contribution to the wildlife that we enjoyed. The conservation contribution this year of £40 per person was supplemented by gift aid through the Honeyguide Wildlife Charitable Trust, leading to a donation of £490. The donation went to The Workshop of Living Architecture, a small NGO that runs environmental projects in and near Biebrza Marshes. This includes building new nesting platforms for white storks, often in response to storm damage or roof renovation, or simply to replace old nests. The total for all conservation contributions through Honeyguide since 1991 was £124,860 to August 2018. 2 DAILY DIARY Saturday 12 May – Warsaw to Biebrza Following an early flight from Luton, the group arrived at Warsaw airport and soon found local leader Artur and driver Rafael in the arrival hall. After introductions, including the customary carnations for the ladies, and the briefest of delays to resolve a suitcase mix up, we quickly boarded the waiting bus.
    [Show full text]
  • THE HUMBLE-BEE MACMILLAN and CO., Limited LONDON BOMBAY CALCUTTA MELBOURNE the MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK BOSTON CHICAGO DALLAS SAN FRANCISCO the MACMILLAN CO
    THE HUMBLE-BEE MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited LONDON BOMBAY CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK BOSTON CHICAGO DALLAS SAN FRANCISCO THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO A PET QUEEN OF BOMBUS TERRESTRIS INCUBATING HER BROOD. (See page 139.) THE HUMBLE-BEE ITS LIFE-HISTORY AND HOW TO DOMESTICATE IT WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF ALL THE BRITISH SPECIES OF BOMBUS AND PSITHTRUS BY \ ; Ff W. U SLADEN FELLOW OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON AUTHOR OF 'QUEEN-REARING IN ENGLAND ' ILLUSTRATED WITH PHOTOGRAPHS AND DRAWINGS BY THE AUTHOR AND FIVE COLOURED PLATES PHOTOGRAPHED DIRECT FROM NA TURE MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON 1912 COPYRIGHT Printed in ENGLAND. PREFACE The title, scheme, and some of the contents of this book are borrowed from a little treatise printed on a stencil copying apparatus in August 1892. The boyish effort brought me several naturalist friends who encouraged me to pursue further the study of these intelligent and useful insects. ..Of these friends, I feel especially indebted to the late Edward Saunders, F.R.S., author of The Hymen- optera Aculeata of the British Islands, and to the late Mrs. Brightwen, the gentle writer of Wild Nattcre Won by Kindness, and other charming studies of pet animals. The general outline of the life-history of the humble-bee is, of course, well known, but few observers have taken the trouble to investigate the details. Even Hoffer's extensive monograph, Die Htimmeln Steiermarks, published in 1882 and 1883, makes no mention of many remarkable can particulars that I have witnessed, and there be no doubt that further investigations will reveal more.
    [Show full text]
  • Pollination of Cultivated Plants in the Tropics 111 Rrun.-Co Lcfcnow!Cdgmencle
    ISSN 1010-1365 0 AGRICULTURAL Pollination of SERVICES cultivated plants BUL IN in the tropics 118 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO 6-lina AGRICULTUTZ4U. ionof SERNES cultivated plans in tetropics Edited by David W. Roubik Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Balboa, Panama Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations F'Ø Rome, 1995 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. M-11 ISBN 92-5-103659-4 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Director, Publications Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy. FAO 1995 PlELi. uion are ted PlauAr David W. Roubilli (edita Footli-anal ISgt-iieulture Organization of the Untled Nations Contributors Marco Accorti Makhdzir Mardan Istituto Sperimentale per la Zoologia Agraria Universiti Pertanian Malaysia Cascine del Ricci° Malaysian Bee Research Development Team 50125 Firenze, Italy 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia Stephen L. Buchmann John K. S. Mbaya United States Department of Agriculture National Beekeeping Station Carl Hayden Bee Research Center P.
    [Show full text]
  • Bumblebee in the UK
    There are 24 species of bumblebee in the UK. This field guide contains illustrations and descriptions of the eight most common species. All illustrations 1.5x actual size. There has been a marked decline in the diversity and abundance of wild bees across Europe in recent decades. In the UK, two species of bumblebee have become extinct within the last 80 years, and seven species are listed in the Government’s Biodiversity Action Plan as priorities for conservation. This decline has been largely attributed to habitat destruction and fragmentation, as a result of Queen Worker Male urbanisation and the intensification of agricultural practices. Common The Centre for Agroecology and Food Security is conducting Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) research to encourage and support bumblebees in food Bumblebees growing areas on allotments and in gardens. Bees are of the United Kingdom Queens, workers and males all have a brown-ginger essential for food security, and are regarded as the most thorax, and a black abdomen with a white tail. This important insect pollinators worldwide. Of the 100 crop species that provide 90% of the world’s food, over 70 are recent arrival from France is now present across most pollinated by bees. of England and Wales, and is thought to be moving northwards. Size: queen 18mm, worker 14mm, male 16mm The Centre for Agroecology and Food Security (CAFS) is a joint initiative between Coventry University and Garden Organic, which brings together social and natural scientists whose collective research expertise in the fields of agriculture and food spans several decades. The Centre conducts critical, rigorous and relevant research which contributes to the development of agricultural and food production practices which are economically sound, socially just and promote long-term protection of natural Queen Worker Male resources.
    [Show full text]
  • BELARUS Forest Birds of Deepest Belarus 1 – 8 May 2016
    BELARUS Forest Birds of Deepest Belarus 1 – 8 May 2016 TOUR REPORT Leaders: Barrie Cooper & Attila Steiner Azure tit © Barrie Cooper Highlights Several prolonged and excellent views of azure tits Good views of aquatic warbler, red-breasted and collared flycatchers Nine species of woodpecker Good views of great snipe lekking, plus citrine wagtail and penduline tit Great grey owl, pygmy owl, long-eared owl 14 species of raptor Waders seen in the hand included marsh sandpiper, male and female ruff Sunday 1 May The group arrived in good time at Gatwick before departure for our direct flight to Minsk. On arrival, we were met by Attila, Katia (our local assistant and translator) and Richie the driver, plus group members David and Jill who had spent the previous two days in Minsk. After a meal in the airport restaurant we set off for the four-hour journey to Turov and arrived at just before one o’clock local time. Monday 2 May Mainly cloudy, 15 degrees Alshany, Ledzets & Turov Meadows After a later than normal breakfast, we gathered outside the hotel to see the two white stork nests in the town square and the statue of Terek sandpiper. Marsh terns were flying around over the river and a few waders were on the meadows, but more of that later. A brief stop on the edge of Turov provided us with good views of garganey, ruff, Montagu’s and marsh harriers. A pair of common cranes, whinchat and yellow wagtail added to the variety. Our first destination was the river at Alshany.
    [Show full text]
  • Honey Bee from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
    Honey bee From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia A honey bee (or honeybee) is any member of the genus Apis, primarily distinguished by the production and storage of honey and the Honey bees construction of perennial, colonial nests from wax. Currently, only seven Temporal range: Oligocene–Recent species of honey bee are recognized, with a total of 44 subspecies,[1] PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N though historically six to eleven species are recognized. The best known honey bee is the Western honey bee which has been domesticated for honey production and crop pollination. Honey bees represent only a small fraction of the roughly 20,000 known species of bees.[2] Some other types of related bees produce and store honey, including the stingless honey bees, but only members of the genus Apis are true honey bees. The study of bees, which includes the study of honey bees, is known as melittology. Western honey bee carrying pollen Contents back to the hive Scientific classification 1 Etymology and name Kingdom: Animalia 2 Origin, systematics and distribution 2.1 Genetics Phylum: Arthropoda 2.2 Micrapis 2.3 Megapis Class: Insecta 2.4 Apis Order: Hymenoptera 2.5 Africanized bee 3 Life cycle Family: Apidae 3.1 Life cycle 3.2 Winter survival Subfamily: Apinae 4 Pollination Tribe: Apini 5 Nutrition Latreille, 1802 6 Beekeeping 6.1 Colony collapse disorder Genus: Apis 7 Bee products Linnaeus, 1758 7.1 Honey 7.2 Nectar Species 7.3 Beeswax 7.4 Pollen 7.5 Bee bread †Apis lithohermaea 7.6 Propolis †Apis nearctica 8 Sexes and castes Subgenus Micrapis: 8.1 Drones 8.2 Workers 8.3 Queens Apis andreniformis 9 Defense Apis florea 10 Competition 11 Communication Subgenus Megapis: 12 Symbolism 13 Gallery Apis dorsata 14 See also 15 References 16 Further reading Subgenus Apis: 17 External links Apis cerana Apis koschevnikovi Etymology and name Apis mellifera Apis nigrocincta The genus name Apis is Latin for "bee".[3] Although modern dictionaries may refer to Apis as either honey bee or honeybee, entomologist Robert Snodgrass asserts that correct usage requires two words, i.e.
    [Show full text]
  • Miranda S Bane Thesis 2019.PDF
    University of Bath PHD Bumblebee foraging patterns: plant-pollinator network dynamics and robustness Bane, Miranda Award date: 2019 Awarding institution: University of Bath Link to publication Alternative formats If you require this document in an alternative format, please contact: [email protected] General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 05. Oct. 2021 Bumblebee foraging patterns: plant-pollinator network dynamics and robustness Miranda Sophie Bane A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Bath Department of Physics December 2018 1 Copyright declaration Attention is drawn to the fact that copyright of this thesis/portfolio rests with the author and copyright of any previously published materials included may rest with third parties. A copy of this thesis/portfolio has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it understands that they must not copy it or use material from it except as licenced, permitted by law or with the consent of the author or other copyright owners, as applicable.
    [Show full text]
  • Local and Landscape Effects on Arthropod Communities Along an Arable-Urban Gradient
    Local and Landscape Effects on Arthropod Communities along an Arable-Urban Gradient Dissertation to obtain the Dr. sc. agr. in the Ph. D. Program for Agricultural Sciences in Göttingen (PAG) at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Germany presented by Hannah Reininghaus born in St. Augustin (Germany) Göttingen, May 2017 D7 1. Name of supervisor: Prof. Dr. Christoph Scherber 2. Name of co-supervisor: Prof. Dr. Teja Tscharntke Date of dissertation: 11 July 2017 Table of Contents Summary .......................................................................................................................... 5 Chapter 1: General Introduction .................................................................................. 7 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter Outline ............................................................................................................ 15 References .................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 2: Reversed Importance of Local vs. Landscape Flower Resources for Bumblebee Foraging and Colony Performance along Farmland-Urban Gradients .... 20 Abstract ........................................................................................................................ 21 Introduction .................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Different but the Same: Bumblebee Species Collect Pollen of Different Plant Sources but Similar Amino Acid Profiles Linda Kriesell, Andrea Hilpert, Sara D
    Different but the same: bumblebee species collect pollen of different plant sources but similar amino acid profiles Linda Kriesell, Andrea Hilpert, Sara D. Leonhardt To cite this version: Linda Kriesell, Andrea Hilpert, Sara D. Leonhardt. Different but the same: bumblebee species collect pollen of different plant sources but similar amino acid profiles. Apidologie, Springer Verlag, 2017,48 (1), pp.102-116. 10.1007/s13592-016-0454-6. hal-01538639 HAL Id: hal-01538639 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01538639 Submitted on 13 Jun 2017 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Apidologie (2017) 48:102–116 Original article * INRA, DIB and Springer-Verlag France, 2016 DOI: 10.1007/s13592-016-0454-6 Different but the same: bumblebee species collect pollen of different plant sources but similar amino acid profiles 1 2 1 Linda KRIESELL , Andrea HILPERT , Sara D. LEONHARDT 1Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, University of Würzburg, 97074, Würzburg, Germany 2Institute of Biology, Technical University of Darmstadt, 64287, Darmstadt, Germany Received 18 December 2015 – Revised 11 May 2016 – Accepted 25 May 2016 Abstract – Access to abundant and diverse floral plant sources is essential for generalist bees as they obtain all energy and nutrients required from pollen and nectar.
    [Show full text]
  • In Istria in Autumn
    Go Slow…. In Istria in Autumn Naturetrek Tour Report 1 - 8 October 2019 Althea cannabina Flame Brocade Spiranthes spiralis Monkodonja Report and images by Paul Tout & Paul Harmes Naturetrek Mingledown Barn Wolf's Lane Chawton Alton Hampshire GU34 3HJ UK T: +44 (0)1962 733051 E: [email protected] W: www.naturetrek.co.uk Tour Report Go Slow…. In Istria in Autumn Tour participants: Paul Tout and Paul Harmes (leaders) with 14 Naturetrek clients Day 1 Tuesday 1st October Trieste Airport - Istarske Toplice (our hotel accommodation) Paul Harmes met up with the group at Stansted. Arriving at Trieste airport just after 5pm, we passed through passport control, collected our luggage and moved out into the Arrivals hall where we were met by Paul Tout. We were soon on our way towards Istria, passing through the very attractive historic centre of Trieste and on towards Koper-Capodistria, the main port in Slovenia. At the crossroads of Europe where the three main language groups meet (Romance, Slav and Germanic), the area is an ethnic mix with large areas of bi- (and even tri-) lingualism, so place names are usually hyphenated, made up of two languages. The weather was fine, sunny and warm. We took the road for the centre of Trieste along the Costiera. but no Alpine Swifts were visible. They nest in a colony on the cliffs beside the road and they continue to visit the colonies until mid-October but evidently, they were feeding high up in the fine weather. Passing through the centre of Trieste, the city looked very fine in the evening light, with its Viennese-style waterfront and main square, Piazza Unita d’Italia, the only one in Italy that opens onto the sea.
    [Show full text]
  • Natural Language Generation for Nature Conservation: Automating Feedback to Help Volunteers Identify Bumblebee Species
    Natural Language Generation for Nature Conservation: Automating Feedback to help Volunteers identify Bumblebee Species Steven Blake1 Advaith Siddhar than1 Hien N guyen1 1 2 3 N irwan Sharma Anne-Marie Robinson Elaine O0 Mahony Ben Darvill3 Chris Mellish1 René van der Wal2 (1) Department of Computing Science, University of Aberdeen, U.K. (2) Aberdeen Centre for Environmental Sustainability (ACES), University of Aberdeen, U.K. (3) Bumblebee Conservation Trust, University of Stirling, U.K. [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] ABSTRACT This paper explores the use of Natural Language Generation (NLG) for facilitating the provision of feedback to citizen scientists in the context of a nature conservation programme, BEEWATCH. BEEWATCH aims to capture the distribution of bumblebees, an ecologically and economically important species group in decline, across the UK and beyond. The NLG module described here uses comparisons of visual features of bumblebee species as well as contextual information to improve the citizen scientists’ identification skills and to keep them motivated. We report studies that show a positive effect of NLG feedback on accuracy of bumblebee identification and on volunteer retention, along with a positive appraisal of the generated feedback. KEYWORDS: NLG, Natural Language Generation, Educational Application, Bumblebee Conser- vation, Citizen Science, Generating Feedback. Proceedings of COLING 2012: Technical Papers, pages 311–324, COLING 2012, Mumbai, December 2012. 311 1 Introduction There is a growing realisation of the potential of digital approaches, including the use of websites and social media, to increase participation in “citizen science”, which includes observing and monitoring the natural world.
    [Show full text]
  • Bombus Terrestris) Fat Body and Haemolymph -An Immune Perspective
    A proteomic and cytological characterisation of the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) fat body and haemolymph -An immune perspective A thesis submitted to the Maynooth University, for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Dearbhlaith Ellen Larkin B. Sc. October 2018 Supervisor Head of Department Dr Jim Carolan, Prof Paul Moynagh, Applied Proteomics Lab, Dept. of Biology, Dept. of Biology, Maynooth University, Maynooth University, Co. Kildare. Co. Kildare Table of contents ii List of figures ix List of tables xiii Dissemination of research xvi Acknowledgments xviii Declaration xix Abbreviations xx Abstract xxiii Table of contents Chapter 1 General introduction 1.1 Bumblebees ............................................................................................................................. 2 1.1.1 Bumblebee anatomy ............................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Bombus terrestris .................................................................................................................... 5 1.3 Global distribution and habitat ................................................................................................ 8 1.4 Pollination ............................................................................................................................... 8 1.5 Bumblebee declines, cause and effect ................................................................................... 10 1.5.1 Environmental stressors and reduced genetic diversity
    [Show full text]