2023 Fall Seminar Series Presents
Dr. Jordan R. Glass
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Dillon Lab - Department of Zoology & Physiology
University of Wyoming
When: Sept. 15, 2023 at Noon
Where: Denver Campus - Science Building, Room 2001
Predicting the effects of heat waves on honey bee foraging
Insect pollinators are declining at an alarming rate, due in part to climate change. Not only is the planet getting warmer, but it is experiencing increased variation in extreme weather events, such as heatwaves. These increasingly severe and more frequent thermal events may push insect pollinators, including bees, beyond their thermal limits, likely speeding up their decline. But at what point will temperature limit pollination? In this talk, I discuss the air temperatures at which the foraging flights of honey bees (Apis mellifera) become heat-limited, and identify the strategies used by honey bees to avoid and mitigate these limitations. Specifically, I will show the interactions of air temperature, metabolic costs, water balance, and wing kinematics of bees while foraging and carrying nectar loads.
Everyone is welcome to join the seminar. For more information please email Dr. Greg Ragland.