Native bee species diversity
and abundance:
West Eugene Wetlands
Jennifer Bergh
Mentor: Dr. Sujaya Rao
Crop & Soil Science Department
HHMI Research Program
Summer 2008
Agapostemon sp.
West Eugene Wetlands
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Wetland prairie restoration site
Variety of habitat types:
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Wet prairie
Upland prairie
Oak savanna
Past and ongoing research:
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Site preparation
Plant successional dynamics
Management of native & invasive plant
communities
Insect Fauna of the WEW
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Butterflies
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Dragonflies & Damselflies
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49 species
44 species
Native bees
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Incomplete fauna
American Rubyspot
(Hetaerina americana)
Flora of the WEW
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350 species of plants
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Rare plants
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Lomatium bradshawii
Lupinus sulphureus ssp. kincaidii
Erigeron decumbens
Aster curtus
Horkelia congesta
NW American Native Bees
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Natural history
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10% social and semi-social
10% parasitic
80% solitary
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Nest provisioning
Contact between mother and offspring
Emergence
Continuum: semi-social intermediaries
(Stephen 1969)
Why study native bees?
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Ecosystem parameters
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Identification of rare plant-pollinator
interactions
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Restoration planning
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Community education
Darwin’s Cats, Bees & Clover
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The identification of complex relationships
clover → bumblebees → mice → cats
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The misnomer of doing “just one thing”
(Darwin 1866)
Objectives

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Catalog native bee populations at WEW
Determine if two threatened Bombus species
are present
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Bombus occidentalis
Bombus franklini
Identify associations between specific
pollinators and native plant hosts
Hypotheses

Hypothesis #1
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The West Eugene Wetlands flora and bee fauna
are representative of Willamette Valley flora and
bee fauna.
Hypothesis #2
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The West Eugene Wetlands flora and bee fauna
are more diverse than those of the majority of the
Willamette Valley.
Research Products
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Preliminary bee fauna
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Preliminary phenology data
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Reference collections for WEW and OSU
Methods
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Trapping
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Sweep netting
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Two minute counts
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Observation
Blue fluorescent trap
Bees of the West Eugene Wetlands
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Preliminary counts
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Total bees collected, all methods: 562
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June – September 2008
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Seasonal weather
Spring-Summer collection patterns
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Seasonal population dynamics
Collection locations
Bees of the West Eugene Wetlands
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Apidae
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Bombus spp.: 81
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Apis mellifera: 4
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Anthophora ssp.
Eucerine bees: 2
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Honeybees
Anthophorine bees: 1
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Bumblebees
Long-horned bees
Melissodes spp., Synhalonia ssp., Xenoglossa ssp.
Xylocopinae bees: 10
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Carpenter bees
Bees of the West Eugene Wetlands
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Halictidae
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Sweat bees: 165
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Agapostemon spp.
Halictus ssp.
Lasioglossum ssp.
Dialictus ssp.
Megachilidae
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Leaf cutter and mason bees: 20
Osmia ssp., Megachile ssp., Coelioxys ssp.
Bees of the West Eugene Wetlands
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Identification process
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Steps for the future
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Class: Insecta on the West Eugene Wetlands
Summary-to-Date
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Data analysis pending positive identifications
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Rare plant-pollinator relationships
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Non-native invasives
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Margins
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Reference collection
Continuing Work
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Ongoing collection to
build bee fauna

Define rare plantpollinator
relationships
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Monitor native bee
populations
Acknowledgements
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Dr. Sujaya Rao, OSU
Dr. Bill Stephen, OSU
Dr. Kevin Ahern, OSU
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Sally Villegas, BLM
The Nature Conservancy