In this common garden experiment, bees were presented with a choice of wildflower species throughout the growing season. The researchers assessed attractiveness of different, blooming wildflower species by collecting and counting the foraging bees on each plant species’ flowers

Insect pollinators provide ecosystem services, ranging from crop pollination to sense of place, and constitute integral components of diverse ecosystems globally. Presently, pollinators are declining from habitat loss, agricultural intensification and pesticide use, disease, and climate change, among other factors. Provision of forage in the form of blooming flowers throughout the growing season can help support bee populations. However, recommendations for regionally specific wildflower plantings to support bees tend to lack empirical underpinnings; such information gaps can lead to costly wildflower mixtures that fail to attract diverse pollinators across space and time.

The researchers found that several native wildflowers of the southeastern U.S. supported a disproportionate abundance, richness, and diversity of bees relative to other wildlife flower species; high-performing plant species included butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Indian blanket (Gaillardia pulchella), and blue vervain (Verbena hastata). Additionally, wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), frost aster (Symphyotrichum pilosum) and rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium) supported uncommon and specialist bee species in the region.

Wildflower mixtures that include these species thus are scientifically proven to provide benefits to bees and can be integrated into plantings to support pollinators in the southeastern United States.

This information can be used by a suite of stakeholders, spanning homeowners interested in native landscaping to support pollinators near their homes to broader applications of seed mixes for roadsides and, in some cases, solar facilities or other land-uses with potential restoration applications. In a rather poetic application of science, this research can inform pollinator conservation while promoting functional beauty across landscapes of the Southeast.

The ONB features articles from Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units across the country. Working with key cooperators, including WMI, Units are leading exciting, new fish and wildlife research projects that we believe our readers will appreciate reading about. This article was written by Steve Grodsky, sgrodsky@usgs.gov, Assistant Unit Leader, New York CRU. Project partners include Dr. Anthony Abbate, Auburn University; Dr. Geoff Williams, Auburn University; Dr. Josh Campbell (USDA ARS).