A groundbreaking two-year study in southern Oregon found greater abundance and diversity of wild bees in areas that experienced moderate and severe forest fires compared to areas with low-severity fires.
A groundbreaking two-year study in southern Oregon found greater abundance and diversity of wild bees in areas that experienced moderate and severe forest fires compared to areas with low-severity fires.
The study, published today in the journal Ecosphere by researchers in the Oregon State University College of Forestry, is the first to demonstrate that wildfire severity is a strong predictor of bee diversity in mixed-conifer forest.
Bees are the most important among the Earth’s pollinators, which combine for an estimated $100 billion in global economic impact each year. Oregon is home to more than 500 species of native bees.
Animal pollinators enhance the reproduction of nearly 90 percent of the Earth’s flowering plants, including many food crops.
Read more at Oregon State University
Image: Triepeolus on Canada thistle. (Credit: Jim Rivers, OSU)
