Climate change negatively impacting bumble bees - Science Daily

Category: Climate News
Original source: Science Daily
Read time: < 2 minutes
Sentiment bias: Neutral
Sentiment Score: -0.01075
Published: Jun 25th, 2022
Climate change negatively impacting bumble bees - Science Daily

Quick Read

Jackson and her colleagues analyzed an existing dataset containing records on 46 bumble bee species across North America between 1900 -- 2020.
They found that six bumble bee species decreased through time, 22 increased and the remaining 18 were stable.
Importantly, nine species of bumble bee exhibited declines that link to changing temperatures within their ranges.
Approximately half of the bumble bee species were negatively impacted by changes in precipitation or floral resources while the other half were positively impacted.
Therefore, researchers conclude that changing temperatures are a major environmental factor driving changes in bumble bee community composition.

Climate change negatively impacting bumble bees - Science Daily

Temperature changes have negatively impacted most species of bumble bees over the past 120 years, according to new research published this week in Biology Letters. The researchers note that changes in temperature had more of a negative impact than other factors -- such as precipitation or floral resources. "Bumble bees are important pollinators for wild plants and for the crops humans rely on for food. That's why we need to develop conservation strategies that account for the future impacts of climate change on bee populations," says study lead Hanna Jackson, a Masters student in the M'Gonigle Lab in biological sciences at Simon Fraser University. Jackson and her colleagues analyzed an existing dataset containing records on 46 bumble bee species across North America between 1900 -- 2020. They created two occupancy models -- one focused on time and the other on environmental factors -- to estimate effects of climate and land-use variables on species' occupancy, a measure of where species are found. They found that six bumble bee species decreased through time, 22 increased and the remaining 18 were stable. They note that temperature and precipitation both increased, on average, between 1900 and 2020 in the post-industrial revolution period. Temperature changes had primarily negative impacts on bumble bees, with 37 of the 46 species exhibiting greater declines or less positive increases in occupancy under observed temperature changes compared to if the temperature had remained constant. Importantly, nine species of bumble bee exhibited declines that link to changing temperatures within their ranges. The team did not find patterns in the other factors that were studied, such as precipitation and only one species declined based on floral resources. In fact, both floral resources and precipitation had mixed results. Approximately half of the bumble bee species were negatively impacted by changes in precipitation or floral resources while the other half were positively impacted. Therefore, researchers conclude that changing temperatures are a major environmental factor driving changes in bumble bee community composition. "Because bumble bee species likely vary in their future responses to land-use and climate change, conservation action should prioritize individual species, taking into account their unique climate and habitat preferences," adds Jackson. Study collaborators include U.S.-based Pollinator Partnership, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, and the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Southern California.
The Original Article can be found on Science Daily

Recent Climate News Articles

Biden says events like Hurricane Ian end climate change debate - Axios

President Biden said Wednesday during a visit to survey damages from the deadly Hurricane Ian in Florida that "the one thing this has finally ended is the discussion about whether …

Read more here
Biden says events like Hurricane Ian end climate change debate - Axios
Climate change heightens threats of violence against women and girls - UN News

Presenting a report to the General Assembly on its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem, UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls described climate change as “the …

Read more here
Climate change heightens threats of violence against women and girls - UN News
Climate change made summer drought 20 times more likely - ABC News

Widespread drought that dried up large parts of Europe, the United States and China this past summer was made 20 times more likely by climate change, according to a new study Drou …

Read more here
Climate change made summer drought 20 times more likely - ABC News
Mandatory Climate Change Curriculum | Fox News Commentary - FOX News Radio

This state will be the first in the nation to implement a MANDATORY “climate change” curriculum. And I know what you’re thinking but this time..it’s not California. I’m Tomi Lahr …

Read more here
Mandatory Climate Change Curriculum | Fox News Commentary - FOX News Radio
Why the ESG vs. GOP war over energy and climate change is going nowhere - CNBC

An ExxonMobil oil rig. BlackRock, the world's largest money manager, has recently cited its standing as one of the energy giant's biggest investors as it faces ESG pushback from Re …

Read more here
Why the ESG vs. GOP war over energy and climate change is going nowhere - CNBC
Latest News
Help & How To's
Around the Web