Article written for the Orchard Bee Association newsletter, Orchard Buzz, Winter 2020 issue (Vol. 7, Issue 1) Written by: Courtney Grula, PhD Student, North Dakota State University Body size is influenced by temperature, nutrition, and nest size. Nutrition is the most influential factor in determining adult body size. The amount of food the mother provides…

Gagandeep Singh Brar is a PhD student at North Dakota State University in Insect Molecular Biology. He is studying the alfalfa leafcutter bee, Megachile rotundata. Gagan’s research is focused on examining the maternal effects on diapausing and non-diapausing individuals through DNA methylation using bisulfite sequencing. He is also interested in evaluating the effect of gut…

The temperature of the nest influences fitness in cavity-nesting bees. Females may choose nest cavities that mitigate their offspring’s exposure to stressful temperatures. This study aims to understand how cavity temperature impacts the nesting preference of the solitary bee Megachile rotundata (Fabricius) under field conditions. We designed and 3D printed nest boxes that measured the…

Dr. Scott Ferrenberg is an Assistant Professor of Biology at New Mexico State University and specializes in population and community ecology, biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. He is currently focused on disentangling the roles of biotic interactions and abiotic factors in determining species abundance and diversity patterns in dynamic environments. Dr. Ferrenberg says designing and implementing…