Floral resources differ in nutritional value between fruit crops and cultivars, with implications for bumblebee colony health (data)

Description

This dataset contains empirical data supporting the manuscript entitled "Floral resources differ in nutritional value between fruit crops and cultivars, with implications for bumblebee colony health". This study evaluated the relative nutritional value of sequentially flowering fruit crops and their cultivars to determine which could be more rewarding to pollinators. Nectar and pollen samples were collected from commercial plum, sweet cherry, apple, strawberry and red raspberry cultivars across farms in Kent (Southeast England, UK). Following these nutritional analyses, bumblebee (Bombus terrestris audax) microcolonies were provisioned with one of four artificial nectars, each mimicking the sugar composition of specific apple or sweet cherry cultivars, to determine their influence on colony feeding and fitness.

Institutions

• University of Sussex

  England, Brighton

Categories

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