Search results for pollinator food

Warm, wet weather conditions and changing climate negatively influence the nectar intake and nutritional health of honey bees, but maintaining large tracts of grassy natural habitat with flowering plants around apiaries may help to mitigate the detrimental effects of climate, according to a new study by an international team of researchers.

Despite their reputation as buzzing nuisances, flies serve a critical role as some of the Earth’s most prolific pollinators — and new research led by Penn State scientists suggests they are increasingly at risk due to rising global temperatures.

Presented by Mace Vaughan Pollinator Program Director, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation Joint Pollinator Conservation Specialist, USDA-NRCS WNTSC

Reilly et al. 2020 Crop production in the USA is frequently limited by a lack of pollinators PRSB

2017 Sustainability Report

Christina Grozinger has been appointed as the new director of the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State, succeeding interim director Patrick Drew. Globally recognized for her research in pollinator genetics and insect biodiversity, Grozinger's leadership is expected to significantly advance the institute's research capabilities and collaborative efforts across diverse scientific disciplines.

by Tara Pisani Gareau

By definition and design, insecticides kill insects. The term “pest” is generally defined by a human-driven need and desire to eliminate an unwanted organism within a range of contexts. In agriculture, there will always be a need to protect crops from insect pest pressures.

Similar to bacteria evolving resistance to antibiotics, viruses can evolve resistance to vaccines, and the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 could undermine the effectiveness of vaccines that are currently under development, according to a paper published Nov. 9 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by David Kennedy and Andrew Read from Penn State. The authors also offer recommendations to vaccine developers for minimizing the likelihood of this outcome.