Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Imagine a world with fewer apples, strawberries, peaches and almonds.
Orley “Chip” Taylor, professor of ecology, will talk about the possibility of that world in his lecture “What’s Happening to Our Honey Bees, Bumble Bees and Other Pollinators?” at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Natural History Museum in Dyche Hall.
“We simply wouldn’t have a lot of those crops in good conditions or great abundance if we did not have honeybees,” he said. “They are a crucial element to efficient agriculture production.”
Orley "Chip" Taylor has been working with bees since he was 14 years old and has been studying the genetics of killer bees for the past 22 years. Taylor will present the lecture "What's Happening to Our Honey Bees, Bumble Bees and Other Pollinators?" at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Natural History Museum in Dyche Hall.
Although Taylor’s research focuses on monarch butterflies, he has studied killer bees of South America for 22 years.
Taylor said the goal of the lecture was to raise awareness of bees’ and other pollinators’ roles in humans’ food system and ecology. He will focus on honeybees and pollinators used in agriculture and native bees and pollinators that maintain biodiversity.
In addition to producing honey, honeybees are used to pollinate crops to produce seeds and fruits. Taylor said the United States was one of the most dependent countries in the world on the use of bees for pollination of crops.
Taylor said he would also discuss the reason for the decline in the population of honeybees. He said several factors caused the decline, including management issues of the honeybees industry. He said the number of honeybee colonies were not enough for the amount of pollination needed in the country. As a result, bees were moved to various locations across the country by trucks, and many of them were lost during the transportation.
Along with agricultural bees, Taylor will discuss other native bees and pollinators, including beetles and flies, which play important roles in the pollination of native vegetation. He said the diversity of plants and pollinators were interdependent each other, and if some died then others would too.
“Everything depends ultimately on the pollinators and the diversity of plants that they pollinate,” Taylor said. “In a natural setting, if we don’t have that diversity, then the system becomes simplified to the point where, quite frankly, it becomes boring.”
He said maintaining and restoring habitats of plants would attract pollinators and vice versa. He said it would be important for humans to realize that humans were also part of the interdependence and responsible for natural habitats.
“We have to be aware of all the things we are doing as a species and having impacts on,” he said. The impact on pollinators can be quite significant because if that impact is significantly negative, it comes back to have negative impacts on us.”
Jen Humphrey, communication director of the museum, said the University had a long tradition in studying bees, and the audience should enjoy Taylor’s lecture. She also said the live bee hives were one of the most popular exhibitions at the natural museum.
— — Edited by Becka Cremer
Parched future of the plains
A warming climate is adversely affecting animals native to Kansas and the ...
Crop design to replicate butterfly stamp
A half-acre design of flowers and mulch will resemble the butterfly postage ...
Q&A: Marla Spivak
Because we have questions. Celebrities have answers.
Departments benefit from bug ‘employees’
Officials benefit from worms that make organic fertilizer while others use ladybugs ...
CO2 emissions may affect flowering plants
Professor of ecology and evolutionary biology Joy Ward and post doctoral researcher ...
Stage presence: Colony Collapse
Every song the band writes has one common theme—honeybees.
Student to share experiences of trip to ...
David McLeod will give a lecture tonight about his research on frogs ...
Natural History Museum to expand and renovate
A year of renovations and expansion will allow for more popular displays ...
Natural History Museum curator dies
Habitats assist monarchs
Aquifer numbers down in recent survey
The increase in corn crops in Kansas has lead to decreasing aquifers. ...
Biology of beetlejuice
KU professor will discuss her research on poisonous beetles in Africa
Thompson: Turning up the heat: Climate change ...
Thompson says Kansas temperatures will rise by 2100.
Folmsbee: Genetically modified food needs support
Benefits of GMs made foggy by politics.
Research program prepares for medicinal herb garden
Native Medicinal Plant Research Program will begin working on the new garden ...
Kansas landscapes inspire book
University Press of Kansas releases “Nature of Kansas Lands."
On Campus: October 4, 2007
Here is what's happening on campus October 4, 2007
Student groups team up for environment
From Blue to Green, a sustainability movement, will host events between now ...
Darwin debate remains amid celebrations
The University has arraged multiple events recognizing Darwin’s scientific impact in conjunction ...
Monarch watch takes off
A University professor hosted a butterfly watch where visitors participated in educational ...
Preserving Douglas County’s prairies
University students and scientists brave prairies to collect seeds for preservation efforts.
Nichols and Dyche halls approved for renovations
The projects are being funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Museum gives tapeworm talk
Researcher Kirsten Jensen makes science wild and wiggly.
Bugs help predict water quality
Andrew Short will present his research on bugs in Latin America tonight.
Panorama exhibit hides century-long tradition
Natural History Museum employees sign a cave behind the display before leaving ...
Local artist converts trash to treasures
Local artist known as Honey Boy creates off-beat art by recycling anything ...
Organizers recruit to show concern for coal ...
Great Plains Alliance for Clean Energy expect the bill to be vetoed ...
Bringing back the saber-toothed cat
A KU researcher will give a talk about the little-known history of ...
Campus museums getting creative
Budget cuts at KU mean finding new ways to show off holdings.
Fickle weather sends pests out of control
With Kansas’ temperature rising and falling, insects and pests find their way ...
‘Farmville’ game increases in popularity
More than 63 million monthly users play the online game and it ...
Museum hosts first science cafe event
The Natural History Museum will hold monthly discussions on science topics at ...
New exhibit shows importance of evolution
Grants fund Dyche Hall upgrades
Two awards will allow the Kansas Biodiversity Institute to make renovations to ...
More than meets eye to Museum collection
The Natural History Museum specimens aren’t just for show.
Grant to further knowledge about science
Kansas and Oklahoma universities will team together to create “cybercommons” for the ...
Rising wheat costs affect Lawrence bakeries
The rising price of wheat has taken its toll on bakeries and ...
Kansas studies plants’ medicinal values
$5 million grant supports University study of plants and their potential medicinal ...
A question of identity
The Comanche Nation informed KU that a professor who claims he's Comanche ...
Small gardens 101
Learn how to grow vegetables in minimal space
Kansas Jayhawk fans hold aloft a reproduction of ...
2 comments
Erin Saupe, a Ph.D. student from St. Cloud, ...
1 comment
0 comments
Armed robbers continue to threaten.
3 comments
Lecture from Greg Mortenson, co-author of New York ...
0 comments
KUnited presidential candidate Libby Johnson and vice presidential ...
1 comment
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID