Seasonal trends in the condition of nesting females of a solitary bee: wing wear, lipid content, and oocyte size.

ABSTRACT: During the nesting season, adult females of the solitary bee Megachile rotundata (F.) face considerable physical and energy demands that could include increasing wear and tear on their bodies and decreasing lipid reserves. Consequently, their reproductive performance may be affected not only by extrinsic factors (e.g., weather and floral resource availability), but intrinsic changes in their own bodies. Because of the potential fitness effects of seasonal changes in body condition, our objectives were to determine how wing wear, lipid reserves, and oocyte sizes vary during nesting seasons, beginning when females emerge as adults. As nesting progressed, females in two populations experienced a steady increase in wing wear, which is known to reduce foraging efficiency and increase risk of mo

SUBMITTER: O'Neill KM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4435504 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature