Ecology Research Project

Hey everyone!
We want to share with you what we are doing for our Ecology Research Project.

Bumblebee on a Rhododendron flower

During this project, we will observe bees while being exposed to a set of fake flowers that have different combinations of fragrances and nectar concentrations. Our goal is to see whether or not there is a preference for either fragrance or nectar concentration, or if there is a correlation between the two (ie: one fragrance will be preferred over the others, one nectar concentration will be preferred over the other, or one combination is strongly preferred over the others).

Here's what we intend to use for our flower combinations: 

Fragrances	Nectar Concentration (Sugar to Water Ratio)
·    No fragrance ·    Lavender ·    Rosemary ·    Lemongrass	·  0:1 ·  1:1, 1:2, 2:1 ·  1:1, 1:2, 2:1 ·  1:1, 1:2, 2:1

     So far we have gathered most of our supplies and modified our fake flowers to hold micro pipette tips for nectar. In the next days of lab we plan to make up our "nectar", which will just be sugar and water combined together in the specified volume to volume ratios, as well as measuring sucrose concentrations in the nectar of flowers we see being visited by bees to see if we are in the correct ranges of concentration for attracting them. In the event that our concentrations are grossly different from those observed in actual flowers these concentrations may be modified.
     We created our flowers from fake flowers we purchased at Hobby Lobby. These flowers have a shape similar to tulips, and are purple which is a color known to attract honeybees. We wanted to make sure we picked flowers which were all the same color, and were a color already known to attract bees so that would not be a conflicting variable with either fragrance or nectar concentration. The flowers were in a bouquet originally so they were disassembled from the bouquet so they were all individual. The center of each flower had a plastic replica of the inner reproductive parts of the flower. There was then a small plastic piece in the center which held this and the flower to the stem. Each flower was pulled off the stem, the center plastic piece removed and then replaced with a small Eppendorf pipette tip which was then hot glued shut so it would effectively hold the "nectar" without leaking. We then inserted this new flower top back into the stem, and voila! If you'd like to see exactly what we did feel free to watch our vlog, which will be linked below. The flowers turned out amazing, and we're all super happy with them.

     In order to keep the flowers separated they will all be inserted into plastic cups that will be filled so as to keep them standing upright, and then the cups will be labeled with the fragrance and nectar concentration of the flower it contains. To mimic the fragrance the flowers would give off we've collected essential oils of flowers known to be attractive to bees based off bee-friendly plant lists provided by the Puget Sound Beekeeper Association and the Seattle Urban Bee Project. These essential oils will be diluted in water, and then a small piece of cheesecloth will be soaked in the water in order to pick up the fragrance. The cheesecloth will then be wrapped around the top of the Eppendorf pipette in the flower to mimic the way flowers would give off fragrance to attract the bees.
     The flowers will then be set out in an open area for a set amount of time, and observed to see which ones will be visited by bees. These visits will be recorded, and the data tabulated to attempt to determine if any correlations exist.
     We intend to go to at least two locations, Bellevue Botanical Garden and another location which we haven't chosen yet. So far our options are between the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden and Evergreen Arboretum & Garden. If any of you have suggestions on places to go, please comment below!