Thanks Alan,! Thanks Vicki!
Yes, Tomatoes are all pollinated this way. They need to be native bees. H=
oney bees can't do the sonication, or buzz, pollination. A very interestin=
g adaptation using a static charge and specific frequencies. The static ma=
kes the pollen sticks on the bee.
Thank for the other tips on the singing insects. I will pass this on to th=
e researchers and see if it goes anywhere.
Jason
--- In "symmerista" <> wrote:
>
> What Vicki is describing is called "buzz pollination," and a surprising n=
umber of plants rely on it. The frequency of the buzzing changes noticeably=
when the bee is doing it.
>
> I'm intrigued by the idea that bee species could have their own character=
istic buzz sound, but am unaware of any research into this. Certainly nothi=
ng like the work on singing orthopterans (e.g., check out the Singing Insec=
ts of North America website).
>
> Cheers,
>
> Alan
>
> --- In vickipowys <vickipowys@> wrote:
> >
> > Some years ago a friend worked for CSIRO in Canberra, Australia and =
> > found that a particular species of bee buzzed at just the right
> > frequency to cause a native pea flower to burst open and scatter its =
> > pollen on the bee. I don't remember the details but it might be
> > written up somewhere.
> >
> > So yes, it may be possible to ID bees by their buzz. David Rentz in =
> > Australia studied crickets and katydids and produced a CD of calls
> > that went with his book 'Grasshopper Country'. I am sure there are =
> > similar publications for other countries.
> >
> > Vicki
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On 13/12/2012, at 3:58 PM, jasonpudd wrote:
> >
> > > Is it possible to ID a native bee from a sound recording of a bee =
> > > in flight? Does anyone know anyone doing this kind of ID or
> > > research with other insects? Trying to find a better way to ID
> > > native bees without having to trap or net them which produces a
> > > much different sample set and is more invasive. Any help or
> > > suggestions is greatly appreciated!
> > >
> > >
> >
>
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