PROJECT SUMMARY
Hover flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) are an important agricultural taxon as the adults are pollinators and the larvae can be predators of crop pests. Because they rely on floral resources in their adult stage, mass-flowering crops such as canola might impact hover fly communities by providing a large increase in resources, but only for a short period of time while the crop is in bloom. The goal of my thesis is to examine the relationships between hover flies, field margin vegetation, flower availability, and crop bloom to provide recommendations to canola growers to increase hover flies on their land. I collected hover fly flower visitors at 10 sites during the summer of 2021. There were four transects at each site: herbaceous margin, herbaceous crop, tree margin, and treed crop. I identified and counted all flowers along each transect and measured various vegetation variables in each margin. Flower communities were not found to impact hover fly communities. However, the flower-hover fly network did change throughout the summer and different flowers were found to be of significant importance in each sampling round. Canola was not found to be a significant flower for hover flies. These results demonstrate the importance of having a multitude of flowers planted adjacent to canola crops.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The author is an MSc student in conservation biology at the University of Alberta. She is passionate about entomology and conservation and hopes her research will provide actionable management solutions for hover flies in agroecosystems.
Acknowledgements
The University of Alberta and field work sites for this project are located on Treaty 6 territory, a traditional gathering place for diverse Indigenous peoples including the Cree, Blackfoot, Metis, Nakota Sioux, Iroquois, Dene, Ojibway/Saulteaux/Anishinaabe, Inuit, and many others whose histories, languages, and cultures continue to influence our vibrant community.
The canola growers who let us on their land to complete our field work.
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My supervisors Carol Frost and John Acorn for their support, and Pilar Jimenez, Jessica Lagroix, Olivia Debourcier, and the rest of the Frost lab for their support in the field and in the lab.
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The Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) for funding.
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