In this trip we are working with Sarah, our graduate fellow, who studies nectar robbing of mazanita. Sarah’s expertise in pollination ecology has helped develop our inquiry project. We are researching how microbes affect flower-pollinator interactions. We are collecting several specimens from different elevations throughout Mt. Lemmon. With the specimens we collect we can better understand floral morphology. As the temperature decreased we saw many different changes in the floral cues such as, nectar volume, corolla shape, and color. We also plan on observing bee foraging around the Mt. Lemmon Sky Center.
Another fun part of our trip has been looking through the telescope at the stars. We got to see Mars and star clusters that looked like a fairy sneeze! This trip has reminded us that Earth is a very small part of the extremely vast universe.
WE ARE THE HIVE!