Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Pollination and Flower Structure

Pollination and Flower Structure

Flowers are the reproductive, seed-producing structures of angiosperms. Typically, flowers consist of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Sepals and petals are the vegetative flower organs. Stamens and carpels are the reproductive organs.

Symbiosis

Symbiosis

Symbiotic relationships are long-term, close interactions between individuals of different species that affect the distribution and abundance of those species. When a relationship is beneficial to both species, this is called mutualism. When the relationship is beneficial to one species but neither beneficial nor harmful to the other species, this is called commensalism. When one organism is harmed to benefit another, the relationship is known as parasitism. These types of relationships often...

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of Declining Populations

Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.

Frequency-dependent Selection

Frequency-dependent Selection

When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.

Gene Flow

Gene Flow

Gene flow is the transfer of genes among populations, resulting from either the dispersal of gametes or from the migration of individuals.

Threats to Biodiversity

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Pollinator community composition and pollen resource use in calcareous grasslands under different landscape contexts across Europe.

The Journal of animal ecology·2026

Same author

Flower-rich and diverse road verges support pollinators, but traffic speed limits the ecological benefits across Europe.

Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America·2026

Same author

A global research coordination programme is urgently needed for biodiversity.

Nature ecology & evolution·2026

Same author

Crop fields complement biodiversity in permanent grasslands across European landscapes.

Nature communications·2026

Same author

Unveiling the complexity of post-Roman polity formation in Pannonia using ancient DNA.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same author

Different Paths, Similar Pressures: Divergent Drivers of Genetic Diversity Despite Convergent Genomic Signatures of Selection in Response to Urban Intensity in Two Oligolectic Bee Species.

Molecular ecology·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 19, 2026

Evaluating the Effect of Pesticides on the Larvae of the Solitary Bees

Evaluating the Effect of Pesticides on the Larvae of the Solitary Bees

Published on: October 15, 2021

Pollination services enhanced with urbanization despite increasing pollinator parasitism.

Panagiotis Theodorou¹, Rita Radzevičiūtė², Josef Settele³

¹General Zoology, Institute for Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Hoher Weg 8, 06120 Halle (Saale), Germany German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Deutscher Platz 5e, 04103 Leipzig, Germany Department of Community Ecology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ Halle, Theodor-Lieser-Strasse 4, 06120 Halle, Germany panatheod@gmail.com.

Proceedings. Biological Sciences

|June 24, 2016

Summary

Urbanization impacts pollination by affecting pollinator habitat and increasing pathogen transmission. While urban areas show higher pathogen prevalence in bumblebees (Bombus), this did not negatively affect pollination services.

Keywords:

Bombus Crithidia bombi Nosema bombi land-use change local habitat plant–animal interactions

More Related Videos

Field Experiments of Pollination Ecology: The Case of Lycoris sanguinea var. sanguinea

Field Experiments of Pollination Ecology: The Case of Lycoris sanguinea var. sanguinea

Published on: November 25, 2016

In Vitro Rearing of Solitary Bees: A Tool for Assessing Larval Risk Factors

In Vitro Rearing of Solitary Bees: A Tool for Assessing Larval Risk Factors

Published on: July 16, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 19, 2026

Evaluating the Effect of Pesticides on the Larvae of the Solitary Bees

Evaluating the Effect of Pesticides on the Larvae of the Solitary Bees

Published on: October 15, 2021

Field Experiments of Pollination Ecology: The Case of Lycoris sanguinea var. sanguinea

Field Experiments of Pollination Ecology: The Case of Lycoris sanguinea var. sanguinea

Published on: November 25, 2016

In Vitro Rearing of Solitary Bees: A Tool for Assessing Larval Risk Factors

In Vitro Rearing of Solitary Bees: A Tool for Assessing Larval Risk Factors

Published on: July 16, 2018

Area of Science:

Ecology
Environmental Science
Pollination Biology

Background:

Animal-mediated pollination is crucial for angiosperm reproduction, ecosystem function, and economies.
Anthropogenic land-use change and pathogen spread are key threats to insect pollinators, potentially interacting.
Understanding these threats' relative impacts on pollination is vital.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the effects of land-use change (agriculture vs. urbanization) and pollinator parasite prevalence on pollination services.
To assess the relative contributions of habitat availability and parasite load to pollination success.
To examine the relationship between urbanization, pollinator abundance, and pathogen prevalence.

Main Methods:

Utilized experimental insect pollinator-dependent plant species within natural pollinator communities.
Assessed pollinator habitat (nesting resources, flower richness) at local and landscape scales.
Quantified flower visitation rates, pollination success, and prevalence of trypanosomatids (e.g., Crithidia bombi) in bumblebees (Bombus).

Main Results:

Pollinator habitat availability strongly correlated with local flower visitation rates, indirectly affecting pollination.
Urbanization showed a positive relationship with pollination at the landscape scale, mediated by visitation rates.
Crithidia bombi prevalence was higher in urban areas, linked to increased Bombus abundance, but did not negatively impact pollination.

Conclusions:

Urban areas can support high rates of both pollen and pathogen transmission.
Pollinator habitat and visitation rates are key drivers of pollination services, even in urbanized landscapes.
Despite increased pathogen prevalence in urban bumblebees, direct negative impacts on pollination were not observed in this study.