08 Sujaya Rao - Contrary Perspective to Native Bee Declines in Agricultural Landscapes: The Willamette Valley Experience

Today on the podcast talk about bumblebees in agriculture. Dr. Sujaya Rao is a Professor in Entomology at Oregon State University. Her research covers IPM in field crops and native bee pollinators in diverse cropping systems and in native habitats. A serendipitous discovery made by her led to development of a new bee monitoring tool. She has also documented the presence of overwintering sites and nests of bumble bees in agricultural landscapes. Results from her studies on native bee abundance, overwintering and nesting of bumble bees provide evidence that, contrary to the perspective that agricultural landscapes are detrimental to native bee populations, the diversity of cropping systems in western Oregon has enabled native bumble bees to flourish. Dr. Rao is also actively engaged in insect outreach in K-12 classrooms and at public events. For more, visit us at pollinationpodcast.oregonstate.edu.