Ecdysis Foundation, 46958 188th St., Estelline, SD 57234, USA.
Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, PTSC 217, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA.
J Econ Entomol. 2023 Apr 24;116(2):637-642. doi: 10.1093/jee/toad045.
Apples are a fruit crop of economic and nutritional importance that require cross-pollination primarily by insects for sustainable production. It was recently demonstrated that nocturnal pollinators can contribute as much to apple pollination as diurnal pollinators. However, information concerning nocturnal pollinator identity, activity periods, and community composition in apples is lacking, which limits research expansion. To address this knowledge gap, nocturnal moths in an apple orchard were surveyed during apple bloom from 2018 to 2020 using blacklight traps, with samples collected hourly to delineate moth activity. Observations during the same periods were made to identify moths visiting apple flowers, whose capture data were then compared to other captured moth species to provide useful information concerning community composition during apple bloom. Blacklight surveys yielded 1,087 moths representing at least 68 species from 12 families, wherein 15 species from five families were observed visiting apple flowers. Captured moths were most abundant and diverse in the first two hours after sunset. Most captured moth species did not visit flowers and are likely not associated with apple pollination. However, moth species that were observed visiting flowers were the most abundant overall and most diverse by hour in surveys. Data indicate a rich moth community present among apple orchards during bloom and identify likely moth pollinators of apples. Though more research is required to establish the precise relationships between moth pollination and apples, the information provided here allows for targeted efforts to do so.
苹果是一种经济和营养重要的水果作物，主要需要通过昆虫进行异花授粉才能实现可持续生产。最近的研究表明，夜间传粉昆虫对苹果授粉的贡献与日间传粉昆虫一样大。然而，有关苹果中夜间传粉者的身份、活动期和群落组成的信息却很缺乏，这限制了研究的扩展。为了弥补这一知识空白，本研究在 2018 年至 2020 年苹果开花期间，使用黑光灯诱捕器对苹果园内的夜间飞蛾进行了调查，每小时收集一次样本，以确定飞蛾的活动情况。同时还进行了观察，以确定访问苹果花的飞蛾，然后将其捕获数据与其他捕获的飞蛾物种进行比较，以提供有关苹果开花期间群落组成的有用信息。黑光灯诱捕调查共获得了 1087 只飞蛾，代表了至少 68 个科的 12 个科，其中 5 个科的 15 个种被观察到访问苹果花。日落两小时后捕获的飞蛾数量最多，种类也最丰富。大多数捕获的飞蛾物种不会访问花朵，可能与苹果授粉无关。然而，观察到访问花朵的飞蛾种类在调查中总体上最为丰富，且按小时划分的种类也最多。这些数据表明，在开花期间，苹果园内存在丰富的飞蛾群落，并确定了苹果的潜在传粉者。尽管还需要进一步的研究来确定飞蛾授粉与苹果之间的确切关系，但这里提供的信息可以为有针对性的研究提供支持。
