在过去的十年里，我每周都会去同一块落基山亚高山草地，观察植物与传粉者的相互作用—here’s what I learned

Imagine a bee crawling into a bright yellow flower.

这种简单的交互您可能已经见过很多次了. 这也是博彩平台推荐环境健康的一个重要标志——我花了数百个小时的实地工作来观察它.

植物和传粉者之间的相互作用有助于植物繁殖, support pollinator species like bees, butterflies and flies, and benefit both agricultural and natural ecosystems.

这种一对一的相互作用发生在植物和传粉者的复杂网络中.

In my lab at the University of Colorado Boulder, 博彩平台推荐感兴趣的是这些网络如何随时间变化，以及它们如何应对气候变化等压力因素. 我的团队强调长期的数据收集，希望能揭示出那些可能被忽视的趋势.

Working at Elk Meadow

Ten years ago, I began working in Elk Meadow, which is located at 9,500 feet (or 2,900 meters) elevation at the University of Colorado’s Mountain Research Station.

我想要一个当地的实地地点，以便经常观察研究植物传粉者网络的动态. This beautiful subalpine meadow, bursting with wildflowers and just 40 minutes from campus, fit the bill perfectly.

自2015年以来，我每周都会在实验室成员的陪同下徒步前往麋鹿草场. We visit from the first flower in May to the last in October. 博彩平台推荐观察到传粉者在散布在草地上的小块土地上拜访花朵, walking the periphery to minimize trampling. 上午是参观的最佳时间，因为传粉者活动频繁，雷雨经常在落基山脉的夏季中午降临.

Observing the network

Elk Meadow is rich in biodiversity. 多年来，博彩平台推荐观察到超过1038对独特物种之间的7612次相互作用. 这些配对是由310种传粉媒介和45种植物进行的.

Pollinators include not only a wide variety of bees, but also flies, butterflies, beetles and the occasional hummingbird. Expert entomologists help us identify some of the insects.

Plants include species that are widespread, like the common dandelion, and some that are only found in the Rocky Mountains, like the Colorado columbine.

Common but vital

在麋鹿草场收集数据很有趣，但也是严肃的科学. 博彩平台推荐的数据对于理解植物和传粉者在季节内和季节间的相互作用的动态是有用的.

For example, 博彩平台推荐了解了植物和传粉者之间哪些相互作用是稳定的，哪些是随时间和空间而变化的. We consistently observed 多面手物种和他们的许多伙伴之间的相互作用随着时间的推移和在草地上不同的地块.

通才型物种可以忍受一系列的环境条件, meaning they are more frequently available to interact.

In other words, generalist species are more likely to be alive, 与那些只有在温度等环境条件下才能生存的物种相比，传粉者是活跃和觅食的，而植物是开花的, sunlight and rainfall are just right to support them.

Generalist species are vital in networks, 但它们通常没有像稀有物种那样受到保护. Even these common species can decline due to environmental changes destabilizing entire ecosystems. 保护这些物种对维持生物多样性很重要.

In it for the long term

As we gather more years of data, 博彩平台推荐的研究对于理解网络和传粉媒介种群是如何变化的越来越有用，特别是随着气候变化的迹象越来越明显. 大多数生态学研究只设计或资助一年或几年, 使博彩平台推荐的10年数据集成为植物传粉者网络的少数数据集之一.

It is only with long-term ecological data that we can detect trends in responses 对气候变化的影响，特别是由于天气和人口的年际变化很大.

The National Science Foundation supports a network of long-term ecological research stations across the U.S., including the Niwot Ridge Long-term Ecological Research Program 在麋鹿草甸附近，这里专门研究高山物种和生态系统.

Colorado’s climate, like much of the world, is experiencing significant changes, such as rising temperatures, 更早的雪融化，更多的冬末和春雨代替雪. 这些变化导致山区的径流提前，土壤干燥和更严重的干旱. 这些变化可能对植物和传粉媒介产生重要影响, including changes in where species are found, how many there are, and when they flower or forage.

高海拔植物和传粉者群落可能特别容易受到气候变化的影响，因为这些地区正在经历 greater temperature increases compared with lower elevations.

We have seen warmer and drier conditions at Elk Meadow. Overlaid in this trend, we have observed annual variation in temperature and drought conditions 这可以帮助博彩平台推荐了解和预测不同物种在更热更干燥的未来会如何生存.

Climate change is a driver of pollinator declines 并且预计在未来几十年将变得越来越重要. 直接的威胁还包括农药的使用、光污染和空气污染 destruction of wild habitats for farming and development.

The state of Colorado recently commissioned a study to gauge the health 并就如何保护它们提出建议.

Appreciating the current pollinator landscape

在Elk Meadow工作为我的学生提供了进行独立研究的机会，并获得了宝贵的培训和指导.

看到草地上生物的美丽，观察它们的循环，激励着我和我的学生.

麋鹿草地是一个让我理清思路，想出新的研究思路的地方. 它也是一个观察和记录地球上一小块地方如何对周围发生的更大变化做出反应的地方.

Julian Resasco is an assistant professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado Boulder.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.