Urban buzz: quantifying and enhancing the resources available to pollinators in urban landscapes

Urban ecology is a research area of considerable current interest. Recent work from the University of Bristol has shown that cities can be remarkably good habitats for pollinators, containing more bee species than the surrounding countryside. Urban gardens provide forage for large numbers of pollinators and while it is usually not possible to increase the quantity of gardens, it is possible to increase their quality with respect to food resources for pollinators. Currently many gardens have large areas of lawn, decking and hard standing, and contain flowers which provide little forage for pollinators. Ongoing analysis of the Urban Pollinators project means that we can predict the effect of habitat management on the robustness of the urban pollinator communities, a metric often cited as a key target in conservation projects.

The aim of this PhD project is to increase the value of urban habitats to pollinators, thereby increasing the robustness of urban pollinator communities. Urban areas are increasing worldwide and for pollinators at least, they can provide excellent habitat which is relatively free from the threats that exist in the countryside. We will work with the Royal Horticultural Society as a CASE partner and there are three objectives to the project: (1) To quantify nectar and pollen provided by UK gardens, (2) to increase the amount of nectar and pollen in the highly urbanized central zone of a city and (3) to use a large scale field experiment to increase the amount of nectar and pollen in gardens in replicate urban streets.