300163 UE Methods in pollination biology (2024S)

Aims
It is the aim of this course to provide students with a broad base-line knowledge of the theory and methods required to monitor pollinators both for scientific and conservation related purposes. Through the inclusion of lectures, practical sessions and independent research projects, students familiarize themselves with different state-of-the-art techniques in plant reproductive research and are capable of performing pollination monitoring independently at the end of the course.

Contents
Pollinators act as important selective agents on flowers and have contributed significantly to the diversity of angiosperms. Also, pollination provides a crucial ecosystem function and severe pollinator declines in agricultural landscapes occur worldwide.
In this course, we will cover both the theoretical background of pollinator mediated selection, floral evolution, plant reproductive strategies and pollinator diversity as well as the methodological toolkit to studying these questions in the lab and in the field.
- Flower morphology
- Adaptations to different pollinators (flower shape, colour, rewards, scent), pollination syndromes
- Systematic overview of important pollinators in temperate Europe
- Impact of pollinator declines and changes in pollinator communities

We will use a combination of short introductory lectures to different topics, followed by hands-on practical sessions. Students will get training in the methods required to study floral adaptations and monitor pollinator assemblages and identify different insect taxa. After this training period, students will perform their own small research project within the frame of this course where they can employ some of the methods and are subsequently guided through the steps of data analyses and presentation of the results.

Methods include:
- Monitoring pollinators in the field
- Insect identification
- Overview of structural methods to study flowers (Scanning Electron Microscopy, Light Microscopy)
- Scent collection and analyses
- Studying flower colour
- Quantifying and measuring floral nectar
- Manipulation of floral traits
- Bagging experiments of flowers