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Award Details
NSERC - CANPOLIN (Canadian Pollination Initiative)
Research Details
Competition Year:
2007
Fiscal Year:
2012-2013
Project Lead Name:
Kevan, Peter
Institution:
University of Guelph
Department:
Environmental Sciences, School of
Province:
Ontario
Award Amount:
1,013,399
Installment:
5-6
Program:
Research Networks
Selection Committee:
Strategic Network Grants
Research Subject:
Plant-animal interaction
Area of Application:
Environment
Co-Researchers:
Ackerman, Josef
Ali, Rebecca Ayesha
Burke, Dawn
Cartar, Ralph
Cranfield, John
Currie, Robert
Cutler, Christopher
Davis, Arthur
Eaves, James
Eckert, Christopher
Elle, Elizabeth
Evans, Rodger
Fournier, Valerie
Greene, David
Guzman, Ernesto
Hailu, Getu
Hermanutz, Luise
Hunter, Fiona
Jesson, Linley
Kerr, Jeremy
Lortie, Christopher
Marshall, Stephen
McNeil, Jeremy
Murphy, Stephen
Otto, Sarah
Packer, Laurence
Richards, Miriam
Rieseberg, Loren
Ritland, Kermit
Sargent, Risa
Schoen, Daniel
Scott-Dupree, Cynthia
Skevington, Jeffrey
Sperling, Felix
Taylor, John
Thomson, James
Vamosi, Jana Christeen
Vellend, Mark
Weersink, Alfons
Westwood, Richard
Worley, Anne
Partners:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
David Suzuki Foundation
Environmental Design Collaborative
Greenway Blooming Centre
Royal Botanical Gardens
Saskatchewan Alfalfa Seed
Producers Association
Seeds of Diversity
Award Summary
Thursday, September 29, 2016 11:45:32 PM
Page 1 of 2
The great majority of Canada's wild plant species are pollinated by animals, as are many of our crops, especially
orchard fruit, oil seeds, and pasture species like clover. As these wild and managed pollinators forage for nectar
and pollen, plants can use them as vehicles for the transportation of their pollen from flower to flower. In
Canada, our animal pollinators are mainly insects (mostly bees, but also flies, butterflies, and moths) with a few
species of hummingbirds also involved. It is now recognized, however, that ecosystems relying on animal
pollination are in trouble all around the world because of declining pollinator numbers. This decline reduces the
capacity of plants to produce fruits and seeds, and thus threatens ecosystem integrity as well as agricultural
productivity. However, little is known about the diversity, abundance, and relative importance of animal
pollinators in the functioning of our agricultural and wild ecosystems. The novel, multidimensional, approaches
proposed by our Network to study both natural ecosystems and agricultural fields and orchards will generate
new insights and much greater understanding of how Canadian plants and pollinators interact, between species
and at the complex level of ecosystems and landscapes. One axis of the Network will concentrate on the
efficiency and health of managed pollinators such as honeybees. Another will emphasize native pollinators, with
the goal of maximizing their effectiveness in agriculture, forestry, and wildlands via habitat management. This
research will include coordinated surveys of pollinators and studies on plant breeding and mating systems
throughout Canada's ecoregions. A third axis concerns the economics of pollination, especially with regard to
food security and climate change. A fourth, smaller emphasis of the Network will focus on pollination by wind
among Canadian trees and grasses to test models of pollen dispersal by wind and forecasting useful to foresters
and allergy sufferers. Au Canada, la majorité des plantes sauvages et plusieurs plantes agricoles (e.g. vergers,
petits fruits, plantes oléagineuses et fourragères) requièrent les services de pollinisateurs. Les animaux
pollinisateurs d'ici sont principalement des insectes (abeilles, papillons, mouches, et coléoptères) et quelques
colibris. Or, il est maintenant reconnu que les écosystèmes qui dépendent des pollinisateurs sont présentement
en danger. Le déclin des pollinisateurs diminue la capacité des plantes à produire fruits et graines, menaçant
l'intégrité des écosystèmes et la productivité agricole. Malheureusement, la diversité, l'abondance et
l'importance relative des pollinisateurs pour le fonctionnement des écosystèmes sont très peu connues. Les
approches novatrices et multidimensionnelles proposées par le Réseau sauront générer de nouvelles
connaissances et permettront une meilleure compréhension des interactions entre les plantes et les polinisateurs
du Canada. Un des axes du Réseau se penchera sur l'efficacité et la santé des pollinisateurs introduits. Un autre
axe mettra l'emphase sur les pollinisateurs indigènes, dans le but de maximiser leur efficacité dans divers
habitats (agricoles, forestiers, et naturels). Cette recherche inclura des inventaires et des études sur le
croisement des plantes à travers tous les écorégions canadiennes. Le 3e axe concerne des aspects économiques
de la pollinisation, particulièrement face à la sécurité alimentaire et aux changements climatiques. Finalement,
un 4e axe, plus petit, se concentrera sur la pollinisation par le vent et testera des modèles de dispersement de
pollen utiles pour la foresterie et les gens souffrant d'allergies.
Thursday, September 29, 2016 11:45:32 PM
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