J. Bosch, COMPARISON OF NESTING MATERIALS FOR THE ORCHARD POLLINATOR OSMIA-CORNUTA (HYMENOPTERA, MEGACHILIDAE), Entomologia generalis, 19(4), 1995, pp. 285-289
A population of the orchard pollinator Osmia cornuta (Latreille 1805)
was released in an almond orchard in NE' Spain to test the attractiven
ess of 4 different man-made nesting materials. Wood blocks are found m
ost attractive, followed by grooved boards, reed sections, and milk-ca
rton nesting units. Bamboo reeds are much more attractive than Phragmi
tes or Arundo reeds. No significant differences in the number of cells
built per nest or in mortality rates are found between nesting materi
als. On the other hand, the sex ratio (MM/FF)) of progeny differs betw
een nesting materials, and tends to be higher in the least attractive
ones. The highest cell production and female cell production is obtain
ed in wood blocks, and therefore, these are considered the most suitab
le nesting materials for pollination operations with O. cornuta.