AFTERNOON DECLINE IN KIWIFRUIT POLLEN COLLECTION

The afternoon decline in the collection of kiwifruit (Actinidia delici osa (A; Chev.) C.F. Liang et A.R. Ferguson var. deliciosa) pollen by h oney bees (Apis mellifera L.) was investigated. Most staminate and pis tillate flowers open before the time of anther dehiscence. Flowers of both sexes partially close again in the late afternoon of the day that they first open and make more pollen available after anther dehiscenc e. Staminate flowers make most of their pollen available in the mornin g and early afternoon. Most of the bees that stopped collecting kiwifr uit pollen in the early afternoon remained in the hive without being r ecruited to other food sources. Pollen availability from staminate flo wers in an orchard with normal numbers of foraging bees reached a peak between 1000 and 1100 h, and then dropped sharply until 1300 h after which time it remained constant. The availability of pollen from stami nate flowers in an orchard with few foraging bees continued to increas e from the time of anther dehiscence until the late afternoon. This su ggests that the decline in pollen collection is the result of the poll en supply becoming depleted and not because it becomes dry and difficu lt to collect.