Some Iowans have noticed a reduction of pollinators in their neighborhoods and gardens this summer, in the same season that the state has been hit with severe weather.
It's possible that pollinator loss may be happening because of the severe weather events themselves, but it can also be the impact of changing weather cycles on the pollinators' food sources.
Entomologist Zach Schumm, director of the Iowa State University Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic, and Adam Janke, Iowa State University Extension wildlife specialist, joined Talk of Iowa to share how the natural world reacts to storms, and how you can help support pollinators.
Bugging out
“The vast majority of folks that contact us with pollinator inquiries in the plant and insect diagnostic clinic, they've been saying, ‘Where are they this year?’” said Schumm.
While it’s hard to know how every species responds to weather events and changes in the climate, factors like high wind and heavy rain mean pollinators may be blown out of their established area. And when the weather's bad, they have less time to forage for food and water. There can also be direct deaths of pollinators in storms, such as drowning in a puddle of water. That said, you may be surprised at how some of the smallest members of the ecosystem are able to protect themselves in these elements.
“Whenever I'm inside during a really severe weather event, I think of all those little, tiny insects that are outside trying to find some place to hide,” Schumm said. “I'm always just amazed that they can do it. But surprisingly, insects are pretty good at hunkering down and finding really good shelter. Because they are so small, they can hide behind a leaf and get pretty good wind protection if they pick the right leaf. They can hide in the crevices of bark. Insects are remarkably good at finding that shelter.”
A lost connection
Another way severe weather impacts pollinators is the availability of plants after a storm.
“If the flowers are all out and looking pretty, and a really bad storm comes through and destroys a lot of that plant material, when the pollinators come out, there's going to be less plant material for them to forage on,” said Schumm.
Similarly, seasons are changing timing. Spring warm-ups are happening earlier, causing plants to emerge earlier — before the pollinators — which can create food shortage challenges for those pollinators.
“By the time the pollinators do emerge, those plants, those flowers, are already starting to disappear, then there's going to be less available plant material for those pollinators,” Schumm said.
Missing the monarch
One of the most iconic pollinators in the Iowa landscape is the monarch butterfly, and gardeners have noticed a lack of monarchs in their yards and neighborhoods this summer.
Schumm said while recent summer storms might have something to do with the reduction in monarchs, the population is reduced because of poor overwintering success the species had on their migratory route to Mexico. But just because there are fewer monarchs fluttering by this summer, other species are doing important pollination work.
"There are many more things out there that are pollinators, besides bees and butterflies — flies, beetles, all sorts of insects contribute to pollination. And I think it's really good to start thinking about those other contributors.”
Planting for pollinators
The destruction of habitats and loss of life is always tragic after a storm, but Janke added that sometimes the change of the landscape can create more diversity in the ecosystem.
“Those disturbances historically were widespread in Iowa, of course, with storms like tornadoes and derechos, and then, of course, active land management by Indigenous communities," he said. "And one of the challenges we have in our landscape today is a lot of — especially forest and to a lesser extent, grassland and wetland ecosystems — don't experience any sort of active management. We always say choosing to not manage is a management decision, and so we end up with less diversity or less heterogeneity in our landscape.”
As Iowans continue to show concern for pollinators, there are ways Janke says gardeners can reduce the impact of these severe storms.
“The way we can do that is by finding places to introduce diverse perennial plant communities back into our landscapes that hold water back, intercept it before it can run off or allow it to infiltrate into the ground. When we do that with native plants in the right places, like forests or bio swells or prairies or wetlands, then they can provide all sorts of secondary benefits to wildlife year-round.”
For more horticulture advice, listen to Garden Variety, hosted by Charity Nebbe. Caitlin Troutman produced this episode.
