The Solitary Bees: Biology, Evolution, Conservation

The most up-to-date and authoritative resource on the biology and evolution of solitary bees While social bees such as honey bees and bumble bees are familiar to most people, they comprise less than 10 percent of all bee species in the world. The vast majority of bees lead solitary lives, surviving without the help of a hive and using their own resources to fend off danger and protect their offspring. This book draws on new research to provide a comprehensive and authoritative overview of solitary bee biology, offering an unparalleled look at these remarkable insects. The Solitary Bees uses a modern phylogenetic framework to shed new light on the life histories and evolution of solitary bees. It explains the foraging behavior of solitary bees, their development, and competitive mating tactics. The book describes how they construct complex nests using an amazing variety of substrates and materials, and how solitary bees have co-opted beneficial mites, nematodes, and fungi to provide safe environments for their brood. It looks at how they have evolved intimate partnerships with flowering plants and examines their associations with predators, parasites, microbes, and other bees. This up-to-date synthesis of solitary bee biology is an essential resource for students and researchers, one that paves the way for future scholarship on the subject. Beautifully illustrated throughout, The Solitary Bees also documents the critical role solitary bees play as crop pollinators, and raises awareness of the dire threats they face, from habitat loss and climate change to pesticides, pathogens, parasites, and invasive species.

About the Author :
Bryan N. Danforth is professor of entomology at Cornell University. Robert L. Minckley is senior lecturer in biology at the University of Rochester. John L. Neff is director of the Central Texas Melittological Institute.

Review :
"Winner of the PROSE Award in Single Volume Reference/Biological Science, Association of American Publishers" "A wonderful book full of extraordinary information and research."-- "An Beachaire" "This is a brilliant, important and useful new text."-- "Bees for Development" "The Solitary Bees is an excellent book that gives an up-to-date overview of this amazing group of insects. It presents the newest knowledge on modern phylogeny and evolution, as well as on the biology and life cycle (including mating, nest architecture, foraging, and provisioning behavior) of solitary wild bees."-- "Conservation Biology" "For us, this book reinvigorated the pleasure of discovery, natural history and love for nature."---James D. Crall and Ignasi Bartomeus, Evolution "In the many vignettes and case studies throughout the text, the wonders of solitary bees are revealed. . . . I expect to return to this book to learn more about the truly incredible world of bees for a long time to come."---Stephen Fleming, Bee Craft "There is something astonishing on every page."---Richard Jones, Discover Wildlife "This book . . . is an extremely thorough reference work that should amply imform the serious researcher about a specific topic being explored. However, it is also a highly entertaining and enlightening tome for the curious naturalist, allowing one to dip in and out at any point in the chapters lured by imaginative titling, and come away feeling enthralled and educated in the most beguiling manner."---Adrian Knowles, British Journal of Entomology and Natural History "This book is a comprehensive most up-to-date resource on the biology and evolution of solitary bees. . . . People reading this book will likely further educate their friends, children or colleagues by sharing stories about the interesting natural history of solitary bees they learnt by reading across this book. By doing this, an increasing numberof people will ultimately contribute to protect nature and biodiversity."---Alexandra-Maria Klein, Basic and Applied Ecology