"While there have been numerous stories in the news about the decline of honeybee populations, a broad range of bees (over 3,600 species in North America) are also in decline, including the common bumblebee. Bumblebees, which live in colonies of 50 to 500 bees, are far more efficient pollinators than traditional, non-native honeybees. While 20,000 honeybees are required to pollinate one acre of an apple orchard, 300 bumblebees can accomplish the same task. Solitary bees, which are bee species that do not live in colonies, are also valuable pollinators and are experiencing similar decline. Some examples of solitary bees include mason bees, leafcutter bees, and miner bees. This decline is of great concern, as 75% of flowering species of plants require pollinators to reproduce, and 35% of the worlds crops require pollination as well.
A variety of factors are responsible for the decline, including habitat loss, pesticide and herbicide use, changes in farming practices, parasites, and disease. To both assist various pollinators as well as beautify campus, Purdue University Fort Wayne has implemented a native plant, rain garden near Kettler Hall. Covering 8,000 square feet, a variety of native plants with varying bloom times have been established, including butterfly weed, rose milkweed, ironweed, blazing star, bee balm, anise hyssop, and New England aster. Native plants are important because they have co-evolved with native insects, birds, and other wildlife, and are well adapted to the local growing conditions.
Some additional plantings have been made in the area behind Parking Garage 3, including several larger species of native plants, such as compass plant and cup plant, which can reach heights of 7 to 12 feet respectively. Butterflies and other pollinators will also benefit from these plantings, and some evidence of that has already been seen, as several species of butterfly, including the Eastern Black Swallowtail, Red Admiral, and Painted Lady have been spotted."
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