Preliminary Results- Flowers in the Bay Area most visited by honeybees

I have been going through the 400+ observations of honeybees in the project, to date, to track which flowers they are observed visiting most frequently.
So far, counting observations from 3/20/18 to today, the top 15 plant genuses that Apis mellifera has been observed visiting are:
Eriogonum (Wild Buckwheats)- 13 observations
Trifolium (Clovers)- 13 observations
Lavandula (Lavenders)- 12 observations
Rosa (Roses)- 12 observations
Salvia (Sages)- 12 observations
Echium (Vipers-buglosses)- 11 observations
Circium (Thistles)- 10 observations
Asclepias (Milkweed)- 8 observations
Mentha (Mints)- 8 observations
Rubus (Brambles)- 7 observations
Baccharis- 6 observations
Rosemarinus (Rosemary)- 6 observations
Symphyotrichum (American asters)- 6 observations
Centaurea (Star thistles)- 5 observations
Foeniculum (Fennel)- 5 observations.

The data set is admittedly biased- it is based upon where the observers are (a mixture of observations from wild areas, backyards, and parks) and what type of pollinator/flower interactions are easily observable by humans. (I think flowering trees are under-represented because it is more difficult to observe bees visiting flowers up in the treetops than it is to observe them at eye level or on the ground.) It does not yet include a full year's worth of data. Still, it's a start, and I think it will start to get really interesting once I can compare the data from other pollinators and see how their preferences vary.

Posted on October 10, 2018 09:14 PM by alexis_amphibian