Native bumble bees play key roles in their ecosystems as pollinators, but little is known about the quantity and quality of floral resources on which they depend in natural areas across a season. Additionally, how those resources might be affected by abiotic factors, many of which are being altered

The physiological effects of road dust on the wildflower rosettes Ipomopsis aggregata, scarlet gilia, are shown to non-significantly reduce their growth rate in two meadows near the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. Growth rate was a proxy for the amount of photosynthesis that occurred in the ro

Detritivores diets are very limited in key nutrients such as phosphorus, nitrogen, and fatty acids. This study looked at how detritivores caddisflies selected food based on nutrient quality. We set up controlled experiments to examine food preference and how that might affect overall growth. Our stu

In 1974, Graham Pyke conducted a study that examined Bombus spp. distributions along five transects around the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory area in Crested Butte, CO. The study was repeated in 2007 and within the intervening 33-year period, it showed that certain species of bumble bees had s

Management and restoration are important in helping the ecosystem recover back to an original form. Native plant species and pollinators are a highlight of ecological restoration. Nitrogen is a nutrient source that most plants use to thrive to grow bigger. In high alpine communities, the soil is nit

Social transmission of novel behaviors can be an adaptive technique to rapidly and flexibly change responses to the surrounding environment. Although the dynamics of social transmission have been studied in highly social birds, primates, otters, and bats, we lack a solid understanding of the dynamic

While many ecological studies have investigated the impacts of recreation and trails on wildlife, we lack an understanding of how wildlife respond to recreational trails that exhibit seasonally dynamic levels of human activity. We used camera traps to assess changes in the presence of mammals along

Alpine climates are seemingly adverse environments for plants. These habitats directly impact plants via pollinator scarcity and abiotic factors like extreme temperatures and precipitation that influence resource allocation. As a result, elevational gradients are natural laboratories that can be use

Studies have shown that there have been pollinator declines occurring worldwide (e.g., Beismiejer et al. 2006; Potts et al. 2010; Burkle et al. 2013; Goulson et al. 2015). It is important to understand plant-pollinator interactions as thoroughly as possible, including which species are interacting w

Interactions between plants and pollinators are complex and a change to one can cause a significant impact on the other. Environmental perturbations like drought can alter plant- pollinator systems, changing the relative abundance of flower species, shifting species distribution, and decreasing flor

Predation and mutualism take up a large part of interactions within communities. These multi-trophic level interactions affect the makeup of the community. We explored how predation impacts the strength of mutualism between ants and aphids on the plant Ligusticum porteri. It has been a base assumpti

As global temperatures rise due to climate change, aquatic ecosystems, such as alpine ponds, become more at risk of drying earlier than normal. These changes in pond hydrology have the potential to alter not only the aquatic ecosystems, but also terrestrial and riparian ecosystems, through resource

Castle Mountain Company.

POST OFFICE BOX 366 * GOLDEN, COLORADO 80401 * 303/279-0300 * 303/279-2881 Energy inputs and outputs in fossil fuel production systems will be examined by a team assembled by the Colorado Energy Research Institute in order to address the question; ''How much energy does it take to produce energy," a

Representative Hogan.

Energy Developers Express Discoura gement Th e United States has su ffi cient ene rgy that while industry could meet the coa l Southeastern Utah. supplies t o maintai n the existing sta ndard goals of both Pres id e n ts Ford and Carter Thu rber said he anticipates expendi- of living for fift y yea