| Note générale : |
Pollination ecology of three Vaccinium species considered primarily adapted to bumblebees (Bombus Latr. spp.) was studied in the High Ardennes, Belgium. Observations and insect collections were conducted in a peaty heath during the period 1988-1990, in the bilberry (V. myrtillus), the cowberry (V. vitis-idaea) and the bog whortleberry (V. uliginosum). Nine bumblebee species were caught on Vaccinium, 95% of these individuals were queens. They frequently visit the Vaccinium species, especially V. myrtillus. V. vitis-idaea attracted primarily honeybees but was also visited, likewise, V. uliginosum, by a diverse pollinator assemblzge (with syrphids, solitary bees, bumblebees). |