2nd Place: Surveying insect biodiversity of bogs and orchids in northern British Columbia

Wetland habitats are valuable ecosystems both through the services they provide and the unique plant and insect communities they support. These communities are understudied in British Columbia (BC) and lack baseline natural history data related to insect biodiversity and insect-plant relationships, such as pollinator specificity and pollinator networks. An example of understudied insect-plant relationships in BC are the Platanthera bog orchids. Two species, P. dilatata and P. aquilonis, are believed to be visited by lepidopteran pollinators and to self-pollinate, respectively. A third species, P. huronensis, is believed to have hybrid origins from the former two species. The method of pollination and how pollinia are moved between the putative parent species are unknown. The identity and the potential role of diurnal and nocturnal insect pollinators for these Platanthera bog orchids was examined with motion-triggered video monitoring setups using Raspberry Pi cameras and systems. Orchids and insect associates were filmed in July 2022, in Mount Robson Provincial Park in BC, Canada. Preliminary analysis shows sphingid and papilionid butterflies as well as Bombus spp. interacting with the orchids. Addressing the knowledge gaps surrounding insect-plant relationships in these habitats is vital given the coming effects of climate change, but especially so for understudied species and in regions with such little baseline data.