These tables feature information on the value to native pollinators of plant species found in native plant communities in Minnesota. They are designed to aid management and restoration of native plant communities, highlighting the role of native plant communities in supporting Minnesota's insect pollinators.
The tables are based on plant lists for native plant community classes originally published in field guides describing the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' (MNDNR) statewide native plant community classification. The plant lists were generated from data recorded in representative vegetation plots across Minnesota, supplemented here with information on the value of each plant for native insect pollinators. Each list includes:
- species frequency in native plant community refers to the percent of surveyed plots containing the plant.
- species cover (when present) is the relative abundance of a particular plant species is within a specific NPC.
- compatibility describes a plant’s strategy or strategies used to achieve reproduction (specific compatibility codes can be found in the complimentary information linked below).
- longevity refers to the period during which a plant remains alive (perennial, annual).
- clonality describes the extent of asexual reproduction by means of vegetative offspring.
- principal pollen vector describes the primary dispersal mechanism that moves pollen in a plant.
- pollinator requirements encompass aspects of a flower that might restrict what insects may visit and successfully pollinate a plant (flower structure, corolla length, etc.).
More information about the native plant communities and plant lists appears in descriptions and fact sheets in the MNDNR publications Field Guide to the Native Plant Communities of Minnesota: The Prairie Parkland and Tallgrass Aspen Parklands Provinces and Field Guide to the Native Plant Communities of Minnesota: The Eastern Broadleaf Forest Province, and Field Guide to the Native Plant Communities of Minnesota: The Laurentian Mixed Forest Province. Fact sheets and other information about the MNDNR's native plant community classification are available online
The Minnesota DNR has supported pollinators for many years through conservation and management of native plant communities. The pollinator resource tables will continue to be updated as more survey and research data become available on the ecological value of native plant communities for pollinators.
The Minnesota Pollination Guide provides data and information on the reproduction and pollination characteristics of native plant species in the state. These data are available to download along with complementary information about the project and its outcomes.
For additional information about the MNDNR's work with native insect pollinators, please contact:
| Christina Locke, Pollinator Conservation Coordinator christina.locke@state.mn.us 651-259-5074 |
- FD: Fire-Dependent System Pollinator Resources
FDn12
FDn22
Northern Dry-Bedrock Pine (Oak) Woodland Pollinator Resources
FDn32
FDn33
FDn43
FDc12
FDc23
FDc24
FDc25
FDc34
FDs27
FDs36
FDs37
Southern Dry-Mesic Oak (Maple) Woodland Pollinator Resources
FDs38
Southern Dry-Mesic Oak-Hickory Woodland Pollinator Resources
FDw24
FDw34
FDw44
- MH: Mesic Hardwood System Pollinator Resources
MHn35
MHn44
Northern Wet-Mesic Boreal Hardwood-Conifer Forest Pollinator Resources
MHn45
MHn46
MHn47
MHc26
MHc36
Central Mesic Hardwood Forest (Eastern) Pollinator Resources
MHc37
Central Mesic Hardwood Forest (Western) Pollinator Resources
MHc38
Central Mesic Cold-Slope Hardwood-Conifer Forest Pollinator Resources
MHc47
MHs37
MHs38
MHs39
MHs49
MHw36
- FF: Floodplain Forest System Pollinator Resources
FFn57
FFn67
FFs59
FFs68
- WF: Wet Forest System Pollinator Resources
WFn53
WFn55
WFn64
WFs57
WFw54
- FP: Forested Rich Peatland System Pollinator Resources
- AP: Acid Peatland System Pollinator Resources
APn80
Apn81
APn90
APn91
- CT: Cliff/Talus System Pollinator Resources
- data not currently available.
- RO: Rock Outcrop System Pollinator Resources
ROs12
- LK: Lakeshore System Pollinator Resources
- data not currently available.
- RV: River Shore System Pollinator Resources
- UP: Upland Prairie System Pollinator Resources
UPn12
UPn13
UPn23
UPs13
UPs14
UPs23
- OP: Open Rich Peatland System Pollinator Resources
OPn81
OPn91
OPn92
OPn93
OPp91
OPp93
- WM: Wet Meadow/Carr System Pollinator Resources
WMn82
WMs83
WMs92
WMp73
- MR: Marsh System Pollinator Resources
MRn83
MRn93
MRp83
MRp93
- WP: Wetland Prairie System Pollinator Resources
WPn53
WPs54