According to Dr. Jose Fuentes, a professor of environmental sciences at the University of Virginia, our insect pollinators might be losing their way, and, at least in part, air pollution is to blame. Although the chemistry of the atmosphere is Fuentes' area of expertise, he veered into entomological territory when he published "Air pollution modifies floral scent trails" in the journal Atmospheric Environment. Co-authored with Dr. Quinn McFrederick, the study is based on mathematical models and suggests ambient air pollution is impacting both the quantity and the quality of the scent trails provided by plant fragrances.

Essentially, some of the molecules in a flower's scent may be able to bind with the molecules in air pollutants. "The reaction between the fragrances and the pollutants is very quick," Fuentes notes. And as soon as that reaction occurs, what was once a fragrant and volatile component of a floral scent trail has been rendered unrecognizable to pollinating insects. Without strong scent trails, insects can't as readily find food, and, as a result, they'll spend an increasing amount of time searching it out. For the plants' part, fewer pollinating insects coming to call translates to less effective pollination, and the downward spiral ensues. This summer the team will conduct its first field study to determine whether their theoretical estimates are actually in line with reality. In the meantime, I'm planning to grow even more flowers, and, to compensate for our increasingly fragmented landscapes, I'll try to plant larger swathes of land in the same types of flowers, too.