Local and Landscape Factors Influence Plant-Pollinator Networks and Bee Foraging Behavior across an Urban Corridor

Gabriella L. Pardee (), Kimberly M. Ballare, John L. Neff, Lauren Q. Do, DianaJoyce Ojeda, Elisa J. Bienenstock, Berry J. Brosi, Tony H. Grubesic, Jennifer A. Miller, Daoqin Tong and Shalene Jha
Additional contact information
Gabriella L. Pardee: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
Kimberly M. Ballare: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
John L. Neff: Central Texas Melittological Institute, Austin, TX 78731, USA
Lauren Q. Do: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
DianaJoyce Ojeda: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
Elisa J. Bienenstock: Watts School of Public Service and Community Solutions, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Berry J. Brosi: Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Tony H. Grubesic: Center for Geospatial Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
Jennifer A. Miller: Department of Geography and the Environment, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
Daoqin Tong: School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Shalene Jha: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 2, 1-13

Abstract: Given widespread concerns over human-mediated bee declines in abundance and species richness, conservation efforts are increasingly focused on maintaining natural habitats to support bee diversity in otherwise resource-poor environments. However, natural habitat patches can vary in composition, impacting landscape-level heterogeneity and affecting plant-pollinator interactions. Plant-pollinator networks, especially those based on pollen loads, can provide valuable insight into mutualistic relationships, such as revealing the degree of pollination specialization in a community; yet, local and landscape drivers of these network indices remain understudied within urbanizing landscapes. Beyond networks, analyzing pollen collection can reveal key information about species-level pollen preferences, providing plant restoration information for urban ecosystems. Through bee collection, vegetation surveys, and pollen load identification across ~350 km of urban habitat, we studied the impact of local and landscape-level management on plant-pollinator networks. We also quantified pollinator preferences for plants within urban grasslands. Bees exhibited higher foraging specialization with increasing habitat heterogeneity and visited fewer flowering species (decreased generality) with increasing semi-natural habitat cover. We also found strong pollinator species-specific flower foraging preferences, particularly for Asteraceae plants. We posit that maintaining native forbs and supporting landscape-level natural habitat cover and heterogeneity can provide pollinators with critical food resources across urbanizing ecosystems.

Keywords: bee communities; pollination; pollinator generality; pollen preference; semi-natural habitat; specialization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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