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Hemberger J, Williams N. Predicting landscape-scale native bumble bee habitat use over space, time, and forage availability. Ecology 2025; 106:e70008. [PMID: 39950495 PMCID: PMC11826980 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.70008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2024] [Revised: 07/23/2024] [Accepted: 10/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2025]
Abstract
The distribution and abundance of foraging resources are key determinants of animal habitat use and persistence. Decades of agricultural expansion and intensification, along with the introduction of exotic species, have dramatically altered resource distributions in space and time. The nature of contemporary landscapes requires new approaches to understand how mobile organisms utilize the resulting highly fragmented, heterogeneous resources. We used colonies of the native bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) deployed among habitat types and a land use gradient to characterize how resource availability and use change as a function of landscape composition throughout the season in a diverse agricultural region of Northern California. We employ a novel probabilistic framework to identify the spatiotemporal patterns of bumble bee resource use in different habitats. Bumble bee resource preference (i.e., pollen foraging) and availability (i.e., flowering plant abundance) are driven by the composition of the surrounding landscape and the time of year. Bumble bees strongly preferred pollen from native plants, which was overrepresented in samples across the season relative to its estimated availability. Our probabilistic model framework also revealed a strong reliance on seminatural habitat in the landscape (e.g., oak savannahs, chapparal, and riparian corridors)-features that are increasingly rare in anthropogenically dominated landscapes. In fact, pollen resource use by colonies even in the most intensive landscapes was largely limited to interstitial habitat (e.g., field and road edges) despite available mass-flowering crops. Our results highlight the importance of mosaic landscapes (i.e., landscape heterogeneity) in allowing bumble bees to link resources through the season. The framework we develop also serves to enhance predictions of insect resource use within fragmented landscapes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Hemberger
- Department of Entomology and NematologyUniversity of California DavisDavisCaliforniaUSA
| | - Neal Williams
- Department of Entomology and NematologyUniversity of California DavisDavisCaliforniaUSA
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2
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Bryś MS, Staniec B, Strachecka A. The effect of pollen monodiets on fat body morphology parameters and energy substrate levels in the fat body and hemolymph of Apis mellifera L. workers. Sci Rep 2024; 14:15177. [PMID: 38956174 PMCID: PMC11219722 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-64598-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Human activities associated with large-scale farms and the monocultures expose honey bees to one type of food. Moreover, there is an ongoing decline of plant species producing pollen and nectar in Europe. A poorly balanced diet affects a number of processes occurring in a bee's body. The fat body and hemolymph are the tissues that participate in all of them. Therefore, the aim of our study was to determine the effect of hazel, pine, rapeseed, buckwheat, phacelia and goldenrod pollen on the morphological parameters of fat body trophocytes, the diameters of cell nuclei in oenocytes and the concentrations of compounds involved in energy metabolism (glucose, glycogen, triglycerides and protein). In the cage tests, the bees were fed from the first day of life with sugar candy (control group) or candy with a 10% addition of one of the 6 pollen types. Hemolymph and fat body from various locations were collected from 1-, 7- and 14-day-old workers. Pollen produced by plant species such as hazel and pine increased glucose concentrations in the bee tissues, especially in the hemolymph. It can therefore be concluded that they are valuable sources of energy (in the form of simple carbohydrates) which are quickly used by bees. Pollen from plants blooming in the summer and autumn increased the concentrations of proteins, glycogen and triglycerides in the fat body, especially that from the third tergite. The accumulation of these compounds was associated with an increased the length and width of trophocytes as well as with enhanced metabolic activity, which was evidenced in the increasing diameter of oenocyte cell nuclei. It seems a balanced multi-pollen diet is more valuable for bees, but it is important to understand the effects of the particular pollen types in the context of a mono-diet. In the future, this will make it possible to produce mixtures that can ensure homeostasis in the apian body.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej Sylwester Bryś
- Department of Invertebrate Ecophysiology and Experimental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Lublin, Poland.
| | - Bernard Staniec
- Departament of Zoology and Nature Protection, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland
| | - Aneta Strachecka
- Department of Invertebrate Ecophysiology and Experimental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Lublin, Poland
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Feigs JT, Huang S, Holzhauer SIJ, Brunet J, Diekmann M, Hedwall P, Kramp K, Naaf T. Bumblebees mediate landscape effects on a forest herb's population genetic structure in European agricultural landscapes. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70078. [PMID: 39055773 PMCID: PMC11269766 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2024] [Revised: 07/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Spatially isolated plant populations in agricultural landscapes exhibit genetic responses not only to habitat fragmentation per se but also to the composition of the landscape matrix between habitat patches. These responses can only be understood by examining how the landscape matrix influences among-habitat movements of pollinators and seed vectors, which act as genetic linkers among populations. We studied the forest herb Polygonatum multiflorum and its associated pollinator and genetic linker, the bumblebee Bombus pascuorum, in three European agricultural landscapes. We aimed to identify which landscape features affect the movement activity of B. pascuorum between forest patches and to assess the relative importance of these features in explaining the forest herb's population genetic structure. We applied microsatellite markers to estimate the movement activity of the bumblebee as well as the population genetic structure of the forest herb. We modelled the movement activity as a function of various landscape metrics. Those metrics found to explain the movement activity best were then used to explain the population genetic structure of the forest herb. The bumblebee movement activity was affected by the cover of maize fields and semi-natural grasslands on a larger spatial scale and by landscape heterogeneity on a smaller spatial scale. For some measures of the forest herb's population genetic structure, that is, allelic richness, observed heterozygosity and the F-value, the combinations of landscape metrics, which explained the linker movement activity best, yielded lower AICc values than 95% of the models including all possible combinations of landscape metrics. Synthesis: The genetic linker, B. pascuorum, mediates landscape effects on the population genetic structure of the forest herb P. multiflorum. Our study indicates, that the movement of the genetic linker among forest patches, and thus the pollen driven gene flow of the herb, depends on the relative value of floral resources in the specific landscape setting. Noteworthy, the population genetic structure of the long-lived, clonal forest herb species correlated with recent land-use types such as maize, which have been existing for not more than a few decades within these landscapes. This underscores the short time in which land-use changes can influence the evolutionary potential of long-lived wild plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jannis Till Feigs
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.VMünchebergGermany
| | - Siyu Huang
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.VMünchebergGermany
| | - Stephanie I. J. Holzhauer
- Thünen Institute of Biodiversity, Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute, Forestry and Fisheries, Federal Research Institute for Rural AreasBraunschweigGermany
| | - Jörg Brunet
- Southern Swedish Forest Research CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesAlnarpSweden
| | - Martin Diekmann
- Vegetation Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Ecology, FB 2University of BremenBremenGermany
| | - Per‐Ola Hedwall
- Southern Swedish Forest Research CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesAlnarpSweden
| | - Katja Kramp
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.VMünchebergGermany
| | - Tobias Naaf
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e.VMünchebergGermany
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Wright EK, Timberlake TP, Baude M, Vaughan IP, Memmott J. Quantifying the production of plant pollen at the farm scale. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2024; 242:2888-2899. [PMID: 38622779 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2024] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
Plant pollen is rich in protein, sterols and lipids, providing crucial nutrition for many pollinators. However, we know very little about the quantity, quality and timing of pollen availability in real landscapes, limiting our ability to improve food supply for pollinators. We quantify the floral longevity and pollen production of a whole plant community for the first time, enabling us to calculate daily pollen availability. We combine these data with floral abundance and nectar measures from UK farmland to quantify pollen and nectar production at the landscape scale throughout the year. Pollen and nectar production were significantly correlated at the floral unit, and landscape level. The species providing the highest quantity of pollen on farmland were Salix spp. (38%), Filipendula ulmaria (14%), Rubus fruticosus (10%) and Taraxacum officinale (9%). Hedgerows were the most pollen-rich habitats, but permanent pasture provided the majority of pollen at the landscape scale, because of its large area. Pollen and nectar were closely associated in their phenology, with both peaking in late April, before declining steeply in June and remaining low throughout the year. Our data provide a starting point for including pollen in floral resource assessments and ensuring the nutritional requirements of pollinators are met in farmland landscapes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ellen K Wright
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol Life Sciences Building, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
- Cabot Institute, University of Bristol, Royal Fort House, Bristol, BS8 1UH, UK
| | - Thomas P Timberlake
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol Life Sciences Building, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Mathilde Baude
- Université d'Orléans, Château de la Source, BP 6749, Orléans Cedex 2, 45067, France
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement (iEES-Paris), Sorbonne Université, UPEC, Université Paris Cité, CNRS, IRD, INRAE, Paris, 75005, France
| | - Ian P Vaughan
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Sir Martin Evans Building, Museum Avenue, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - Jane Memmott
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol Life Sciences Building, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
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Bryś MS, Strachecka A. The Key Role of Amino Acids in Pollen Quality and Honey Bee Physiology-A Review. Molecules 2024; 29:2605. [PMID: 38893480 PMCID: PMC11173770 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29112605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2024] [Revised: 05/29/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
When studying honey bee nutrition, it is important to pay attention not only to the quantity but also to the quality of pollen for floral visitors. The recommended way to determine the value of pollen is to determine both the protein concentration and the amino acid composition in the insect's hemolymph. In addition, the composition of pollen also includes lipids, sterols and biogenic elements such as carbon, nitrogen, etc. Very high protein concentration is observed in aloe pollen, averaging 51%. Plants with a high protein content, at the level of 27% in Europe, are rapeseed and phacelia. In turn, a plant that is poor in protein (at the level of 11%) is buckwheat. The aforementioned plants are sown over very large areas. Vast acreages in Central and Eastern Europe are occupied by pollen- and nectar-providing invasive plants, such as goldenrod. Therefore, bees are forced to use one food source-a mono diet-which results in their malnutrition. In the absence of natural pollen, beekeepers use other foods for bees; including soy protein, powdered milk, egg yolks, fish meal, etc. However, the colony is the strongest when bees are fed with pollen, as opposed to artificial protein diets. More research is needed on the relationship between bee pollen composition and nutrition, as measured by protein concentration and amino acid composition in apian hemolymph, colony strength, honey yield and good overwintering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej Sylwester Bryś
- Department of Invertebrate Ecophysiology and Experimental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Doświadczalna 50a, 20-280 Lublin, Poland;
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Willcox BK, Potts SG, Brown MJF, Alix A, Al Naggar Y, Chauzat MP, Costa C, Gekière A, Hartfield C, Hatjina F, Knapp JL, Martínez-López V, Maus C, Metodiev T, Nazzi F, Osterman J, Raimets R, Strobl V, Van Oystaeyen A, Wintermantel D, Yovcheva N, Senapathi D. Emerging threats and opportunities to managed bee species in European agricultural systems: a horizon scan. Sci Rep 2023; 13:18099. [PMID: 37872212 PMCID: PMC10593766 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-45279-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Managed bee species provide essential pollination services that contribute to food security worldwide. However, managed bees face a diverse array of threats and anticipating these, and potential opportunities to reduce risks, is essential for the sustainable management of pollination services. We conducted a horizon scanning exercise with 20 experts from across Europe to identify emerging threats and opportunities for managed bees in European agricultural systems. An initial 63 issues were identified, and this was shortlisted to 21 issues through the horizon scanning process. These ranged from local landscape-level management to geopolitical issues on a continental and global scale across seven broad themes-Pesticides & pollutants, Technology, Management practices, Predators & parasites, Environmental stressors, Crop modification, and Political & trade influences. While we conducted this horizon scan within a European context, the opportunities and threats identified will likely be relevant to other regions. A renewed research and policy focus, especially on the highest-ranking issues, is required to maximise the value of these opportunities and mitigate threats to maintain sustainable and healthy managed bee pollinators within agricultural systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryony K Willcox
- Centre for Agri-Environmental Research, School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK.
| | - Simon G Potts
- Centre for Agri-Environmental Research, School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
| | - Mark J F Brown
- Department of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK
| | - Anne Alix
- Corteva Agriscience, Regulatory and Stewardship Europe, Middle East and Africa, Abingdon, UK
| | - Yahya Al Naggar
- General Zoology, Institute for Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Hoher Weg 8, 06120, Halle (Saale), Germany
- Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, 31527, Egypt
- Unit of Bee Research and Honey Production, Faculty of Science, King Khalid University, P.O. Box 9004, 61413, Abha, Saudi Arabia
| | - Marie-Pierre Chauzat
- ANSES, Sophia Antipolis Laboratory, Unit of Honey Bee Pathology, 06902, Sophia Antipolis, France
| | - Cecilia Costa
- CREA Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment, 40128, Bologna, Italy
| | - Antoine Gekière
- Laboratory of Zoology, Research Institute for Biosciences, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
| | - Chris Hartfield
- National Farmers' Union, Agriculture House, Stoneleigh Park, Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, CV8 2TZ, UK
| | - Fani Hatjina
- Department of Apiculture, Institute of Animal Science, ELGO 'DIMITRA', 63200, Nea Moudania, Greece
| | - Jessica L Knapp
- Department of Botany, School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
- Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Vicente Martínez-López
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
- Department of Zoology and Physical Anthropology, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Murcia, 30100, Murcia, Spain
| | | | | | - Francesco Nazzi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agroalimentari, Ambientali e Animali, Università degli Studi di Udine, Udine, Italy
- National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy
| | - Julia Osterman
- Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, University of Freiburg, Tennenbacher Str. 4, 79106, Freiburg, Germany
- Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre, Gothenburg, Sweden
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Risto Raimets
- Department of Plant Protection, Estonian University of Life Sciences, 51014, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Verena Strobl
- Institute of Bee Health, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | - Dimitry Wintermantel
- Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, University of Freiburg, Tennenbacher Str. 4, 79106, Freiburg, Germany
| | | | - Deepa Senapathi
- Centre for Agri-Environmental Research, School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
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Fox G, Vellaniparambil LR, Ros L, Sammy J, Preziosi RF, Rowntree JK. Complex urban environments provide Apis mellifera with a richer plant forage than suburban and more rural landscapes. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9490. [PMID: 36381392 PMCID: PMC9643131 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Revised: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Growth in the global development of cities, and increasing public interest in beekeeping, has led to increase in the numbers of urban apiaries. Towns and cities can provide an excellent diet for managed bees, with a diverse range of nectar and pollen available throughout a long flowering season, and are often more ecologically diverse than the surrounding rural environments. Accessible urban honeybee hives are a valuable research resource to gain insights into the diet and ecology of wild pollinators in urban settings. We used DNA metabarcoding of the rbcL and ITS2 gene regions to characterize the pollen community in Apis mellifera honey, inferring the floral diet, from 14 hives across an urban gradient around Greater Manchester, UK. We found that the proportion of urban land around a hive is significantly associated with an increase in the diversity of plants foraged and that invasive and non-native plants appear to play a critical role in the sustenance of urban bees, alongside native plant species. The proportion of improved grassland, typical of suburban lawns and livestock farms, is significantly associated with decreases in the diversity of plant pollen found in honey samples. These findings are relevant to urban landscape developers motivated to encourage biodiversity and bee persistence, in line with global bio-food security agendas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graeme Fox
- Department of Natural Sciences, Ecology and Environment Research CentreManchester Metropolitan UniversityManchesterUK
| | - Latha R. Vellaniparambil
- Department of Natural Sciences, Ecology and Environment Research CentreManchester Metropolitan UniversityManchesterUK
| | - Loreto Ros
- Faculty of Life SciencesThe University of ManchesterManchesterUK
| | - Joshua Sammy
- Department of Natural Sciences, Ecology and Environment Research CentreManchester Metropolitan UniversityManchesterUK
| | - Richard F. Preziosi
- Department of Natural Sciences, Ecology and Environment Research CentreManchester Metropolitan UniversityManchesterUK
- Present address:
School of Biological and Marine SciencesUniversity of PlymouthPlymouthUK
| | - Jennifer K. Rowntree
- Department of Natural Sciences, Ecology and Environment Research CentreManchester Metropolitan UniversityManchesterUK
- Present address:
School of Biological and Marine SciencesUniversity of PlymouthPlymouthUK
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