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Influence of landscape context on the abundance and diversity of bees in Mediterranean olive groves

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2011

T. Tscheulin ,
L. Neokosmidis ,
T. Petanidou  and
J. Settele
T. Tscheulin*
Affiliation:
University of the Aegean, Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, Greece
L. Neokosmidis
Affiliation:
University of the Aegean, Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, Greece
T. Petanidou
Affiliation:
University of the Aegean, Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, Greece
J. Settele
Affiliation:
Department of Community Ecology, UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Theodor-Lieser-Straße 4, 06120 Halle (Saale), Germany
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: +30 22510 36423 E-mail: t.tscheulin@geo.aegean.gr
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Abstract

The diversity and abundance of wild bees ensures the delivery of pollination services and the maintenance of ecosystem diversity. As previous studies carried out in Central Europe and the US have shown, bee diversity and abundance is influenced by the structure and the composition of the surrounding landscape. Comparable studies have so far not been carried out in the Mediterranean region. The present study examines the influence of Mediterranean landscape context on the diversity and abundance of wild bees. To do this, we sampled bees in 13 sites in olive groves on Lesvos Island, Greece. Bees were assigned to five categories consisting of three body size groups (small, medium and large bees), the single most abundant bee species (Lasioglossum marginatum) and all species combined. The influence of the landscape context on bee abundance and species richness was assessed at five radii (250, 500, 750, 1000 and 1250 m) from the centre of each site. We found that the abundance within bee groups was influenced differently by different landscape parameters and land covers, whereas species richness was unaffected. Generally, smaller bees’ abundance was impacted by landscape parameters at smaller scales and larger bees at larger scales. The land cover that influenced bee abundance positively was olive grove, while phrygana, conifer forest, broad-leaved forest, cultivated land, rock, urban areas and sea had mostly negative or no impact. We stress the need for a holistic approach, including all land covers, when assessing the effects of landscape context on bee diversity and abundance in the Mediterranean.

Keywords

pollinatorsbody sizeflight rangeland coverremote sensing
Type
Research Paper
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 101 , Issue 5 , October 2011 , pp. 557 - 564
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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