Wild Bee Community Assemblages Across Agricultural Landscapes1

Abstract

ABSTRACT Wild bees are essential to the functioning of both agricultural and natural ecosystems, yet these pollinator communities are declining worldwide. Agricultural intensification by means of habitat and floral resource loss is thought to be one of the leading causes of wild bee population deterioration. This study examined multiple agricultural land use systems in New Hampshire to determine how wild bee biodiversity and community interactions are affected by different land use practices. A total of 2292 wild bees were collected during these surveys, representing 112 species. A high species overlap was found at all land use systems, although all sites had some species exclusivity. Land use significantly affected species abundance and richness. The moderately managed sites supported both the greatest pollinator abundance and species richness, while the low management sites had the smallest abundance and the same level of richness as the high management sites. The findings of this study support the importance of floral landscape diversity in bee conservation efforts and suggest that not all agricultural practices negatively affect the pollinator community.