Wild bees are more affected by climate change than by disturbances to their habitats, according to a team of researchers led by Penn State University. The findings suggest that addressing land-use issues alone will not be sufficient to protect these important pollinators.
“Our study found that the most critical factor influencing wild bee abundance and species diversity was the weather, particularly temperature and precipitation,” said Christina Grozinger, Publius Vergilius Maro Professor of Entomology and director of the Center for Pollinator Research, Penn State.
According to Melanie Kammerer, a recent graduate from the Penn State Ecology Program, few studies have considered the effects of both climate and land use on wild bees. “We found that temperature and precipitation patterns are very important drivers of wild bee communities in our study, more important than the amount of suitable habitat or floral and nesting resources in the landscape,” said Kammerer. For more information, read the Penn State article.
The USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture helped to support this research.