Abiotic and biotic drivers of strawberry productivity across a rural-urban gradient

While many cities have embraced urban agriculture, research examining crop productivity in urban environments is limited. Little is known about how abiotic and biotic factors affecting productivity on urban farms compare with those in rural environments. In this study, we investigated environmental factors influencing strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) productivity for two cultivars at ten farms across a rural-urban gradient in Michigan, USA over a three-year period. We evaluated key drivers of production, namely temperature, pathogens, pests, and pollinators, which we hypothesized would be altered by urbanization. We found no direct effect of urbanization on strawberry production or fruit pathogen and pest damage. However, temperature, an environmental correlate of urbanization, significantly influenced crop productivity. In particular, cooler temperatures at rural farms and warmer temperatures at urban farms limited fruit number in the peak production year. We found no relationship between urbanization and overall abundances of arthropod pests, their predators, or pollinators. However, we found opposite effects of urbanization for two arthropod groups – Vespidae (paper wasps) and Araneae (spiders). Vespidae abundance was positively associated with increased urbanization. These omnivorous wasps are both predators of strawberry pests and pests of fruits themselves. Conversely, spiders, which are predators of strawberry pests, were negatively associated with urbanization. Greater pollinator visitation incrementally improved fruit weight, but only at low to moderate levels of pathogen and pest damage. At high levels of damage, the benefits of pollination were not apparent. Our study reveals that environmental drivers of variation in crop yield, such as pathogen and herbivore damage and pollinator visitation, can be comparable across rural-urban gradients. Some factors, however, such as temperature stress and the abundances of certain pest and beneficial organisms may be affected by urbanization.     

Seasonal complementary in pollinators of soft-fruit crops

Understanding the relative contributions of wild and managed pollinators, and the functional contributions made by a diverse pollinator community, is essential to the maintenance of yields in the 75% of our crops that benefit from insect pollination. We describe a field study and pollinator exclusion experiments conducted on two soft-fruit crops in a system with both wild and managed pollinators. We test whether fruit quality and quantity is limited by pollination, and whether different pollinating insects respond differently to varying weather conditions. Both strawberries and raspberries produced fewer marketable fruits when insects were excluded, demonstrating dependence on insect pollinators. Raspberries had a short flowering season which coincided with peak abundance of bees, and attracted many bees per flower. In contrast, strawberries had a much longer flowering season and appeared to be much less attractive to pollinators, so that ensuring adequate pollination is likely to be more challenging. The proportion of high-quality strawberries was positively related to pollinator abundance, suggesting that yield was limited by inadequate pollination on some farms. The relative abundance of different pollinator taxa visiting strawberries changed markedly through the season, demonstrating seasonal complementarity. Insect visitors responded differently to changing weather conditions suggesting that diversity can reduce the risk of pollination service shortfalls. For example, flies visited the crop flowers in poor weather and at the end of the flowering season when other pollinators were scarce, and so may provide a unique functional contribution. Understanding how differences between pollinator groups can enhance pollination services to crops strengthens the case for multiple species management. We provide evidence for the link between increased diversity and function in real crop systems, highlighting the risks of replacing all pollinators with managed alternatives.     

Decreased functional diversity and biological pest control in conventional compared to organic crop fields

Organic farming is one of the most successful agri-environmental schemes, as humans benefit from high quality food, farmers from higher prices for their products and it often successfully protects biodiversity. However there is little knowledge if organic farming also increases ecosystem services like pest control. We assessed 30 triticale fields (15 organic vs. 15 conventional) and recorded vascular plants, pollinators, aphids and their predators. Further, five conventional fields which were treated with insecticides were compared with 10 non-treated conventional fields. Organic fields had five times higher plant species richness and about twenty times higher pollinator species richness compared to conventional fields. Abundance of pollinators was even more than one-hundred times higher on organic fields. In contrast, the abundance of cereal aphids was five times lower in organic fields, while predator abundances were three times higher and predator-prey ratios twenty times higher in organic fields, indicating a significantly higher potential for biological pest control in organic fields. Insecticide treatment in conventional fields had only a short-term effect on aphid densities while later in the season aphid abundances were even higher and predator abundances lower in treated compared to untreated conventional fields. Our data indicate that insecticide treatment kept aphid predators at low abundances throughout the season, thereby significantly reducing top-down control of aphid populations. Plant and pollinator species richness as well as predator abundances and predator-prey ratios were higher at field edges compared to field centres, highlighting the importance of field edges for ecosystem services. In conclusion organic farming increases biodiversity, including important functional groups like plants, pollinators and predators which enhance natural pest control. Preventative insecticide application in conventional fields has only short-term effects on aphid densities but long-term negative effects on biological pest control. Therefore conventional farmers should restrict insecticide applications to situations where thresholds for pest densities are reached.     

Flower herbivory and seed predation in Silene vulgaris (Caryophyllaceae): effects of pollination and phenology

Pollination and seed predation were studied in Silene vulgaris populations during two seasons, one with much lower pollinator abundance than the other. Among the pollinators, noctuid moths of the genus Hadena also acted as seed predators. Nectar-foraging female moths oviposited in flowers, and their larvae consumed flowers and seed capsules.
Despite a lower percentage of pollinated flowers in the year of low pollinator abundance, similar numbers of flowers set fruit in both years, because fewer flower buds and flowers were eaten by Hadena larvae during the year of low pollinator visitation. The number of seed capsules preyed upon was also lower in the year with low pollinator abundance, resulting in a higher seed set. The positive correlation between the percentage of pollinated flowers and the percentage of seed capsules destroyed was also observed when comparing flowers opening in different parts of the season.
Early flowering plant individuals had the same pollination success but suffered higher seed predation than late flowering ones. Selection for maximized pollination success through synchronous flowering, is probably the main reason for the compressed flowering period in 5. vulgaris , but the high level of predation early in the season may further increase the reproductive success of synchronous flowering individuals.     

温室内大花植物对天敌丰度及其控害功能的影响

【目的】大花植物(花粉和花蜜)能否为特殊的寒地温室内各种昆虫的成虫期补充营养,提供食物来源进而影响温室内天敌的控害功能是当前保护地内防控害虫的关键的科学问题之一。【方法】本实验连续两年选择调查了哈尔滨市郊区(寒地,北纬45o)三栋大型玻璃温室的花卉作物栽培引入情况并用粘虫板连续监测了温室内各种节肢动物丰度动态,分析了温室内大花植物栽培比例对各类(种)优势害虫丰度,寄生性天敌及捕食性天敌丰度的影响,探讨了不同天敌类群丰度的关系及害虫多样性与总丰度等关系。【结果】研究表明:较高比例的大花植物栽培整体上能提高害虫的多样性指数,抑制各种害虫种群的暴发,但单一种类的大花植物也会导致较为严重的害虫发生;影响寄生性天敌类群的环境因素与影响捕食性天敌的因素相似,而捕食性天敌(体型较大)对化学农药的喷洒相对更为敏感。【结论】研究结果可为田间生物控害工程的"功能植物"筛选提供信息,为设施农业害虫生物防治提供科学依据。     

Community-level flowering phenology and fruit set: Comparative study of 25 woody species in a secondary forest in Japan

We investigated the flowering phenology, pollinator visitation, and fruit set of 25 animal-pollinated woody species in a warm temperate secondary forest in Japan. Various species flowered sequentially from February to October. The principal pollinators were bumblebees, honey-bees, flies and/or beetles and birds; bumblebees and flies/beetles pollinated most trees. The duration of flowering was shorter for species that bloomed in the middle of the season than it was for species that bloomed earlier or later in the season. The timing of flowering was more synchronous within species that had a shorter flowering duration; this was also detected when phylogenetically independent contrasts were calculated. This could be important for the effective pollination of species with a short flowering duration because such species bloom sequentially over a short period of less than 1month around May. Fruit set was related not to pollinator type, sex expression, flowering sequence (in order of the date of peak flowering) or flowering duration, but to the relative abundance of the species in the forest. This correlation was detected for fly- and beetle-pollinated species but not for bumblebee-pollinated species. Thus, relatively rare plant species with opportunistic pollinators might experience limited fruit set because of insufficient pollinator services. Bagging experiments conducted on eight hermaphrodite species revealed that the fruit set of bagged flowers was nearly zero, lower than that of control flowers. These results indicate the importance of pollinators for successful reproduction and thus for the coexistence of plants in this secondary forest.     

BREEDING SYSTEM,POLLINATION, AND POLLINATOR LIMITATION IN A PERENNIAL HERB,AMIANTHIUM MUSCAETOXICUM (LILIACEAE)

Observations of insects on Amianthium muscaetoxicum suggested that at least 16 species can serve as pollinators, although the chief pollinators appear to be beetles. Five species from three coleopteran families appear to be the most important pollinators. Experimental manipulations suggest that Amianthium is nearly self-incompatible and that fecundity and fruit set levels are at least partly pollinator limited. Outcrossed plants have higher fruit set and fertility levels than unmanipulated plants, and unmanipulated plants display higher levels than self-pollinated plants. Self-pollinated plants produce a few very small seeds, of which only a small percentage are viable. Fruit set levels in unmanipulated plants in one population were consistent over a 2-yr period.     

Community‐wide impacts of early season herbivory on flower visitors on tall goldenrod

1. The flower visitor community consists not only of pollinators but also of non‐pollinators, such as florivores, thieves and predators that attack flower visitors. Although there is increasing evidence that early‐season foliar herbivory influences pollinator visitation through changes in floral traits, few studies have explored indirect effects of foliar herbivory on community structure of the flower visitors. We examined how early‐season foliar herbivory influences the flower visitor community established in late season. 2. We conducted an inoculation experiment using a lacebug (Corythucha marmorata), which is a predominantly herbivorous insect attacking leaves of tall goldenrod (Solidago altissima) in Japan. 3. Flower abundance significantly decreased when damaged by the lacebug. The numbers of pollinators, florivores and thieves were positively correlated with flower abundance, whereas predators were not. In response to flower abundance, florivores decreased on damaged plants. On the other hand, thieves increased on damaged plants, and pollinators and predators did not differ between damaged and undamaged plants. 4. When effects of flower abundance were excluded, foliar herbivory still influenced florivores negatively and thieves positively. This implies that factors besides flower abundance may have affected the numbers of florivores and thieves. 5. Community composition of flower visitors on damaged plants significantly differed from undamaged plants, although overall abundance, taxonomic richness and taxonomic evenness were unaffected by foliar herbivory in the early season. It is important to recognise that only evaluating species diversity and overall abundance may fail to detect the significant consequence of early‐season herbivory on the flower visitor community.     

入闽台湾芒果树冠层节肢动物群落组成结构和多样性

【背景】台湾芒果是我国南方种植的最重要的热带水果之一,其分布广、产量高,极具经济价值。福建地处台湾海峡西岸,与台湾隔海相望,气候条件与台湾相仿,所以台湾芒果很容易在福建定植。然而,台湾芒果在福建的大面积种植,带来了新的虫害问题。因此,掌握台湾芒果园害虫发生的动态及规律对其防治具有重要意义。【方法】2006年8月～2007年8月对福建省惠安县台湾芒果树冠层节肢动物群落进行系统调查。【结果】共采集到28247头节肢动物,隶属于2纲15目79科145种。其中,害虫76种（占总群落物种数的52.41%）、天敌42种（占28.97%）、中性昆虫27种（占18.62%）。芒果园节肢动物的物种丰富度、个体数、群落多样性、均匀性和优势集中性等都呈明显的季节消长规律。多样性指数表现为总群落〉天敌亚群落〉中性昆虫亚群落〉害虫亚群落;均匀度表现为天敌亚群落〉中性昆虫亚群落〉总群落〉害虫亚群落;优势集中性指数表现为害虫亚群落〉中性昆虫亚群落〉总群落〉天敌亚群落。生态优势度测定显示：芒果小爪螨和茶黄蓟马是害虫中的优势种;主要天敌有腹管食螨瓢虫和园蛛科等,优势种是腹管食螨瓢虫;中性昆虫主要以双翅目的花翅摇蚊、啮虫目的凹翅单啮及膜翅目的中国小黑家蚁和红蚂蚁为主。【结论与意义】本研究为芒果园生物资源及天敌的保护与利用、芒果害虫的预测预报和持续控制提供了理论依据。     

Community structure of pollination webs of Mauritian heathland habitats

Pollination webs have recently deepened our understanding of complex ecosystem functions and the susceptibility of biotic networks to anthropogenic disturbances. Extensive mutualistic networks from tropical species-rich communities, however, are extremely scarce. We present fully quantitative pollination webs of two plant–pollinator communities of natural heathland sites, one of which was in the process of being restored, on the oceanic island of Mauritius. The web interaction data cover a full flowering season from September 2003 to March 2004 and include all flowering plant and their pollinator species. Pollination webs at both sites were dominated by a few super-abundant, disproportionately well-connected species, and many rare and specialised species. The webs differed greatly in size, reflecting higher plant and pollinator species richness and abundance at the restored site. About one fifth of plant species at the smaller community received <3 visits. The main pollinators were insects from diverse taxonomic groups, while the few vertebrate pollinator species were abundant and highly linked. The difference in plant community composition between sites appeared to strongly affect the associated pollinator community and interactions with native plant species. Low visitation rate to introduced plant species suggested little indirect competition for pollinators with native plant species. Overall, our results indicated that the community structure was highly complex in comparison to temperate heathland communities. We discuss the observed differences in plant linkage and pollinator diversity and abundance between the sites with respect to habitat restoration management and its influence on pollination web structure and complexity. For habitat restoration to be successful in the long term, practitioners should aim to maintain structural diversity to support a species-rich and abundant pollinator assemblage which ensures native plant reproduction.     

Microbial control of arthropod pests of tropical tree fruits

A multitude of insects and mites attack fruit crops throughout the tropics. The traditional method for controlling most of these pests is the application of chemical pesticides. Growing concern on the negative environmental effects has encouraged the development of alternatives. Inundatively and inoculatively applied microbial control agents (virus, bacteria, fungi, and entomopathogenic nematodes) have been developed as alternative control methods of a wide variety of arthropods including tropical fruit pests. The majority of the research and applications in tropical fruit agroecosystems has been conducted in citrus, banana, coconut, and mango. Successful microbial control initiatives of citrus pests and mites have been reported. Microbial control of arthropod pests of banana includes banana weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus Germar (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) (with EPNs and fungi) among others Oryctes rhinoceros (L.) is one of the most important pests of coconut and one of the most successful uses of non-occluded virus for classical biological control. Key pests of mango that have been controlled with microbial control agents include fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) (with EPNs and fungi), and other pests. Also successful is the microbial control of arthropod pests of guava, papaya and pineapple. The challenge towards a broader application of entomopathogens is the development of successful combinations of entomopathogens, predators, and parasitoids along with other interventions to produce effective and sustainable pest management.     

Insect pollinators diversity and abundance in Eruca sativa Mill. (Arugula) and Brassica rapa L. (Field mustard) crops

Studies on the insect pollinators diversity and their relative abundance in Eruca sativa Mill. (Arugula) and Brassica rapa L. (field mustard) was carried out during spring season from February to April consecutively during all the three years of 2016–18. Insect pollinators observed belonged to four orders i.e. Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera, and Coleoptera. A total of 20 major species of insect pollinators were recorded. The highest abundance of pollinator species belonged to Hymenoptera. The most prominent insect pollinator species were Apis mellifera followed by other three honey bee species of A. cerana, A. florea, and A. dorsata respectively. Some species of solitary bees were also recorded. From Diptera, four species of syrphid fly and one species from Muscidae family were also recorded. Insect pollinators recorded from order Lepidoptera were Pieris brassicae, Vanessa cardui, and Papilio demoleus. Lady bird beetle Coccinella septempunctata was recorded from Coleoptera order as occasional visitor. It was noticed that E. sativa attracted more insect pollinators than B. rapa which may be attributed to different amount and chemical properties of nectar, with number of pollen grains, and flower canopy of both crops. Further studies are needed to confirm the reasons for higher pollinator visitation to E. sativa than B. rapa through chemical analysis of nectar, amount of pollens, flower physiology and phenology of both crops.     

Management affects the pollinator abundance but not the reproductive success of butterfly orchids

Management of semi-natural grasslands should be based on the requirements of plants as well as their pollinators since conditions beneficial for plants are not necessarily beneficial for their pollinators and vice versa. The factors affecting the reproductive success (fruit set) of Platanthera bifolia and Platanthera chlorantha and their pollinators in agricultural landscape and woodlands were studied. In the years 2014–2016, we observed and caught moths during the flowering period of Platanthera species (late June–mid July) in four pure P. bifolia, five pure P. chlorantha and nine mixed populations under management or no management in Estonia. We determined pollinator species richness, pollinator abundance, fruit set and visibility of Platanthera plants in each population. We found that pollinator assemblages of P. bifolia and P. chlorantha did not differ between managed and unmanaged sites. Pollinator abundance had an effect on the fruit set of P. bifolia but not on that of P. chlorantha. Presence or absence of management, visibility of plants and rarefied pollinator species richness did not affect the fruit set of either plant species. Pollinator abundance was significantly higher in unmanaged populations of both plant species but rarefied pollinator species richness was higher only in unmanaged populations of P. chlorantha. Based on our findings the recommendations for management of semi-natural grasslands are to promote larger landscape diversity for the benefit of moth abundance by leaving unmanaged patches in different parts of a grassland in different years and rotational and post-fruiting management for higher reproductive success of orchids.     

Pest management through tropical tree conservation

Tropical trees can provide various ecological services to adjacent agricultural environments, including maintaining and amplifying the numbers of beneficial insects. In Mexico, certain tree species harbor a diverse guild of hymenopteran parasitoids that attack pest fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) and are at the same time sources of valuable hardwood timber. Indigenous trees and their associated fauna are slowly disappearing due to forest clearance and the expansion of crop monocultures. Here we explore the relationship among pest and non-pest fruit flies, their fruit-hosts and parasitoids in the context of mango orchards and surrounding patches of uncultivated vegetation and propose a novel mechanism to use these associations in favor of conservation purposes and pest management. Trees of conservation biological control interest are classified as: (1) parasitoid multiplier plants, species that serve as alternate hosts for key fruit fly pests when their commercial hosts are not available, but in which they are unusually vulnerable to parasitism; (2) parasitoid reservoir plants, native or introduced trees in whose fruits non-pest fruit flies serve as hosts to generalist parasitoids that are able to attack pest tephritids in other species of commercially grown fruit; and (3) pest-based parasitoid reservoir plants, native or introduced species that are not economically important locally, but which harbor fruit flies that would be pests in other circumstances and that serve as hosts for parasitoids of the important pests in the vicinity. Protection, multiplication and dissemination of such tree species has the potential to increase the number of naturally produced fruit fly parasitoids and could assist in the management of tephritid pests in areas where destruction of forests has impoverished the historical sources of fruit fly natural enemies. Tropical forest conservation may help resource-poor farmers reduce crop losses, increase biodiversity within fruit-growing regions and conserve native forests for both conservation purposes and commercial use of native hardwoods.     

中国花蚤科(鞘翅目)系统学研究进展

花蚤科Mordellidae隶属昆虫纲Insecta鞘翅目Coleoptera,是一类小型甲虫。花蚤为世界性分布,全世界已知115属2308种。花蚤成虫多栖息于花中,是植物传花授粉的重要媒介;其幼虫多取食植物茎秆,是常见的农业害虫。因此,对其开展系统学研究,进行准确的种类鉴定对于农林业生产具有重要意义。目前世界范围内已开展的花蚤科研究均为区域性工作,相对其它动物地理区而言,东洋区尚有大量的种类有待发现和描述,同时也缺少全面的区系研究和系统的分类修订工作。另外,花蚤科是鞘翅目昆虫系统树上的关键节点之一,对其进行深入的形态、分子研究,重建其系统发育以修订完善鞘翅目高级阶元分类系统,也将对中国鞘翅目系统分类研究提供参考,对农林害虫防治工作提供借鉴。     

长白山阔叶红松林昆虫多样性研究

通过季节性观察,系统地研究了长白山阔叶红松林昆虫类群及其多样性．结果表明,长白山阔叶红松林已知的森林昆虫26目131科1162属1960种,其中森林害虫11目105科881种、重要森林害虫638种;森林昆虫群落中植食性昆虫类群总数所占比重最大,天敌昆虫群落中以捕食性类群总数所占比重最大．植食类群、寄生性类群和捕食类群全年的均匀度指数分别为0．884、0．830和0．806．各类群问季节变动系数的大小顺序为捕食类群>寄生性类群>植食类群．     

Effects of native pollinator communities on the physiological and chemical parameters of loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica) under open field condition

Wild and managed pollinators are the key component of biodiversity, contributing to important ecosystem services such as pollination and supporting human food security. Pollination by insects is a crucial component of the food chain that ensures the production of fruits and strongly affects the fruit quality, but the effect of insect pollination on fruit physiological and chemical parameters is largely unknown. The current study was conducted to determine the insect pollinators diversity and their relative abundance in the loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) orchard during 2017–2019. Further, the effect of insect pollinators pollination on the physiological and chemical parameters of fruit quality as compared to control pollinated flowers was investigated. The results revealed that a total of 22 species from 3 families (Apidae, Halictidae, and Syrphidae) were identified during the flowering season. The Apidae and Syrphidae were the most frequently observed families with major groups honey bees (67.89%) and hoverflies (21.57%), respectively. Moreover, results indicated that the fruit yield by the open-pollinated flowers (22.31 ± 0.34 kg/tree) was significantly higher than the control pollinated flowers (14.80 ± 0.25 kg/tree). Physiological and chemical parameters of loquat fruit differed significantly when fruits obtained from open-pollinated flowers as compared to control pollinated flowers. These results suggested that native insect pollinators play important role in the fruit quality of loquat. Hence, maintenance of appropriate habitat of native pollinators near loquat orchards is necessary to ensure good productivity and fruit quality.     

Optimal foraging when predation risk increases with patch resources: an analysis of pollinators and ambush predators

Pollinators and their predators share innate and learned preferences for high quality flowers. Consequently, pollinators are more likely to encounter predators when visiting the most rewarding flowers. I present a model of how different pollinator species can maximize lifetime resource gains depending on the density and distribution of predators, as well as their vulnerability to capture by predators. For pollinator species that are difficult for predators to capture, the optimal strategy is to visit the most rewarding flowers as long as predator density is low. At higher predator densities and for pollinators that are more vulnerable to predator capture, the lifetime resource gain from the most rewarding flowers declines and the optimal strategy depends on the predator distribution. In some cases, a wide range of floral rewards provides near‐maximum lifetime resource gains, which may favor generalization if searching for flowers is costly. In other cases, a low flower reward level provides the maximum lifetime resource gain and so pollinators should specialize on less rewarding flowers. Thus, the model suggests that predators can have qualitatively different top‐down effects on plant reproductive success depending on the pollinator species, the density of predators, and the distribution of predators across flower reward levels.     

麦田昆虫群落的结构与时序动态

采用目测法和网捕法 ,通过对小麦整个生长季节内昆虫群落的系统调查 ,共查得昆虫11目 2 3科 36种 ,其中捕食性昆虫有 4目 5科 12种、寄生性昆虫有 2目 3科 4种、植食性昆虫有 5目 12科 15种、粪食性等其他类昆虫有 1目 3科 5种。在捕食性天敌昆虫中 ,瓢虫的种类和数量最多 ,其次为草蛉和食蚜蝇 ;在寄生性天敌昆虫中 ,蚜茧蜂为优势种 ,其次为寄蝇 ;在植食性昆虫中 ,麦长管蚜为绝对的优势种 ,其次为赤须盲蝽、灰飞虱和麦蓟马。天敌昆虫对害虫具有明显的跟随现象 ,不能有效地控制麦长管蚜的发生与危害。依据昆虫群落的组成与结构 ,结合小麦生育期 ,采用最优分割法将麦田昆虫群落动态划分为 5个阶段 ,并指出不同阶段昆虫群落特点及相应的害虫防治策略。     

Increase in ant density promotes dual effects on bee behaviour and plant reproductive performance

Floral rewards do not only attract pollinators, but also herbivores and their predators. Ants are attracted by extrafloral nectaries (EFNs), situated near flowers, and may interfere with the efficiency and behaviour of pollinators. We tested the hypothesis that the impacts of ant–pollinator interactions in plant–pollinator systems are dependent on (1) the seasonal activity of EFNs, which increase ant abundance closer to flowers; (2) consequently, an ant effect, where ants decrease the temporal niche overlap of bees due to predator avoidance; and (3) ant density, where higher densities may negatively affect plant–pollinator interactions and plant performance. We studied two ant–plant–pollinator systems based on Banisteriopsis campestris and Banisteriopsis malifolia plant species. The periods of high ant abundance coincided with plant species blooming. The presence of ants around flowers reduced the visitation rates of the smaller bees and the temporal niche overlap between bee species was not higher than randomly expected when ants had free access. Additionally, we observed variable ant effects on fruit set and duration of bee visits to both Malpighiaceae species when ant density was experimentally kept constant on branches, especially on B. campestris. Our goal was to show the dual role of ant density effects, especially because the different outcomes are not commonly observed in the same plant species. We believe that reduced temporal niche overlap between floral visitors due to ant presence provides an opportunity for smaller bees to improve compatible pollination behaviour. Additionally, we concluded that ant density had variable effects on floral visitor behaviours and plant reproductive performance.