Biotope Associations and the Decline of Bumblebees (Bombus spp.) |
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Authors: | D Goulson M E Hanley B Darvill J S Ellis |
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Institution: | (1) School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, Scotland |
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Abstract: | Much of the ecology of rare bumblebee species remains poorly understood and in need of further study. It has recently been
suggested that differences in the range and rate of decline among bumblebee species may relate to differences in their degree
of habitat specialization. We examine biotope use by 17 bumblebee species in the Hebrides, southern UK and South Island, New
Zealand. We identify a cluster of widespread and abundant species that occur in almost all biotopes and exploit man-made environments
such as gardens and arable margins, this group corresponding to the “mainland ubiquitous” species of previous studies. A second
grouping of species includes those associated to varying degrees with heathland. It is notable that some species occupy markedly
different biotopes in different parts of their range; for example B. soroeensis is found largely on upland heaths in the Hebrides, but on calcareous grassland in the south. Some species, such as B. subterraneus and B. distinguendus, now survive only in specific rare biotopes and could be mistaken for habitat specialists, but it is clear from their historic
distributions that they formerly occupied a broader range of biotopes. Surviving populations of several of the species that
have declined most (B. distinguendus, B. sylvarum, B. muscorum sladeni, B. humilis) exhibit a markedly coastal distribution, when once they were widespread inland. We suggest that this is probably simply
because some coastal biotopes are less amenable to agricultural improvement, and so more have escaped the detrimental effects
of intensive farming. Our results concur with previous suggestions that bumblebees are generally not habitat specialists,
so that the conservation of most bumblebee species could be achieved by restoration of flower-rich unimproved meadows. |
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Keywords: | Abundance Bombus Hymenoptera Rarity Specialization |
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