Search

Background: The spectacular decline in pollinators and their prominent role in pollination of natural and cultivated plants has stimulated research on pollinating insects. Over the last ten years, much ecological research has been carried out on bees, often generating a large volume of specimens and increasing the importance of entomological collections. Here, we present the bee collection of the IMBE laboratory (Marseille, France) after ten years of study of plant-pollinator networks. New information: We provide distribution data on 2181 specimens belonging to 246 species of bees, mainly from the Mediterranean Region of France. One of the recorded species, Lasioglossum soror, is classified as "endangered" at the European level, while 68 of the recorded species are currently Data Deficient according to the 2014 Red List of European bees. This dataset contributes to the broader effort to enhance the knowledge of French bee diversity. It aligns with the objectives of the French Pollinator Plan and supports the development of a national Red List. In this context, information about the distribution of wild bees from the Mediterranean Region, which harbours the highest species diversity in mainland France, are of particular importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background In a world where insects and notably bees are declining, assessing their distribution over time and space is crucial to evaluate species status and highlight conservation priorities. However, this can be a daunting task, especially in areas such as tropical oceanic islands where exhaustive samplings over time have been lacking. This is the case in New Caledonia, an archipelago located in the southwest Pacific. Historical records of bee species are piecemeal and, although contemporary samplings have significantly advanced our knowledge of the bee fauna of New Caledonia, the status of several species remains to be elucidated. New information Here, we provide an updated checklist of the 51 bee species recorded for New Caledonia using previous publications and personal samplings. We documented their distribution, origin (i.e. endemic, native or alien) and the year and location of their occurrences. Based on the year of their first capture and the year of their last capture, we determined an occurrence status for each species. Thus, 10 years after the last checklist of the New Caledonian bee fauna, the literature review and recent samplings allowed us to add six new species to the list. Half of them are recently introduced species including one firstly mentioned in this paper (i.e. Hylaeus albonitens). We consider here that 30 species are effectively present on the territory and the presence of 21 species could not be determined due to a lack of data, which highlights the need to increase sampling efforts across New Caledonia. Given the difficulty of exhaustively sampling the entire archipelago, we would recommend taking, as a starting point, altitude environments and areas where datadeficient species were captured. In a broader perspective, biomolecular analyses are crucial to confirm species identifications. This is also needed to make comparisons between archipelagoes and thus clarify the distribution and status of species at the scale of the southwest Pacific. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Ecology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introducing any species in a large number into an ecosystem is never a zero-sum game. In this paper, we assessed what are the main advances on the known impacts of Massively Introduced Managed Species (MIMS) on plant-pollinator communities and networks. We first focused on the raising body of literature studying the effects of the introduction of honey bees (Apis mellifera) in ecosystems. We then presented the growing concerns around emerging MIMS, be they plants or pollinators, with a highlight on oceanic islands. Finally, we proposed a roadmap to construct solutions with local actors as an incentive to regulate MIMS, notably in protected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Island environments of the Southwest Pacific, like New Caledonia, generally present poorly diversified bee fauna. Thus, they are particularly prone to the establishment of introduced bee species. These exotic species may compete with native bees for plant resources, disrupt pollination of native plants, and enhance the reproduction of exotic ones. To conserve local plant–pollinator interactions, it is essential to assess the factors favoring the presence and the activity of exotic bees. Here, we focused on the effects of urbanization on plant–pollinator interactions. We set up experimental plant communities composed of four exotic species in two contrasted habitats—a natural environment vs. an urban environment—and observed plant–pollinator interactions. We showed that the urban environment was largely dominated by exotic bees. We also showed that some exotic bee species can interact preferentially with a single exotic ornamental plant species. Overall, our results indicate that Nouméa is an entry point for exotic bees, which should encourage local authorities to maintain biosecurity measures to effectively limit the arrival of exogenous bees. Lastly, the use of exotic horticultural plants in green public spaces should be questioned regarding their potential attractiveness to exotic bees. Land-use changes through urbanization and biological invasions both threaten plant-pollinator networks. Urban areas host modified bee communities and are characterized by high proportions of exotic plants. Exotic species, either animals or plants, may compete with native species and disrupt plant–pollinator interactions. These threats are heightened in insular systems of the Southwest Pacific, where the bee fauna is generally poor and ecological networks are simplified. However, the impacts of these factors have seldom been studied in tropical contexts. To explore those questions, we installed experimental exotic plant communities in urban and natural contexts in New Caledonia, a plant diversity hotspot. For four weeks, we observed plant–pollinator interactions between local pollinators and our experimental exotic plant communities. We found a significantly higher foraging activity of exotic wild bees within the city, together with a strong plant–pollinator association between two exotic species. However, contrary to our expectations, the landscape context (urban vs. natural) had no effect on the activity of native bees. These results raise issues concerning how species introduced in plant–pollinator networks will impact the reproductive success of both native and exotic plants. Furthermore, the urban system could act as a springboard for alien species to disperse in natural systems and even invade them, leading to conservation concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]