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Diversity of cavity-nesting bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) within apple orchards and wild habitats in the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2012

Cory S. Sheffield ,
Peter G. Kevan ,
Sue M. Westby  and
Robert F. Smith
Cory S. Sheffield*
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 32 Main Street, Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada B4N 1J5
Peter G. Kevan
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1
Sue M. Westby
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 32 Main Street, Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada B4N 1J5
Robert F. Smith
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 32 Main Street, Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada B4N 1J5
*
2Corresponding author (e-mail: corys@yorku.ca).
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Abstract

Solitary cavity-nesting bees, especially trap-nesting Megachilidae, have great potential as commercial pollinators. A few species have been developed for crop pollination, but the diversity, abundance, and potential pollination contributions of native cavity-nesting bees within agricultural systems have seldom been assessed. Our objectives were to compare the diversity and fecundity of cavity-nesting bees in Nova Scotia in natural ecosystems with those in apple orchards under three levels of management, using trap nests, and to determine whether any native bees show promise for development as pollinators. Our results show that species richness and numbers of bees reared from trap nests in commercially managed orchards, abandoned orchards, and natural habitats were similar, and species’ compositional patterns were not unique to specific habitats. Trap nests can be used to increase and maintain cavity-nesting bee populations within Nova Scotia apple orchards. Osmia tersula Cockerell (Megachilidae), which accounted for almost 45% of all bees captured and was the most abundant species nesting in all habitats evaluated, should be assessed for potential as a commercial pollinator of spring-flowering crops. The influence of natural cavities on bee species richness in trap-nesting surveys is also discussed.

Résumé

Les abeilles solitaires qui nichent dans les cavités, particulièrement les Megachilidae qui logent dans les nids-pièges, représentent un important potentiel de pollinisateurs commerciaux. Quelques espèces ont été utilisées pour la pollinisation des cultures, mais on a rarement évalué la diversité, l’abondance et la contribution potentielle à la pollinisation des abeilles qui nichent dans les cavités dans les systèmes agricoles. Notre objectif est de comparer à l’aide de nids-pièges la diversité et la fécondité des abeilles qui nichent dans les cavités dans les écosystèmes naturels et dans des pommeraies gérées sous trois régimes différents en Nouvelle-Écosse, ainsi que de déterminer s’il y a des abeilles indigènes qui offrent un potentiel pour servir à la pollinisation. Nos résultats montrent que la richesse spécifique et le nombre d’abeilles obtenues dans les nids-pièges sont semblables dans les pommeraies sous gestion commerciale, dans les pommeraies abandonnées et les habitats naturels; de plus, les patrons de composition spécifique ne sont pas propres aux différents habitats. Dans les pommeraies de Nouvelle-Écosse, les nids-pièges peuvent servir à augmenter et à maintenir les populations d’abeilles qui nichent dans les cavités. Osmia tersula Cockerell (Megachilidae), qui représente presque 45 % de toutes les abeilles capturées et qui est l’espèce la plus abondante à nicher dans tous les habitats étudiés, devrait être évalué en vue d’une utilisation éventuelle comme pollinisateur des cultures qui fleurissent au printemps. Nous discutons aussi de l’influence des cavités naturelles sur la richesse spécifique des abeilles dans les inventaires faits à l’aide de nids-pièges.

[Traduit par la Rédaction]

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 140 , Issue 2 , April 2008 , pp. 235 - 249
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 2008

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