Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System

In the present study, we used niche overlap analysis and a network approach to investigate the use of floral resources by carpenter bees (Xylocopa spp.). We assessed the frequency of visit to different plant species and the activity time of carpenter bees in an agricultural system. Six species of c...

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Main Authors: Danielle Mendes Carvalho, Candida Maria Lima Aguiar, Gilberto Marcos Mendonça Santos
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana 2013-11-01
Series:Sociobiology
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Online Access:https://www.periodicos.uefs.br/index.php/sociobiology/article/view/166
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author Danielle Mendes Carvalho
Candida Maria Lima Aguiar
Gilberto Marcos Mendonça Santos
author_facet Danielle Mendes Carvalho
Candida Maria Lima Aguiar
Gilberto Marcos Mendonça Santos
author_sort Danielle Mendes Carvalho
collection DOAJ
description In the present study, we used niche overlap analysis and a network approach to investigate the use of floral resources by carpenter bees (Xylocopa spp.). We assessed the frequency of visit to different plant species and the activity time of carpenter bees in an agricultural system. Six species of carpenter bees were collected visiting flowers. Among the 48 interactions that were theoretically possible in the interaction network, only 19 were recorded (Connectance = 39.58%). The temporal overlap between pairs of species measured by the Shannon index (0 to 0.648) was lower than dietary overlap (0 to 0.967). The network analysis also showed that bees separated their niches more strongly in the temporal dimension (E = 0.72, P < 0.001) than in the dietary dimension (E = 0.55, P < 0.001). The levels of dietary and temporal overlap were strongly correlated with each other, as well as the time of highest frequency of visit coincided with the time of availability of resources by the most important plants (Moringa oleifera, Passiflora edulis, and Solanum palinacanthum). The correlation between dietary and temporal overlap is biologically explained by the presence of plants that structure the system by exerting a strong influence not only on the plant choice by foraging bees, but also on the time of resource collection.
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spelling doaj-art-49cda0cf621641dd8fa2f990694f6ac82025-08-20T03:20:13ZengUniversidade Estadual de Feira de SantanaSociobiology0361-65252447-80672013-11-01603Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural SystemDanielle Mendes Carvalho0Candida Maria Lima Aguiar1Gilberto Marcos Mendonça Santos2Universidade Estadual de Feira de SantanaUniversidade Estadual de Feira de SantanaUniversidade Estadual de Feira de Santana In the present study, we used niche overlap analysis and a network approach to investigate the use of floral resources by carpenter bees (Xylocopa spp.). We assessed the frequency of visit to different plant species and the activity time of carpenter bees in an agricultural system. Six species of carpenter bees were collected visiting flowers. Among the 48 interactions that were theoretically possible in the interaction network, only 19 were recorded (Connectance = 39.58%). The temporal overlap between pairs of species measured by the Shannon index (0 to 0.648) was lower than dietary overlap (0 to 0.967). The network analysis also showed that bees separated their niches more strongly in the temporal dimension (E = 0.72, P < 0.001) than in the dietary dimension (E = 0.55, P < 0.001). The levels of dietary and temporal overlap were strongly correlated with each other, as well as the time of highest frequency of visit coincided with the time of availability of resources by the most important plants (Moringa oleifera, Passiflora edulis, and Solanum palinacanthum). The correlation between dietary and temporal overlap is biologically explained by the presence of plants that structure the system by exerting a strong influence not only on the plant choice by foraging bees, but also on the time of resource collection. https://www.periodicos.uefs.br/index.php/sociobiology/article/view/166carpenter beesplant networktrophic nichestemporal activity
spellingShingle Danielle Mendes Carvalho
Candida Maria Lima Aguiar
Gilberto Marcos Mendonça Santos
Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
Sociobiology
carpenter bees
plant network
trophic niches
temporal activity
title Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
title_full Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
title_fullStr Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
title_full_unstemmed Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
title_short Food Niche Overlap Among Neotropical Carpenter Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini) in an Agricultural System
title_sort food niche overlap among neotropical carpenter bees hymenoptera apidae xylocopini in an agricultural system
topic carpenter bees
plant network
trophic niches
temporal activity
url https://www.periodicos.uefs.br/index.php/sociobiology/article/view/166
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