Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas
Realized trophic specialization, or the food resources with which a species interacts locally, is driven by a species fundamental niche, resource availability, and competition. However, the simultaneous effects of resource availability and competition on trophic specialization have yet to be investi...
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Elsevier
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Basic and Applied Ecology |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000040 |
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| author | Pablo Moreno-García Johanna E. Freeman Benjamin Baiser Joshua W. Campbell Daijiang Li |
| author_facet | Pablo Moreno-García Johanna E. Freeman Benjamin Baiser Joshua W. Campbell Daijiang Li |
| author_sort | Pablo Moreno-García |
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| description | Realized trophic specialization, or the food resources with which a species interacts locally, is driven by a species fundamental niche, resource availability, and competition. However, the simultaneous effects of resource availability and competition on trophic specialization have yet to be investigated in plant-pollinator networks. Here, we disentangled the effects of resource availability (i.e., blooming plant diversity and abundance), and pollinator competitor pool (i.e., pollinator species richness, and abundance of conspecific and heterospecific pollinator individuals) on pollinator trophic specialization. We used samples collected over an entire flowering season in 24 xeric pine savannas in north-central Florida, USA and evaluated the effects of plant availability and pollinator competitor pool on three aspects of trophic specialization: taxonomic specialization (pollinator selection of plant species), phylogenetic specialization (pollinator selection of plant phylogenetic lineages), and functional specialization (pollinator selection of plant functional traits). Our results show that flowering resources and the pools of pollinator competitors both influence pollinator trophic specialization. Individual pollinators reacted to higher pollinator richness by interacting with more flowering plants (i.e.,taxonomically generalist), underscoring the vulnerability of pollination systems to pollinator extinctions (i.e., pollinators visit fewer plant species when there are fewer insect competitors present). Pollinators were more specialized in communities containing many conspecific pollinators, possibly reflecting pollinator preferences. Finally, in more diverse flowering plant assemblages, pollinators were taxonomic specialists in flower visitation but phylogenetic and functional generalists, providing pollination services across diverse plant assemblages. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a6a4d7ed9d3a4e9fbf66e5bd281c3447 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1439-1791 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Basic and Applied Ecology |
| spelling | doaj-art-a6a4d7ed9d3a4e9fbf66e5bd281c34472025-02-10T04:34:16ZengElsevierBasic and Applied Ecology1439-17912025-03-0183118127Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannasPablo Moreno-García0Johanna E. Freeman1Benjamin Baiser2Joshua W. Campbell3Daijiang Li4Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge 70803, LA, USA; School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611, FL, USA; Department Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85719, AZ, USA; Corresponding author.Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Gainesville 32601, FL, USA; School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611, FL, USAWildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611, FL, USAUSDA Agricultural Research Service, Pest Management Research Unit, Northern Plains Agricultural Research, Sidney 59270, MT, USADepartment of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge 70803, LA, USA; Department Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85719, AZ, USA; Center for Computation and Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge 70803, LA, USARealized trophic specialization, or the food resources with which a species interacts locally, is driven by a species fundamental niche, resource availability, and competition. However, the simultaneous effects of resource availability and competition on trophic specialization have yet to be investigated in plant-pollinator networks. Here, we disentangled the effects of resource availability (i.e., blooming plant diversity and abundance), and pollinator competitor pool (i.e., pollinator species richness, and abundance of conspecific and heterospecific pollinator individuals) on pollinator trophic specialization. We used samples collected over an entire flowering season in 24 xeric pine savannas in north-central Florida, USA and evaluated the effects of plant availability and pollinator competitor pool on three aspects of trophic specialization: taxonomic specialization (pollinator selection of plant species), phylogenetic specialization (pollinator selection of plant phylogenetic lineages), and functional specialization (pollinator selection of plant functional traits). Our results show that flowering resources and the pools of pollinator competitors both influence pollinator trophic specialization. Individual pollinators reacted to higher pollinator richness by interacting with more flowering plants (i.e.,taxonomically generalist), underscoring the vulnerability of pollination systems to pollinator extinctions (i.e., pollinators visit fewer plant species when there are fewer insect competitors present). Pollinators were more specialized in communities containing many conspecific pollinators, possibly reflecting pollinator preferences. Finally, in more diverse flowering plant assemblages, pollinators were taxonomic specialists in flower visitation but phylogenetic and functional generalists, providing pollination services across diverse plant assemblages.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000040Plant-pollinator interactionPhylogenetic specializationFunctional specializationPollinator competitionPhylogenetic lineageFunctional trait |
| spellingShingle | Pablo Moreno-García Johanna E. Freeman Benjamin Baiser Joshua W. Campbell Daijiang Li Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas Basic and Applied Ecology Plant-pollinator interaction Phylogenetic specialization Functional specialization Pollinator competition Phylogenetic lineage Functional trait |
| title | Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| title_full | Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| title_fullStr | Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| title_full_unstemmed | Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| title_short | Resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| title_sort | resource availability and competition shape pollinator trophic specialization in longleaf pine savannas |
| topic | Plant-pollinator interaction Phylogenetic specialization Functional specialization Pollinator competition Phylogenetic lineage Functional trait |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000040 |
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