Invasive plants as novel food resources, the pollinators' perspective [article]

Ignasi Bartomeus, Jochen Fründ, Neal M. Williams
2015 bioRxiv   pre-print
Entomophilous exotic plant species not only compete directly for space and light with other plants, but also offer resource opportunities for the native pollinator community. Most research on this topic to date has taken the plant perspective, focusing on how successful plant invaders integrate into the native plant-pollinator interaction networks. However, species specific responses of pollinators to the addition of exotic plants are rarely taken into account. We show here that while some
more » ... e bees and other trophic generalist bees can benefit from exotic plant invasions, other species can be negatively affected. Behavioral flexibility may be the key to persist in a changing world.
doi:10.1101/018952 fatcat:skbbgb7eqzdfjjfibihuowbc6e