Abstract
Honey bees are being scrutinized for their potential impact upon wild bees. In lowland heath mosaics, a simple but resource rich habitat for pollinators, there is a higher probability of niche overlap for bumble bees and honey bees due to the requirement of similar resources and limited floral diversity. This study assesses i) if there is any evidence of forage competition between bumble bees and honey bees and ii) asks to what extent the number of bumble bee foragers in a lowland heath mosaic over the summer months is affected by floral resource availability in different heath types (wet/dry). Bumble bee and honey bee counts were conducted at 30 wet heath and 30 dry heath 20 m × 20 m sites, in the Poole Basin, UK. The relationships between bumble bee and honey bee forager observations and ericaceous forage availability throughout the summer were evaluated using GLMMs considering presence and abundance of honey bees and specific floral availability as factors.Only weak correlations of honey bee forager abundance on bumble bee forager abundance were detected. Instead, the most important factors relating to bumble bee numbers were the abundance of specific floral resources within the heath type (wet/dry). Bumble bees and honey bees showed resource use consistent with resource partitioning with bumble bees predominantly using wet heaths and honey bees using dry heaths. These findings provide evidence of the importance of maintaining complex habitat mosaics within broader habitats to promote coexistence between bumble bees and honey bees.
Highlights
The honey bee (Apis mellifera) has long been suspected of competing for resources with wild bees as its populations are artificially modified by humans and their impact per colony is large (See: Goulson 2003b; Paini 2004; Mallinger, Grains-Day & Gratton 2017)
This study addresses if there is any evidence of foraging competition between bumble bees and honey bees for forage on lowland heath and explores the possibility of floral resource partitioning by monitoring the abundance of bumble bee foragers on lowland heath mosaics over the summer months in response to i) honey bee forager abundance and ii) floral resource availability in different heath types
Honey bee presence was only significantly correlated with the percentage floral cover of C. vulgaris (Table 1, Fig 2A)
Summary
The honey bee (Apis mellifera) has long been suspected of competing for resources with wild bees as its populations are artificially modified by humans and their impact per colony is large (See: Goulson 2003b; Paini 2004; Mallinger, Grains-Day & Gratton 2017). This is important as many wild pollinators, such as bumble bees, are already in decline, due to many factors including agricultural intensification and urbanisation (Ghazoul 2005; Vanbergan 2013; Potts et al 2010; Dicks 2012; Montero-Castano & Vila 2012). Potential for niche overlap and competition on heathlands between honey bees and wild bees may be enhanced by the limited floral diversity available at the beginning and the end of the summer
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