title: Landscape distribution of food and nesting sites affect larval diet and nest size, but not abundance of Osmia bicornis.
abstract: Habitat fragmentation is a major threat for beneficial organisms and the ecosystem services they provide. Multiple-habitat users such as wild bees depend on both nesting and foraging habitat. Thus, they may be affected by the fragmentation of at least two habitat types. We investigated the effects of landscape-scale amount of and patch isolation from both nesting habitat (woody plants) and foraging habitat (specific pollen sources) on the abundance and diet of Osmia bicornis L. Trap-nests of O. bicornis were studied in 30 agricultural landscapes of the Swiss Plateau. Nesting and foraging habitats were mapped in a radius of 500 m around the sites. Pollen composition of larval diet changed as isolation to the main pollen source, Ranunculus, increased, suggesting that O. bicornis adapted its foraging strategy in function of the nest proximity to main pollen sources. Abundance of O. bicornis was neither related to isolation or amount of nesting habitat nor to isolation or abundance of food plants. Surprisingly, nests of O. bicornis contained fewer larvae in sites at forest edge compared to isolated sites, possibly due to higher parasitism risk. This study indicates that O. bicornis can nest in a variety of situations by compensating scarcity of its main larval food by exploiting alternative food sources.
authors.affiliation: Research Station ART, Zürich, CH-8046, Switzerland. vcoudrain@gmail.com.|Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, CH-3012, Switzerland. vcoudrain@gmail.com.|Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau/Pfalz, D-76829, Germany. vcoudrain@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Valérie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Coudrain
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, CH-3012, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rittiner
authors.affiliation: Research Station ART, Zürich, CH-8046, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Herzog
authors.affiliation: Institute of Plant Sciences and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, CH-3013, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Willy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tinner
authors.affiliation: Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau/Pfalz, D-76829, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Entling
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001070:Appetitive Behavior; D001516:Bees / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D017753:Ecosystem; D065928:Forests; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology; D009425:Nesting Behavior; D011058:Pollen; D031947:Ranunculus; D013557:Switzerland
keywords: Hymenoptera; Megachilidae; diet; fragmentation; habitat amount; habitat isolation; pollen analysis