Long-range Pollen Transport Across the North Sea: Insights from Migratory Hoverflies Landing on a Remote Oil Rig
Insect pollinators play a crucial role in the reproductive success of many plant species, with their movement patterns important in shaping gene flow across plant populations. Of these highly mobile flower visitors, migratory hoverflies are of high ecological and economic importance as a large group of globally distributed pollinators, capable of connecting distant ecosystems through long-range seasonal movements. However, understanding their role in pollen transport during predominantly high-altitude migration remains challenging due to sampling constraints and the obscured identity of vectored pollen caused by post-migratory foraging from local resources. To address this, we employ metabarcoding to identify pollen species transported by migratory hoverflies during four distinct migration events onto an oil rig devoid of vegetation and found 200 km off the coast of Scotland in the North Sea. Our findings highlight the capacity of migratory hoverflies to transport diverse pollen species across extensive distances, underscoring their potential role in long-distance gene flow.