Fire, a frequent disturbance in the Mediterranean, affects pollinator communi-ties. We explored the response of major pollinator guilds to fire severity, across a fire-severitygradient at different spatial scales. We show that the abundance of all pollinator groupsresponded to fire severity, and that bees and beetles showed in addition a significant species-diversity response. Bees, sawflies, and wasps responded to fire severity at relatively small spatialscales (250–300 m), whereas flies and beetles responded at larger spatial scales. The responseof bees, sawflies, and wasps was unimodal, as predicted by the intermediate disturbancehypothesis, whereas flies and beetles showed a negative response. A possible explanation is thatthe observed patterns (spatial scale and type of response) are driven by taxa-specific ecologicaland life-history traits, such as nesting preference and body size, as well as the availability ofresources in the postfire landscape. Our observational study provides an insight into the effectof fire severity on pollinators. However, future research exploring the explicit link between thepre- and postfire landscape structure and pollinator traits and responses is required for furtherestablishment and understanding of cause–effect relationships.
Moderate fire severity is best for the diversity of most of the pollinator guilds in Mediterranean pine forests
Year: 2019
