Although elevational gradients of biodiversity have long been the topic of scientific research, information on patterns of, and processes that shape insect community structure across elevation is still lacking. Addressing this gap requires the use of both taxonomic and functional approaches when studying diversity across elevational gradients. In this study, we examined taxonomic and functional alpha and beta diversity of ant assemblages sampled along tropical, subtropical, and subalpine elevational transects in Yunnan Province, southwest China. Species richness was used to quantify taxonomic alpha diversity, and two indices (FD and FRic) were calculated using morphological measurements to quantify functional alpha diversity. Taxonomic and functional beta diversity were partitioned into their turnover- and nestedness-resultant components. Though temperature and functional alpha diversity decreased linearly with increasing elevation, taxonomic alpha diversity showed a significant logarithmic decrease, with few species present at elevations greater than 3000 m a.s.l. The turnover-resultant component of taxonomic beta diversity increased with increasing elevational distance, while the nestedness-resultant component of functional beta diversity increased with increasing elevational distance in the subtropical transect. The observed patterns of taxonomic and functional diversity reflected ants’ thermophilic nature, implying functional adaptations (i.e., nested functional diversity) at higher elevations where environmental conditions were unfavorable.

(1) Background: Landscape simplification is a major threat to bee and wasp conservation in the tropics, but reliable, long-term population data are lacking. We investigated how community composition, diversity, and abundance of tropical solitary bees and wasps change with landscape simplification (plant diversity, plant richness, distance from forest, forest cover, and land use type) and season. (2) Methods: We installed 336 timber and cob trap nests in four complex forests and three simplified orchards within the subtropical biodiversity hotspot of south-east Queensland, Australia. Trap nests were replaced every season for 23 months and all emergents identified. (3) Results: We identified 28 wasp species and 13 bee species from 2251 brood cells. Bee and wasp community composition changed with landscape simplification such that large, ground-nesting, and spider-hunting species were present in all landscapes, while those with specialist resource requirements and (clepto) parasitoids were present only in complex landscapes. Abundance and diversity of bees and wasps were unaffected by landscape simplification but increased with rainfall. (4) Conclusions: This study highlights the need for multi-year studies incorporating nuanced measures such as composition with a focus on functional diversity to detect changes bee and wasp populations.

Pollination is essential for the reproductive output of crops. Anthropogenic disturbance and global pollinator decline limit pollination success, reducing the quantity or quality of pollen. Relationships between the abundance of flower visitors and fruit production are often poorly understood. We aimed to (1) identify and quantify flower visitors in a mango orchard; (2) assess how much of the crop resulted from self- versus cross-pollination at increasing distances from a cross-pollen source in large, single-cultivar blocks of the cultivar Kensington Pride or the cultivar Calypso; and (3) determine how pollen parentage affected the size, colour, flavour attributes, and nutritional quality of fruit. Mango flowers were mostly visited by rhiniid flies and coccinellid beetles. Approximately 30% of the fruit were the result of cross-pollination, with the percentage significantly decreasing with an increasing distance from a cross-pollen source in the cultivar Calypso. Self-pollinated Calypso fruit were slightly larger and heavier, with higher acid and total polyphenol concentrations than cross-pollinated fruit. Our results showed higher-than-expected levels of cross-fertilisation among fruit, although self-pollen was likely more abundant than cross-pollen in the large orchard blocks. Our results suggest the preferential cross-fertilisation of flowers or the preferential retention of cross-fertilised fruitlets, both representing strategies for circumventing inbreeding depression. Growers should establish vegetated habitats to support pollinator populations and interplant cultivars more closely to maximise cross-pollen transfer.

Review of the hymenopteran fauna of New Caledonia with a checklist of species