Page 21 - Buzzword 41_online

My research focused on how plant-
pollinator communities change over time
(think of how different a wild-flower meadow
will be in May compared to August) and
how pollinators, particularly bumblebees,
respond to sudden changes in the
community. As expected, my data shows
that plant-pollinator communities are highly
dynamic, and therefore long-lived pollinator
species (such as bumblebees) must be able
to respond to changes in their environment.
However, I found that even closely
related bumblebee species responded
very differently to sudden changes to the
community, thus making it difficult to predict
how these communities may adapt in
the future. As always, further research is
desirable.
Network ecology is a growing field of
research and likely to become increasingly
Photo: Dr Bane collecting network data in valuable with the general shift to more
the field ‘landscape-scale’ conservation projects.
Plant-pollinator networks are often Focusing on particular species will always
constructed from observed interactions. be important, especially considering some
Spending days in a beautiful wild-flower will be more vulnerable, and higher priority
meadow, recording the different species than others. However, I am hopeful that the
and the interactions I observed between combination of both approaches will enable
them was a particularly enjoyable aspect of us to better protect and enhance ecological
my research. Ecologists around the world communities. Therefore, in our mission
are doing the same and we have a growing, to save bumblebees we will also build
global collection of plant-pollinator networks. and support healthy, diverse and resilient
You can explore these online at www.web- pollinator communities.
of-life.es (the network visualisations are Photo: Shared interactions: at least three
particularly pleasing). different species of bumblebee visiting Woolly
Plant-pollinator networks allow us to record thistle (Cirsium arvense)
and visualise complex communities. We
can then compare communities around
the world, and across time. We can also
examine the structure of the network, which
enables us to ask questions about the
ecology of the community. For example;
how much competition is there between
species; what is the potential for disease
spread; are there key species that support
many others; if one species disappears,
what effect will this have on the whole
community?
21