Low-density migratory beekeeping induces intermediate disturbance effects on native bee communities in Tibetan Plateau alpine meadows

Abstract

Ecological disturbance can promote or reduce community biodiversity depending on its severity. Beekeeping activities represent a type of ecological disturbance when large numbers of honey bees are introduced to a landscape and interact with the local plant and pollinator community. In this study, we characterized the effect of immediate and long-term low-density migratory beekeeping on the diversity and abundance of native bees in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (China). We found that the presence of apiaries and the number of honey bees reduced native bee abundances in the local bee community, likely through displacement from floral resources. However, in locations where apiaries were previously kept for decades but are not currently present, native bee abundances recovered, and phylogenetic diversity increased; yet community relative abundances and dominant species were distinct from those that had never been stocked. Our results suggest that the presence of a transient, intermediate number of migratory honey bee colonies (60–100 colonies spaced ≥15 km from each other) may represent an intermediate ecological disturbance and not permanently reduce native bee abundances past a critical threshold that may lead to local extirpation. Yet, our study demonstrates the potential for even intermediate-scale low-density beekeeping to alter native bee communities in the long-term.