Bees in agricultural systems: taxonomic and functional diversity review and research perspectives

Abstract

Bees are insects of great ecological importance since they are responsible for processes such as pollination in natural and agricultural environments, contributing to the health and resilience of ecosystems. We conducted a review to address the taxonomic and functional dimensions of the bees’ diversity in palm, potato, coffee, granadilla, gulupa and passion fruit crops. Using keywords and Boolean operators we searched for information in databases. Curves analogous of species accumulation were constructed and a complementarity analysis was carried out to assess taxonomic diversity. We used a cluster analysis to identify functional types and evaluate the functional richness of each crop. Nineteen publications of bees associated with crops, with records of 116 species, were found. Palm cultivation presented the highest richness with 48 species, followed by potato (44) and coffee (41). We identified 11 functional types, where the most representative was bees with corbicula, eusocial, that nest in any cavity (ScEuCc). Functional richness was higher in coffee (3.33), followed by potato (2.83) and gulupa (2.00). The high diversity of bees in agroecosystems seems to be related to the proximity of each crop to forest fragments, according to what could be analyzed from the publications. Agroecosystems could offer an alternative resource to bees by allowing them to combat the decline of their habitats, so we suggest expanding research on the benefits of agricultural crops on the bee community.