Publication Date
Spring 2025
Abstract
Because of the importance of pollination for both natural ecosystems and the global food system, many studies have been conducted to understand plant-pollinator networks and how they respond to disturbances. This study compared network structures of edge areas of three habitats in the Ecuadorian Chocó-Andino región: a road, river, and forest and evaluated correlations between vegetation characteristics and pollinator richness. In each site, plant species and floral abundance were recorded along a 50m transect. Each flowering plant was observed for five minutes for insect visitors and data was used to construct bipartite networks. Results show that, as is characteristic of mutualistic networks, all three networks are weakly connected, highly nested, specialized, and asymmetric. The forest edge habitat was the least connected and most nested, indicative of a more species rich network that is potentially more resilient, possibly due to its proximity to a well-preserved ecosystem. The river network was the most connected, likely due to its small size, and displayed the highest level of asymmetry, with plant species more vulnerable to pollinator extinctions. Finally, the road network was the least specialized, which may be a result of less forest cover. An analysis of vegetation characteristics revealed few strong relationships, although floral abundance was positively correlated with pollinator richness, as seen in other studies. Understanding network characteristics can be used to support resilient networks and the ecosystem services they provide.
Disciplines
Life Sciences
Recommended Citation
Kamper, Megan, "Pollinator Networks in Ecosystems Edges: Structural Differences and the Role of Vegetation Characteristics in the Ecuadorian Chocó" (2025). Ecuador: Comparative Ecology and Conservation. 10.
https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/ece/10