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Widespread losses of pollinating insects in Britain

Author

Listed:
  • Gary D. Powney

    (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)

  • Claire Carvell

    (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)

  • Mike Edwards

    (BWARS (Bees, Wasps and Ants Recording Society), Leaside)

  • Roger K. A. Morris

    (UK Hoverfly Recording Scheme)

  • Helen E. Roy

    (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)

  • Ben A. Woodcock

    (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)

  • Nick J. B. Isaac

    (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)

Abstract

Pollination is a critical ecosystem service underpinning the productivity of agricultural systems across the world. Wild insect populations provide a substantial contribution to the productivity of many crops and seed set of wild flowers. However, large-scale evidence on species-specific trends among wild pollinators are lacking. Here we show substantial inter-specific variation in pollinator trends, based on occupancy models for 353 wild bee and hoverfly species in Great Britain between 1980 and 2013. Furthermore, we estimate a net loss of over 2.7 million occupied 1 km2 grid cells across all species. Declines in pollinator evenness suggest that losses were concentrated in rare species. In addition, losses linked to specific habitats were identified, with a 55% decline among species associated with uplands. This contrasts with dominant crop pollinators, which increased by 12%, potentially in response agri-environment measures. The general declines highlight a fundamental deterioration in both wider biodiversity and non-crop pollination services.

Suggested Citation

  • Gary D. Powney & Claire Carvell & Mike Edwards & Roger K. A. Morris & Helen E. Roy & Ben A. Woodcock & Nick J. B. Isaac, 2019. "Widespread losses of pollinating insects in Britain," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-6, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:10:y:2019:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-019-08974-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-08974-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Stock, Michiel & Piot, Niels & Vanbesien, Sarah & Meys, Joris & Smagghe, Guy & De Baets, Bernard, 2021. "Pairwise learning for predicting pollination interactions based on traits and phylogeny," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 451(C).
    2. Betti, Matthew I. & Lee, Isaac, 2020. "The effects of diploid male production on honey bee colony evolution and survival," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 49-55.
    3. Maderson, Siobhan, 2023. "Co-producing agricultural policy with beekeepers: Obstacles and opportunities," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    4. Stefanie Christmann & Youssef Bencharki & Soukaina Anougmar & Pierre Rasmont & Moulay Chrif Smaili & Athanasios Tsivelikas & Aden Aw-Hassan, 2021. "Farming with Alternative Pollinators benefits pollinators, natural enemies, and yields, and offers transformative change to agriculture," Post-Print hal-03355596, HAL.
    5. Martin Šlachta & Tomáš Erban & Alena Votavová & Tomáš Bešta & Michal Skalský & Marta Václavíková & Taťána Halešová & Magda Edwards-Jonášová & Renata Včeláková & Pavel Cudlín, 2020. "Domestic Gardens Mitigate Risk of Exposure of Pollinators to Pesticides—An Urban-Rural Case Study Using a Red Mason Bee Species for Biomonitoring," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-17, November.
    6. Wu-Bing Xu & Shane A. Blowes & Viviana Brambilla & Cher F. Y. Chow & Ada Fontrodona-Eslava & Inês S. Martins & Daniel McGlinn & Faye Moyes & Alban Sagouis & Hideyasu Shimadzu & Roel Klink & Anne E. Ma, 2023. "Regional occupancy increases for widespread species but decreases for narrowly distributed species in metacommunity time series," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    7. Image, Mike & Gardner, Emma & Breeze, Tom D., 2023. "Co-benefits from tree planting in a typical English agricultural landscape: Comparing the relative effectiveness of hedgerows, agroforestry and woodland creation for improving crop pollination service," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    8. Blaydes, H. & Potts, S.G. & Whyatt, J.D. & Armstrong, A., 2021. "Opportunities to enhance pollinator biodiversity in solar parks," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    9. Georgios Nakas & Konstantinos Kougioumoutzis & Theodora Petanidou, 2023. "Short- and Mid-Term Spatiotemporal Diversity Patterns of Post-Fire Insect-Pollinated Plant Communities in the Mediterranean," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-13, November.
    10. Boyd, Robin J. & Bowler, Diana E. & Isaac, Nick J.B. & Pescott, Oliver L., 2024. "On the trade-off between accuracy and spatial resolution when estimating species occupancy from geographically biased samples," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 493(C).
    11. Connor M. French & Laura D. Bertola & Ana C. Carnaval & Evan P. Economo & Jamie M. Kass & David J. Lohman & Katharine A. Marske & Rudolf Meier & Isaac Overcast & Andrew J. Rominger & Phillip P. A. Sta, 2023. "Global determinants of insect mitochondrial genetic diversity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-15, December.
    12. Bin Han & Jiangli Wu & Qiaohong Wei & Fengying Liu & Lihong Cui & Olav Rueppell & Shufa Xu, 2024. "Life-history stage determines the diet of ectoparasitic mites on their honey bee hosts," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-15, December.

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