Urbanization Effects on Wild Bee Communities and Their Plant Interactions

Urbanization has contributed greatly to the diminishment of habitat that supports diverse bee communities. Despite generally having negative effects on bees broadly, bees exhibit differential responses to local and landscape features associated with urbanization. As a result, cities possess the potential to harbor unique bee communities; however, determining which bees are vulnerable in such landscapes is essential to developing appropriate conservation initiatives that promote biodiversity in urban spaces. This study reviews the current known effects of urbanization on bees while recognizing knowledge gaps that require further research attention. Additionally, this study samples twenty-nine sites along an urban gradient to investigate the effects of urbanization on bee community structure and plant interactions. Bee communities were dominated by key functional traits and were found to be influenced by percent impervious surface and tree cover. Bee-plant interactions revealed the genus Solidago and other plant genera to be particularly attractive to various bee species.