Speaker
Description
Understanding how global change drivers influence the functional traits of wild pollinators is critical for predicting ecological responses and guiding conservation strategies. Among these traits, body size plays a central role in bee ecology, affecting dispersal ability, foraging range, reproductive success and ecological interactions. However, the extent to which anthropogenic disturbances, such as agricultural intensification, climate variation and changes in community composition, shape body size patterns in wild bee populations remains underexplored. In this study, we investigate body size as a key response trait across more than 5,000 individuals from 10 wild bee species, sampled at multiple sites across agriculturally dominated landscapes in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Using a trait-based and community-ecological framework, we examine how body size variation relates to gradients in land-use intensity, temperature and community-level metrics such as species diversity, evenness and abundance. By integrating trait and community data, our work seeks to uncover how both abiotic and biotic factors jointly influence body size variation within and across species. This framework contributes to a deeper understanding of ecological filtering and competition in shaping bee trait dynamics under global change.
| Status Group | Doctoral Researcher |
|---|---|
| Poster Presentation Option | Yes, I’m willing to present as a poster. |
