Drought reduces floral resources for pollinators

Phillips, Benjamin B.; Shaw, Rosalind F.; Holland, Matthew J.; Fry, Ellen L.; Bardgett, Richard D.; Bullock, James M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0529-4020; Osborne, Juliet L.. 2018 Drought reduces floral resources for pollinators. Global Change Biology, 24 (7). 3226-3235. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.14130

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Abstract/Summary

Climate change is predicted to result in increased occurrence and intensity of drought in many regions worldwide. By increasing plant physiological stress, drought is likely to affect the floral resources (flowers, nectar and pollen) that are available to pollinators. However, little is known about impacts of drought at the community level, nor whether plant community functional composition influences these impacts. To address these knowledge gaps, we investigated the impacts of drought on floral resources in calcareous grassland. Drought was simulated using rain shelters and the impacts were explored at multiple scales and on four different experimental plant communities varying in functional trait composition. First, we investigated the effects of drought on nectar production of three common wildflower species (Lathyrus pratensis, Onobrychis viciifolia and Prunella vulgaris). In the drought treatment, L. pratensis and P. vulgaris had a lower proportion of flowers containing nectar and O. viciifolia had fewer flowers per raceme. Second, we measured the effects of drought on the diversity and abundance of floral resources across plant communities. Drought reduced the abundance of floral units for all plant communities, irrespective of functional composition, and reduced floral species richness for two of the communities. Functional diversity did not confer greater resistance to drought in terms of maintaining floral resources, probably because the effects of drought were ubiquitous across component plant communities. The findings indicate that drought has a substantial impact on the availability of floral resources in calcareous grassland, which will have consequences for pollinator behaviour and populations.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.14130
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Biodiversity (Science Area 2017-)
ISSN:	1354-1013
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	Open Access paper - full text available via Official URL link.
Additional Keywords:	calcareous grassland, climate change, drought stress, functional traits, Lathyrus pratensis, nectar, Onobrychis viciifolia, pollination, Prunella vulgaris, water availability
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment
Date made live:	08 Jun 2018 14:12 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/520242

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