Seasonal Variation and Community Structure of Tropical Bees in a Lowland Tropical Forest of Peninsular Malaysia: the Impact of General Flowering

Author

• Naoya Osawa
• , Yoshitaka Tsubaki

Abstract

All of our experiments were conducted on a canopy tower in Peninsular Malaysia, using an artificial diet. The purpose of our experiment was to clarify the seasonal variation at Pasoh Forest Reserve (Pasoh FR) in and spatial community structure of tropical bees, and to show the impact of general flowering on the community structure of bees. We collected bees over two years at artificial feeders placed at different heights on a canopy tower. Our results showed that there was considerable seasonal variation in the bee community structure: dominant species changed seasonally. From an analysis of the spatial foraging patterns of the bees, we determined that each species might have its own specific searching height. When general flowering occurred, the community structure of bee pollinators changed drastically. Morishita’s β was used as a diversity index for an analysis of data from samples collected before, during, and after general flowering. Before general flowering, the value of β was rather high. However, during general flowering, when more than 95% of the bees were the Asian honeybee Apis cerana, βdecreased. Thereafter, β increased slightly, although 91.6% of individuals were Trigona peninsularis. The foraging strategies of tropical bees are discussed in relation to the vertical structure of a tropical rainforest and the impact of general flowering on the community structure of the bees.

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