Laboratory of Biogeography & Ecology, Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, Mytilene, Greece.
Department of Ecology, School of Biology, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Plant Biol (Stuttg). 2018 Jan;20 Suppl 1:176-183. doi: 10.1111/plb.12593. Epub 2017 Jul 20.
Plant-pollinator network structure is the outcome of ecological and evolutionary processes, and although the importance of environmental factors is beyond doubt, our knowledge of how abiotic factors (e.g. climate) shape plant-pollinator networks remains limited. This knowledge gap is critical, as climate change poses a major threat to ecosystems, especially in the Mediterranean. This study focuses on one of the hottest parts of the Mediterranean Basin, the Aegean Archipelago, Greece, and examines how climate affects species richness and network properties (e.g. nestedness, modularity and specialisation) - either directly or indirectly through species richness. We sampled systematically 39 local plant-pollinator networks on eight islands along a north-south climate gradient in the Aegean. All plant-pollinator material used in the analyses was collected in 2012 and identified to species level. Aspects of climate used in the models were expressed as average conditions (mean temperature and annual precipitation) or as seasonal variability (isothermality and temperature seasonality). Structural properties of plant-pollinator networks were found to be strongly associated with species richness, which was in turn affected by climate, implying that pollination network structure is driven indirectly by climate. In addition, climate had a direct effect on network structure, especially on modularity and specialisation. Different aspects of climate affected network properties in different ways. We highlight that even in a relatively narrow latitudinal gradient, such as within the Aegean Sea region, climate constitutes a significant driver of plant-pollinator interactions.
植物-传粉者网络结构是生态和进化过程的结果，尽管环境因素的重要性毋庸置疑，但我们对于非生物因素（如气候）如何塑造植物-传粉者网络的了解仍然有限。这一知识差距至关重要，因为气候变化对生态系统构成了重大威胁，特别是在地中海地区。本研究聚焦于地中海盆地最热的地区之一，希腊的爱琴海群岛，考察了气候如何通过物种丰富度直接或间接地影响网络属性（例如嵌套性、模块性和专业化）。我们在爱琴海南北气候梯度上的八个岛屿上系统地采样了 39 个本地植物-传粉者网络。分析中使用的所有植物-传粉者材料均于 2012 年采集，并鉴定到种水平。模型中使用的气候方面被表示为平均条件（平均温度和年降水量）或季节性变化（均温性和温度季节性）。植物-传粉者网络的结构属性与物种丰富度密切相关，而物种丰富度又受到气候的影响，这意味着授粉网络结构间接受到气候的驱动。此外，气候对网络结构具有直接影响，尤其是对模块性和专业化的影响。气候的不同方面以不同的方式影响网络属性。我们强调，即使在相对狭窄的纬度梯度内，如爱琴海地区，气候也是植物-传粉者相互作用的重要驱动因素。
