https://orcid.org/0009-0008-7082-0414
![Sample our Environment & Agriculture journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5934/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Environment-Agriculture.jpg"})
Abstract
Little is known about the agroecological implications of the Asian honey bee Apis cerana Fabricius in its vast native range including southeast India. To identify the foraging preferences of this generalist species, we collected 388 corbicular pollen samples over three years at Merveille, an eco-restoration site in Puducherry region, southeast India. Pollen was collected twice or thrice weekly from March 2018 to December 2021 in three locations within the site. We used canonical correspondence analysis to evaluate how average daily temperature, humidity and other meteorological changes over the years would influence A. cerana’s diet. We show that (1) A. cerana has a large dietary niche (87 pollen taxa), but essentially feeds on Cocos nucifera (all year long) and on Borassus flabellifer, Turnera, Acacia, Mollugo/Trianthema, Leucaena/Prosopis, Portulaca, Poaceae, Syzygium-t, Dodonaea viscosa and Boerhavia seasonally; these were most frequently and abundantly foraged at all locations. (2) In all locations, bees preferentially feed on arboreal plants (44 taxa). (3) Bees' pollen diet varies in composition according to seasons. It is also least diverse in the hottest and driest months (March-May) with 2–4 taxa against 7–13 taxa in other months. (4) In 2021, which was more humid and slightly cooler than 2018 and 2019, bee diet included more pollen of Cyperaceae, Dodonaea viscosa, Liliaceae and fallow land weeds such as Boerhavia and Mimosa pudica. In conclusion, corbicular pollen loads of Apis cerana provide a long and continuous record of the bee’s diet and its changes through time and space. The diet changed according to subtle changes in humidity and temperature as also drastic changes in rainfall at the study site, likely reflecting changes in the floral resource availability and the bees’ preference. The sustained presence of this bee species within its native ranges can be a bellwether of pollinator friendly habitats.
Acknowledgements
The first author expresses gratitude for the support received via the IFP PhD fellowship (2020–2023). We would like to acknowledge the contributions of late Prakash Patel for granting access to Merveille, Pradeep Patnaik for assisting in plant identification, M. Anbarashan for providing meteorological data and G. Orukaimani for laboratory support. Nina Sengupta (Ecologist at Auroville) provided some useful feedback on an earlier version of the manuscript. The author extends thanks to the Director and the Head of the Department of Botany at Kanchi Mamunivar Govt. Institute for Postgraduate Studies and Research, Puducherry for their encouragement and support.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Data repository file
Original pollen data (raw pollen counts) have been uploaded to Mendeley data with an embargo as first author is a PhD student. doi: 10.17632/n89jt2k5pn.1.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Jean Lazar
JEAN LAZAR has a master's degree in Plant Biology and Biotechnology from Pondicherry University, India. Currently he is a Doctoral student conducting research with a special focus on the foraging behaviour of native Indian honey bees, combining field and lab methods in palynology and plant sciences. He has experience in pollen morphology and plant taxonomy in tropical region.
Srinivasan Prasad
SRINIVASAN PRASAD is a pollen analyst at the IFP since more than 30 years, with experience in field methodologies, laboratory protocols and microscopic analyses pertaining to pollen morphology and Quaternary Palynology. His specific expertise is on identifying and describing pollen recovered from the sediments of tropical India, Sri Lanka and Cambodia.
Doris Barboni
DORIS BARBONI is a paleoecologist studying plant micro-fossils, namely phytoliths and pollen grains that accumulate in present-day modern soils and may be found preserved in fossil sediments. She is interested in understanding the interactions between plants, vegetation and climate in the past and has worked in South India and in Africa. Currently she is Head of the Department of Ecology, French Institute of Pondicherry (IFP).
Lipi Das
LIPI DAS is one of the key teachers involved in Project Ecolake, Education and Research in Applied Ecology, SAICE through a 45 year long eco-restoration project at Mereville where students of SAICE learn hands-on about and from Nature. Her special experience and knowledge are in studying and building habitat for native honeybee species and earthworms. Lipi, skilled in plant regeneration, is passionate about improving the urban atmosphere and experiments with urban gardening to provide green solutions even in tiny spaces.
Vadivelu Kumaresan
VADIVELU KUMARESAN is Assistant Professor of Botany carrying out research in the field of fungal diversity, Plant Diversity and Molecular Biology. He has also guided Master's students on Angiosperm pollen morphological diversity studies. In collaboration with IFP, Puducherry he has worked on pollen and phytoliths occurring in the soil sediments at an archeological site.
Krishnamurthy Anupama
KRISHNAMURTHY ANUPAMA is a Palynologist and Palaeoecologist at IFP. Since more than 30 years she has been carrying out research in the fields of Palaeovegetation reconstruction, Pollination Ecology and Aerobiology employing pollen grains as the key tool. She has guided/co-guided several doctoral and Masters Students on various aspects of Quaternary Palynology, melisso – & entomo - palynology and in diverse topics linked to palynology. She has been actively involved with Humans and Biosphere Commission of INQUA and is a member of PAGES Landcover6K Working group.