[Pollinator] non-native bees

[David Inouye]

Russo, L. (2016). "Positive and negative impacts of non-native bee 
species around the world." Insects 7(4): 69.

     Though they are relatively understudied, non-native bees are 
ubiquitous and have enormous potential economic and environmental 
impacts. These impacts may be positive or negative, and are often 
unquantified. In this manuscript, I review literature on the known 
distribution and environmental and economic impacts of 80 species of 
introduced bees. The potential negative impacts of non-native bees 
include competition with native bees for nesting sites or floral 
resources, pollination of invasive weeds, co-invasion with pathogens and 
parasites, genetic introgression, damage to buildings, affecting the 
pollination of native plant species, and changing the structure of 
native pollination networks. The potential positive impacts of 
non-native bees include agricultural pollination, availability for 
scientific research, rescue of native species, and resilience to 
human-mediated disturbance and climate change. Most non-native bee 
species are accidentally introduced and nest in stems, twigs, and 
cavities in wood. In terms of number of species, the best represented 
families are Megachilidae and Apidae, and the best represented genus is 
Megachile. The best studied genera are Apis and Bombus, and most of the 
species in these genera were deliberately introduced for agricultural 
pollination. Thus, we know little about the majority of non-native bees, 
accidentally introduced or spreading beyond their native ranges.



-- 
Dr. David W. Inouye
Professor Emeritus
Department of Biology
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742-4415
inouye at umd.edu

Principal Investigator
Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory
PO Box 519
Crested Butte, CO 81224