Community Ecology
Volume/Issue:
Volume 18: Issue 1
Network analysis of phenological units to detect important species in plant-pollinator assemblages: can it inform conservation strategies?
Authors:
P. Biella University of South Bohemia, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic v.v.i., České Budějovice, Czech Republic
University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

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J. Ollerton University of Northampton, Avenue Campus, Northampton, NN2 6JD, UK

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M. Barcella University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

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S. Assini University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

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Pages:
1–10
Online Publication Date:
Apr 2017
Publication Date:
01 Apr 2017
Article Category:
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1556/168.2017.18.1.1
Keywords:
Community analysis; Connectance; Ecological network; Grassland; Habitat management; Hub; Modularity; Nestedness; Phenology; Pollination
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Conservation of species is often focused either only on those that are endangered, or on maximising the number recorded on species lists. However, species share space and time with others, thus interacting and building frameworks of relationships that can be unravelled by community-level network analysis. It is these relationships that ultimately drive ecosystem function via the transfer of energy and nutrients. However interactions are rarely considered in conservation planning. Network analysis can be used to detect key species (“hubs”) that play an important role in cohesiveness of networks. We applied this approach to plant-pollinator communities on two montane Northern Apennine grasslands, paying special attention to the modules and the identity of hubs. We performed season-wide sampling and then focused the network analyses on time units consistent with plant phenology. After testing for significance of modules, only some modules were found to be significantly segregated from others. Thus, networks were organized around a structured core of modules with a set of companion species that were not organized into compartments. Using a network approach we obtained a list of important plant and pollinator species, including three Network Hubs of utmost importance, and other hubs of particular biogeographical interest. By having a lot of links and high partner diversity, hubs should convey stability to networks. Due to their role in the networks, taking into account such key species when considering the management of sites could help to preserve the greatest number of interactions and thus support many other species.

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Cover Community Ecology
Community Ecology An Interdisciplinary Journal Reporting Progress in Community and Population Studies
Print ISSN:
1585-8553
Online ISSN:
1588-2756

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Community Ecology
Language English
Size A4
Year of
Foundation		 2000
Volumes
per Year		 1
Issues
per Year		 3
Founder Akadémiai Kiadó
Founder's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245
Publisher Akadémiai Kiadó
Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Publisher's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
CH-6330 Cham, Switzerland Gewerbestrasse 11.
Responsible
Publisher		 Chief Executive Officer, Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN 1585-8553 (Print)
ISSN 1588-2756 (Online)

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