Bees in the trees: Diverse spring fauna in temperate forest edge canopies

• Despite equal species richness among strata, woodlots had vertically stratified bee communities. • We found higher overall diversity and more female bees in the canopy. • The traits of nesting habitat and sociality were strongly predictive of strata occupancy. • Canopy cover (leaf-out) was negativ...
Ausführliche Beschreibung

• Despite equal species richness among strata, woodlots had vertically stratified bee communities. • We found higher overall diversity and more female bees in the canopy. • The traits of nesting habitat and sociality were strongly predictive of strata occupancy. • Canopy cover (leaf-out) was negatively associated with understory but not canopy bee abundance. • Regional amount of coarse woody debris correlated with understory abundance of some trait groups. • We speculate females forage for canopy pollen; we recommend maintaining above-ground deadwood. Ausführliche Beschreibung