Native pollinators (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) in cotton grown in the Gulf South, United States

Authors: Parys, Katherine; ESQUIVEL, ISAAC - Texas A&M University; WRIGHT, KAREN - Texas A&M University; Griswold, Terry; BREWER, MICHAEL - Texas Agrilife

Submitted to: Agronomy
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/8/2020
Publication Date: 5/14/2020
Citation: Parys, K.A., Esquivel, I., Wright, K.W., Griswold, T.L., Brewer, M. 2020. Native pollinators (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) in cotton grown in the Gulf South, United States. Agronomy. 10(5):698. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10050698.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10050698

Interpretive Summary: Native bees were collected in commercial cotton fields located in two states, Mississippi and Texas. These two locations represent two different parts of the cotton growing region of the United States. Both states had communities dominated by pollinators that are generalists. The most abundant species was the same in both states. Of the collected species, some are known specialists on other plant groups, suggesting they were mere visitors to the fields. In this paper we provide a list of native bee species found in commercial cotton fields planted in both states. Non-parametric statistical analyses indicated that there was no significant different in community structure between the two locations. This list indicates that a persistent community of native bees exists in commercial cotton fields.

Technical Abstract: Native bees (Hymenoptera: Anthophila) were sampled at multiple locations in commercial cotton fields in two states across the Gulf-South of the southern United States. In both states, these communities were dominated by generalist pollinators in the genera Agapostemon, Augochloropsis, Halictus and Lasioglossum (Hymenoptera: Halictidae), and Melissodes (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Melissodes tepaneca (Cresson) was the most abundant species found in producer cotton fields in both states. Some species collected are known specialists on other plant taxa, suggesting they may be tourist species. Here we provide a baseline species list of native bees found in cotton. Ordination indicated separation between the communities found in the two states when pooled by genus, but these differences were not significant. While cotton is grown in highly managed and disturbed landscapes, these data suggest that a common community of native pollinators persists. Many of these species are also found in other cropping systems across North America.