Plant-pollinator network in a vereda ecosystem: Tree and non-tree species differ in their temporal importance

Abstract

Ecological interactions are fundamental to community structure and ecosystem functioning. Due to temporal variation in resource availability, it is important to understand how these interactions vary in different seasons. We investigated plant-pollinator interactions in a vereda formation to understand how interactions vary temporally, and how the habit and floral attributes of plants and different groups of pollinators can contribute to the structure of the interaction network. The study was conducted in the Rio Pandeiros Environmental Protection Area (EPA Rio Pandeiros), on species from the plant community of vereda Almescla, located in the municipality of Bonito de Minas, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Collections were carried out in September 2022 and February 2023. Plant species with flowers were sampled, and their floral attributes were analyzed. The floral visitors had their behavior observed, were collected and stored for identification. We used mono - and multilayer ecological network analyses to understand how interactions are structured between seasons. As a result, dry season network was significantly more specialized, possibly due to lower resource availability. Overall, tree plants are more important for the multilayer network structure. However, when evaluated between seasons, non-tree plants were significantly more important in the rainy season to maintain pollinator diversity. Here, we demonstrate for the first time, using multilayer network analysis, how plant-pollinator interactions vary between seasons in vereda formation. We highlight the importance of asynchrony between tree and non-tree species in the availability of resources during different periods, which contributes to the maintenance of different groups of pollinators in both seasons.