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A multilayer network in an herbaceous tropical community reveals multiple roles of floral visitors
Author(s) -
de Oliveira Lima Geiza,
Leite Ana Virgínia,
Souza Camila Silveira,
Castro Cibele Cardoso,
de Santana Bezerra Elisangela Lucia
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
oikos
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.672
H-Index - 179
eISSN - 1600-0706
pISSN - 0030-1299
DOI - 10.1111/oik.06565
Subject(s) - herbaceous plant , pollinator , biology , pollination , mutualism (biology) , ecology , visitor pattern , pollen , computer science , programming language
Flower visitation does not necessarily mean pollination. In this sense, floral visitors can either act as mutualists (pollinators) or antagonists (floral robbers/thieves), indicating that these interactions are part of a continuum and that a visitor species can present multiple behaviours. We included both mutualistic and antagonistic interactions between plants and floral visitors in a multilayer network to explore the consequences (at the community level) of the dual roles played by flower visitors. The multilayer network of interactions was formed by herbaceous plants (12 species) and insects that visited their flowers (21 species) in an area of Atlantic Forest in Brazil from Jul 2015 to May 2016. The two layers presented similar structures, with high overlap between them. Similar to what was expected, the antagonistic layer was more modular and specialized than the mutualistic layer. Some visitor species exhibited highly central, dual roles, acting as both antagonists and mutualists. Most behaved consistently as mutualists in all their visits, especially bees, which formed a predominantly mutualistic group. Butterflies represented a mixed group in relation to their visits and flies made more antagonistic visits. This research represents an important step towards understanding the role of mutualisms and antagonisms in the structure of interaction networks between herbaceous plants and floral visitors in tropical environments.