Habitat type outweighs urban proximity in shaping cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities

Abstract Habitat type and land-use change are key drivers of biodiversity patterns, influencing species composition and ecological interactions in human-modified landscapes. We investigated the relative effects of habitat type, comparing forest fragments and organic crops, and urban proximity on cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities and their natural enemies. We recorded 846 nests and 2,366 individuals, comprising 12 host species, 16 natural enemy species, and 42 trophic interactions. Habitat type significantly influenced community structure, whereas urban proximity showed no consistent effect across response variables. Abundance was higher in crop habitats, but species richness did not differ between environments. Community composition differed markedly between habitats and was mainly driven by species turnover, indicating the presence of distinct species pools rather than nested subsets of the same community. Interaction dissimilarity was moderate and primarily explained by rewiring among shared species. Crop networks showed higher nestedness than expected under null models, whereas modularity was similar between habitats. These results indicate that local habitat characteristics are more consistent drivers of cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities than urban proximity, and that biodiversity responses in human-modified landscapes are better explained by species turnover and interaction reorganization than by species loss alone.

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Publication Details

Journal
Research Square
Published
2026-11-02
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-10437357/v1
Primary Topic
Plant and animal studies
Type
preprint
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preprint

Habitat type outweighs urban proximity in shaping cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities

Jean Pablo Alves de Deus, Jucélia Iantas, Maria Luisa Tunes Buschini, Luana Vieira Carlin dos Santos
2 links
Research Square
Plant and animal studies
preprint

Habitat type outweighs urban proximity in shaping cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities

Jean Pablo Alves de Deus, Jucélia Iantas, Maria Luisa Tunes Buschini, Luana Vieira Carlin dos Santos
preprint en

Abstract

Abstract Habitat type and land-use change are key drivers of biodiversity patterns, influencing species composition and ecological interactions in human-modified landscapes. We investigated the relative effects of habitat type, comparing forest fragments and organic crops, and urban proximity on cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities and their natural enemies. We recorded 846 nests and 2,366 individuals, comprising 12 host species, 16 natural enemy species, and 42 trophic interactions. Habitat type significantly influenced community structure, whereas urban proximity showed no consistent effect across response variables. Abundance was higher in crop habitats, but species richness did not differ between environments. Community composition differed markedly between habitats and was mainly driven by species turnover, indicating the presence of distinct species pools rather than nested subsets of the same community. Interaction dissimilarity was moderate and primarily explained by rewiring among shared species. Crop networks showed higher nestedness than expected under null models, whereas modularity was similar between habitats. These results indicate that local habitat characteristics are more consistent drivers of cavity-nesting hymenopteran communities than urban proximity, and that biodiversity responses in human-modified landscapes are better explained by species turnover and interaction reorganization than by species loss alone.

Research Square
Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste (BR), Instituto Federal Farroupilha (BR), Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) (BR)
Life on land, Sustainable cities and communities
Plant and animal studies
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