Pollinators and climate change

Abstract

Obeso, J.R., Herrera, J.M. 2018. Pollinators and climate change. Ecosistemas 27(2): 52-59. Doi.: 10.7818/ECOS.1371

Climate change is widely recognized as being a major threat to biodiversity, including pollinators. In the present paper, we review the existing knowledge regarding how climate change impacts pollinators and its implication on their long-term survival. This includes: (1) spatial shifts in distribution patterns and concomitant spatial mismatches with plant-food resources, (2) temporal shifts in activity patterns and concomitant temporal mismatches with flowering plants. Furthermore, we consider other climatic effects besides global warming and potential interactions with other global change pressures such as habitat loss and fragmentation and biological invasions. We also expose an example of the impact of climate change on the spatial distribution patterns of bumblebees (Bombus spp.) along an elevation gradient in Northern Iberian Peninsula during the last two decades. Knowledge gaps and future research needs are also highlighted.