Nicolas J Vereecken

Université Libre de Bruxelles | ULB · Brussels Bioengineering School

Bumblebees are an essential component of our agroecosystems, and their decline represents a major threat for the sexual reproduction — and hence survival — of wild flowers and several important pollinator-dependent crops alike. The EU bumblebee fauna encompasses many highly imperiled species characterized by a relatively narrow range size and often...

Although bee-plant associations are generally maintained through speciation processes, host shifts have occurred during evolution. Understanding shifts between both phylogenetically and morphologically unrelated plants (i.e., host-saltation) is especially important since they could have been key processes in the origin and radiation of bees. Probab...

Wild and managed bees are essential for global food security and the maintenance of biodiversity. At present, the conservation of wild bees is hampered by a huge shortfall in knowledge about the trends and status of individual species mainly due to their large diversity and variation in life histories. In contrast, the managed Western honey bee Api...

Recent studies have reported on dramatic cases of aerial insect population declines by focusing on the measure of the total biomass of caught insects. However, there is currently no consensus about how biomass patterns among sites and habitats might consistently capture the subtleties of changes in aerial insect community structure. Here, we invest...

Visitation by wild bee species alongside managed pollinators is necessary to ensure consistent yields and fruit quality in apple fields. Wild bee species are vulnerable to several environmental changes. Climate change is expected to lead to broad-scale changes to wild bee distributions that will impact the service they provide as crop pollinators....

Pollinators play a crucial role in ecosystems globally, ensuring the seed production of most flowering plants. They are threatened by global changes and knowledge of their distribution at the national and continental levels is needed to implement efficient conservation actions, but this knowledge is still fragmented and/or difficult to access. As a...

Body size is a trait that can affect plant–pollinator interaction efficiency and plant reproductive success. We explored the impact of intraspecific size shifts on the interactions between pollinators and flowering plants under controlled conditions. We considered two development conditions leading to the production of large and small individual fl...

The challenges of bee research in Asia are unique and severe, reflecting different cultures, landscapes, and faunas. Strategies and frameworks developed in North America or Europe may not prove applicable. Virtually none of these species have been assessed by the IUCN and there is a paucity of public data on even the basics of bee distribution. If...

An essential prerequisite to safeguard pollinator species is characterisation of the multifaceted diversity of crop pollinators and identification of the drivers of pollinator community changes across biogeographical gradients. The extent to which intensive agriculture is associated with the homogenisation of biological communities at large spatial...

Chile's isolation and varied climates have driven the evolution of a unique biodiversity with a high degree of endemism. As a result, Chile encompasses diverse environments, including the Mediterranean-type ecosystem, a global biodiversity hotspot. These environments are currently threatened by anthropogenic land use change impacting the integrity...

The foraging activities of pollinators depend on a variety of factors, such as the availability of pollen and nectar resources or the seasonality. We performed measurements on the activity patterns of Apis mellifera adansonii Latreille by focusing on different factors: (i) we counted the number of bees entering the hives during 10 min per hour star...

We provide a culturomics analysis of the cultivable bacterial communities of the crop, midgut and hindgut compartments, as well as the ovaries, of the invasive insect Vespa velutina, along with a cultivation-independent analysis of samples of the same nest through 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. The Vespa velutina bacterial symbiont community was dom...

The present study aimed to characterise the bacterial, fungal and parasite gut community of the invasive bee Megachile sculpturalis sampled from native (Japan) and invaded (USA and France) regions via 16S rRNA and ITS2 amplicon sequencing and PCR detection of bee microparasites. The bacterial and fungal gut microbiota communities in bees from invad...

Background To understand mechanisms of adaptation and plasticity of pollinators and other insects a better understanding of diversity and function of their key symbionts is required. Commensalibacter is a genus of acetic acid bacterial symbionts in the gut of honey bees and other insect species, yet little information is available on the diversity...

Stingless bee honey is a natural remedy and therapeutic agent traditionally used by indigenous communities across the (sub-)Tropics. Despite the potential of forest honey, a prime non-timber forest product (NTFP), to revitalize indigenous foodways and to generate income in rural areas, reports on Traditional Ecological Knowledge involving stingless...

Aim: Wild bees still face striking shortfalls in knowledge of biodiversity in key regions of the world. This includes Europe, where despite a long tradition of data gathering, the continental scale distribution patterns of wild bees have not been systematically analysed to date. This study aims to characterise large-scale biodiversity patterns to:...

Stingless bees are important pollinators of wild and cultivated plants, and they produce medicinal honey. However, their taxonomy and systematics are still debated and would benefit a continent-wide revision. Here, we explore the potential of wing shape in delineation and classification of Afrotropical Meliponini using geometric morphometrics. We s...

Résumé La réussite des trois luttes en matière de protection de l’environnement, menées depuis la révolution burkinabè, ne deviendront un succès que si la conservation de la nature est associée à l’exploitation durable des ressources naturelles. La méliponiculture est considérée comme un secteur d’activités qui pourrait allier conservation de la na...

Natural history collections (NHCs) are a cornerstone of entomology, and the conservation of specimens is the essential prerequisite for the development of research into systematics, biogeography, ecology, evolution and other disciplines. Yet, specimens collected during decades of entomological research conducted in less developed countries across S...

Quand on parle d’abeilles, tout le monde pense évidemment à l’abeille mellifère européenne (Apis mellifera), mais saviez-vous qu’il existe près de 400 espèces d’abeilles sauvages en Belgique, et que plus de la moitié d’entre elles peuvent être trouvées dans la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale (RBC) ? Des gros bourdons aux minuscules abeilles solitaires...

Classical Species Distribution Models are primarily based on climate, land use and other abiotic variables. Despite recent studies showing that biotic information can play an important role in shaping the distribution of species even at large scales, results are not always consistent among studies and the underlying factors that influence the impor...

Anthropogenic drivers of bumblebee population decline are well-established, particularly in Europe and North America. Agriculturalizsation is associated with a loss of nesting sites, habitat fragmentation, agrochemical toxicity and nutritional stress; climate change is affecting population distribution, phenology, and voltinism, among other traits....

Honey collection evolved from simple honey hunting to the parallel and independent domestication of different species of bees in various parts of the world. In this study, we investigate the extent to which the composition of Apis and stingless bee honeys has been a driver in the selection of different bee species for domestication in Mesoamerica (...

Human-induced environmental impacts on wildlife are widespread, causing major biodiversity losses. One major threat is agricultural intensification, typically characterised by large areas of monoculture, mechanical tillage, and the use of agrochemicals. Intensification leads to the fragmentation and loss of natural habitats, native vegetation, and...

Using RADSeq approaches, we uncovered potential loci associated with 5 environmental variables (land cover and climate) in two European bumblebee species (Bombus pascuorum and B. lapidarius).

Chile’s isolation and varied climates have driven the evolution of a unique biodiversity with a high degree of endemism. The Mediterranean-type biome of Central Chile is one of 35 global biodiversity hotspots and has been highlighted as one of Chile’s most endangered areas. It is threatened by anthropogenic land use change impacting the integrity o...

During the main COVID-19 global pandemic lockdown period of 2020 an impromptu set of pollination ecologists came together via social media and personal contacts to carry out standardised surveys of the flower visits and plants in gardens. The surveys involved 67 rural, suburban and urban gardens, of various sizes, ranging from 61.18° North in Norwa...

Honey collection evolved from sheer honey hunting to the parallel and independent domestication of different species of bees in various parts of the world. In this study, we investigate the extent to which the compositional convergence in Apis and stingless bee honeys has driven independently the domestication of different bee species in Mesoameric...

Apples are one of the most important global crops that relies heavily on insect pollination, which has been shown to increase apple production and value. However, recent reports indicate that apple production has been declining in certain regions, including in Bhutan. One of the potential causes of declining production are pollination deficits driv...

Climate, landscape composition, management practice, and wild bee pollination are all variables thought to play significant roles in commercial apple production. However, how these variables affect production efficiency under field-realistic conditions has not been investigated at large geographical scales. We combined intensive standardized field...

Snodgrassella is a genus of Betaproteobacteria that lives in the gut of honeybees (Apis spp.) and bumblebees (Bombus spp). It is part of a conserved microbiome that is composed of a few core phylotypes and is essential for bee health and metabolism. Phylogenomic analyses using whole-genome sequences of 75 Snodgrassella strains from 4 species of hon...

Commercial apple production relies on managed honey bees for pollination, and on intensive management for pest control. Previous studies revealed the detrimental effects of these factors on wild bee diversity in agroecosystems, and the pollination services they provide. However, the extent to which honey bee dominance and management interact under...

Seventy five percent of the world's food crops benefit from insect pollination. Hence, there has been increased interest in how global change drivers impact this critical ecosystem service. Because standardized data on crop pollination are rarely available, we are limited in our capacity to understand the variation in pollination benefits to crop y...

Complex biotic networks of invaders and their new environments pose immense challenges for researchers aiming to predict current and future occupancy of introduced species. This might be especially true for invasive bees, as they enter novel trophic interactions. Little attention has been paid to solitary, invasive wild bees, despite their increasi...

Safeguarding crop pollination services requires the identification of the pollinator species involved and the provision of their ecological requirements at multiple spatial scales. However, the potential for agroecological intensification of pollinator-dependent crops by harnessing pollinator diversity is limited by our capacity to characterise the...

Commercial apple production relies on managed honey bees (Apis mellifera) for pollination, and on intensive management for pest control. Previous studies have highlighted the potentially detrimental effects of intensive crop management on wild bee diversity in agroecosystems, potentially jeopardizing the pollination services they provide. However,...

Snodgrassella is a Betaproteobacteria genus found in the gut of honeybees ( Apis spp.) and bumblebees ( Bombus spp). It is part of a conserved microbiome that is composed of few core phylotypes and is essential for bee health and metabolism. Phylogenomic analyses using whole genome sequences of 75 Snodgrassella strains from 4 species of honey bees...

Beekeeping is an age-old practice in Burkina Faso in general and in the villages along the PONASI corridor n°1 in particular. The objective of this study was to characterize beekeeping practices. It was carried out using ethno-beekeeping survey forms. 37 beekeepers from the six villages bordering corridor 1 were interviewed. The beekeepers were mai...

A plain langauge 2 page overview of the paper "Opportunities to reduce pollination deficits and address production shortfalls in an important insect-pollinated crop" designed for non-acedemic audiences (or very busy acedemics). Please feel free to pass this along.

The role of plant–pollinator interactions in the rapid radiation of the angiosperms have long fascinated evolutionary biologists. Studies have brought evidence for pollinator-driven diversification of various plant lineages, particularly plants with specialized flowers and concealed rewards. By contrast, little is known about how this crucial inter...

The role of plant–pollinator interactions in the rapid radiation of the angiosperms have long fascinated evolutionary biologists. Studies have brought evidence for pollinator-driven diversification of various plant lineages, particularly plants with specialized flowers and concealed rewards. By contrast, little is known about how this crucial inter...

The importance of wild bees for crop pollination is well established, but less is known about which species contribute to service delivery to inform agricultural management, monitoring and conservation. Using sites in Great Britain as a case study, we use a novel qualitative approach combining ecological information and field survey data to establi...

Pollinators face multiple pressures and there is evidence of populations in decline. As demand for insect‐pollinated crops increases, crop production is threatened by shortfalls in pollination services. Understanding the extent of current yield deficits due to pollination and identifying opportunities to protect or improve crop yield and quality th...

We investigated the effect of bee species identity and harvesting methods on the chemical composition and antiradical activity of 53 honey samples, produced by six stingless bee species in western Kenya (Kakamega forest). Our results illustrated that none of the assayed parameters significantly varied between the honey samples harvested by “punchin...

• Urbanisation is often put forward as an important driver of biodiversity loss, including for pollinators such as wild bees. However, recent evidence shows that the mosaics of urban green spaces, and in particular certain categories of informal urban green spaces (IGS), can play an important role to help native wild bees thrive in cities. • Here,...

Industrial agriculture (IA) has been recognized among the main drivers of biodiversity loss, climate change, and native pollinator decline. Here we summarize the known negative effects of IA on pollinator biodiversity and illustrate these problems by considering the case of Chile, a “world biodiversity hotspot” (WBH) where food exports account for...

Bumblebees are ubiquitous, cold-adapted eusocial bees found worldwide from subarctic to tropical regions of the world. They are key pollinators in most temperate and boreal ecosystems, and both wild and managed populations are significant contributors to agricultural pollination services. Despite their broad ecological niche at the genus level, bum...

A two page summary of the paper - this is designed for a non-acedemic audience. Pleasse feel free to disseminate. There is a QR Code for the paper itself included.

Industrial agriculture (IA) is the predominant model of food production since the Green Revolution in the 1950s. IA has been recognized among the main drivers of biodiversity loss, climate change and native pollinator decline. This is controversial, given that native agricultural pollinators are an important resource biota already contributing to c...

Climate change is an important driver of bee decline despite the fact that many species might respond to climate change differently. One method to predict how a species will respond to climate change is to identify its thermal tolerance limits. However, differences in thermal tolerance might also occur among distant populations of the same species...

Apples are a major crop globally, including in Tasmania (Australia)-known as 'the Apple Isle' owing to the key role of apples in Tasmania's history and economy. Most apple cultivars are obligate entomophilous species, and fruit quantity, quality and economic value are enhanced under insect pollination. Whilst the introduced European honey bee (Apis...

Aim Projections of biodiversity scenarios often rely solely on climate change to inform species distribution shifts in the future. Land use projections are rarely used due to their unavailability and, when available, are often at coarse spatial and thematic resolutions, making them unsuitable to capture fine scale habitat suitability. This study ai...

Global change affects species by modifying their abundance, spatial distribution, and activity period. The challenge is now to identify the respective drivers of those responses and to understand how those responses combine to affect species assemblages and ecosystem functioning. Here we correlate changes in occupancy and mean flight date of 205 wi...

In their article entitled “Climate change contributes to widespread declines among bumblebees across continents” recently published in Science and reported upon worldwide, Soroye, Newbold & Kerr (1) used extensive specimen records to explore patterns of geographic range loss and expansion of bumble bees in Europe and North America, and, in line wit...

The flower colour of Anemone coronaria (Ranunculaceae) is a genetically inherited trait. Such intra-specific flower colour polymorphism might be driven by pollinators, other non-pollinating agents, or by abiotic factors. We investigated the genetic relations among red, white and purple-blue flower colour morphs growing in 10 populations of A. coron...

The bee-flower biological association is one of the most famous examples of insect-plant interactions, and it is axiomatic that these are of critical importance for sustaining thriving terrestrial ecosystems. Yet, the most familiar associations are often artificially managed agricultural ecosystems, reflecting an exceptionally narrow range of bee s...

The Belgian Red List of bees is an assessment of the conservation status of Belgian bee species according to the IUCN guidelines for application of the international IUCN Red List criteria at regional and national levels. It identifies the extinction threat to species at this geographical scale. These results can be used to implement conservation a...

This guide is the first volume of a series on Hymenoptera of Europe. In its first part a general presentation is given on their morphology, ecology, evolution and methods for establishing a collection of specimens. We also propose a key for the identification of all superfamilies recorded on the European continent. The guide then develops a compr...

Species can respond differently when facing environmental changes, such as by shifting their geographical ranges or through plastic or adaptive modifications to new environmental conditions. Phenotypic modifications related to environmental factors have been mainly explored along latitudinal gradients, but they are relatively understudied through t...

The evolution of floral host preference in longhorn bees of the genus Eucera (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Eucerini): is association with pollen from bee-flowers advantageous? Flowers with specialised pollination mechanism with concealed pollen, such as in the Fabaceae and Lamiaceae, are pollinated primarily by bees and often referred to as 'bee flowers'....

Body size is an integral functional trait that underlies pollination‐related ecological processes, yet it is often impractical to measure directly. Allometric scaling laws have been used to overcome this problem. However, most existing models rely upon small sample sizes, geographically restricted sampling and have limited applicability for non‐bee...

The recent rediscovery of what is perhaps the most iconic and the world’s largest wild bee species, endemic from just a handful islands in Indonesia, represents a major finding and opens up new avenues for conservation research on this species thought to be extinct. But there is one twist in this otherwise positive insect conservation tale: two fem...

Body size is an integral functional trait that underlies pollination-related ecological processes, yet it is often impractical to measure directly. Allometric scaling laws have been used to overcome this problem. However, most existing models rely upon small sample sizes, geographically restricted sampling and have limited applicability for non-bee...

Aim Genetic diversity is a key factor to species survival. This diversity is unevenly distributed across the species range, delimiting genetic diversity hotspots (GDH). Focusing conservation efforts on regions where GDH of several species overlap (i.e., multispecies GDH) could rationalize conservation efforts by protecting several taxa in one go. H...

Report of the catches made by the European bee determination training (COST Super-B Project) in the Calanques National Park.

The notion that robotic crop pollination will solve the decline in pollinators has gained wide popularity recently (Fig. 1), and in March 2018 Walmart filed a patent for autonomous robot bees. However, w present six arguments showing that this is a technically and economically inviable 'solution' at present and poses substantial ecological and mora...

UN GUIDE DE 40 ESPÈCES COMMUNES DE NOS RÉGIONS et LEURS ABEILLES-COUCOUS, SOIT PRÈS DE 75 ESPÈCES ILLUSTRÉES. Pour chaque espèce : - un texte comportant présentation générale de l’espèce, description, biologie et écologie, plantes visitées, avec un encadré illustré sur les abeilles-coucous ou les abeilles hôtes liées à l’espèce présentée - une fi...