COS 297-2 - Management Scale Drives Bee and Forb Biodiversity Patterns in Suburban Green Spaces

Abstract: Traditional measures of organismal diversity (alpha, beta, and gamma diversity) are defined by the scale of inquiry and can be affected by disturbances at different scales. Understanding scale-sensitive biodiversity responses is a vital component of effective urban ecological inquiry. Urban environments are of a heterogeneous nature due in part to the variety of management scales present. For instance, a residential neighborhood is composed of many small-scale units (yards) managed by individual homeowners, while a powerline corridor is an example of large-scale management because the entire corridor is managed by a single company. We surveyed the species diversity of bees and flowering plants in powerline corridors and suburban residential neighborhoods outside of Chicago, IL, using bee bowls and timed observations in 5mx5m sampling modules. We used generalized linear models to compare the alpha, beta, and gamma diversities of bees and flowering plants between large- and small-scale management units and among powerline corridors managed for different vegetative communities. Alpha diversity of both bees and flowering plants was higher in large-scale management units (powerline corridors), while the beta diversity of both organismal groups was higher in small-scale management units (residential neighborhoods). Our results demonstrate the importance of management scale to biodiversity and can be used to inform management decisions related to increasing biodiversity at different scales.