Science

Temporal Dynamics in Pollination Networks

Ecological communities are connected in time and space via networks of interaction occurring among species. These interactions can vary considerably through time—from hours, to days, seasons, years, decades, and beyond. Nevertheless, species interaction networks—including pollination networks—are most often studied as temporally static entities, even though the interactions that give rise to networks are often quite temporally flexible. We’ve been exploring temporal variation in plant-pollinator interaction networks to try and better understand how and why species interactions form, whether or not interaction networks are temporally flexible, and at what temporal scales all of this happens. (CaraDonna, Bain)