After centuries of human impact on the world’s ecosystems, a new study details an example of how a common native bee species has flourished since the very first land clearances by humans on Fiji.

In a new paper in Molecular Ecology, research led by Flinders University explores a link between the expansion of Homalictus fijiensis, a common bee in the lowlands of Fiji, which has increased its spread on the main island Viti Levu alongside advancing land clearance and the introduction of new plants and weeds to the environment.

«Earlier research connected the relatively recent population expansion to warming climates, but our study reveals an interesting and positive response from an endemic species to human modifications to the landscape which commenced about 1000BC,» says lead author, Flinders University researcher James Dorey.

«This species is a super-generalist pollinator (pollinates many plant species) and likes to nest in open, cleared ground, so one of the most important bee pollinators in Fiji actually appears to have benefited from human arrival and subsequent clearing of land in Fiji.»

The study examined changes in native bee populations in Fiji using phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial and genomic DNA. They show that bee populations in Fiji expanded enormously, starting about 3000 years ago and accelerating from about 2000 years ago.

Compared to the main island, Mr Dorey says no corresponding change in bee population size was found for another major island, Kadavu, where human populations and agricultural activities have been historically very low.

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