How does plant visitation impact bee microbiome? A meta-analysis of plant use and microbial communities across bee species

There are over 20,000 bee species in the world, but much of the knowledge concerning bee nutritional requirements has focused on the few social or managed species, such as bumble bees (Bombus impatiens), honey bees (Apis mellifera), and mason bees (Osmia cornifrons). Our aim for this project are to increase our understanding of wild bee nutritional requirements by rearing wild bees on different diets in captivity to assess impacts on growth and development, health, and social plasticity. We also sought to characterize the protein, lipid, amino acid (AA), and non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), and essential fatty acids (EFA) profiles of common plant species in eastern North America. Our results show that while protein-to-lipid ratios of pollen varies widely across plant families, omega- 3:6 ratios were fairly consistent at a 1:1 ratio. There was also an inverse relationship between essential AA and total NEFA and total omega concentrations, suggesting potential trade-offs for foraging bees. The range in nutritional composition found among these plant species further demonstrates the need for a diverse diet to ensure the health of wild bees.