Forecasting the Effects of Global Change on a Bee Biodiversity Hotspot.

The Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, recognized as a global hotspot for bee biodiversity, are experiencing habitat degradation from urbanization, utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development, and climate change. In this study, we evaluated the current and future distribution of bee diversity, assessed how protected areas safeguard bee species richness, and predicted how global change may affect bees across the region. Using Joint Species Distribution Models (JSDMs) of 148 bee species, we project changes in species distributions, occurrence area, and richness under four global change scenarios between 1971 and 2050.

Symbiotic bacteria and fungi proliferate in diapause and may enhance overwintering survival in a solitary bee.

Host-microbe interactions underlie the development and fitness of many macroorganisms, including bees. Whereas many social bees benefit from vertically transmitted gut bacteria, current data suggests that solitary bees, which comprise the vast majority of species diversity within bees, lack a highly specialized gut microbiome. Here, we examine the composition and abundance of bacteria and fungi throughout the complete life cycle of the ground-nesting solitary bee Anthophora bomboides standfordiana.

Concurrent Outbreaks of Hepatitis A, Invasive Meningococcal Disease, and Mpox, Florida, USA, 2021-2022.

In 2022, concurrent outbreaks of hepatitis A, invasive meningococcal disease (IMD), and mpox were identified in Florida, USA, primarily among men who have sex with men. The hepatitis A outbreak (153 cases) was associated with hepatitis A virus genotype IA. The IMD outbreak (44 cases) was associated with Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C, sequence type 11, clonal complex 11.

Lessons from assembling UCEs: A comparison of common methods and the case of Clavinomia (Halictidae).

Sequence data assembly is a foundational step in high-throughput sequencing, with untold consequences for downstream analyses. Despite this, few studies have interrogated the many methods for assembling phylogenomic UCE data for their comparative efficacy, or for how outputs may be impacted. We study this by comparing the most commonly used assembly methods for UCEs in the under-studied bee lineage Nomiinae and a representative sampling of relatives.

Microbes, the 'silent third partners' of bee-angiosperm mutualisms.

While bee-angiosperm mutualisms are widely recognized as foundational partnerships that have shaped the diversity and structure of terrestrial ecosystems, these ancient mutualisms have been underpinned by 'silent third partners': microbes. Here, we propose reframing the canonical bee-angiosperm partnership as a three-way mutualism between bees, microbes, and angiosperms. This new conceptualization casts microbes as active symbionts, processing and protecting pollen-nectar provisions, consolidating nutrients for bee larvae, enhancing floral attractancy, facilitating plant fertilization, and defending bees and plants from pathogens.