Analysis of trap-nesting Hymenoptera at Mt. Kilimanjaro

Temperature, food resources and top-down regulation by antagonists are considered as major drivers of insect diversity, but their relative importance is poorly understood. In our study, we used cavity-nesting communities of bees, wasps and their antagonists to reveal the role of temperature, food resources, parasitism rate and land use as drivers of species richness at different trophic levels along a broad elevational gradient. We established trap nests on 25 study sites that were distributed over similar large distances in terms of elevation along an elevational gradient from 866 to 1,788 m a.s.l., including both natural and disturbed habitats. We quantified species richness and abundance of bees, wasps and antagonists, parasitism rates and flower or arthropod food resources.