Review of the Role and Limitations of Apis mellifera in Ecosystem Service Assessment and Future Perspectives

초록

Pollination is a key ecosystem service supporting agricultural productivity and ecosystem stability. The managed honey bee, Apis mellifera, is the most widely reared pollinator worldwide and has been extensively used as a representative species in ecosystem service quantification and economic valuation. However, recent ecological research emphasizes that pollination functions are maintained through functional interactions within multispecies communities rather than by a single species and suggests that honey bee-centered assessment frameworks may fail to capture the complexity and resilience of ecological systems. This study systematically analyzes the biological and management-related factors that have led to the central role of A. mellifera in ecosystem service assessment and examines its application within major international assessment frameworks. It also critically reviews the conceptual and methodological limitations of honey bee-centered assessment frameworks and proposes the need for a transition toward assessment frameworks that integrate multispecies and trait-based approaches while incorporating landscape structure and temporal dynamics.

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