DOI: 10.5061/dryad.kh18932j1
title: Data and R code from: Downscaling species to individual-level networks reveals the importance of population-level processes in mediating generalized community-wide interaction patterns

description: Patterns and consequences of community-wide interactions have been
 evaluated at the species-level, thus ignoring differences in individual
 behavior. In plant–pollinator networks, downscaling interactions to the
 individual level may further help reconcile the high level of
 generalization related to community stability with the specificity needed
 for pollination functioning. Here, we built species-level and
 individual-level networks using pollen loads on individual pollinators
 collected in a diverse serpentine seep community in Northern California.
 Plant–pollinator interactions were almost two times more specialized at
 the individual- compared to the species-level, suggesting a higher level
 of niche partitioning among individual insects which may increase
 pollination functioning within the community. However, we observed
 differences in individual specialization even among generalist pollinator
 species, which may differentially impact conspecific pollen movement and
 pollination efficacy despite similar niches at species level. Furthermore,
 intraspecific trait variation (i.e., body size) did not impact pollinator
 niche, suggesting that other population-level factors related to resource
 use may drive plant–pollinator network structure. We did find that female
 bees are more specialized than males, suggesting that sex-based
 differences may contribute to variation in individual specialization with
 potential consequences for community-wide pollination success. Overall,
 using individual-level networks this study links individual foraging
 patterns with population-level processes that may scale up to mediate the
 structure of species-level plant–pollinator networks. In doing so, this
 study further aids in our understanding of perceived conflicts between
 specialization and generalization in plant–pollinator communities.
description: To build individual- and species-level networks we surveyed
 flower-visiting insects foraging on the serpentine seeps between 09h00 and
 15h00 using entomological nets between May 9<sup>th</sup> and
 June 1<sup>st</sup>, 2021. Insects were collected by 2-3
 people simultaneously walking at a steady pace while observing all plant
 species and collecting all insects observed visiting flowers and making
 contact with plant reproductive structures. Specimens were stored in tubes
 under cold temperatures in the field immediately after collection to
 prevent them from moving and losing pollen. We then sampled pollen loads
 from each insect in the lab by swabbing multiple body parts (head, dorsal
 and ventral thorax, and fore- and mid-legs) with a fuchsin jelly cube that
 was later mounted on a microscope slide. Pollen carried on corbiculae or
 scopae in bees was excluded because it represents a resource that is not
 typically available for pollination and neither present in male bees or
 other pollinator functional groups sampled. All pollen grains found in
 insect pollen loads were identified and counted under a microscope. Pollen
 identification was conducted with the aid of a pollen library previously
 established from anthers collected for each plant species at the study
 site. Insect specimens were identified at the species or morphospecies
 level (species hereafter). To avoid overestimating specialization we
 constructed plant–pollinator networks only considering insect species that
 were represented by at least five individuals (<em>n</em> ≥
 5). To characterize plant–pollinator interactions we constructed
 pollen-transport networks, which represent not only interactions occurring
 during the observed foraging bout, but may also capture flower visitation
 events that took place over previous foraging bouts. Plant–pollinator
 networks constructed based on pollen loads on pollinator bodies have been
 shown to more broadly capture realized flower visitor interactions in the
 field. All insect specimens are preserved in the pollinator collection at
 East Tennessee State University (ETSU).
description: # Data and R code from: Downscaling species to individual-level networks
 reveals the importance of population-level processes in mediating
 generalized community-wide interaction patterns
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.kh18932j1](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.kh18932j1) ## Description of the data and file structure This data set and R script are part of the manuscript titled "Downscaling species to individual-level networks reveals the importance of population-level processes in mediating generalized community-wide interaction patterns", submitted to Ecology Letters. In this study, we used pollen loads collected on individual flower-visiting insects surveyed on a serpentine seep plant community, North California (in 2021) to build species- and individual-level pollen transport networks. This data set contains 540 individual insects belonging to 29 pollinator species that transported overall 37 plant species. For bees, the intertegular distance was measured and sex was assigned. ### Files and variables #### File: Carneiro\_etal\_Data\_IndivNet.zip #### **Data set:** *Carneiro\_etal\_Data\_IndivNet.csv* **Description:** The file 'Carneiro_etal_Data_IndivNet.csv' contains data from 540 individual flower-visiting insects (rows) collected on flowers in the serpentine seeps. Intertegular distance (mm) and sex (female/male) are provided for bees only. The number of pollen grains belonging to different plant species (species acronyms given as columns - 5 to 41, see list below for corresponding species names) found on each individual insect is also included. The pollen was directly counted under a light microscope, using slides that represented individual pollinator pollen loads. *Categorical data:* * **sample_id**: idividual insect identification; * **morph_spp**: morphospecies of individual insects. Insects were identified at species level, genus level (with sp.# used to separate different species) or morphospecies level (using morph#). All bees were identified at species or genus level. * **sex** (female, male): sex assignment for bees only.  NAs were entered for non-bee insects. *Continuous data:* * **Intertegular distance**: the distance, in millimeters, between both tagulae of bees only. NAs were entered for non-bee insects. *Count data:*  * **Columns 5 to 41**: number of pollen grains belonging to each plant species found on insect pollen loads. Overall, 37 plant species ('pollen species') were found on individual pollen loads. #### **Plant species acronyms and their corresponding species names.** | **Plant Species Acronym** | **Plant Species Name** | | :------------------------ | :------------------------------- | | AGHE | *Agoseris heterophylla* | | ALAM | *Allium amplectens* | | ALFI | *Allium fimbriatum* | | ANAR | *Anagallis arvensis* | | ANCO | *Antirrhinum cornutum* | | ANVE | *Antirrhinum vexillocalyculatum* | | BREL | *Brodiaea elegans* | | CAAM | *Calochortus amabilis* | | CAFO | *Castilleja foliolosa* | | CARU | *Castilleja rubicundula* | | CETR | *Centaurium trichanthum* | | CHPO | *Chlorogalum pomeridianum* | | CLCO | *Clarkia concinna* | | CLGR | *Clarkia gracilis* | | COSP | *Collinsia sparsiflora* | | DEUL | *Delphinium uliginosum* | | ERLA | *Eriophyllum lanatum* | | ESCA | *Eschscholzia californica* | | GICA | *Gilia capitata* | | HEDI | *Hesperolinon disjunctum* | | LAMI | *Lagophylla minor* | | LIDI | *Linanthus dichotomus* | | LUMI | *Lupinus microcarpus* | | MIGU | *Mimulus guttatus* | | MILA | *Mimulus layneae* | | MINDO | *Minuartia douglasii* | | MINU | *Mimulus nudatus* | | PLST | *Plagiobothrys stipitatus* | | RACA | *Ranunculus californicus* | | SCSI | *Scutellaria siphocampyloides* | | SIDI | *Sidalcea diploscypha* | | STBR | *Streptanthus breweri* | | TRLA | *Triteleia laxa* | | TRLX | *Trichostema laxum* | | TROB | *Trifolium obtusiflorum* | | TRPE | *Triteleia peduncularis* | | ZIVE | *Zigadenus venenosus* | #### R Code: ***R-Code-Carneiro\_etal\_EcolLett\_submitted.R*** The file "R-Code-Carneiro_etal_EcolLett_submitted.R" is an R script used to process the raw data set and analyze it. The code lines are grouped into topics that follow the aims, methods and results of our study, and sometimes commented to help understanding or guide the user. * Data set imported: *Carneiro_etal_Data_IndivNet.csv* * List of packages used: *bipartite*, *raster*, *MASS*, *ggplot2*, *lme4*, *ggeffects*, *tidyverse*, *stringr*, and *multcomp*.