Bees feeling the burn.

Authors: PRENDERGAST, KIT - University Of Southern Queensland; Campbell, Joshua; BATEMAN, PHILIP - Curtin University

Submitted to: Biological Reviews
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/15/2025
Publication Date: 10/8/2025
Citation: Prendergast, K.S., Campbell, J.W., Bateman, P.W. 2026. Bees feeling the burn.. Biological Reviews. 101:279-296. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70082.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70082

Interpretive Summary: Both prescribed burns and wildfires can affect native bee populations. However, how different taxa respond to fire is largely unknown. We located 132 different studies that examined how native bees respond to fire. Bee responses to fire were quite variable and no consistent pattern was observed. However, overall, ground nesting generalist bees seemed to respond positively to fire whereas specialists and cavity nesters responded negatively. Our literature exploration also found many knowledge gaps such as a lack of studies done in the southern hemisphere and in tropical regions. In conclusion, fire is an important disturbance that affects bee communities and understanding how fire frequency and severity affects native bees is critical.

Technical Abstract: Fire is a major form of environmental disturbance, and in recent years, due to anthropogenic climate change and anthropogenic land-management, we are seeing increases in the frequency and intensity of fires. With bees being an important, diverse group of pollinators that is facing declines globally, understanding how they respond to fires is critical. Here, we conduct a systematic literature review to understand what is known from the literature on how bees respond to fire, and how both species with their differing life-history traits, and aspects of fire regimes, may influence these responses. Our literature review yielded 132 studies from 125 publications. Bee responses to fire were extremely variable, with no consistent pattern in abundance or species richness increasing, decreasing, or showing no significant change under fire. Different families and taxa responded different and to different aspects of fire regimes. Generally, halictids, and ground-nesting generalists, responded favourably to fire, whereas andrenids and colletids, and cavity-nesting specialists were most vulnerable to fire. We also revealed major gaps in research in the southern Hemisphere and in tropical landscapes dominated by flowering trees, with most studies conducted in pine-forested, fire-prone landscapes in the northern hemisphere. Additionally, few studies have been manipulative or have considered how to maximise bee recovery after fires. Overall, fire is an important disturbance affecting bee communities, and while some species may benefit from certain fire regimes, it is evident that we must ensure vulnerable species can persist under predictions of increasingly frequent and severe fires.