Flight of the bumblebee

The worldwide number of alien species invasions is rapidly increasing, and new methods of predicting vulnerable areas are required. In this study, researchers suggest a new methodological framework for assessing habitat invasion susceptibility on a global scale by focusing on the bumblebee, Bombus terrestrisis. The native range of the bee is in Europe, but it has invaded several regions including South America, Oceania and Asia. Using occurrences primarily from GBIF, the authors modelled habitat suitability based on environmental topoclimatic data to create a global map of areas particularly susceptible to invasion by the bumblebee. Countries that were identified as vulnerable, including Australia, Brazil and Uruguay, may use the findings of this study to develop action plans for monitoring bumblebee invasion.