Download Hawaiian Hylaeus - Endangered Species Coalition

Endangered Species Coalition 2016 Top 10 Report Nominating Form
General Information
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Organization & Web address
Contact name for species info
Address
Email & phone
Communications staff contact name
Email & phone
Deadline: July 29, 2016
Nominating Organizations: Please use this Column to Provide the Requested Information
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation; www.xerces.org
Sarina Jepsen
628 NE Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232
[email protected]; (971) 244-3727
Matthew Shepherd
[email protected]; (503) 807-1577
General Species Information
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Common name, genus, and species
Yellow-faced bee; genus Hylaeus.
There are seven species of Hylaeus in Hawai‘i that are in particular peril and have
recently been given “endangered” status under the ESA: H. anthracinus, H. longiceps,
H. assimulans, H. facilis, H. hilaris, H. kuakea, and H. mana.
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Geographic range
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Conservation status
The information presented in this nomination is for H. assimulans.
Hylaeus assimulans is endemic to four of the Hawai‘ian Islands, Maui, Lanai, Oahu,
and Kahoolawe. The species is historically known from numerous coastal strand and
dry lowland locations up to 610 m (2000 ft) elevation. Recent collections of H.
assimulans have been made in only 5 sites on Maui, Kahoolawe, and Lanai. It is
apparently extirpated from Oahu.
Listed as “endangered” under ESA.
Remaining population size
These seven Hawai‘ian Hylaeus species are the first and only bees to gain ESA
protection. To date, only seven species of Hylaeus have been petitioned for ESA
protection. Further species are imperiled and deserve such protection.
The total population size is unknown, but most of the historic habitat has been lost.
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Report Questions
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Can you provide high-resolution photos?
If your species is selected, will you use the
report to advocate for the species?
5 free reports provided; additional copies =
Yes
Yes
Please cite any substantiating scientific studies
$2.60/each. If you’d like additional copies,
how many (bulk orders may be cheaper)?
Public Engagement Questions (Please explain why the species is interesting, why it matters, why decision-makers + the public should care.)0
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Provide background information, including
interesting facts, for the species profile.
Vacationers lying on the beaches of Hawai‘i can be only yards away from some the
rarest animals in the United States.
The naturalist R.C.L. Perkins, who spent more than a decade surveying the Hawai‘ian
Islands between 1892 and 1906, referred to yellow-faced bees as “almost the most
ubiquitous of any Hawaiian insects.”
Yellow-faced bees get their name from the yellow markings on their faces—though
not all have yellow markings. Some are entirely black.
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What is your organization’s most important
lead message for the public about this
species’ decline to be included in the report?
Is your NGO saving the species? If yes, how?
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How can individuals help? Please be specific.
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What action should the new administration
take to save the species? How can they
accomplish this action?
Islands often support unique wildlife and the yellow-faced bees of Hawai‘i are no
exception. All of the islands’ native bees are in one genus, Hylaeus, with just a few
dozen species, many of which are found on a single island and nowhere else in the
world.
Hawai‘ian yellow-faced bees are an essential component of the islands’ natural
habitats. These tiny insects sustain native vegetation and help to hold together entire
ecosystems.
The Xerces Society developed comprehensive status reviews and listing petitions for
seven species of yellow-faced bees. The petitions were developed in close
collaboration with Dr. Karl Magnacca, post-doctoral researcher at the University of
Hawai‘i–Hilo. All seven of the petitioned species were recently listed as endangered
under the ESA.
The best thing an individual can do is to support native habitat restoration on the
Hawai‘ian Islands and avoid spreading additional invasive species.
The administration can provide adequate funding for comprehensive surveys and
develop comprehensive recovery plans for all seven species.
Criteria-specific Questions – Please feel free to answer N/A or “see above/below” as appropriate. Please cite scientific studies.
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Detail the ecological importance of the
species. Does it play a critical function in its
Hawai‘ian yellow-faced bees (Hylaeus) are the only bees native to Hawai‘i. The islands
are home to 63 known endemic species, about 10% of the world’s yellow-faced bees
Please cite any substantiating scientific studies
ecosystem, e.g., as a foundational species or
keystone species? How does the ecosystem
depend on this species (e.g., keystone
predator, keystone pollinator, ecological
engineer, refugia provider, etc.)?
and more than are found in this genus in all of North America. They are important
pollinators of many of the most important trees and shrubs of Hawai‘i – ‘ōhi‘a lehua
(Metrosideros polymorpha) and ‘ōlapa (Cheirodendron spp.) in wet forests; māmane
(Sophora chrysophylla), naio (Myoporum sandwicense), ‘akoko (Chamaesyce spp.),
‘a‘ali‘i (Dodonaea sandwicensis), and pūkiawe (Leptecophylla tameiameiae) in dry
forests and shrublands; silverswords and their relatives (Argyroxiphium and Dubautia
spp.) and nohoanu (Geranium spp.) in subalpine areas; and naupaka (Scaevola
taccada), ‘ohai (Sesbania tomentosa), pā‘ū o Hi‘iaka (Jacquemontia ovalifolia), and
‘ilima (Sida fallax) at the coast.
The decline of Hylaeus populations might further exacerbate the loss of native plants.
Native Hawai‘ian plant species depend almost entirely on endemic pollinators such as
Hylaeus species for reproduction and must be cross-pollinated. Plant species endemic
to islands are rarely apomictic or able to reproduce by self-pollination or vegetative
means, while many invasive species do have the ability to reproduce in these ways.
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Detail information on any social or economic
benefits the species provides—e.g., its value
for clean water, recreation, medicine,
scientific research, etc.—if any. (Optional)
Can the species be an ambassador for its
habitat or taxonomic group? If yes, detail.
Lipochaeta lobata var. leptophylla (nehe), federally listed as an endangered species,
only occurs on Oahu. It is possible that former populations of H. assimulans on Oahu
pollinated this plant.
By maintaining the native habitats, these bees support clean watersheds as well as
recreation opportunities. Their role as a keystone species in natural areas also
supports a host of other wildlife, rare and not so rare, which draws birdwatchers and
other tourists.
Yes. Pollinators are a high-profile group of animals, one for which there is little
necessity to make a case for why they are important. People understand pollinators.
Judge’s Score for Importance of Species:
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Describe the specific threat(s) to the species.
What are the greatest impacts?
The primary threats to H. assimulans are:
1. Scarcity of habitat, and habitat loss due to development or land conversion.
2. The displacement and decline of native flora that they depend on by invasive plant
species, fire, and feral ungulates.
3. Predation by invasive ants such as Anoplolepis gracilipes (the long-legged ant) and
Pheidole megacephala (the big-headed ant).
4. Competition for resources with invasive honey bees (Apis mellifera).
Please cite any substantiating scientific studies
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Detail the current and projected decline of
the species.
If not described above, detail the status of
the species’ habitat(s). What are the threats,
if any? Is there adequate connectivity?
5. Predation by Vespula pensylvanica (the western yellow-jacket wasp).
We do not have accurate estimates of decline, but much of the habitat for the seven
listed species has been lost or severely degraded.
Coastal strand habitat Coastal strand habitat is one of the most endangered habitats
on the Hawai‘ian Islands. The coastal strand habitat that remains is in small remnant
patches, and most of these remnants have been overtaken by invasive plant species
and have relatively low diversity. The restricted and isolated nature of coastal strand
habitat makes species that depend on these areas even more at risk. Most of the
former coastal strand habitat has been converted for urban development, tourist
resorts, pasture, military use, lost to fire or overcome with invasive vegetation.
Increased access to coastal areas, and resulting habitat disturbance, has been
facilitated by coastal development and road-building.
Lowland dry forest and lowland dry shrubland Dry lowland forest and shrubland were
once abundant and considered some of the most diverse of all Hawai‘ian habitat
types but are now very rare. More than 90% of dry forests in Hawai‘i have been
destroyed, and there are concerns that remaining areas could disappear without
targeted conservation and restoration efforts. Loss of lowland dry habitats is due to
conversion for other uses, or the influx of nonnative plant species that out compete
native species. Loss of native plant diversity from lowland forests is one of the primary
causes of the decline of Hawai‘ian Hylaeus species.
The replacement of native vegetation with invasive plant species The loss of native
plant species from dry lowland habitats is one of the main causes of decline of
Hylaeus species. Aggressive nonnative species are increasingly replacing native flora in
coastal strand and dry lowland habitats. The spread of invasive plant species is a
threat to populations of H. assimulans because Hylaeus species depend closely on
native vegetation for nectar and pollen and are almost entirely absent from habitats
dominated by invasive vegetation.
Habitat disturbance by feral ungulates A number of coastal and lowland plant species
listed as endangered by the federal government are threatened by the presence of
feral ungulates. Some of these are confirmed foraging sources for Hylaeus species.
Feral ungulates present in or around coastal and lowland shrub and forest areas on
Please cite any substantiating scientific studies
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Describe the timing of the species’ threat(s).
Is it a current, eminent, or future threat?
Indicate if there is an associated political
threat, e.g., does an industry group or
member of Congress threaten this species?
the Hawai‘ian Islands include pigs (Sus scrofa), cattle (Bos taurus), and goats (Capra
hircus).
The threats exist and are ongoing.
No specific policies threaten this species, but a lack of funding for conservation and
recovery of listed endangered species is a major impediment.
Judge’s Score for Severity and Extent of Threat:
Judge’s Final Score
Further information:
“Hawaii's Native Bees - Nalo Meli Maoli,” by Karl Magnacca. Download at http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/uhmg/news/V9-MagnaccaNativeBee.pdf.
“Petition to list one species of Hawaiian yellow-faced bee, Hylaeus assimulans, as an endangered species under the U.S. Endangered
Species Act,” prepared by Lisa Schonberg, Sarina Jepsen, and Scott Hoffman Black; submitted by the Xerces Society on March 23, 2009.
Download at http://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/hylaeus_assimulans_petition.pdf.
ESA petitions for all seven Hawai‘ian yellow-faced bees can be found at http://www.xerces.org/petitions/. These petitions include full
citations for all relevant literature supporting the status and conservation needs of these bees.
Please submit to [email protected] by July 29, 2016, and thank you for participating in the 2016 Top 10 Report.
Please cite any substantiating scientific studies