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Bee declines pose a serious risk to agricultural sustainability, wild plant diversity, and the commercial bee industry, generating local and global concerns about bee health. Parasites, including micro‐parasites and macro‐parasites, negatively impact bee population dynamics. Management of parasites requires an understanding of the cyclic trends in prevalence and the factors impacting these patterns. In this study, we advance understanding of parasite epidemiology and transmission among members of the bee community toward the goal of improving predictability of parasite prevalence seasonally. Honey bees and bumble bees were collected throughout an active season and across multiple overwintering periods. These bees were molecularly tested for two common bee viruses—deformed wing virus (DWV) and black queen cell virus (BQCV)—and morphologically screened for Vairimorpha spp., nematodes, and parasitic flies to determine whether these parasites exhibit unique seasonal trends, if overwintering behavior impacts parasite survival, and how these patterns differ between honey bees and bumble bees. The results suggest consistent seasonal trends between honey bees and bumble bees; however, these trends are parasite‐specific. Honey bees consistently exhibited a higher magnitude of viral prevalence compared with bumble bees. Both honey bees and bumble bees reduced viral prevalence over the winter; however, only in bumble bees did this drop to negligible prevalence each spring. These data suggest that honey bees may have a larger impact on parasite transmission, as they pose to reinfect bees which otherwise would have very low prevalence each spring and sustain high levels of infection in communities year‐round. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pterostichus melanarius (Illiger, 1798) is a Palearctic generalist predator native to Europe. It was unintentionally introduced to North America at least twice in the mid 1920s and has since become widespread in Canada and the United States. Although P. melanarius is a valuable natural enemy in many different agricultural systems, we are not aware of any effort to compile in one publication details of its life history, diet, distribution, and factors that influence its populations. Some studies in North America have investigated the effects of P. melanarius on pest species and native carabid assemblages. Moreover, given that it is an exotic species whose range appears to still be expanding, it will be valuable to predict its potential distribution in North America. Therefore, the goals of this paper are to: 1) compile information on the life history and biology of P. melanarius, 2) review the effects of various agricultural practices on this species, and 3) use ecological niche modeling to determine the potential range of P. melanarius in the United States and which climate variables are most important for range expansion. Our review revealed that P. melanarius appears to provide benefits most consistently in diverse agricultural systems managed with no-till or reduced till methods, whereas our modeling revealed that P. melanarius likely occupies, or will occupy, more of the northern U.S. than is currently recognized, particularly in the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]