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Wild Pollinators Enhance Fruit Set of Crops Regardless of Honey Bee Abundance

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Author

  • Lucas A. Garibaldi
  • Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter
  • Rachael Winfree
  • Marcelo A. Aizen
  • Riccardo Bommarco
  • Saul A. Cunningham
  • Claire Kremen
  • Luisa G. Carvalheiro
  • Lawrence D. Harder
  • Ohad Afik
  • Ignasi Bartomeus
  • Faye Benjamin
  • Virginie Boreux
  • Daniel Cariveau
  • Natacha P. Chacoff
  • Jan H. Dudenhoeffer
  • Breno M. Freitas
  • Jaboury Ghazoul
  • Sarah Greenleaf
  • Juliana Hipolito
  • Andrea Holzschuh
  • Brad Howlett
  • Rufus Isaacs
  • Steven K. Javorek
  • Christina M. Kennedy
  • Kristin M. Krewenka
  • Smitha Krishnan
  • Yael Mandelik
  • Margaret M. Mayfield
  • Iris Motzke
  • Theodore Munyuli
  • Brian A. Nault
  • Mark Otieno
  • Jessica Petersen
  • Gideon Pisanty
  • Simon G. Potts
  • Romina Rader
  • Taylor H. Ricketts
  • Maj Rundlöf
  • Colleen L. Seymour
  • Christof Schueepp
  • Hajnalka Szentgyoergyi
  • Hisatomo Taki
  • Teja Tscharntke
  • Carlos H. Vergara
  • Blandina F. Viana
  • Thomas C. Wanger
  • Catrin Westphal
  • Neal Williams
  • Alexandra M. Klein
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Summary, in English

The diversity and abundance of wild insect pollinators have declined in many agricultural landscapes. Whether such declines reduce crop yields, or are mitigated by managed pollinators such as honey bees, is unclear. We found universally positive associations of fruit set with flower visitation by wild insects in 41 crop systems worldwide. In contrast, fruit set increased significantly with flower visitation by honey bees in only 14% of the systems surveyed. Overall, wild insects pollinated crops more effectively; an increase in wild insect visitation enhanced fruit set by twice as much as an equivalent increase in honey bee visitation. Visitation by wild insects and honey bees promoted fruit set independently, so pollination by managed honey bees supplemented, rather than substituted for, pollination by wild insects. Our results suggest that new practices for integrated management of both honey bees and diverse wild insect assemblages will enhance global crop yields.

Publishing year

2013

Language

English

Pages

1608-1611

Publication/Series

Science

Volume

339

Issue

6127

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Topic

  • Ecology

Status

Published

Research group

  • Biodiversity and Conservation Science

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1095-9203