Pollinator biodiversity and crop pollination in temperate ecosystems, implications for national pollinator conservation strategies: Mini review

Citation

Vasiliev D & Greenwood S (2020) Pollinator biodiversity and crop pollination in temperate ecosystems, implications for national pollinator conservation strategies: Mini review. Science of The Total Environment, 744, Art. No.: 140880. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140880

Abstract
Pollinator biodiversity and biomass are in decline globally. This fact accompanied by shortage and collapses of domesticated pollinator colonies, puts human food security under unprecedented threat. Many countries worldwide have adopted or intend to introduce national pollinator conservation strategies. Decisions of policy makers and other involved stakeholders are often driven by pragmatic considerations, rather than biodiversity conservation per se. At the same time, different opinions exist in the literature on the role of pollinator biodiversity versus abundance of few dominant species in crop pollination. This article critically evaluates the literature in order to understand the importance of biodiversity over abundance and to examine the effectiveness of conservation strategies. Results of this review suggest that pollinator biodiversity is critical for crop pollination quality, magnitude and resilience. Most current national pollinator conservation strategies lack comprehensive measures for maintaining pollinator biodiversity at a landscape scale.

Keywords
Pollinator conservation; Pollinator species diversity; Pollination ecosystem service; Food security; National pollinator initiatives

Journal
Science of The Total Environment: Volume 744

People

Dr Sarah Greenwood

Lecturer in Global Change Biology, Biological and Environmental Sciences