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dc.contributor.authorEllis, Ciaran R.
dc.contributor.authorFeltham, Hannah
dc.contributor.authorPark, Kirsty
dc.contributor.authorHanley, Nick
dc.contributor.authorGoulson, Dave
dc.date.accessioned2017-12-16T00:32:10Z
dc.date.available2017-12-16T00:32:10Z
dc.date.issued2017-03
dc.identifier.citationEllis , C R , Feltham , H , Park , K , Hanley , N & Goulson , D 2017 , ' Seasonal complementary in pollinators of soft-fruit crops ' , Basic and Applied Ecology , vol. 19 , pp. 45-55 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2016.11.007en
dc.identifier.issn1439-1791
dc.identifier.otherPURE: 248202249
dc.identifier.otherPURE UUID: 5f78a608-c472-48be-8fb7-59f97ea5c7a0
dc.identifier.otherRIS: urn:9AC0C8733A137E3D6023ACBC255DE422
dc.identifier.otherScopus: 85009415071
dc.identifier.otherWOS: 000398923500006
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10023/12339
dc.descriptionThis work was supported in part by BBSRC grant BB/J014753/1.en
dc.description.abstractUnderstanding the relative contributions of wild and managed pollinators, and the functional contributions made by a diverse pollinator community, is essential to the maintenance of yields in the 75% of our crops that benefit from insect pollination. We describe a field study and pollinator exclusion experiments conducted on two soft-fruit crops in a system with both wild and managed pollinators. We test whether fruit quality and quantity is limited by pollination, and whether different pollinating insects respond differently to varying weather conditions. Both strawberries and raspberries produced fewer marketable fruits when insects were excluded, demonstrating dependence on insect pollinators. Raspberries had a short flowering season which coincided with peak abundance of bees, and attracted many bees per flower. In contrast, strawberries had a much longer flowering season and appeared to be much less attractive to pollinators, so that ensuring adequate pollination is likely to be more challenging. The proportion of high-quality strawberries was positively related to pollinator abundance, suggesting that yield was limited by inadequate pollination on some farms. The relative abundance of different pollinator taxa visiting strawberries changed markedly through the season, demonstrating seasonal complementarity. Insect visitors responded differently to changing weather conditions suggesting that diversity can reduce the risk of pollination service shortfalls. For example, flies visited the crop flowers in poor weather and at the end of the flowering season when other pollinators were scarce, and so may provide a unique functional contribution. Understanding how differences between pollinator groups can enhance pollination services to crops strengthens the case for multiple species management. We provide evidence for the link between increased diversity and function in real crop systems, highlighting the risks of replacing all pollinators with managed alternatives.
dc.format.extent11
dc.language.isoeng
dc.relation.ispartofBasic and Applied Ecologyen
dc.rights© 2016 Gesellschaft für Ökologie. This work has been made available online in accordance with the publisher’s policies. This is the author created, accepted version manuscript following peer review and may differ slightly from the final published version. The final published version of this work is available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2016.11.007en
dc.subjectBumblebeeen
dc.subjectBombusen
dc.subjectPollinatoren
dc.subjectFliesen
dc.subjectEcosystem servicesen
dc.subjectFarmland biodiversityen
dc.subjectPollination ecologyen
dc.subjectGE Environmental Sciencesen
dc.subjectNDASen
dc.subject.lccGEen
dc.titleSeasonal complementary in pollinators of soft-fruit cropsen
dc.typeJournal articleen
dc.description.versionPostprinten
dc.contributor.institutionUniversity of St Andrews. Geography & Sustainable Developmenten
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2016.11.007
dc.description.statusPeer revieweden
dc.date.embargoedUntil2017-12-15


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