Bigger and sweeter passion fruits effect of polli

Authors: Camila N JUNQUEIRA Solange C AUGUSTO

Publish Date: 2016/07/11

Volume: 48, Issue: 2, Pages: 131-140

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Abstract

Brazil stands out as the world’s largest producer of yellow passion fruit a species of economic interest which due to its selfincompatibility depends on pollinators for fruit formation The main pollinators of passion fruit are large solitary bees of the genus Xylocopa commonly known as carpenter bees which are potential candidates for management Passion fruit crops exhibit a low density of pollinators and consequently a reduction in production To improve management techniques of X frontalis and X grisescens the general aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of pollinator enhancement on pollination services in passion fruit crop areas Our results demonstrated that pollinator enhancement was an efficient way to minimize pollination deficit in passion fruit crops as it promoted the production of a bigger and sweeter fruits Data obtained in our study are essential to consolidate management techniques for carpenter bees in passion fruit cropsHuman food production relies on a variety of inputs including soil quality water availability and pest management Pretty 2008 Among these pollination by bees stands out as a major natural input accounting for the production of 75  of the world’s agricultural crops including important species that are sources of micronutrients Klein et al 2007 Ellis et al 2015The economic valuation of ecosystem services provided by pollinators exceeds €150 billion annually Gallai et al 2009 Furthermore other factors associated with agricultural production such as fruit quality and oil quantity in seeds which add greater value to the product thereby increasing its market price are also associated with pollinators’ richness and abundance Hanley et al 2015 Even for selfcompatible crops such as sunflower Helianthus annuus and coffee Coffea arabica natural pollination is related to an increase in production yields Ricketts 2004 Greenleaf and Kremen 2006The pollinator decline has cooperated to the reduction of both A mellifera and native wild pollinator populations which contributes to a yield gap in agricultural production ie a difference between the actual and the potential output Bommarco et al 2013 This decrease originates from exogenous recurrent factors such as land use intensification indiscriminate use of pesticides climate changes and incidence of viruses and parasites Wilcock and Neiland 2002 Potts et al 2010 Dupont et al 2011 In this scenario the increment of ecosystem services such as the increment of natural pollination through the management of pollinators is a sustainable alternative to minimize this decline and contribute to the maintenance and increase of agricultural production Bommarco et al 2013 Steward et al 2014Ecological intensification through the management of pollinators in crop areas has been widely used especially with A mellifera which stands out as the most worldwide managed pollinator due to its easy mobility highly populated colonies and for presenting generalist food preferences Westerkamp 1991 Klein et al 2007 However the dependence on a single pollinator for pollination of agricultural crops endangers food production stability due to the higher vulnerability of crops faced with pollinator decline Furthermore A mellifera may not be an efficient pollinator of some crops due to its foraging behavior or flower morphology incompatibility Bispo dos Santos et al 2009 Junqueira et al 2013Wild bees play a crucial role in crop pollination due to their greater pollination efficiency compared to honey bees in some crops They are also a viable alternative to the dependence on a single pollinator Garibaldi et al 2013 Experiments with apple crops evidenced that Bombus spp exhibits a greater pollen deposition onto the stigma than A mellifera Thomson and Goodell 2001 In blueberry crops Bombus spp and Andrena spp presented a greater visitation rate and fruit production than A mellifera Javorek et al 2002 Thus the development of management procedures that enhance wild pollinators is essential to increase agricultural production reducing food insecurity and contributing to the conservation of these pollinatorsThe management of solitary species is widely developed for cavitynesting bees Bosch and Kemp 2001 2002 Magalhães and Freitas 2012 and some groundnesting bees like the Bluebanded bee Amegilla Zonamegilla holmesi managed for tomato Lycopersicon esculentum Miller pollination through the introduction of nesting bricks filled with mud Hogendoorn et al 2000 Bell et al 2006

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