Bee pollination increases yield quantity and quality of cash crops in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

ABSTRACT: Mutualistic biotic interactions as among flowering plants and their animal pollinators are a key component of biodiversity. Pollination, especially by insects, is a key element in ecosystem functioning, and hence constitutes an ecosystem service of global importance. Not only sexual reproduction of plants is ensured, but also yields are stabilized and genetic variability of crops is maintained, counteracting inbreeding depression and facilitating system resilience. While experiencing rapid environmental change, there is an increased demand for food and income security, especially in sub-Saharan communities, which are highly dependent on small scale agriculture. By combining exclusion experiments, pollinator surveys and field manipulations, this study for the first time quantifies the contr

SUBMITTER: Stein K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5735132 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature