Files and links (1)
CC BY V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
Pollination crisis Down‐Under: Has Australasia dodged the bullet?
Ecology and evolution, Vol.13(11)
2023
Abstract
Since mid‐1990s, concerns have increased about a human‐induced “pollination crisis.” Threats have been identified to animals that act as plant pollinators, plants pollinated by these animals, and consequently human well‐being. Threatening processes include loss of natural habitat, climate change, pesticide use, pathogen spread, and introduced species. However, concern has mostly been during last 10–15 years and from Europe and North America, with Australasia, known as Down‐Under, receiving little attention. So perhaps Australasia has “dodged the bullet”? We systematically reviewed the published literature relating to the “pollination crisis” via Web of Science, focusing on issues amenable to this approach. Across these issues, we found a steep increase in publications over the last few decades and a major geographic bias towards Europe and North America, with relatively little attention in Australasia. While publications from Australasia are underrepresented, factors responsible elsewhere for causing the “pollination crisis” commonly occur in Australasia, so this lack of coverage probably reflects a lack of awareness rather than the absence of a problem. In other words, Australasia has not “dodged the bullet” and should take immediate action to address and mitigate its own “pollination crisis.” Sensible steps would include increased taxonomic work on suspected plant pollinators, protection for pollinator populations threatened with extinction, establishing long‐term monitoring of plant–pollinator relationships, incorporating pollination into sustainable agriculture, restricting the use of various pesticides, adopting an Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management approach, and developing partnerships with First Nations peoples for research, conservation and management of plants and their pollinators. Appropriate Government policy, funding and regulation could help.
Details
- Title
- Pollination crisis Down‐Under: Has Australasia dodged the bullet?
- Authors/Creators
- Graham H. Pyke - Kunming Institute of BotanyKit S. Prendergast - Murdoch UniversityZong‐Xin Ren - Kunming Institute of Botany
- Publication Details
- Ecology and evolution, Vol.13(11)
- Publisher
- John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
- Grant note
- 31971570; 32271594 / Chinese National Natural Science Foundation 2020VBA0004 / Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative YNWR‐QNBJ‐2019‐055 / Talent Young Scientist Program of Yunnan Province
- Identifiers
- 991005610369207891
- Copyright
- © 2023 The Authors.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- Murdoch University
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
Metrics
42 File views/ downloads
34 Record Views