We present parameters to support the conservation and management of Acerola pollinators. We monitored pollinator visits to this fruit shrub in a Brazilian savanna and identified the pollinator's other food resources. Twenty-three species of pollinators were sampled. Although there were temporal variations in visitor frequency, satisfactory levels of fruit set were obtained. This temporal variation promoted a compensatory effect on plant reproduction as the pollinator species were replaced during the course of flowering. The analysis of pollen loads showed grains of 16 plant species and four pollen types belonging to seven families that formed a network with a nested pattern. Such a network suggests that generalist plants must be available in the crop vicinity. The data presented suggest the natural viability of cultivating Acerola in the savannas of Central Brazil and the importance of natural lands for providing nesting resources and to enhance the bee diversity in agroecosystems.Centridini / agriculture / pollination / interaction network / bee
International audienceAbstractPollination is an ecosystem service sustained by a differentiated use of resources among sympatric species. The bee size can influence the similarity in the use of resources, and poricidal anthers limit the access to pollen. Therefore, we evaluated the influence of body size and the anther type of pollen sources in Centridini–flower interaction network. We expected that the low niche overlap, promoted by these morphological parameters, would result in the formation of subgroups and lead to greater network resilience. We studied 15 bee species (n = 73 females) and identified their pollen sources. The bee size and anther type influenced the formation of subgroups in the community, and the larger bees used a higher proportion of flowers with poricidal anthers. Only the anther type influenced the robustness of the network. We conclude that the parameters analyzed influence both the use of resources by oil-collecting bees and their food niche breadth
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