“…Specifically, for approval of atmospheric nitrogen (N 2 )-fixing bacteria for cowpea, Brazilian legislation considers strains (genotypes) of interest to be those whose viability and agronomic efficiency ensure yields higher than 500 kg ha −1 (República Federativa do Brasil, 2011). Although results confirm the benefits of native rhizobia communities in biological N fixation (BNF) for cowpea, the rhizobia community by itself established in the soil is not always sufficient to ensure a symbiosis that expressively contributes to increase the yield of this legume, and it is necessary to use inoculants containing strains that are more efficient in the BNF process (Costa, Nóbrega, Martins, Amaral, & Moreira, 2011Farias, Trochmann, Soares, & Moreira, 2016a, 2016bFerreira et al, 2019;Lacerda, Moreira, Andrade, & Soares, 2004;Martins et al, 2003;Moreira, 2006;Soares et al, 2006Soares et al, , 2014Zilli, Marson, Marson, Rumjanek, & Xavier, 2009).…”