Dynamiques spatiale et temporelle des paysages agricoles : conséquences sur les interactions plantes-pollinisateurs et la pollinisation

Maintaining insect pollinators in farmland is essential for ensuring the pollination of crops and wild plants. This partly relies on the increase of floral resource availability. Mass flowering crops (MFC) provide a high amount of resources, but on a short period of time contrary to grasslands or weeds sheltered in fields. This temporal aspect is rarely studied, although it might be crucial in the maintenance of pollinators and insect pollination over the season. The aim of the thesis is to understand how the spatial and temporal distribution of the floral resources in farmland influence plant-pollinator interactions and pollination. Our results indicate that MFC at their peak flowering period, attract wild pollinators from grasslands and the honeybee; thus, supporting the pollination function. Within MFC, the honeybee preferentially consumes floral resources provided by crops, and may exclude wild pollinators from crop flowers which therefore foraged on weeds. After MFC flowering, pollinator insects spillover to grasslands and cereals which support pollination. Weeds, through their diversity in grasslands, and through their abundance in cereals support wild pollinators at this time period. The persistence of pollinators and pollination in farmland landscapes is based on (i) the maintenance of grasslands and weeds that ensure the spatio-temporal continuity of floral resources, (ii) MFC that supplement the landscapes in floral resources, and (iii) the reduction of field size that facilitates the access to the floral resources. Such measures appear to be compatible with crop production.Le maintien des insectes pollinisateurs en milieu agricole est essentiel car ils pollinisent les plantes sauvages et cultivées, il peut reposer sur l’augmentation de la disponibilité des ressources florales. Les cultures à floraison massive (CFM) fournissent des ressources abondantes et de façon discontinue dans le temps, au contraire des prairies et des plantes adventices présentes dans les cultures. Cet aspect temporel a été peu étudié alors que les paysages agricoles sont caractérisés par une dynamique temporelle importante du fait des successions culturales. L’objectif de la thèse est de comprendre l’effet de la distribution spatiale et temporelle des ressources florales dans les paysages agricoles sur les interactions plantes-pollinisateurs et la pollinisation. Nous montrons que les CFM au pic de floraison attirent les pollinisateurs sauvages des prairies et l’abeille domestique et supportent ainsi la fonction de pollinisation à cette période. Au sein des CFM, l’abeille domestique consomme les ressources fournies par les cultures préférentiellement en bordure de parcelle, et semble exclure les pollinisateurs sauvages des fleurs cultivées ceux-ci sont alors maintenus par les plantes adventices. A la fin de la floraison des CFM, les pollinisateurs dispersent vers les prairies et les céréales qui supportent ainsi la pollinisation. A cette période, les plantes adventices à travers leur abondance dans les céréales, et leur diversité dans les prairies supportent les pollinisateurs sauvages. La persistance des pollinisateurs et de la pollinisation dans les paysages agricoles, repose sur (i) le maintien des prairies et des plantes adventices qui assurent la continuité spatio-temporelle de la disponibilité en ressources florales, (ii) les CFM qui supplémentent les paysages en ressources florales, et (iii) la réduction de la taille des parcelles qui facilite l’accès aux ressources florales. Ces mesures sont compatibles avec la production agricole

Pollination efficiency in farmland landscapes: exploring the relative roles of spillover, dilution and complementarity between habitats

International audienceContextRecognized as a critical ecosystem service in farmland, pollination is threatened by the decline of pollinators, notably due the homogenization of the landscape and the decline of floral resources. However, there is still a limited understanding of the interplay between landscape features and the pulses of floral resources provided by mass-flowering crops.ObjectiveThe goals of this study were to (i) determine how pollination efficiency varies with the amount of floral resources at field and landscape scales through the oilseed rape (OSR) flowering period and (ii) quantify the magnitude of the pollination processes involved.MethodsPollination efficiency (fruiting success) was measured using OSR plant phytometers placed in grasslands, cereals and OSR fields varying in quantity of floral resources at both field and landscape scales. The individual contributions of different processes to pollination were determined using a bagging experiment on plant phytometers.ResultsPollination efficiency was enhanced during both the temporal period and in landscapes with a high amount of OSR flowers, and semi-natural habitats as a result of higher pollinator presence. The bagging experiment also supported a complementarity between habitats for pollinators, as insect-pollination in grasslands and cereals was higher after OSR flowering, especially in OSR-rich landscapes, in regard to large-insect-pollination.ConclusionsThe floral resource availability drives insect-pollination through attraction, spillover, and spatial and temporal complementarities between habitats. These results suggest that maximizing pollination efficiency in farmland landscapes partly consisting of OSR fields should include a combination of habitats that provide continuous floral resources