Areas requiring restoration efforts are a complementary opportunity to support the demand for pollination services in Brazil

Crop pollination is one of Nature’s Contributions to People (NCP) that reconciles biodiversity conservation and agricultural production. NCP benefits vary across space, including among distinct political-administrative levels within nations. Moreover, initiatives to restore ecosystems may enhance NCP provision, such as crop pollination delivered by native pollinators. We mapped crop pollination demand (PD), diversity of pollinator-dependent crops, and vegetation deficit (VD) (vis-a-vis Brazilian legal requirements) across all 5570 municipalities in Brazil. Pollinator-dependent crops represented ∼55% of the annual monetary value of agricultural production and ∼15% of the annual crop production. Municipalities with greater crop PD (i.e., higher degree of pollinator dependence of crop production) also had greater VD, associated with large properties and monocultures. In contrast, municipalities with a greater diversity of pollinator-dependent crops and predominantly small properties presented a smaller VD. Our results support that ecological restoration prompted by legal requirements offers great potential to promote crop productivity in larger properties. Moreover, conservation of vegetation remnants could support food security in small properties. We provided the first steps to identify spatial patterns linking biodiversity conservation and pollination service. Using Brazilian legal requirements as an example, we show that land-use management policies may be successfully used to ensure agricultural sustainability and crop production.

Fil: Bergamo, Pedro J.. Jardim Botânico Do Rio de Janeiro; Brasil

Fil: Wolowski, Marina. Universidade Federal de Alfenas; Brasil

Fil: Tambosi, Leandro R.. Universidad Federal do Abc; Brasil

Fil: Garcia, Edenise. The Nature Conservancy Brasil; Brasil

Fil: Agostini, Kayna. Universidade Federal do São Carlos; Brasil

Fil: Garibaldi, Lucas Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales, Agroecología y Desarrollo Rural. - Universidad Nacional de Rio Negro. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales, Agroecología y Desarrollo Rural; Argentina

Fil: Knight, Tiffany M.. German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research ; Alemania. University Halle-Wittenberg; Alemania. Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research; Alemania

Fil: Nic Lughadha, Eimear. Royal Botanic Gardens; Reino Unido

Fil: Oliveira, Paulo E. A. M.. Universidade Federal de Uberlandia (univ. Federal de Uberlandia);

Fil: Marques, Marcia C. M.. Universidade Federal do Paraná; Brasil

Fil: Maruyama, Pietro K.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; Brasil

Fil: Maués, Márcia M.. Embrapa; Brasil

Fil: Oppata, Alberto K.. Cooperativa Agrícola Mista de Tomé-Açu; Brasil

Fil: Rech, André R.. Federal University of the Jequitinhonha and Mucuri Valleys; Brasil

Fil: Saraiva, Antônio M.. Universidade de Sao Paulo; Brasil

Fil: Silva, Felipe D. S.. Universidade Federal do Mato Grosso do Sul; Brasil

Fil: Sousa, Gizele. Cooperativa Agrícola Mista de Tomé-Açu; Brasil

Fil: Tsukahara, Rodrigo Y.. Fundaç ão ABC Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Agropecuário; Brasil

Fil: Varassin, Isabela G.. Universidade Federal do Paraná; Brasil

Fil: Felipe Viana, Blandina. Universidade Federal da Bahia; Brasil

Fil: Freitas, Leandro. Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden; Brasil