CropPol

Description: Seventy five percent of the world's food crops benefit from insect pollination. Hence, there has been increased interest in how global change drivers impact this critical ecosystem service. Because standardized data on crop pollination are rarely available, we are limited in our capacity to understand the variation in pollination benefits to crop yield, as well as to anticipate changes in this service, develop predictions, and inform management actions. Here, we present CropPol, a dynamic, open and global database on crop pollination. It contains measurements recorded from 202 crop studies, covering 3,394 field observations, 2,552 yield measurements (i.e. berry weight, number of fruits and kg per hectare, among others), and 47,752 insect records from 49 commercial crops distributed around the globe. CropPol comprises 32 of the 87 leading global crops and commodities that are pollinator dependent. Malus domestica is the most represented crop (29 studies), followed by Brassica napus (22 studies), Vaccinium corymbosum (13 studies), and Citrullus lanatus (12 studies). The most abundant pollinator guilds recorded are honey bees (34.22% counts), bumblebees (19.19%), flies other than Syrphidae and Bombyliidae (13.18%), other wild bees (13.13%), beetles (10.97%), Syrphidae (4.87%), and Bombyliidae (0.05%). Locations comprise 34 countries distributed among European (76 studies), Northern America (60), Latin America and the Caribbean (29), Asia (20), Oceania (10), and Africa (7). Sampling spans three decades and is concentrated on 2001-05 (21 studies), 2006-10 (40), 2011-15 (88), 2016-20 (50). This is the most comprehensive open global data set on measurements of crop flower visitors, crop pollinators and pollination to date and we encourage researchers to add more datasets to this database in the future.

Bibliographic

Publication Under review
Stable releases 10.5281/zenodo.4311291
Project site Link
Keywords
  • Pollination
  • Crop production
  • Agricultural management
  • Pollinator biodiversity
  • Bees
  • Flower visiting insects
Funder OBServ Project, funded through the 2017-2018 Belmont Forum and BiodivERsA joint call for research proposals, under the BiodivScen ERA-Net COFUND programme, and with the funding organisations AEI, NWO, ECCyT and NSF.
License CC BY-NC-SA

Attributes

Name File Description
study_id CropPol_field_level_data.csv identification code for a given study: Name of the leading author+crop name+country+year
site_id CropPol_field_level_data.csv identification code for a site within a study
crop CropPol_field_level_data.csv crop latin name
variety CropPol_field_level_data.csv crop variety name
management CropPol_field_level_data.csv management system implemented in the field: (1) Organic Agriculture, (2) Integrated pest management, and(3) Other Conventional Practices, (4) unmanaged
country CropPol_field_level_data.csv country where the crop field is located
latitude CropPol_field_level_data.csv latitude (WGS84) of a given field expressed in degrees
longitude CropPol_field_level_data.csv longitude (WGS84) of a given field expressed in degrees
X_UTM CropPol_field_level_data.csv Easting planar coordinate of a given field expressed in meters
Y_UTM CropPol_field_level_data.csv Northing planar coordinate of a given field expressed in meters
zone_UTM CropPol_field_level_data.csv the UTM zone number of a given field.
sampling_start_month CropPol_field_level_data.csv month of the year at the beginning of the sampling period (for example, 1 for January, 2 for February and so on)
sampling_end_month CropPol_field_level_data.csv month of the year at the end of the sampling period (see description for sampling_start_month)
sampling_year CropPol_field_level_data.csv year in which the sampling was carried out
field size CropPol_field_level_data.csv area of the field [hectare]
yield CropPol_field_level_data.csv yield value of a given field
yield_units CropPol_field_level_data.csv yield units
yield2 CropPol_field_level_data.csv secondary yield value
yield2_units CropPol_field_level_data.csv secondary yield units
yield_treatments_no_pollinators CropPol_field_level_data.csv if the results for yield involve exclosures (e.g., bags, etc.), we fill this column with such results (measured as the first unit )
yield_treatments_pollen_supplement CropPol_field_level_data.csv if the results for yield were obtained by using an additional treatment (e.g., hand-pollination, etc.), we fill this column with such results measured as the first unit)
yield_treatments_no_pollinators2 CropPol_field_level_data.csv if the results for secondary yield involve exclosures (e.g., bags, etc.), we fill this column with such results (second yield unit)
yield_treatments_pollen_supplement2 CropPol_field_level_data.csv if the results for yield were obtained by using an additional treatment (e.g., hand-pollination, etc.), we fill this column with such results. (second yield unit)
fruits_per_plant CropPol_field_level_data.csv average number of fruits per plant [count per plant]
fruit_weight CropPol_field_level_data.csv average fruit weight [grams per fruit]
plant_density CropPol_field_level_data.csv amount of crop plants per unit area of crop field [individuals per square meter]
seeds_per_fruit CropPol_field_level_data.csv average number of seeds per fruit [count per fruit]
seeds_per_plant CropPol_field_level_data.csv average number of seeds per plant or pod [count per plant]
seed_weight CropPol_field_level_data.csv average seed weight [grams per 100 seeds]
sampling_richness CropPol_field_level_data.csv method to survey organisms that is used to estimate richness.
observed_pollinator_richness CropPol_field_level_data.csv number of different pollinator species observed [counts]
other_pollinator_richness CropPol_field_level_data.csv estimated number of different species [counts]
other_richness_estimator_method CropPol_field_level_data.csv method used for estimating other_pollinator_richness, preferably Chao1.
richness_restriction CropPol_field_level_data.csv free text to describe constraints on richness/abundance measurements
sampling_abundance CropPol_field_level_data.csv method to survey organisms that is used to estimate abundance.
abundance CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of counts along transect lines [counts]. In the case of performing several transect walks,we indicate the sum of the individuals collected.
ab_honeybee CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for honey bees [counts]
ab_bombus CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for bumble bees [counts]
ab_wildbees CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for other wild bees [counts]
ab_syrphids CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for syrphids [counts]
ab_humbleflies CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for bombyliidae [counts]
ab_other_flies CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for non syrphid or bombilida diptera [counts]
ab_beetles CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for coleoptera [counts]
ab_lepidoptera CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) [counts]
ab_nonbee_hymenoptera CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts for nonbee hymenoptera (sawflies, wasps, ants, etc.) [counts]
ab_others CropPol_field_level_data.csv total amount of transect counts that were not included in the previous categories [counts]
total_sampled_area CropPol_field_level_data.csv area sampled during each census at each of the sites (e.g. area covered by one transect) in [square meters]. In the cases in which there was more than one sampling area within a site, this variable reflects the sum of their respective areas.
total_sampled_time CropPol_field_level_data.csv time spent sampling [minutes] each field. In the case in which sites were surveyed multiple times, this variable reflects the sum of their respective durations.
sampling_visitation CropPol_field_level_data.csv method to survey organisms that is used to estimate visitation rates.
visitation_rate_units CropPol_field_level_data.csv number of legitimate visits (i.e. contacting reproductive structures) to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.), per unit time. Preferred units: [visits per 100 flowers during one hour].
visitation_rate CropPol_field_level_data.csv total visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_honeybee CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (honey bees) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_bombus CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (bumble bees) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_wildbees CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (other wild bees) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_syrphids CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (syrphids) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_humbleflies CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (bombyliidae) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_other_flies CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (non syrphid or bombilida diptera) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_beetles CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (coleoptera) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_lepidoptera CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (lepidoptera: butterflies and moths) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_nonbee_hymenoptera CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (nonbee hymenoptera: sawflies, wasps, ants, etc.) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
visit_others CropPol_field_level_data.csv guild (other) visitation rate to crop units (flowers, branches,etc.) [in the visitation_rate_units].
Publication CropPol_field_level_data.csv If published, DOI of the publication (preferred) or article reference, if DOI is not available.
Credit CropPol_field_level_data.csv list with all authors who need to be given credit
Email_contact CropPol_field_level_data.csv email for contacting purposes.
notes CropPol_field_level_data.csv comments or clarifications on the values of a given variable
study_id CropPol_sampling_data.csv identification code for a given study: Name of the leading author+crop name+country+year
site_id CropPol_sampling_data.csv identification code for a site within a study
pollinator CropPol_sampling_data.csv name of the organism recorded
guild CropPol_sampling_data.csv guild of the pollinator
identified_to CropPol_sampling_data.csv taxonomic resolution of the pollinator (whether identification is at the level of species, morphospecies, genera, etc).
sampling_method CropPol_sampling_data.csv method to survey organisms. If multiple methods were used per organism, one independent row is added for each method.
abundance CropPol_sampling_data.csv number of individuals observed/collected. In the case of performing several censuses (transect walks/plant observations), this field reflects the sum of the individuals collected. When specified in the variable description, the values may refer to visitation rates.
total_sampled_flowers CropPol_sampling_data.csv number of flowers surveyed at each census (e.g., transect) per site. In the cases in which several censuses were performed, this variable reflects the sum of the respective counts.
description CropPol_sampling_data.csv free text to describe the overall methodology, including the number of temporal replicates per site and what a spatial replicate means in the corresponding study.
notes CropPol_sampling_data.csv free text to add comments on the taxa resolution or any other variables