Appraising the importance of bees for ecosystems

20/05/2019

Pollination is the highest agricultural contributor to yields worldwide. Three out of four crops across the globe depend, at least in part, on pollinators. On the occasion of World Bee Day, here is a selection of FAO publications offering guidance, tools and analysis on pollinators. For further reading, see the Publications catalogue.

• Why bees matter: The importance of bees and other pollinators for food and agriculture
  This brochure aims to raise awareness on the role of bees and other pollinators in increasing food security and fighting hunger as well as in providing key ecosystem services for agriculture.
• Mainstreaming of biodiversity and ecosystem services with a focus on pollination
  Thepublication demonstrates theimportance of strengthening theinterface between the scientificcommunity, knowledge-holdersand policy-makers in the area ofecosystem services.
• The pollination of cultivated plants: a Compendium for practitioners – VOLUME 1 & VOLUME 2
  These publications aim is to share knowledge on crop pollination in both temperate and tropical zones, focusing on applied crop and system-specific pollination, pollination management, study, research tools and techniques.
• A quantitative approach to the socio-economic valuation of pollinator-friendly practices: a protocol for its use
  This publication provides an approach for the socio-economic valuation of pollinator-friendly practices at a landscape/farm level, with practical examples from Brazil and Kenya.
• Protocol to detect and monitor pollinator communities: Guidance for practitioners
  Addressing the need for global collaboration, this publication provides guidance on using a common methodology for monitoring pollinator diversity and abundance.

More on pollination

• Crops, weeds and pollinators − Understanding ecological interactions for better management
• Pollinator safety in agriculture
• Aspects determining the risk of pesticides to wild bees
• Value-added products from beekeeping (1996)

More titles can be browsed here.

Also forthcoming

• Survey of good pollination practices
• Farming with nature
• Toward sustainable crop pollination services: Measures at field, farm and landscape scales