Oral Presentation 20 by María José Suso at the International Conference on Pulses in Marrakesh, Morocco, 18-20 April 2016

1. Plant-pollinator interplay in pulses in the
context of ecosystem health
María José Suso Llamas
Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (CSIC)
mjsuso@ias.csic.es
The International Conference on Pulses for Health, Nutrition and
Sustainable Agriculture in Drylands
2016 International Year of Pulses
Marrakesh, Morocco, 18-20 April, 2016

2. Crop Production systems are facing two major challenges
Food security
+
Nutritional security
Reducing global environmental impacts
Ecological intensification
Strengthen
To provide high yields
To achieve environmental goals
+

3.  Hybrid breeding (hybrids and heterotic populations) is considered a
mayor breeding technology to increase crop
production in the context of Climate Change
 Breaking yield barriers could be achieved by
increasing yield potential by improvements in the
efficiency of heterosis exploitation.
((Tester, M., and Langridge, P. 2010. Science 327, 818-822)
In pulses, the development of hybrid technology is
limited, primarily because of its higher seed cost due to
low outcrossing.

4. Paradigm shift
Environmental servicesProduction +
Ecological intensification
 How can agricultural systems
contribute to conserve biodiversity
while maintaining or increasing
productivity?
Is it possible to develop synergies
between biodiversity conservation
(fauna and flora) and food
production?
Key questions

5. Development of links between biodiversity conservation and
food production services
(IPBES)
Connecting nature and people in IPBES

6. (IPBES) (http://www.ipbes.net/)
 Conservation and sustainable use of biological
diversity.
 The aim is to optimize crop production with
ecosystem services.
 Ecosystem services include pest control by natural
enemies, soil fertility and crop pollination.
Strengthening the scientific-policy interface on
biodiversity and ecosystem services
Assessment of pollination and pollinators associated with food production
There have been dramatic declines in pollinator populations
Conceptual Framework
Management options to mitigate pollinator decline and deficit

7.  Farming practices that support biodiversity
Conserving or sowing field margins to
provide suitable food resources and
nesting sites
Presence of mass flowering crops that
offer rewards in agricultural
landscapes
.
Breeders are encouraged considering
the floral attributes of interest to
pollinators when selecting new
cultivars.
Bailes et al. (2015). Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 26, 72-79.

8.  What can pulses do to help pollinators?
 How pulses can contribute to protect
biodiversity while creating a win-win situation
for
Breeding should be linked to the development of non-food services
+
win
win
Bee- pollinators
 Food production
 Pollinator conservation
 Farmers´ incomes ?

9. Non-food services
Foraging places for bees
Attractive Landscapes
Paradigm shift
Environmental
(supporting service)
Cultural
Development of pollinator-friendly cultivars
(artistic, intellectual
spiritual or recreational)
Improved value for the conservation of bee pollinators
Non-marketed?

10. How can farmers integrate multi-use pulses
into their local farming systems so as to
maximize synergies between bee pollinator
protection and food production?
How might multi-use
pulses be developed such
that they do not
compromise seed yield?
Complex and Significant questions.

11. Bee-pollinator role
Self pollinationSeed set and
quality
Cross pollination
Cultivar (hybrid and heterotic population) development to support
local agricultural systems
Tools to
facilitate
Heterogeneity
Heterozygosity
Exploitation of heterosis –mediated yield
and resistance to stresses (building more
resilient crops)
Agents of crossing
Natural breeders insect-mediated outcrossing
technology for hybrid seed production

12. Differences in floral design and floral display
Crop Design System (CDS) Approach
Why a bee forages on a particular flower?

13. Flower-level
Plant level
Crop-level
Opening force
Inflorescences
architecture
Number of
flowers
Flowering time
Patterning
Symmetry
Nectar and
pollen reward
Volatiles
Floral traits affecting pollinator visitation
Useful targets for breeding

14. Discovery
Attraction
Vector matching
Reward
CDS (Crop Design System)
Pulses may be suboptimal in attracting
and sustaining their pollinator populations
Functional floral traits, lost through
extended breeding, need to be recovered
Specific trait–focus breeding

15. Insect-aided cross-
pollination
Win-Win
farmers - pollinators – crops
Discovery
Attractiveness,
Reward
 Yield + stability
 Resilience
Heterosis-mediated
Co-designing cropping systems that match
crop- diversity and pollinator conservation
Plant –pollinator inter-play
Plantpollinatorinter-play
CDS Approach Synergies-based paradigm
+
Interpretation conceptual
Beekeepers
Farmers Greening economy

16. More in
Guidance on developing highly productive and
pollinator-friendly pulses via CDS