Critical Transitions in Plant-Pollinator Systems Induced by Positive Inbreeding-Reward-Pollinator Feedbacks

• Published in: iScience Vol. 23; no. 2; p. 100819
• Main Authors: Huang, Heng, D'Odorico, Paolo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 21.02.2020; Elsevier
• Subjects: Ecology; Environmental Science; Mathematical Biosciences; Ecology; Mathematical Biosciences; Environmental Science
• ISSN: 2589-0042; 2589-0042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2020.100819

In many regions of the world pollinator populations are rapidly declining, a trend that is expected to disrupt major ecosystem functions and services. These changes in pollinator abundance may be prone to critical transitions with abrupt shifts to a state strongly depleted both in pollinator and vegetation abundance. Here we develop a process-based model to investigate the effect of a positive pollinator-vegetation feedback, whereby an initial decline in plant density increases selfing thereby reducing floral resources and negatively affecting pollinators. We show that a decline in resource availability and an increase in disturbance intensity can induce an abrupt shift in vegetation and pollinator dynamics and potentially lead to the collapse of plant-pollinator systems. Thus, endogenous feedbacks can induce strong non-linearities in plant-pollinator dynamics, making them vulnerable to critical transitions to a state depleted of both plants and pollinators in response to resource deficiency and natural or anthropogenic disturbance. [Display omitted] •Increased selfing in plants reduces nectar quality and pollinator visitation•Bistability can emerge from endogenous positive pollinator-vegetation feedbacks•Plant-pollinator dynamics may exhibit critical transitions under global change Environmental Science; Ecology; Mathematical Biosciences