Cultivation of pollinator-dependent crops has expanded globally, increasing our reliance on insect pollination. This essential ecosystem service is provided by a wide range of managed and wild pollinators whose abundance and diversity are thought to be in decline, threatening sustainable food production. In Cameroon, several studies on pollinator-dependent crops carried out in different agro-ecological zones (AEZ) have been published in national and international journals, in order to present the importance and impact of flowering insects on fruit and seed yields of plant species. We proposed to produce a review article highlighting the different flowering insects and their importance for different plants according to AEZ, without however focusing on the quality of the journal (predator or non-predator) and how the different insects were identified (scientific names given in the publications). Thus, from 1997 to 2020, we collected 116 published papers from which only 26 were kept for this review. The results show that Hymenoptera, including the Apidae, followed by Megachilidae, are the most excellent pollinators of plant species in Cameroon, and they are present in different agro-ecological zones. The majority of publications focused on bees, particularly the honeybee Apis mellifera .
Stein, K., Coulibaly, D., Stenchly, K., Goetze, D., Porembski, S., Lindner, A., et al . (2017) Bee Pollination Increases Yield Quantity and Quality of Cash Crops in Burkina Faso, West Africa. Scientific Reports , 7, Article No. 17691. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-17970-2
Ollerton, J., Winfree, R. and Tarrant, S. (2011) How Many Flowering Plants Are Pollinated by Animals? OIKOS , 120, 321-326. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18644.x
FAO (2009) Les pollinisateurs: Un élément négligé de la biodiversité, important pour l’alimentation et l’agriculture.
De Elena Fraccaro, S.D. (2023) Pourquoi les insectes pollinisateurs sont-ils importants? https://blog.3bee.com/fr/polinisateurs-role-fondamental/
FAO (2023) L’importance des abeilles dans la biodiversité et leur contribution à la sécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle. https://www.fao.org/africa/news-stories/news-detail/L-importance-des-abeilles-dans-la-biodiversit%C3%A9-et-leur-contribution-%C3%A0-la-s%C3%A9curit%C3%A9-alimentaire-et-nutritionnelle-/en
IRAD (2008) Deuxième rapport sur l’état des ressources phytogénétiques pour l’alimentation et l’agriculture au Cameroun.
Mazi, S., kingha, T.B.M., Déli, K.P., Faïbawa E. and Brückner, D. (2019) Role of Pollinators in Enhancing Pod and Seed Set of Arachis hypogaea Variety 28-206 (Fabaceae) at Tchabal-Mounguel (Ngaoundere, Cameroon). Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies , 7, 1521-1528.
Wei, W., Wu, H., Li, X., Wei, X., Lu, W. and Zheng, X. (2019) Diversity, Daily Activity Patterns, and Pollination Effectiveness of the Insects Visiting Camellia osmantha , C. vietnamensis , and C. oleifera in South China. Insects , 10, Article 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects10040098
Aizen, M.A., Aguiar, S., Biesmeijer, J.C., Garibaldi, L.A., Inouye, D.W., Jung, C., et al . (2019) Global Agricultural Productivity Is Threatened by Increasing Pollinator Dependence without a Parallel Increase in Crop Diversification. Global Change Biology , 25, 3516-3527. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.14736
Hristov, P., Neov, B., Shumkova, R. and Palova, N. (2020) Significance of Apoidea as Main Pollinators. Ecological and Economic Impact and Implications for Human Nutrition. Diversity , 12, Article 280. https://doi.org/10.3390/d12070280
Rasoloarijao, T.M. (2018) Écologie de l’abeille, Apis mellifera unicolor Latreille, dans les écosystèmes forestiers naturels de Ranomafana (Madagascar) et Mare Longue (Réunion): Etude du comportement de butinage et de l’utilisation des ressources florales par approche mélissopalynologique. Thèse de Doctorat, Université de La Réunion et Université d’Antananarivo.
Ulyshen, M., Urban-Mead, K.R., Dorey, J.B. and Rivers, J.W. (2023) Forests Are Critically Important to Global Pollinator Diversity and Enhance Pollination in Adjacent Crops. Biological Reviews , 98, 1118-1141. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12947
Yue-Wen, X., Lu, S., Rong, M., Yong-Qian, G., Hang, S. and Bo, S. (2023) Does Pollinator Dependence Decrease along Elevational Gradients? Plant Diversity , 45, 446-455.
Bazie, B.F., Dao, M.C.E., Drabo, F.S., Da, N., Kabre, S. and Gnankine, O. (2021) Influence des facteurs climatiques sur les insectes pollinisateurs potentiels du Moringa oleifera lam. au Burkina Faso. Revue Ramres , Science de la vie , de la terre et agronomie , 9, 47-54.
Tuell, J.K. and Isaacs, R. (2010) Weather during Bloom Affects Pollination and Yield of Highbush Blueberry. Journal of Economic Entomology , 103, 557-562. https://doi.org/10.1603/ec09387
Tchuenguem, F.F.-N. and Népidé, N.C. (2018) Pollination Efficiency of Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) on Sesamum indicum (Pedaliaceae) White and Smooth Seed Variety Flowers at Dang (Ngaoundéré, Cameroon). International Journal of Biological and Chemical Sciences , 12, 446-461.
Basga, E., Tope, S.F., Atibita, E.N.O. and Tchuenguem Fohouo, F. (2019) Efficacité pollinisatrice de Apis mellifera Linné (Hymenoptera: Apidae) sur les fleurs de Gossypium hirsutum (Malvaceae) à Djamboutou (Garoua, Cameroun). Journal of Applied Biosciences , 138, Article 14123. https://doi.org/10.4314/jab.v138i1.11
Reyes, H.C., Draper, D. and Marques, I. (2021) Pollination in the Rainforest: Scarce Visitors and Low Effective Pollinators Limit the Fruiting Success of Tropical Orchids. Insects , 12, Article 856. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects12100856
Klein, A., Vaissière, B.E., Cane, J.H., Steffan-Dewenter, I., Cunningham, S.A., Kremen, C., et al . (2006) Importance of Pollinators in Changing Landscapes for World Crops. Proceedings of the Royal Society B : Biological Sciences , 274, 303-313. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2006.3721
Breeze, T.D., Gallai, N., Garibaldi, L.A. and Li, X.S. (2016) Economic Measures of Pollination Services: Shortcomings and Future Directions. Trends in Ecology & Evolution , 31, 927-939. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2016.09.002
Stanley, D.A., Gunning, D. and Stout, J.C. (2013) Pollinators and Pollination of Oilseed Rape Crops (brassica Napus L.) in Ireland: Ecological and Economic Incentives for Pollinator Conservation. Journal of Insect Conservation , 17, 1181-1189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-013-9599-z
Bartomeus, I., Potts, S.G., Steffan-Dewenter, I., Vaissière, B.E., Woyciechowski, M., Krewenka, K.M., et al . (2014) Contribution of Insect Pollinators to Crop Yield and Quality Varies with Agricultural Intensification. Peer J , 2, e328. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.328
Sagwe, R.N., Peters, M.K., Dubois, T., Steffan-Dewenter, I. and Lattorff, H.M.G. (2021) Pollinator Supplementation Mitigates Pollination Deficits in Smallholder Avocado ( Persea americana Mill.) Production Systems in Kenya. Basic and Applied Ecology , 56, 392-400. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2021.08.013
Li, Q., Sun, M., Liu, Y., Liu, B., Bianchi, F.J.J.A., van der Werf, W., et al . (2022) High Pollination Deficit and Strong Dependence on Honeybees in Pollination of Korla Fragrant Pear, Pyrus sinkiangensis . Plants , 11, Article 1734. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11131734
Mazeed, A., Zidan, E. and Abd El-latif, A. (2019) Role of Pollinators on Egyptian Clover Pollination with Special Reference to Honeybee at Sohag Governorate, Egypt. Arab Universities Journal of Agricultural Sciences , 27, 853-860. https://doi.org/10.21608/ajs.2019.43835
Toni, H., Djossa, A.B., Teka, O. and Yédomonhan, H. (2020). Abeilles pollinisatrices et production de la pastèque ( Citrullus lanatus ) dans la Commune de Kétou au Sud Bénin. Afrique Science , 16, 63-77.
Toni, H., Djossa, A.B., Teka, O. and Yédomonhan, H. (2020). Rôle des insectes pollinisateurs dans qualité des fruits et le rendement du gombo ( Abelmoschus esculentus ) dans la Commune de Kétou au Sud Bénin. Afrique Science , 17, 102-114.