Contents

S.NO PAGE
NO.

1. Introduction 1

2. Review of literature

3. Research gap

4. Objectives of the study

5. Scope of the study

6. Period of the study

7. Methodology

8. Organization of the Study

9. Findings, Conclusions and Suggestions

 CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

NALGONDA PROFILE: Nalgonda district is one of the 10 districts of

Telangana State, with a total geographical area of 14240 Sq.km. It has a total
population of 34,88,809 as per 2011 census.
 The district has 1178 Gram Panchayats,
 1161 revenue villages
 59 Mandals
 For Administrative convenience the district is divided into 4 revenue divisions located at
Bhongir, Nalgonda, Miryalguda and Suryapet.
 The district lies between North latitudes 16° 25’ and 17° 50’

Nalgonda areas :covers an area of 14,22,000 ha of which only 5.6% of the area is under
forests, 7.8% is put to non-agricultural uses, 4.3% under pasture and 21.2% under current
fallows. Net sown area accounts for 33.6% of the geogrophical area and the cropping intensity is
117%.

 The total population of the district is 32,47,982 of which Scheduled Castes constitute
5,75,788 (17.73%), thus, accounting for the highest SC population both in percent and
absolute numbers within NAIP districts.
 Scheduled Tribe population accounts for 10.55%. Nalgonda has highest number of rural
literates (67.6%) next only to Khammam and Warangal.
 Agricultural labourers represent 42% of the population while cultivators represent 25.5%.
, Nalgonda ranks third among the NAIP districts to have largest number of adult cattle
units (15,53,307).
 The grazing pressure is accounted at 6.3 ACU/ha grazing area, which is the lowest among
NAIP districts.
 The normal annual rainfall of the district is 744 mm with a very high frequency of
droughts during the past 15 years. The district has 1,87,000 ha of net irrigated area
accounting for 36% of the total cultivated area.
 In the past 10 years, rice, castor and groundnut have lost considerable area while cotton,
greengram and pigeonpea have gained substantially.
 Despite this, rice continues to occupy 1/3rd of the cropped area.
 The productivity of castor and cotton during TE-2005 is 326 and 220 kg/ha, respectively.
 On the other hand the average yield of rice is relatively higher at 2688 kg/ha.
  This district has seen a tremendous increase in area under horticulture crops.
 From a mere 17,000 ha in 2000-01 it has increased to over 71,000 ha in 2005-06
contributing to over 10% of the area under horticulture in the State.
 Area under vegetables has increased slightly from 3,377 ha to 5,358 ha and that under
spices has marginally decreased during the period.

Nalgonda district :
 had a per capita income of Rs. 16526 during 2003-04. Annual growth rate of agricultural
lending was 30% in the district.
 Nalgonda has the highest number of APMCs (24) among the NAIP districts and has the
second highest density of APMCs (5.1 per lakh ha of NSA) next only to Rangareddy
district
 . Dupahad Cluster Profile 1 General Information 1.1 Name of the cluster (give the name
of the main village on which you want the cluster name to be printed) DUPAHAD
 1.2 Names of the villages/hamlets/ thandas I. Dupahad 1. Jalmal Kunta , New Banjara
Hills 2. Seetamma Thanda 3. Yellappa Kunta Thanda II. Gajulamalkapuram 4. Cina
Gorekunta 5. Peda Gorekunta III. ChetlaMukunda Puram 6. China Seetaram Thanda 7.
Peda Seetaram Thanda 8. Lalsing Thanda
 1.3 Name of the mandal and district Dupahad, Nalgonda District 1.4 Distance from
mandal headquarters and district Hqtrs (kms). 5 km , 75 km 1.5 How to reach (give the
route, mode of travel and time taken) (draw a brief sketch if possible) Hyderabad to
Suryapet - 135 km Suryapet to Durachipally on Vijayawada National highway - 9 – 6 km
Durachipally to Dupahad - 18 km 2.

Land Use Statistics:

 2.1 Total geographical area of the cluster (ha.) 800 ha
 2.2 Cultivated area (ha. and % of total) 600 ha (75% of GA)
 2.3 Area under irrigation (ha. and %) 108 ha (18% CA)
 2.4 Rainfed area (ha. and %) 492 ha (82% of CA)
 2.5 Fallow land (ha. and %) 74 ha (9.25% of GA)
 2.6 Degraded and wastelands (ha. and %) 126 ha (15.75% of GA)
 2.7 Area under forests (ha. and %) –
 2.8 Others (specify) - 3. Population Statistics
 3.1 Total population 2326 Male 649 Female 681 Children 996
 3.2 Population of scheduled castes (No. and %) –
 3.3 Population of scheduled tribes (No. and %) 2326 (100%)
 3.4 Total number of households (No.) 621 3.5 Women led households (No. and % of
total) –
 3.6 No. of BPL households 91.6%
  4. Land Holding Patterns/ Occupation
 4.1 Small farmers (No. and % of total) 275 (49.5%)
 4.2 Marginal farmers (No. and % of total) 229 (41.2% )
 4.3 Large farmers (No. and % of total) 52 (9.3% )
 4.4 Total farmers (No.) 556
 4.5 Land Less Households 33
 4.6 Agricultural labours (No.) 32
 4.7 Village artisans (No.) 24
 4.8 Educated unemployed/under employed youth (No.) 115 4.9 Petty traders 25 5. Area
Under Crops/Horticulture (ha.

Cropps:
 5.1 Greengram . 198.4 ha
 5.2 Groundnut 66.4 ha
 5.3 Redgram 176.8 ha
 5.4 Paddy 108.0 ha
 5.5 Tomato 25.4 ha
 5.6 Brinjal 3.0 ha
 5.7 Bhendi 9.9 ha
 5.8 Chilli 3.0 ha
 5.9 Leafy vegetables 9.1 ha Total 600.0 ha
 6. Main Cropping Systems Kharif Rabi Summer Greengram + redgram Give the
cropping systems in seasonwise table Greengram + Vegetables Groundnut + redgram
Groundnut vegetables Cowpea Vegetables Vegetables + vegetables Greengram followed
by Paddy Chillies Paddy Mango, & Sweet orange
 7. Cropping Intensity (%) 108%

PENPAHAD MANDAL: Is one of the 23 mandals in Suryapet district of the Indian state
of Telangana.[1]

 It is under the administration of Suryapet revenue division with its headquarters

at Penpahad.
 It is bounded by Suryapet mandal towards North, Chivvemla mandaltowards
North, Neredcherla mandal towards South, Munagala mandal towards East.
 Penpahad mandal is having population of 38,541 living in 9,347 Houses.
 Males are 19,522 and Females are 19,019 .
 Cheedella is the largest village and Nagulapahad is the smallest village in the mandal.
 Penpahad consist of 48 Villages and 17 Panchayats .
 Rajpet is the smallest Village and Cheedella is the biggest Village .
 It is in the 152 m elevation(altitude).
Nagarjunakonda (Nagarjuna Sagar Dam) , Khammam , Nagarjunsagar , Amaravathi , Warangal
(Orugallu) are the near by Important tourist destinations to see.

ABOUT PENPAHAD MANDAL:

Penpahad is a Mandal in Nalgonda District of Telangana State, India. Penpahad Mandal Head
Quarters is Penpahad town . It belongs to Telangana region . Penpahad is belongs to Suryapet
revenue divison . As part Telangana Districts re-organisation , Penpahad Mandal re organised
from Nalgonda District to Suryapet district. It is located 53 KM towards East from District head
quarters Nalgonda.

Penpahad Mandal is bounded by by Chivvemla Mandal towards North , Munagala Mandal

towards East , Garide Pally Mandal towards South , Suryapet Mandal towards North . Suryapet
City , Miryalaguda City , Kodad City , Jaggaiahpet City are the nearby Cities to Penpahad.

DEMOGRAPHICS OF PENPAHAD MANDAL:Telugu is the Local Language here.

Also People Speaks Urdu . Total population of Penpahad Mandal is 38,541 living in 9,347
Houses, Spread across total 48 villages and 17 panchayats . Males are 19,522 and Females are
19,019
As of 2011 census of India, the mandal has 17 settlements.[2] The settlements in the mandal are
listed below:

1. Penpahad (CT) †
2. Cheedella
3. Potlapahad
4. Bhakthalapuram
5. Dharmapuram
6. Rajpeta
7. Anajipur
8. Dosapahad
9. Anantharam
10. Mohammadapur
11. Nagulapahad
12. Macharam
13. Annaram
14. Lingala
15. Dupahad
16. Gajulamalkapuram
17. Singareddy Palem

WEATHER AND CLIMATE OF PENPAHAD MANDAL

It is too Hot in summer. Penpahad summer highest day temperature is in between 35 °C to 48 °C
.Average temperatures of January is 24 °C , February is 26 °C , March is 29 °C , April is 33 °C ,
May is 36 °C .
HOW TO REACH PENPAHAD MANDAL

By Rail
There is no railway station near to Penpahad Mandal in less than 10 km. are the Rail way stations
reachable from near by towns. How ever Warangal Rail Way Station is major railway station 118
KM near to Penpahad

By Road
Suryapet are the nearby by towns to Penpahad having road connectivity toPenpahad.

Pin codes of Penpahad Mandal

508201 ( Garidepally ) , 508233 ( Munagala ) , 508213 ( Suryapet )

Banks in Penpahad
Bank Of India, Cheedella ( Ifsc Code : SBIN0009501 , micrCode: 508002232)

Colleges in Penpahad
R J R Memorial Jr College, Penpahad
Address : Penpahad
Sri Sarada Institute Of Science & Technology
Address : Anantharam; Near By Bibinagar A; Bhongir (m); Nalgonda Dist.--508116.
Vathsalya Institute Of Science & Technology
Address : Anantharam; Bhongir (m); Nalgonda -- 508 116.
Vathsalya College Of Pharmacy
Address : ; Anantharam; Bhongir; Nalgonda Dist.;

Schools in Penpahad
Kgbv Penpahad
Address : penpahad , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post – Suryapet
Zphs LingalaAddress : lingala , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508201 , Post –
Garidepally
Zphs Bhakhthalapuram
Address : bhakthalapuram , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post –
Suryapet
Zphs Cheedella
Address : cheedella , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508233 , Post – Munagala
Zphs Anajipuaram
Address : anajipuram , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post - Suryapet

Zphs Gajulamalkapuram
Address : gajulamalkapuram , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post –
Suryapet
Zphs N.annaram
Address : n.annaram , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post – Suryapet
Zphs Penpahad
Address : penpahad , penpahad , nalgonda , Andhra Pradesh . PIN- 508213 , Post – Suryapet

Agriculture:
Cotton, Maize, Chilli, Ground Nut, Paddy, Wheat, Sugarcane, Turmeric, Pulses are the major
crops that are cultivated mostly in the area.
 Review of Literacy

S no Author Title Published details Abstract

name
1 Pandey and Cropping pattern Mountain Studied the ecological implications of land
Tewari and Land use research and use dynamic. The study revealed that there
(1987): pattern Uttar development was a consistent increase in fallow lands in all
pradesh 345-356 the regions, despite about a steady net
Pandey and AK cultivated area. The cultivable waste was also
Tewari in 1992 declining consistently, except in the hills.
while it has decreased in the case of millets
and cash crops. As far as the special
organization of land use is concerned and
cotton and groundnut. Among the crop
combinations, the annual returns to fixed far
groundnut-wheat and maize-wheat
combination despite the continuation
economy prevalent in the area, the terms of
the theories of economic development
observed a turn down in the forestland as a
result of illegal felling of. They also report
that fallow land had increased since the
foreword of the Tawas irrigation project.

2 Chahal Economics of Naya Studied the economics of irrigated crops in

(1989): irrigated crops Udyog,Kolkata, proposed that the variable costs per hectare is
Punjab India (2003) highest for paddy, followed by maize,
sugarcane, wheat, cotton and groundnut.
Among the crop combinations, the annual
returns to fixed far groundnut-wheat and
maize-wheat combination,
Follow by cotton-wheat, sugarcane and
maize-wheat. Concluirrigation were higher
than sugar cane. A study was conducted by
Singh (1990) pattern. growth performance of
agriculture in India can be minimized by
bringing the wheat and maize-wheat farmer in
the ambit of efficient extension education and
training activities
He suggested that thruway disparities in
growth performance of agriculture in India
can be minimized by bringing the farmer in
the ambit of efficient extension education and
training activities, sound government
3 Sharma growth of 2010 Feb. 2 Attempted to study interstate disparities in
(1990): agriculture in growth of agriculture in India from 1966-67
India viz, to 1987-88. It was observed that four
Punjab, Haryana, experienced a growth rate of food grain
Uttar Pradesh production, higher than the national average
and Maharashtra of 2.72 per cent per annum. He suggested that
thruway disparities in growth performance of
agriculture in India can be minimized by
bringing the farmer in the ambit of efficient
extension education and training activities,
sound government policies and efficient
supply network of various inputs.

4 Shrivastava et Land use and Oct 12, 2016 Studied the dynamics of land use and
al (1991): cropping system cropping system in the Taw Command Area
Hoshangabad .They assess the impact of the Taw irrigation
district of project on cropping pattern and land use in
Madhya Pradesh the area during the pre-project period (1973-
71 to 1974-75) and the post project period
(1975-76 to 1979-80). They observed a turn
down in the forestland as a result of illegal
felling of. They also report that fallow land
had increased since the foreword of the Taw
irrigation project.

5 Krishnan et al Instability of C. Krishna Baha Studied the growth and instability of

(1991): agriculture durEmail author. agriculture in Kerala and observed a shift in
Kerala Original Article the cropping pattern. The cropping pattern
First Online: shifted in good turn of plantation and
15 May 2008. commercial crops. They concluded that
Received: 14 though this shift in cropping pattern is a
December 2007 welcome shift in terms of the theories of
economic development, it is at the cost of
making the state deficient in rice, the staple
crop of the state.

6 Singh and changing pattern RD Singh, 2008 Studied the changing pattern of land
Kaur (1991): of land - Elsevier utilization since the inception of new farm
utilization Ginkgo biloba technology in the mid sixties i.e. from 1966-
Punjab has been existing 67 to 1987-88. The study revealed that the
on earth since reported area for land utilization remained
200 million constant while the area under forests, area not
years and is available for cultivation and net areas own
considered increased through the period. Gross cropped
as a “living area and cropping intensity increased. A study
fossil”. was conducted by Singh (1990) pattern.
 growth performance of agriculture in India
can be minimized by bringing the wheat and
maize-wheat farmer in the ambit of efficient
extension education and training activities

7 land utilization Himachal Studied the land utilization pattern in

Vaidy and pattern in Pradesh for the Himachal Pradesh using secondary data for
Sikka (1991): Himachal published Nov the period from 1966-67 to 1986-87. They
Pradesh 14 2008 observed that there had been no uniform trend
in the change in the land use classes. The area
under forest showed an increasing trend while
that on other category shown declining trend.

8 Singh and Dynamics of Dec 20, 2017 - Made an attempt to study the dynamics of
Mohammed cropping pattern 17, No. 3, cropping pattern in northern India. The study
(1992): in northern India. September reveals that the total cropped area and area
2002. Published under cereals and vegetables had increased
by Geocarto while it has decreased in the case of millets
International and cash crops. As far as the special
Centre, G.P.O. organization of land use is concerned and
Box 4122, Hong despite the continuation economy prevalent in
Kong. the area, the predictions of Van- Thunen’s
Monitoring Crop theory would appear to be supported by the
ping facts.
Pattern Changes
Using Multi-
temporal
9 Behura and change in the Published in Studied the change in the cropping pattern for
Naik (1994): cropping pattern 2009 Oct 04, the period from 1966-67 to 1990-1991 in
for the period Orissa. The consequences revealed that the
from 1966-67 to area under rice, which is the most important
1990-1991 in crop of the district, declined from 58 per cent
Orissa. of the gross cropped area in 1966-67 to 38 per
cent of the gross cropped area in 1990-1991.
They observed that the decrease in area under
rice was mainly due to substitution of paddy-
by other crops.

10 Lal and Singh Deliberate the Agricultural and Deliberate the structural changes in Haryana
(1994): structural forest …, 2004 – agriculture. The study revealed shift in the
changes in Elsevier cropping pattern and value shares in favor of
Haryana published in paddy and wheat primarily grown in
agriculture Chandigarh relatively better resource endowed area. This
resulted in an imposing growth in the
production of these two superior cereals
 where as the coarse cereals were bypassing
the growth process. They felt that more notice
should be given towards yield improvement
in non-food grain crops so that the balance
could be maintained in the food grain basket
of the state.

11 Shiva Kumar Agriculture to Mountain Reported that in Karnataka, there was a state
(1994): horticulture Research and wide shift from food based agriculture to
Development, horticulture, sericulture, dry land crops,
1997 - JSTOR forestry and the like. The area under food
crops declined from 75.76 lakh ha in 1989-90
to 72.91lakh ha in 1991-92 and the area under
oilseeds greater than before from 22.65 lakh
in 1989-99 to 29.09 lakh hectares in 1991- 92,
but it fell marginally to 27.81 lakh hectares in
1992-93.

12 Vivekananda Changing In the study of In their effort to study the Karnataka’s

and cropping pattern changes changing cropping pattern reported that the
Satyapriya in cropping share of area under all cereal crops declined
(1994): pattern in from 55 per cent to 47 per cent between
Karnataka 1956–1957 and 1989–90; the decline is a
State 2009 great deal sharper during the eighties. The
march 8. decline is under jowar, bajra and wheat with
an increase in the share of area under rice and
ragi among the cereal crops. Maize, a new
applicant in the cropping pattern of the state.

13 Mishra changing profile Misra et al; Studied the changing profile of agriculture in
(1994): of agriculture in licensee Bio Orissa and report the change in cropping
Orissa Med Central Ltd. pattern for the period from 1950-51 to 1990-
2008. 1991. They observed that there was a gradual
Received: 17 increase in the amount of the net area sown at
July 2007, the cost of land under categories such as area
Published 30 not available for cultivation, other
May 2008 … uncultivated land without fallow and fallow
land.
They reported that there was a gradual fall in
the share of area under rice and other cereals
which has been diverted for production of
pulses and oilseeds, the quantity of which has
consistently increased.

14 Damayanthi Carried out a CROP Carried out a study to understand the changes
(1995): study to RANKING OF in cropping pattern in the Pookod village in
 understand the MYSORE DIST Trichur district of Kerala. They reported that
changes in RICT.” most of the households surveyed had either
cropping pattern International sold their paddy fields or the fields were lying
in the Pookod Journal of
idle for years together. In many cases, the
village in Research -.
Trichur district Granthaalayah, paddy fields were rehabilitated to or were
of Kerala 5(4), 334-338. under conversion to garden lands. The
https://doi.org/10 tendency of paddy land conversion along with
.5281/zenodo.57 increased demand for housing sites was
3005 attributed as the causative factors for the
declining availability of land for agricultural
purposes and thus reducing the share of in
providing employment of rural population.

15 Majid Husan that the cropping Nov 22, 2016 In his book proposed that cropping pattern
(1996): patterns of a means the “proportion of area under various
region are crops at a point of time”. He found that the
closely cropping patterns non-agricultural use were
influenced by the positive and significant in almost all the talus
geo climatic, studied. The growths of a region are closely
influenced by the geo climatic, socio cultural,
historical and political factors.

16 Managoli Studied the land 2014 Mar 12 Studied the land use dimensions in Bijapur
(1997): use dimensions district for a period of 21 years from 1971-72
in Bijapur to 1992-93. The study revealed that there was
district for a no change in the forest cover in almost all the
period of 21 talus of Bijapur district. The growth rate for
years from 1971- area sown more than once and land put to
72 to 1992-93. non-agricultural use were positive and
significant in almost all the talus studied. The
growth rates of area under crops like jowar,
bajra and maize were positive and significant.

17 Kumar and Made an attempt Made an attempt to analyze the cropping

Singh (1998): to analyze the pattern in north Bihar during post-green
cropping pattern revolution period (1970-71 to 1993-94). The
in north Bihar study revealed that the cropping pattern of
during post- north Bihar is still predominate by cereal
green revolution crops. Among the cereals, wheat has emerged
period (1970-71 as major cereal crop. They concluded that the
to 1993-94). predominance of cereal crops in the cropping
pattern was credited to the food grain scarcity
in the project area and bio-chemical and The
growth rate for area sown more than once and
 land put to non-agricultural use were positive
genetic innovations in principal cereal crops
during post green revolution period.

18 Rajesh and Considered the Issue 2014 Jun Rajesh and Ramasamy (1998) considered the
Ramasamy trends in under 19 trends in under utilization of land in Tamil
(1998): utilization of Nadu and identified the determinants for the
land in Tamil same. The results indicated that there is a
Nadu and better scope for further extension of the area
identified the of land under cultivation, As the survival of a
determinants for vast area of land under current flow, other
the same fellow and cultivable wastes which can be
brought under cultivation in Tamil Nadu.
They reported that the occurrence of landlords
or large holdings has been accountable for the
highest percentage of land uncultivated, The
resource crunch faced by the farmers seems to
have aggravated after the advent of new
technology due to the capital-intensive nature
of modern inputs. This has led to the neglect
of other lands.

19 Das (2000): Studied the 2013 Mar 03 Studied the agricultural cropping pattern in
agricultural different zones; their average yields in
cropping pattern comparison to National average yield
in different potential. Multiplicity of cropping systems
zones; their has been one of the main features of Indian
average yields in agriculture and it is attributed to rain the
comparison to farming community. He estimated that more
National average than 250 double cropping systems are
yield potential followed throughout the country and based on
the rationale of spread of crops in each district
in the country, 30 important cropping systems
have been identified.

20 Reddy and Studied the 2013 Aug 18 Studied the determinants of cropping pattern
Achoth determinants of changes in dry land agriculture of Karnataka.
(2000): cropping pattern The study exposed that most of the dry land,
changes in dry food crops such as rage, jowar and Bengal
land agriculture gram were non-responsive to own price and
of Karnataka oilseed crops such as sunflower and
groundnut responded largely to their own
prices. Most of the crops respond positively to
the rainfall except groundnut area.
21 Marijuana Temporal and Department of Change in cropping pattern implies a change
Beegum spatial analysis agricultural in proportion of area under different crops.
of cropping statistics, applied The study aimed at analyzing the changes in
pattern in mathematics and cropping pattern in Kerala with the help of
KERALA computer science time series data for a period of 20 years from
university of 1993-94 to 2012-13 and for four sub periods
agricultural viz. Period I (1993-94 to 1997-98), period II
sciences, (1998-99 to 2002-03), period III (2003-04 to
BENGALURU 2007-08) and period IV (2008-09 to 2012-13)
2014 over districts of the state. Data are collected
from the Department of Economics and
Statistics, Thiruvananthapuram.

22 Bimal Sharma Changing Pattern Lecturer in Introduction of green revolution technology

of Agricultural Geography and has many variants for agricultural land use
Productivity in Planning Royal intensification and increasing agricultural
the Brahmaputra University of production as well. The authors have tried to
Valley, Assam, Bhutan probe into the changing pattern of agricultural
India Sherubtse productivity which is not only result of agro-
College ecological conditions of land but also of the
Kanglung, use of improved seed-fertilizer technology.
Trashigang Such scenario is a recently emerging
Bhutan phenomenon in the Brahmaputra valley
Email:bsharma1
@rediffmail.com
23 RAWYA M Optimization of https://doi.org/10 Continuous increase of population in Egypt,
KANSHOW .1016/j.ae j.2 limited fresh water, poor maintenance and
the cropping
017.04.015 low efficiency of irrigation systems lead to a
pattern in Egypt December 17 real burden on the Egyptian natural water
resources. to maximize the net annual return
from the three old regions of Egypt. Data for
28 crops in five years from 2008 to 2012 are
being analyzed. The spatial variations of,
chickpeas, lentil and lupine since they are
considered as non-strategic crops. On the
other side, the allocated areas for strategic
crops such as wheat, maize, clover, rice, sugar
products and cotton remained almost the same
to satisfy their actual food requirements.
However, crops with high net returns such as
tomatoes have increased substantially. The
trend for the gross net benefit is decreasing
and is expected to reach a lower value in year
2017. Different approaches and scenarios are
 analyzed. The developed model.
24 Utpal Kumar Economics of http://mpra.ub.un Agricultural development in West Bengal
De and U.K. Crop i- during the post-Green Revolution period is
De Diversification – muenchen.de/61 associated with diverse changes in cropping
An Analysis of 67/ MPRA Paper pattern. Cropping pattern in terms of acreage
Land Allocation No. 6167, posted allocation has changed largely in favour of
towards 16. March 2008 boro rice, potato and mustard. The changes in
Different Crops 20:05 UTCL cropping pattern may be due to various
(U.K.De) reasons. This present paper tries to analyses
the basic reason behind the relatively rapid
growth of those crops.

25 Srikanth A Case Study of Kondabolu, The Doulthabad1 Mandal is a hot semi-arid

Kondabolu Changing Srikanth, "A agro-ecological sub-region (Rao et al. 2006)
Cropping Case Study of located in Mahbubnagar District on the North
Diversity and Changing Telangana Plateau in the state of Telangana2 .
Agricultural Risk Cropping Agriculture is the main occupation in this
in the Diversity and region, which is populated mostly with small
Doulthabad Agricultural Risk and marginal farmers. This study uses the
Mandal of in the time period from 1971 to 2004 to study the
Telangana State Doulthabad variation in cropping pattern diversity and
in India Mandal of distribution of rainfall during the monsoons
Telangana State and understand the implications on production
in India" (2014). risk in agriculture. intensity in the period from
Dissertations & 1971-1990 to 1991-2004. The cropping
Theses in system diversity in the same time period has
Natural decreased from 23 to 10 crops in the Kharif
Resources. 100. (monsoon) season with access to improved
http://digitalcom agricultural technology
mons.unl.edu/nat
resdiss/100
26 Anil Sood a* , LONG TERM a Punjab Remote With the availability of required inputs for
S S Ray b, B CHANGES IN Sensing Centre, intensive agriculture, the cropping system in
U Choudhury CROPPING Ludhiana – 141 Punjab state has undergone a paradigm shift,
a, P K Sharma PATTERN OF 004 b from a much diversified cropping pattern to a
a and Sushma BATHINDA Agricultural very specialized monocropped one. A study
Panigrahy DISTRICT, Resource Group, was undertaken in Bathinda district of Punjab
PUNJAB - A Space State for mapping crop area, cropping pattern
REMOTE Application and finally long term changes in cropping
SENSING Centre, pattern. Multi-year, multi-date, IRS LISS I,
APPROACH Ahmedabad -380 WiFS & LISS III and RADARSAT ScanSAR
015 data were used to map area under major crops
asdoegar@rediff and to generate the cropping pattern maps for
mail.com the years 1988-89, 1998-99 and 2003-04,
respectively. The study revealed that in
Bathinda district which is lying in the south-
 western part of Punjab, popularly known as
cotton belt, rice (Oryza sativa L.) -wheat
(Triticum aestivum L.) system has come in
place of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L)-
wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and other minor
cropping systems in large area where assured
irrigation water is available. The results
revealed that over the years, which was
dominant in the northern part of the district in
the year 1998-99 has spread to the other parts
of the district by the year 2003-04.
27 Manashi Cropping Pattern www.ijird.com Sivasagar is one of the agrarian districts of
Gogoi in Sivasagar September, 2016 Assam. More than 70% people of the district
District, Assam, depend on agriculture. Hence the study of the
India: A Case pattern of agricultural activities in the district
Study bears immense significance. In the current age
of unemployment, there is enough scope of
engaging the people in agricultural activities
keeping in view of their self-sufficiency and
strengthening their economic base in the
district. However continuity of traditional
cropping pattern, the farmers’ incompetency
of applying modernized technologies in
cultivation etc. Hence, a systematic and
scientific research is highly felt required in
exploring and assessing the cropping pattern
in the district.

28 I Rubeenah Changes in Issue 4 (Oct. - The aim of the present paper is to understand
Akhter, IIDr. Cropping Pattern Dec. 2015) the changes in the cropping pattern in Jammu
Rekha in Jammu and and Kashmir. This paper will also give some
Acharya Kashmir suggestion for improving the cropping pattern
in Jammu and Kashmir. The Regression
analysis has been done in order to see causal
relationship between area and production. The
cropping pattern of Jammu and Kashmir was
based on the traditional system of the
subsistence farming without any surplus. But
with the advent of New Agricultural Strategy,
there emerged the complementary
relationship between the commercialization
and cropping pattern of the state. The state of
Jammu and Kashmir has micro-level
variations in the agro-climatic conditions
29 Aloka Kumar Agricultural 2013 IJAIR Agriculture is the major livelihood activity of
Goyal Production majority of rural population in Uttar Pradesh.
 Trends and Sustained growth in agricultural production
Cropping Pattern and productivity is essential for over all
in Uttar Pradesh sustainability of the state economy. It is,
therefore necessary to study the status of
agriculture in Uttar Pradesh. This paper deals
with cropping pattern and production trends
of agriculture in Uttar Pradesh.

30 Mhaske Demands of Issue 5, May A change in the agricultural land use implies
Pandurang Changes in 2014 a change in the proportion of area under
Hanumant1 , Cropping www.ijsr.net different crops at two different times. As such
Tupe Pattern: A Case the amount of area involved in change for
Babasaheb Study of Akole Akole tahasil is calculated for individual
Karbhari2 Tahasil (M.S, crops and the crops of leading increases and
India) decreased are marked. The intensity of land
utilization is reflected in number of crops
raised during the yearThe study area has
recorded in 20 years parts of the eastern side’s
significant increase in residential and
agricultural area due to which gained more
land from water bodies, barren and vacant
lands. It is observed from the study area, there
is a grater variation in the changes land use
and cropping pattern, during the study period
i.e. 1990
31 A.P.Pandit , Impact of Water 2015 June 05 - Irrigation has become an important aspect of
2A.B. Aher Resources agriculture. Recently irrigation becomes most
and Utilization and essential and without it most crops cannot be
S.D.Kulkarni Cropping Pattern grown. It becomes essential part due to
in Shrigonda variation of monsoon and uneven distribution
Tahsil, of rainfall throughout the year. Even those
Ahmednagar, crops, which are grown during rainy season,
Maharashtra also depend upon irrigation because farmers
try to irrigate the crops in time so that crops
might be ready in time and give higher yield.
In case of failure of rainfall use of irrigation
becomes much more essential areas growing
multiple crops need intensive irrigation
facilities. In present study Shrigonda tahsil
was selected as a study area which came
under rain shadow and semi arid region. The
irrigation water resource availability and
management practices were consider from
study area in relation with a cropping pattern
during 1961 to 2001.
Research Gap

The above review of literature points out that many studies have been made on cropping pattern.
Some few studies conducted in the field of cropping pattern in rural ares, therefore be
appropriate to make a study to address the gap.

OBJECTIVES OF THE CROPPING PATTERN

The objectives of the study are,
1. To understand the concept of the cropping pattern.
2.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope of the study is limited to Penpahad Mandal in Nalgonda,
PERIOD OF THE STUDY
The period of the study from October 2017 to April 2018,
METHODOLOGY
Relevant PRIMARY DATA are collected by administering a questionnaire to the
Relevant SECONDARY DATA

ORGANISATIONS OF THE STUDY

CHAPTER I –INTRODUCTION
In this Chapter, Importance of the study, objectives of the study, Period, Methodology,
Scope of the study, sources of data and chapterisation and a brief review of literature
Would be discussed.

CHAPTER 2 -AN OVERVIEW OF CROPPING PATTERN

In this chapter, Historical background, of cropping pattern , how it is useful

CHAPTER 3 - PERCEPTIONS ABOUT CROPPING PATTERN

Primary data collection, secondary data,each acer how much earn

CHAPTER 4- FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, SUGGESTIONS

References

1) Pandey and Tewari (1987): Cropping pattern and Land use pattern Uttar Pradesh Mountain
research and development 345-356 Pandey and AK Tewari in 1992.
2) Chahal (1989): Economics of irrigated crops Punjab Naya Udyog, Kolkata, India (2003).

3) Sharma (1990): growth of agriculture in India viz, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and
Maharashtra 2010 Feb. 2.

4) Shrivastava et al (1991): Land use and cropping system Hoshangabad district of Madhya
Pradesh Oct 12, 2016.

5) Krishnan et al (1991): Instability of agriculture Kerala C. Krishna BahadurEmail author.

Original Article First Online: 15 May 2008. Received: 14 December 2007.

6) Singh and Kaur (1991): changing pattern of land utilization Punjab RD Singh, 2008 - Elsevier
Ginkgo biloba has been existing on earth since 200 million years and is considered as a “living
fossil”.

7) Vaidy and Sikka (1991): land utilization pattern in Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh for
the published Nov 14 2008.

8) Singh and Mohammed (1992): Dynamics of cropping pattern in northern India, Dec 20, 2017
- 17, No. 3, September 2002. Published by Geocarto International Centre, G.P.O. Box 4122,
Hong Kong. Monitoring Cropping Pattern Changes Using Multi-temporal.

9) Behura and Naik (1994): change in the cropping pattern for the period from 1966-67 to 1990-
1991 in Orissa, Published in 2009 Oct 04.

10) Lal and Singh (1994): Deliberate the structural changes in Haryana agriculture, Agricultural
and forest , 2004 – Elsevier published in Chandigarh.

11) Shiva Kumar (1994): Agriculture to horticulture Mountain Research and Development, 1997
– JSTOR.
12) Vivekananda and Satyapriya (1994): Changing cropping pattern In the study of changes
in cropping
pattern in Karnataka State 2009 march 8.

13) Mishra (1994): changing profile of agriculture in Orissa Misra et al; licensee Bio Med
Central Ltd. 2008.
Received: 17 July 2007, Published 30 May 2008 …
14) Damayanthi (1995): Carried out a study to understand the changes in cropping pattern in the
Pookod village in Trichur district of Kerala, CROP RANKING OF MYSORE DISTRICT.”
International Journal of Research -. Granthaalayah, 5(4), 334-338.
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.573005

15) Majid Husan (1996): that the cropping patterns of a region are closely influenced by the geo
climatic,Nov 22, 2016

16) Managoli (1997): Studied the land use dimensions in Bijapur district for a period of 21 years
from 1971-72 to 1992-93. 2014 Mar 12

17) Kumar and Singh (1998): Made an attempt to analyze the cropping pattern in north Bihar
during post-green revolution period (1970-71 to 1993-94).

18) Rajesh and Ramasamy (1998): Considered the trends in under utilization of land in Tamil
Nadu and identified the determinants for the same. Issue 2014 Jun 19

19) Das (2000): Studied the agricultural cropping pattern in different zones; their average yields
in comparison to National average yield potential, 2013 Mar 03

20) Reddy and Achoth (2000): Studied the determinants of cropping pattern changes in dry land
agriculture of Karnataka,2013 Aug 18

21) Marijuana Beegum, Temporal and spatial analysis of cropping pattern in KERALA,
Department of agricultural statistics, applied mathematics and computer science university of
agricultural sciences, BENGALURU 2014

22) Bimal Sharma, Changing Pattern of Agricultural Productivity in the Brahmaputra Valley,
Assam, India, Lecturer in Geography and Planning Royal University of Bhutan Sherubtse
College Kanglung, Trashigang Bhutan Email:bsharma1@rediffmail.com

23) RAWYA M KANSHOW, Optimization of the cropping pattern in Egyp,t,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ae j.2 017.04.015December 17

24) Utpal Kumar De and U.K. De, Economics of Crop Diversification –An Analysis of Land
Allocation towards Different Crops (U.K.De), http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/6167/ MPRA
Paper No. 6167, posted 16. March 2008 20:05 UTCL
25) Srikanth Kondabolu, A Case Study of Changing Cropping Diversity and Agricultural Risk in
the Doulthabad Mandal of Telangana State in India, Kondabolu, Srikanth, "A Case Study of
Changing Cropping Diversity and Agricultural Risk in the Doulthabad Mandal of Telangana
State in India" (2014). Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources. 100.
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/natresdiss/100

26) Anil Sood a* , S S Ray b, B U Choudhury a, P K Sharma a and Sushma Panigrahy, LONG
TERM CHANGES IN CROPPING PATTERN OF BATHINDA DISTRICT, PUNJAB - A
REMOTE SENSING APPROACH, a Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, Ludhiana – 141 004 b
Agricultural Resource Group, Space Application Centre, Ahmedabad -380 015
asdoegar@rediffmail.com

27) Manashi Gogoi, Cropping Pattern in Sivasagar District, Assam, India: A Case Study,
www.ijird.com September, 2016

28) I Rubeenah Akhter, IIDr. Rekha Acharya, Changes in Cropping Pattern in Jammu and
Kashmir, Issue 4 (Oct. - Dec. 2015)

29) Aloka Kumar Goyal, Agricultural Production Trends and Cropping Pattern in Uttar Pradesh,
2013 IJAIR

30) Mhaske Pandurang Hanumant1 , Tupe Babasaheb Karbhari2, Demands of Changes in

Cropping Pattern: A Case Study of Akole Tahasil (M.S, India), Issue 5, May 2014 www.ijsr.net

31) A.P.Pandit , 2A.B. Aher and S.D.Kulkarni, Impact of Water Resources Utilization and
Cropping Pattern in Shrigonda Tahsil, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, 2015 June 05

CHAPTER -2
OVERVIEW OF CROPPING
PATTERN
CROPPING PATTERN AND CROPPING SYSTEM Traditionally, increased food production
has come from putting more land under cultivation. However, in large areas of the world,
especially in Asia, all the land that can be economically cultivated is already in use. In future,
most of the extra food needs must come from higher production from land already being farmed.
A major share of this increase is likely to come from increasing the number of crops produced
per year on a given land using improved crop cultivars. Such multiple cropping offers potential
not only to increase food production but also land degradation. In India, the concept of cropping
systems is as old as agriculture. Farmers preferred mixed cropping, especially under dry land
conditions, to minimise the risk of total crop failure. Even in Vedas, there is a mention of first
and second crops, indicating the existence of sequential cropping. A system is defined as a set of
components that are interrelated and interact among themselves. A cropping system refers to a
set of crop systems, making up the cropping activities of a farm system. Cropping system
comprises all components required for the production of a particular crop and the
interrelationships between them and environment (TAC, CGIAR, 1978). In other words, a
cropping system usually refers to a combination of crops in time and space. Combination in time
occurs when crops occupy different growing period and combinations in space occur when crops
are inter planted. When annual crops are considered, a cropping system usually means the
combination of crops within a given year (Willey et al., 1989 Cropping pattern The yearly
sequence and spatial arrangement of crops or of crops and fallow on a given area. Cropping
system The cropping patterns used on a farm and their interaction with farm resources, other
farm enterprises, and available technology which determine their make up. INTENSIVE
CROPPING Principles The turn around period between one crop and another is minimised
through modified land preparation. It is possible when the resources are available in plenty. Ex.
Garden land cultivation. Cropping intensity is higher in intensive cropping system. Crop
intensification technique includes intercropping, relay cropping, sequential cropping, ratoon
cropping, etc. All such systems come under the general term multiple cropping. Need for
intensive cropping • Cropping systems has to be evolved based on climate, soil and water
availability for efficient use of available natural resources. • The increase in population has put
pressure on land to increase productivity per unit area, unit time and for unit resource used. •
This cropping system should provide enough food for the family, fodder for cattle and generate
sufficient cash income for domestic and cultivation expenses. Intensive cropping: Growing
number of crops on the same piece of land during the given period of time. Cropping intensity:
Number of crops cultivated in a piece of land per annum is cropping intensity. In Punjab and
Tamil Nadu, the cropping intensity is more than 100% (i.e. around 140- 150%). In Rajasthan, the
cropping intensity is less. Multiple cropping: The intensification of cropping in time and space
dimensions. Growing two or more crops on the same field in a year. Forms of multiple cropping
Intercropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same field. Crop intensification
is in both time and space dimensions. There is intercrop competition during all or part of crop
growth. (a) Mixed intercropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously with no distinct
row arrangement. Also referred to as mixed cropping. Ex: Sorghum, pearl millet and cowpea are
mixed and broadcasted in rainfed conditions. (b) Row intercropping: Growing two or more crops
simultaneously where one or more crops are planted in rows. Often simply referred to as
intercropping. Maize + greengram (1:1), Maize + blackgram (1:1), Groundnut + Rredgram (6:1)
(c) Strip intercropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously in strips wide enough to
permit independent cultivation but narrow enough for the crops to interact agronomically. Ex.
Groundnut + redgram (6:4) strip. (d) Relay intercropping: Growing two or more crops
simultaneously during the part of the life cycle of each. A second crop is planted after the first
crop has reached its reproductive stage of growth, but, before it is ready for harvest. Often
simply referred to as relay cropping. Rice- rice fallow pulse. Advantages of intercropping •
Better use of growth resources including light, nutrients and water • Suppression of weeds •
Yield stability; even if one crop fails due to unforeseen situations, another crop will yield and
gives income • Successful intercropping gives higher equivalent yields (yield of base crop +
yield of intercrop), higher cropping intensity • Reduced pest and disease incidences •
Improvement of soil health and agro-eco system Sequential cropping: Growing two or more
crops in sequence on the same field in a farming year. The succeeding crop is planted after the
preceding crop has been harvested. Crop intensification is only in time dimension. There is no
intercrop competition. (a) Double, triple and quadruple cropping: Growing two, three and four
crops, respectively, on the same land in a year in sequence. Ex. Double cropping: Rice: cotton;
Triple cropping: Rice: rice: pulses; Quadruple cropping: Tomato: ridge gourd: Amaranthus
greens: baby corn (b) Ratoon cropping: The cultivation of crop re-growth after harvest, although
not necessarily for grain. Ex. Sugarcane: ratoon; Sorghum: ratoon (for fodder). The various terms
defined above bring out essentially two underlying principles, that of growing crops
simultaneously in mixture, i.e., intercropping; and of growing individual crops in sequence, i.e.,
sequential cropping. The cropping system for a region or farm may comprise either or both of
these two principles. SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE Definition: A farming systems that are
"capable of maintaining their productivity and usefulness to society indefinitely and must be
resource-conserving, socially supportive, commercially competitive, and environmentally
sound." USDA (legal) Sustainable agriculture means, an integrated system of plant and animal
production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term: satisfy
human food and fiber needs; enhance environmental quality and the natural resource based
upon which the agricultural economy depends; make the most efficient use of nonrenewable
resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and
controls; sustain the economic viability of farm operations; enhance the quality of life for
farmers and society as a whole. Advantages Production cost is low Over all risk of the
farmer is reduced Pollution of water is avoided Very little or no pesticide residue is
ensured Ensures both short and long term profitability Disadvantages Since sustainable
agriculture uses least quantum of inputs, naturally the output (yield) may also be less. Major
components of sustainable agricultural system • Soil and water conservation to prevent
degradation of soil productivity • Efficient use of limited irrigation water without leading to
problems of soil salinity, alkalinity and high ground water table • Crop rotations that mitigate
weed, disease and insect problems, increase soil productivity and minimise soil erosion •
Integrated nutrient management that reduces the need for chemical fertilizers improves the soil
health and minimise environmental pollution by conjunctive use of organics, in-organics and
bio-fertilizers. • ‘Integrated pest management that reduces the need for agrochemicals by crop
rotation, weather monitoring, use of resistant cultivar, planting time and biological pest control. •
Management system to control weed by preventive measures, tillage, timely inter cultivation and
crop rotation to improve plant health. INTEGRATED FARMING SYSTEM (IFS) Integration of
two or more appropriate combination of enterprises like crop, dairy, piggery, fishery, poultry,
bee keeping etc., for each farm according to the availability of resources to sustain and satisfy the
necessities of the farmer Definition: A farming system is a collection of distinct functional units
such as crop, livestock, processing, investments and marketing activities which interact because
of the joint use of inputs they receive from the environment which have the common objective of
satisfying the farmers’ (decision makers) aims. The definition of the borders of the options
depends on circumstances; often it includes not only the farm (economic enterprise) but also the
household (farm – household system)” Possible enterprises Wetland based farming system •
Crop + Fish + Poultry/poultry/pigeon • Crop + Fish + Mushroom Gardenland based farming
system Crop + Dairy + Biogas Crop + Dairy + Biogas + Sericulture Crop + Dairy + Biogas
+ Mushroom + Sylvi-culture Dry land based farming system Crop + Goat + Agroforestry
Crop + Goat + Agroforestry + Horticulture Benefits of IFS Higher Productivity
Profitability Sustainability Balanced food Recycling reduces pollution Money round the
year Employment generation Increase input efficiency Standard of living of the farmer
increased Better utilisation of land, labour, time and resources

Crop pollination is a clear example of an ecosystem service – an economic

benefit that nature provides to people (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
2005). Bees and other pollinating animals supply a valuable input to
agricultural production that can increase both the size and quality of harvests
(Allen‐Wardell et al. 1998). Crops as diverse as tomatoes, coffee, canola,
watermelons and cacao show improved production with animal pollination
(NRC 2007). Indeed, Klein et al. (2007) found that 87 of 115 leading global
crops benefit significantly from pollinators, representing 35% of the food
supply. Pollinator visits not only move outcross pollen among individuals but
also increase the total amount of pollen deposited on flower stigmas, both of
which are known to increase quantity and quality of crops (NRC 2007).

Agricultural intensification and land conversion pose one of the largest threats
to the earth’s ecosystems (Tilman 1999; Green et al. 2005). These changes
within agricultural landscapes endanger biodiversity directly, but they may
also threaten the productivity, diversity and stability of our food production
systems by disrupting pollinator communities. Indeed, population reductions in
native bees have already been reported in several regions of the world
(Biesmeijer et al. 2006; NRC 2007). Understanding the magnitude, patterns
and mechanisms of pollination services – as well as other benefits
ecosystems provide to agriculture – is therefore crucial to the future of food
production (Allen‐Wardell et al. 1998; Kremen et al. 2007; Zhang et al. 2007).

While crop pollinators include a range of insects (e.g. beetles, flies,

butterflies), as well as birds and bats, the majority of crops are most effectively
pollinated by bees (Klein et al.2007). Honeybees (Apis mellifera) and other
managed species are often used to ensure adequate pollination, but many
crops are also effectively pollinated by wild bees (both native species and
feral honeybees; Kevan et al. 1990; Free 1993; Freitas & Paxton
1998; Ricketts 2004). Watermelon, for example, receives pollination services
from >30 species of native bees in addition to A.
mellifera (Kremen et al. 2002), and native bumblebees are much more
effective pollinators of blueberry crops than honeybees (Cane & Payne 1988).
Furthermore, several diseases have reduced both feral and managed
populations of honey bees (Watanabe 1994; Cook et al. 2007). The most
serious of these is the Varroa mite, but the recent and mysterious Colony
Collapse Disorder has also caused precipitous honeybee declines in the USA
in recent years (Johnson 2007). Given these alarming trends, it is increasingly
important to understand the services provided by native pollinators.

Maintaining these pollination services requires the conservation and

management of sufficient resources for wild pollinators within agricultural
landscapes. These resources include suitable nesting habitats (e.g. tree
cavities, suitable soil substrates) as well as sufficient floral resources (i.e.
pollen and nectar; Kremen et al. 2007). Furthermore, bees are central‐place
foragers (i.e. returning to fixed nest sites after foraging), so proximity of
nesting habitats relative to agricultural fields is critical for bee‐pollinated crops
(Ricketts et al.2006). Farms within typical foraging distance of suitable habitat
may therefore receive enhanced pollination services, while those further away
may not.

Several recent studies have examined whether crop pollination services

decline with increasing isolation from natural habitats. For example, Ricketts
and colleagues (Ricketts 2004; Ricketts et al. 2004) found that bee diversity,
visitation rate, pollen deposition rate and fruit set are all significantly greater in
coffee fields near tropical forest than in fields further away. However, other
studies have found little effect of landscape pattern on pollinator visitation. For
example, Winfree et al. (2007b) found little effect of landscape pattern on
pollination services to vegetable crops in the northeastern USA. This
observed variance in results is likely due to differences among studies in
pollinator communities, plant breeding systems, land use practices within
farms and study methods.

Despite differences among studies, distilling general patterns from recent

research is important and informative for both ecology and conservation. From
an ecological perspective, such a synthesis can provide a predictive
understanding of pollinator foraging ranges, effects of land use on pollinator
communities and related ecosystem functions, and the landscape ecology of
pollinator interactions (Steffan‐Dewenter 2003; Kremen
2005; Tscharntke et al. 2005; Brosi et al. 2007; Greenleaf et al. 2007; Steffan‐
Dewenter et al. 2007). For conservation, this information could make clear the
benefits derived by farmers from areas of natural or semi‐natural habitats,
resulting in more complete cost‐benefit analyses regarding land use change
(Morandin & Winston 2006). Furthermore, it can inform land use planners who
seek to balance the needs of both biodiversity and farmers by ensuring
adequate habitat protection and sustainable ecosystem service production
(Chan et al. 2006; Naidoo & Ricketts 2006; Priess et al. 2007). Because
resources do not exist to conduct separate studies in every landscape,
syntheses of current work that allows rigorous predictive ‘rules of thumb’ are
essential.

Here, we synthesize the findings of studies on the spatial relationship between

natural habitats and crop pollination services. We found 23 studies,
representing 16 crops on five continents, that measured pollinator activity or
resulting crop yields along isolation gradients from natural habitat. Using a
common exponential decay model and hierarchical Bayesian techniques, we
estimate the general relationship between isolation and pollination services. In
particular, we ask three major questions. First, do pollinator richness,
pollinator visitation rate and fruit or seed set decline significantly with
increasing distance from natural habitat? Second, if so, over what scales do
these declines occur? And third, how do observed patterns differ between
tropical and temperate crops, and between social and solitary bees?

Materials and methods

Studies
Starting in June 2005 with updates through October 2007, we used literature
searches and knowledge of the authors to gather studies that relate some
measure of crop pollination services with isolation from natural habitat. Our
goal was to be comprehensive, knowing that we may have failed to detect
studies that were yet to be published, or that had been published in journals
not abstracted by the ISI. We found 23 relevant studies (Table 1),
representing 16 different crops grown in nine countries. Thirteen studies took
place in temperate biomes, while 10 were tropical. In all but three studies,
pollinators were bees. The exceptions are studies named ‘Blanche 2005’, in
which flower visitors were beetles in the family Nitidulidae, ‘Mayfield 2005’, in
which visitors included flies, bees, beetles, ants and an introduced weevil, and
‘Kremen unpub (a)’, in which visitors included bees and flies. One additional
study (De Marco & Coelho 2004) addresses similar questions but was not
 explicit about degrees of isolation from natural habitat, so we were unable to
include it.

Table 1. Studies included in this synthesis. Study names match those used in
figures

Study name (reference) Crop name ‐ Crop name ‐ Family Breeding system Key pollinators
common latin

Blanche 2005( Blanche Atemoya A. cherimola Annonaceae little Nitidulidae especially Sm

&Cunningham 2005 ) Annona self‐pollination
squamosa x dichogamous,
Hermaphrodite,

Blanche 2006a( Longan Dimocarpus Sapindaceae Hermaphrodite A. mellifera(Meliponini) b

Blanche et al. 2006) longan

( Blanche Macadamia integrifolia Proteaceae self‐incompatible Apis mellifera

2006bBlanche et Macadamia Hermaphrodite,
al. 2006) largely

( Bogdanski Passion fruit Passiflora Passifloraceae self‐incompatible X. grisescens Xylocopa fro

2005Bogdanski 2005) edulis Hermaphrodite,

( Chacoff 2006Chacoff Grapefruit Citrus Rutaceae variable A. mellifera(Meliponini) b

&Aizen 2006 ) paradise self‐compatibility
Study name (reference) Crop name ‐ Crop name ‐ Family Breeding system Key pollinators
common latin

Hermaphrodite;

(Gemmill‐Herren in press Eggplant melongena Solanaceae pollinated self Macronomia rufipes Xylo
Gemmill‐Herren Solanum compatible; buzz
&Ochieng’ in press) Hemaphtrodite;

( Greenleaf Cherry lycopersicum Solanaceae buzz‐pollination Bombus vosnesenskii Ant

2006aGreenleaf tomato Solanum self‐compatible,
&Kremen 2006a ) Hermaphrodite,

( Greenleaf Sunflower annuus Asteraceae for hybrid seed Svastra sppDiadasia ., sp

2006bGreenleaf Helianthus self‐compatible ., sppDialictus ., sppHalic
&Kremen 2006b ) Dichogamous, mellifera .,

unpublished data) (S. Sunflower annuus Asteraceae for hybrid seed Svastra sppDiadasia ., sp
Greenleaf, Greenleaf Helianthus self‐compatible ., sppDialictus ., sppHalic
unpub Dichogamous, mellifera .,

( Heard 1994Heard Macadamia integrifolia Proteaceae incompatible carbonaria Trigona A. m

&Exley 1994 ) Macadamia Largely self
Study name (reference) Crop name ‐ Crop name ‐ Family Breeding system Key pollinators
common latin

(Klein Klein 2003a et Coffee arabica Rubiaceae self‐compatibility Apis spp.,Trigona Halicti
al.2003a) Coffea variable
Hermaphrodite,

(Klein Klein 2003b et Coffee canephora Rubiaceae compatibility Apis spp.,Trigona Halicti
al.2003b) Coffea variable self‐
Hermaphrodite,

(Kremen Kremen Watermelon lanatus Cucurbitaceae self‐compatible Halictus spp. Bombus spp
2002 et al.2002) Citrulus Monoecious,

(Kremen Kremen Watermelon lanatus Cucurbitaceae self‐compatible Bombus A. mellifera, spp

2004 et al.2004) Citrulus Monoecious,

unpublished data) (C. Almond Prunus Prunaceae self‐incompatible Andrena sppBombus ., sp

Kremen, Kremen unpub dulcis Hermaphrodite, Lasioglossum ., spp(Dialic
(a)

unpublished data) (C. Muskmelon Cucumis Cucurbitaceae self‐compatible Peponapis sppMelissodes

Kremen, Kremen unpub melo andro‐monoecious, .,spp(Evylaeus) Lasiogloss
(b) Monoecious or ., spp.
Study name (reference) Crop name ‐ Crop name ‐ Family Breeding system Key pollinators
common latin

( Mayfield 2005Mayfield Oil Palm guineensis Arecaceae Monoecious kamerunicus Elaeidobius

2005) Elaeis

( Morandin Canola B. rapa Cruciferaceae incompatible Bombus spp.,Megachile

2005Morandin &Winston Brassica largely self‐
2005 ) napus, Hermaphrodite,

(Morandin Morandin Canola B. rapa Cruciferaceae incompatible Lasioglossum spp.,Andre

2007 et al.2007) Brassica largely self‐
napus, Hermaphrodite,

unpublished data) (S. Field bean Vicia faba Fabaceae compatible Bombus spp.,A. mellifera
Potts, Potts unpub partially self‐
Hermaphrodite,

( Ricketts 2004Ricketts Coffee arabica Rubiaceae compatibility A. mellifera(Meliponini) s

Ricketts 2004; et al.2004 Coffea variable self‐
) Hermaphrodite,

(Ricketts Ricketts Kiwifruit deliciosa Actinidiaceae Dioecious A. mellifera

2006 et al.2006) Actinidia
Study name (reference) Crop name ‐ Crop name ‐ Family Breeding system Key pollinators
common latin

(Winfree Winfree Watermelon lanatus Cucurbitaceae self‐compatible (Dia Lasioglossum Augoc

2007 et al.2007b) Citrulus Monoecious, Melissodes bimaculata, B

 *‘measured’: linear measurements of distance were used in the original study;

‘secondary’: proportional area used in original study, but linear distance
measurements supplied by authors; “modeled”: only proportional area was
used in original study, so linear distances modeled (see Methods).
 †Measures of fruit or seed set used in original studies. See Methods for
codes. “(seed)” denotes seed number as observed variable; all others used
fruit set as observed variable.
 ‡Analyses in which each study was included. r, richness; v, native visitation
rate; p, production (i.e., fruit or seed set); s, social vs. solitary bee comparison.

Eighteen studies are published in peer‐reviewed journals, while five are

unpublished manuscripts or theses. We do not further describe the published
studies here. Below we provide descriptions of unpublished studies to supply
context for our synthesis. We corresponded directly with authors of all studies
to ensure that data were appropriate for our purposes and to collect
necessary data formatted for our purposes; the only exception was for Heard
& Exley (1994), where we used data from published tables.

In the study coded ‘Bogdanski 2005’ (Table 1; Bogdanski 2005), the

pollination of yellow passion fruit (Passiflora edulis Sims) was investigated in
Juazeiro, Brasil. The passion fruit variety studied was self‐incompatible and
pollinated largely by carpenter bees (Xylocopa; Klein et al. 2007). Bogdanski
(2005) m in distance from natural ‘Caatinga’, a dry shrubland forest habitat. In
each site, visitation rates of social bees m to 1678 measured pollinator
visitation rates and fruit set in 16 sites that varied from 274 (Apis
mellifera, Trigona spinipes) and solitary bees (Xylocopa
griesencis, X. frontalis) were estimated from three 15‐min observation periods
on three different days, each with good weather. All observations were made
between 12:00 (flower opening) and 16:00. Fruit set was measured as the
proportion of flowers that produced marketable fruits, taken over a sample of
30 unmanipulated (i.e. without experimental hand pollination or pollinator
exclusion) flowers in each site.

For ‘Gemmill‐Herren in press’, Gemmill‐Herren & Ochieng (in

press) investigated the pollination of eggplant (Solanun melongena) in
Nguruman, Kenya. Eggplant flowers are hermaphroditic and self‐compatible,
but benefit from visitation of bees that can effectively extract pollen from its
poricidal anthers through buzz pollination (Buchmann 1983). Gemmill‐Herren
& Ochieng (in press) measured pollinator visitation rates in 15 sites that varied
from <20 to >m in distance from the riverine 100 Acacia min, and
forests from which the crop fields had originally been cleared. Visitation rates
of all visitors were estimated by observing all flowers in a meter‐square plot
for 10 c. 240 such samples were taken at each site.

For ‘Greenleaf unpub’, methods are described adequately in Greenleaf &

Kremen (2006b). For ‘Kremen unpub (a)’ (Table 1), Kremen (unpublished
data) investigated bee and fly visitation to almond (Prunus dulcism from
natural habitat including riparian, oak‐woodland and chaparral shrub
vegetation. In each site, visitation rates of social and solitary bees and flies
were estimated from 10 whole tree scans per site ( ) in Yolo County,
California in 2004. The almond varieties studied were hermaphroditic but
self‐incompatible and were visited by a variety of wild bees (10 field‐identified
species‐groups) and flies (10 species‐groups). Managed honey bees had
been placed by farmers at most sites and were abundant at all sites. Pollinator
visitation rates were sampled in 16 sites that varied in distance from 14 to
989c. min per tree) on a single day between 10:00 and 15:00 during good
weather. 1

For ‘Kremen unpub (b)’ (Table 1), Kremen (unpublished data) investigated
bee visitation to muskmelon (Cucumis melo) in Yolo County, California.
Muskmelon is monoecious and is visited by a variety of wild bee species (14
species from vouchered specimens). Managed honey bees had been placed
by farmers at many sites, and were abundant at all sites. Kremen measured
pollinator visitation rates in 12 sites that vduring one morning (9:00–12:00)
and one afternoon (12:00–16:00) period per farm on two separate days during
good weather. Rates were averaged per site across all transects and periods.
[See ( m transects within the field m from natural habitat including riparian,
oak‐woodland and chaparral shrub vegetation. In each site, visitation rates of
social and solitary bees were estimated from four 10‐min observation periods
conducted on four separate 50 aried in distance from 48 to
3017Kremen et al. 2002) for a detailed description of transect walk
methodology].

Finally, for ‘Potts unpub’, Potts et al. (unpublished data) studied field bean
(Vicia faba) pollination in the UK. Field beans are partially self‐compatible and
for the variety investigated (Clipper), seed set benefits from cross‐pollination.
Ten fields were studied and these were nested in an isolation gradient;
distances to fragments (>m. Each field was surveyed four times during peak
blooming and bee abundance in the crop was assessed using standardized
water‐filled pan traps. In parallel, seed and fruit set per plant were measured
in 20 plants per field under open pollination conditions. ha) of semi‐natural
vegetation ranged between 100 and 1875 5

Variables
From each study we extracted data, if available, on four variables: isolation
from natural habitat, pollinator richness, pollinator visitation rates and fruit or
seed set. Not all studies measured all variables (Table 1), so different
analyses have different sample sizes. Furthermore, not all studies measured
the same variable in the same manner; therefore, some standardization
among studies was necessary and is described in the following paragraphs.
Importantly, our modelling technique estimates relative, not absolute, changes
in response variables (see below), such that no conversions were necessary
among data ranges and units (e.g. number of minutes or flowers over which
pollinator visitation is sampled).

For isolation, the original studies measured either linear distance (i.e. the
distance from a study site to the nearest patch of natural habitat), or
proportional area (i.e. the proportion of a circle of given radius that is covered
by natural habitat). We followed each author’s decisions regarding what
constituted habitat for pollinators, which included a variety of natural and
semi‐natural habitats known to support bee populations. For simplicity, we
refer to these as ‘natural habitat’. To standardize among studies, we
expressed isolation in all studies in terms of linear distance. Of the 23 studies,
11 already used linear distance as the primary measure of isolation (Table 1:
‘measured’ in Isolation column). In nine additional studies, authors preferred
proportional area as the primary measure of isolation but also measured linear
distances, which they provided us (‘secondary’ ). Studies differed in the radius
of circles used to estimate proportional area, and in the minimum habitat
patch sizes considered in calculating linear distances. In all cases, we
followed the decisions made by original authors (available in published papers
or in paragraphs above), because they were best able to determine the
relevant dynamics and scales for their studies.

Three studies measured isolation only in terms of proportional area. For

these, we developed a simple predictive model of linear distance as a function
of proportional area, based on data from the 10 studies that measured both
variables (i.e. the nine studies marked ‘secondary’ in Table 1, plus ‘Ricketts
2004’). We determined that log(distance/radius) is an approximately linear
function of arcsine square‐root (proportional area), where radius is the
study‐specific radius of circles used to estimate proportional area. We
parameterized this relationship as a linear mixed‐effects model (Pinheiro
2004), yielding fixed effect estimates of the slope and intercept while also
allowing for study‐level random variation in both coefficients. Restricted
maximum‐likelihood estimates of the fixed effects were then used to predict
linear distance for each site in the three studies lacking distance data
(‘modelled’ in Table 1).

For pollinator richness, we found suitable data in 19 of the 23 studies

(Table 1). In each study, pollinators were identified to the most precise
taxonomic level possible. In some cases, identifications were made to
species, while in others, morphospecies or ‘identifiable taxonomic units’ were
used to identify pollinators on the wing without disturbing their behaviour.
Such estimates of morphospecies richness can underestimate or (less likely)
overestimate richness, but when consistently applied allow rigorous
comparisons of relative richness among sites (Oliver & Beattie
1996; Oliveira et al. 1997). Some studies exclude introduced Apis
mellifera from richness estimates, while most studies include them.
However, A. mellifera is typically found in every site if found in any, so their
inclusion or exclusion has little effect on relative richness. For all but four
studies, richness data are based on observed flower visitors, recorded over
some interval of time and for some number of flowers or area (these were
constant within studies but varied among them, but again our modelling
approach is robust to these differences in sample effort; see below). For
‘Morandin 2005’‘Morandin 2007’ and ‘Potts unpub’, richness estimates were
instead derived from pan traps and field netting in each site, and for ‘Winfree
2007’ from field netting. These methods do not directly capture flower visitors
and therefore may introduce some bias (e.g. they may underestimate non‐bee
visitors). However, the crops included in these studies are independently
known to be pollinated by bees (Table 1; Free 1993; Klein et al. 2007).
Furthermore, some studies (e.g. ‘Winfree 2007’) performed visual flower
surveys to confirm important visitors, and ‘Morandin 2005’ shows a strong
relationship between seed set and pollinators sampled in this way (Morandin
& Winston 2005; Winfree et al. 2007b).

For visitation rate, we limited our analysis to native species because our focus
was wild bees and it is often difficult to determine whether honeybee visitors
to flowers are from wild or managed colonies. We found suitable data for 22 of
the 23 studies. Again, sampling effort (e.g. number of flowers observed,
number of minutes and sample number) varied among studies, but was
constant within each study. In most studies, visitation rate was calculated as
the number of times a potential pollinator was observed landing on, foraging
from, or touching a flower, and thus includes multiple visits by the same
individual. In three studies, visitation rate data were not available, but
pollinator abundance (collected by sweep netting, pan trapping, or both) was
deemed as an appropriate proxy, because the data were collected within crop
fields themselves, and because these two variables are often highly correlated
(Ricketts 2004). These studies are ‘Morandin 2005’, ‘Morandin 2007’ and
‘Potts unpub’.

For 10 studies, authors were able to provide visitation rates separately for
social and solitary bees (Table 1). For these analyses, we generally defined
‘social’ bees as eusocial species (Michener 2000). For most studies, these
species included Apis spp. (when native), Bombusspp., and stingless bees in
the tribe Meliponini. For ‘Greenleaf unpub’ and ‘Winfree
2007’, Halictus and Dialictus species were also included when known to be
social; species with unknown sociality were treated as solitary.

For fruit and seed set, we found suitable data in 12 of the 23 studies (Table 1).
Nine of these studies measured fruit set, defined as the proportion of flowers
that sets fruit. Three studies (Table 1) measured seed set, defined as the
number of ovules that develop into marketable seeds. We combined both
measures for this meta‐analysis, because both indicate the effect of
pollination services on crop productivity. Furthermore, units and sample effort
varied among studies [e.g. some measured fruit set over a constant number of
flowers (Ricketts et al. 2004), others did so over a constant length of raceme
(Blanche et al. 2006), and one measured whole plant fruit set (‘Potts unpub’ )],
but again our modelling techniques focus on relative changes within each
study, allowing combination of disparate measures of yield.

The 12 studies included both observational and experimental approaches to

estimating fruit set, requiring us to standardize the results before
meta‐analysis. Eight of the 12 studies observed fruit or seed set of
unmanipulated plants in each site (Table 1, denoted ‘O’ in ‘Fruit set’ column).
This approach measures changes in fruit or seed set along an isolation
gradient, but does not experimentally establish pollination services as the
cause of these changes. Other variables such as soil quality or moisture,
which may also be correlated with isolation, could explain this variation. Four
studies also manipulated plants in each site to provide experimental control
and thereby separate the effect of pollination services. Two of these studies
hand‐pollinated flowers, to compare production under ambient pollination to
that with sufficient pollen supplied by hand. They report the difference
between the hand‐pollinated (‘H’ ) and open (‘O’ ) treatments (i.e. the degree of
pollination limitation (Kearns & Inouye 1993; Burd 1994); Table 1, ‘H–O’ ). Two
additional studies excluded pollinators from flowers in each site, to compare
ambient production to that without any pollinator service. They report the
difference between the open (‘O’ ) and excluded (‘E’ ) treatments (Table 1, ‘O–
E’ ).

Standardization is necessary because the observational studies measured

changes in absolute fruit set along isolation gradients, while the experimental
studies measure changes in the difference between ambient fruit set and a
control. The same amount of relative change (say, 10%) in these different
response variables imply different magnitudes of change in overall crop yield.
Therefore, to put all response variables on equivalent terms, we calculated for
each experimental study the study‐wide mean of the control treatment (i.e. ‘H̄’
or ‘Ē’; values available from the authors). Then, for each site in the study, we
either added (for ‘O–E’ studies) the estimate of fruit/seed set to this mean, or
subtracted (for ‘H–O’ studies) it from this mean. This process returns all
fruit/seed set values to approximately absolute terms, allowing synthesis to
proceed. More formally, for ‘O–E’ studies, the calculated absolute fruit set, O′,
is:

and for ‘H–O’ studies, O′ is:

Modelling the exponential decay of fruit and seed set with increasing distance
(see below), the intercept values derived using O′ differed less than 10% from
those derived using O in each of the four studies. This indicates that H̄ and Ē
are approximately correct values for returning these difference values to their
appropriate absolute terms.

Model
We examined separately the relationship between isolation and each of three
different measures of wild pollination services: richness, visitation and fruit or
seed set. In the methodological description below, we use the general term
‘pollination’ to refer to all of these variables, specifying the variable only when
needed for clarity.

We used a basic model of exponential decline in pollination as a function of

distance from nearest natural habitat. Although it is just one of several simple
models that can be used to describe foraging patterns (Aronson & Givnish
1983), the exponential model is intuitively appealing for several reasons. First,
it conforms to a simple mechanistic model of pollinators foraging out from
natural habitat with constant stopping probability (Turchin 1998). Second,
because this model is multiplicative rather than additive, there is no need to
rescale pollinator data to account for differences in sampling units across
studies. Finally, the model allows straightforward interpretation of the
exponential decay parameter as a measure of how strongly isolation affects
pollination. Results from this exponential model were indistinguishable from,
or superior to, a power‐law model (another common choice) in all but one
study (see Appendix S1).

Although a unique site‐specific relationship between isolation and pollination

can be modelled for each individual study, our objective here is to quantify the
general nature of this relationship across all studies. We therefore constructed
our analyses in the form of a Bayesian hierarchical model
(Gelman et al. 1995;Carlin et al. 2006). Hierarchical models provide an
efficient and natural way to handle grouped data, especially when the goal is
to make inferences across groups (i.e. across studies). In typical modelling
approaches one must choose between pooling the data into a single analysis
or fitting models to each group separately; hierarchical models strike a
compromise between these extremes, achieving a ‘partial pooling’ that reflects
the relative magnitudes of within‐group vs. among‐group variance terms
(Gelman & Hill 2007). An advantage of a Bayesian approach is that it explicitly
models the uncertainty in among‐group variance, rather than proceeding with
a point estimate of this term (as is performed in mixed effects models).

At the first level of the model, we use the equation

where Yij is an observed pollination datum j in the ith study, Dij is the
associated distance (in meters) from nearest natural habitat, αi is a
study‐specific intercept term, βi is rate of change in pollination service with
increasing distance from natural habitat and ɛij is a fitted error term. Analogous
to a generalized linear model, this can be rewritten to give ln(Y) as a linear
function of distance, with an appropriate error distribution on Y (see Appendix
S1).

The model is hierarchical in that we do not fit the βi terms separately for each
study, but instead assume that they are themselves normally distributed
across studies:

To complete the Bayesian specification, we assigned the following

non‐informative priors to model parameters in all cases:

The posterior distribution of each model parameter was simulated using

Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC; Gilks et al. 1996). Bayesian computation
was carried out in wINBUGS 1.4 (Spiegelhalter et al. 2003), with all other data
processing and computation performed using the R statistical environment (R
Development Core Team 2006) and the R2WinBUGS package
(Sturtz et al. 2005000 iterations, thinning the results by a factor of 20 to
reduce autocorrelation in the sample. To check for convergence of the MCMC
chain, we confirmed that 000 iterations after a burn‐in of 10 ). For each
model, we simulated two MCMC chains for 20 is approximately equal to
1.0 for the estimands (Gelman et al. 1995; Gelman 1996).
We focus our interpretations on the resulting posterior distributions of β i and
μβ. The means of each βi give estimates of the study‐specific decay rates,
taking into account information from all studies. Because we use a
hierarchical model, these values will differ from those obtained by fitting each
study‐specific dataset separately; notably, β estimates for studies with smaller
sample sizes and/or greater residual variation will be more strongly pulled
toward the overall mean (μβ; see Fig. S1–S3). In turn, the mean of
μβ represents the average decay rate across studies, where the relative
influence of each study depends on its sample size and the precision of its
local model fit. This quantity can be regarded as our best estimate of the
overall effect of isolation on pollination. Throughout, we refer to βi and μβ as
‘decay rate’ and ‘overall decay rate’ respectively.

For all relevant parameters, we report the 90% credible interval (CI), a range
containing the middle 90% of simulated posterior values. Similar to a
confidence interval in more traditional statistics, a Bayesian CI expresses the
level of uncertainty in a parameter. For μβ, note that the CI does not describe
the variability in decay rates among studies (this is captured by σβ), but
indicates the range of likely values of the overall decay rate itself. Finally, for
the overall decay rates we report the proportion of simulated posterior values
that are less than zero. This can be directly interpreted as the probability,
given our data and model formulation, that greater isolation is associated with
reduced pollination on average.

Comparative analyses
To assess differences in the effect of isolation in temperate vs. tropical
settings, we repeated the above analyses using separate Gaussian
distributions for the two sets of decay parameters:
where biome b is either temperate or tropical. All other aspects of the model
are as described above. Note that this is equivalent to analyzing tropical and
temperate subsets of the data separately, insofar as no parameters depend
jointly on data from both biomes. To quantify whether mean decay parameter
differed between biomes, we calculated μβ,trop–μβ,temp across all MCMC draws of
the posterior distribution, and determined the proportion that exceed zero.

We implemented a final version of the model to allow for different responses

of social vs. solitary bees. Unlike the biome model, this model includes
sociality as a nested factor within study:

where I is an indicator variable for visitation by solitary (I0) vs. social ( = I1)
bees. As in previous models, we assume the β = i terms are normally
distributed across studies. However, in this case, we further assume that the
study‐specific differences in decay rate between solitary and social bees,
represented by Δi, also vary across studies as

Using the MCMC draws of μΔ directly, we calculated the expected difference

between the decay rates of social and solitary bee visitation, and the
probability that the decay in social bee visitation is steeper than the decay in
solitary bee visitation.

Results
For pollinator richness, we find that decay rate estimates vary widely among
studies but that means are negative in 16 of 19 cases, indicating a decline of
pollinator richness with increasing isolation from natural habitat (Fig. 1a). The
90% credible intervals also vary widely among studies, indicating differences
in certainty around these estimates. Based on all studies, we find strong
evidence of decline in pollinator richness with increasing isolation (Fig. 1a,
bottom; entire credible interval <0). We use this overall decay rate estimate to
plot expected pollinator richness against isolation, and find a relatively steep
decline ( Fig. 1bm ( 0) is 1507 = ). The distance at which pollinator
richness drops to half of its maximum value (i.e. at distanceTable 2).

Open in figure viewerPowerPoint

Relationship between pollinator richness and isolation from natural habitat. (a)
Decay rate (β i) and 90% credible interval for each study in which pollinator
richness was measured (n19). Overall decay rate (μ = m(
β ) for all
studies is shown at bottom. (b) Richness decay curve, based on overall decay
rate and 90% credible interval from panel a. The distance at which richness
drops to 50% of the maximum is 1507Table 2).

Table 2. Estimates of overall decay rate (μ β) for pollinator richness, native

pollinator visitation rate, and crop fruit or seed set, based on hierarchical
Bayesian models

Variable N μβ Pr (μβ <0)* Point of 50% decay (m)†

Richness 19 −0.00046 >0.999 1507 (921–3332)

Visitation rate 22 −0.00104 0.996 668 (395–1727)

Temperate 11 −0.00053 0.971 1308 (437–13849)

Tropical 11 −0.00118 0.959 589 (296–8186)

 Variable N μβ Pr (μβ <0)* Point of 50% decay (m)†

Social 10 −0.00158 0.985 439 (240–1791)

Solitary 10 −0.00117 0.946 591 (274–ND)

Fruit/seed set 12 −0.00003 0.698 826 (5038–ND) 26

 *Posterior probability that overall decay rate (μβ) is less than zero.
 0, along with 90% credible interval. ND signifies an undefined upperbound,
occurring for studies in which the credible interval contains zero. =
†Distance at which variable is 50% of the maximum value at distance