Global patterns in plant–pollinator specialization

Pollination is a key ecological process sustaining biodiversity and food security, yet global patterns of plant–pollinator specialization remain unresolved. Using a global dataset of quantitative plant–pollinator networks (>3,400 networks, >110,000 interactions), we show that specialization is latitudinally structured, but not as a single directional pattern. We find no consistent monotonic increase or decrease in specialization towards the Equator. Instead, network-level and pollinator specialization peak at low northern latitudes near the tropical–subtropical boundary, whereas plant specialization is hemispherically asymmetric. Climate is most often the best-supported predictor of specialization compared with latitude, biodiversity and environmental productivity. Network-level specialization declines with increasing mean annual temperature, with strong group-specific differences. Precipitation exerts nonlinear effects: plant specialization peaks at intermediate precipitation but is lower at the wettest sites, whereas pollinator specialization is lower at intermediate precipitation, although often in interaction with temperature. Pollinator groups diverge strongly, especially in contrasting precipitation-related patterns between birds and insects. These findings show that global plant–pollinator specialization is structured by latitude and climate in complex and taxon-specific ways, with implications for uneven responses of pollination networks to future climatic change. Plant–pollinator networks vary tremendously across ecosystems. Here the authors use a global standardized dataset of plant–pollinator interactions to explore geographic patterns of specialization and their dependence on climate variables and taxonomic and functional identity.

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Journal
Nature Ecology & Evolution
Published
2026-09-30
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-026-03170-7
Primary Topic
Plant and animal studies
Type
article
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article

Global patterns in plant–pollinator specialization

Sebastian Hopfenmüller, Raúl García‐Camacho, Stéphane Boyer, Luís Henrique Mendes da Silva et al.
Nature Ecology & Evolution
Plant and animal studies
article

Global patterns in plant–pollinator specialization

Sebastian Hopfenmüller, Raúl García‐Camacho, Stéphane Boyer, Luís Henrique Mendes da Silva, João Paulo Raimundo Borges, Behnaz Balmaki, Sandra Hervías‐Parejo, Laura L. Figueroa, Matthias Schleuning, Lee A. Dyer, Jana Jersáková, Blanca Arroyo‐Correa, Ludmilla Aguiar, Gabriel Marcacci, Heather L. Grab, Paolo Biella, Felipe Librán‐Embid, Tiffany M. Knight, Lynn V. Dicks, José María Iriondo, Veronica Hederström, Caio S. Ballarin, Tial C. Ling, Justin A. Bain, Ingo Graß, Theresia Krausl, Ishmeal N. Kobe, Pedro Luna, Štěpán Janeček, Shalene Jha, Marcos Méndez, Katherine C. R. Baldock, Tamar Keasar, Jordi Bosch, Zeynep Atalay, Sissi Lozada‐Gobilard, Anne D. Bjorkman, Ainhoa Magrach, Edson Cardona, Natsuki Matsubara, Joan Díaz‐Calafat, Marsal Danrlei de Amorim, Christopher N. Kaiser‐Bunbury, Ugo Mendes Diniz, Travis J. Guy, Pietro K. Maruyama, Jan Filip, James M. Cook, Francis Ewome Luma, Maddi Artamendi, Yann Clough, H. Michael G. Lattorff, Vasuki V. Belavadi, Marion L. Donald, Wesley Dáttilo, Liam Kendall, Luis Giménez‐Benavides, Aphrodite Kantsa, Carlos Hernández‐Castellano, Dominik Anýž, Tom M. Fayle, Sailee P. Sakhalkar, Carlos Lara‐Romero, Ferhat Celep, Karin T. Burghardt, Julian Resasco, Diego Pedro Vázquez, Yannick Klomberg, Liam P. Crowther, Carsten F. Dormann, Ana Carolina Pereira Machado, Quebin Bosbely Casiá‐Ajché, Carlos Martínez‐Núñez, Felipe Wanderley Amorim, Camila Bosenbecker, Marco A. R. Mello, Nico Blüthgen, Ingrid N. Gomes, Melanie N. Chisté, Bo Dalsgaard, Laura A. Burkle, Fabienne Maihoff, Rita N Afagwu, Valeska De Cárdenas, Patricia Landaverde, Paul CaraDonna, Andrea Holzschuh, Rye Dickson, Anthony M. T. Castagna, Jan E. J. Mertens, Fairo F. Dzekashu, Gavin Ballantyne, Natalia Escobedo Kenefic, Jeff Ollerton, Fabiana D. Reis, Michael Bartoš, Ruben Alarcón, Maggie Mayberry, Isabel C. Machado, Amy-Marie Gilpin
article en

Abstract

Pollination is a key ecological process sustaining biodiversity and food security, yet global patterns of plant–pollinator specialization remain unresolved. Using a global dataset of quantitative plant–pollinator networks (>3,400 networks, >110,000 interactions), we show that specialization is latitudinally structured, but not as a single directional pattern. We find no consistent monotonic increase or decrease in specialization towards the Equator. Instead, network-level and pollinator specialization peak at low northern latitudes near the tropical–subtropical boundary, whereas plant specialization is hemispherically asymmetric. Climate is most often the best-supported predictor of specialization compared with latitude, biodiversity and environmental productivity. Network-level specialization declines with increasing mean annual temperature, with strong group-specific differences. Precipitation exerts nonlinear effects: plant specialization peaks at intermediate precipitation but is lower at the wettest sites, whereas pollinator specialization is lower at intermediate precipitation, although often in interaction with temperature. Pollinator groups diverge strongly, especially in contrasting precipitation-related patterns between birds and insects. These findings show that global plant–pollinator specialization is structured by latitude and climate in complex and taxon-specific ways, with implications for uneven responses of pollination networks to future climatic change. Plant–pollinator networks vary tremendously across ecosystems. Here the authors use a global standardized dataset of plant–pollinator interactions to explore geographic patterns of specialization and their dependence on climate variables and taxonomic and functional identity.

Nature Ecology & Evolution
University of Lethbridge (CA), Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto (BR), Université de Tours (FR), University of Hohenheim (DE), Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (BR), Ikerbasque (ES), University of East Anglia (GB), Northwestern University (US), Missouri State University (US), Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (BO), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ES), University of Copenhagen (DK), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Pennsylvania State University (US), National Tropical Botanical Garden (US), University of Nevada, Reno (US), Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (DE), Kunming Institute of Botany (CN), Universidade de Brasília (BR), Texas Woman's University (US), Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (GT), Universidad Nacional de Cuyo (AR), University of Freiburg (DE), Philipps University of Marburg (DE), Queen Mary University of London (GB), International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (KE), University of the Basque Country (ES), Universidade de São Paulo (BR), Yokohama National University (JP), Universidad Rey Juan Carlos (ES), Universidade do Porto (PT), University of Canterbury (NZ), Lund University (SE), Dokuz Eylül University (TR), California State University, Channel Islands (US), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore (IN), Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen (DE), Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZ), Charles University (CZ), Montana State University (US), University of Exeter (GB), University of Cambridge (GB), University of Massachusetts Amherst (US), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (BR), Edinburgh Napier University (GB), University of Würzburg (DE), Swiss Ornithological Institute (CH), Center for Plant Conservation (US), German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (DE), Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (CN), Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (US), University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice (CZ), Technische Universität Darmstadt (DE), Northumbria University (GB), Yale University (US), University of Florida (US), University of Cyprus (CY), University of Northampton (GB), Estación Biológica de Doñana (ES), Basque Centre for Climate Change (ES), Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona (ES), Universidad de Las Américas (EC), Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (DE), Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri (BR), Institute of Entomology (CZ), Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Microbiology (CZ), Centre for Research on Ecology and Forestry Applications (ES), Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Botany (CZ), Instituto Florestal (BR), Oklahoma Biological Survey (US), Instituto de Ecología (MX), Instituto de Medicina y Biología Experimental de Cuyo (AR), Czech Academy of Sciences, Biology Centre (CZ), Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos (PT), Bioeconomy Science Institute (NZ), Laboratório Associado TERRA (PT), Kırıkkale University (TR), Universitat de les Illes Balears (ES), University of Neuchâtel (CH), Technical University of Munich (DE), Western Sydney University (AU), University of Milano-Bicocca (IT), University of Maryland, College Park (US), Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (DE), University of Pretoria (ZA), University of Coimbra (PT), Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (BR), The University of Texas at Austin (US), University of Oklahoma (US), Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) (BR), University of Gothenburg (SE), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (MX), University of Haifa (IL), University of KwaZulu-Natal (ZA)
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Openalex Percentile: Top 8%
Plant and animal studies
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