Abstract: Pollen limitation (PL), the reduction in reproductive success due to insufficient pollination, is a prevalent phenomenon in animal-pollinated plants. Multiple factors (e.g., life history, mating system, and phylogenetic history) have been proposed to explain the variations in PL among wild species. However, whether these effects are consistent in animal-pollinated crops, which experience strong artificial selection and domestication, remains poorly understood. In this study, we compiled a global dataset of 107 animal-pollinated crops to examine the impact of five plant traits and pollinator type on PL, and further linked pollinator richness, abundance and visit frequency to yield for 33 of these crops. The degree of PL varied among crops (mean = 0.258), with a significant phylogenetic signal. Bee-pollinated (0.187), self-compatible (0.202), and herbaceous (0.159) crops were suggested to experience lower PL than other categories. However, PL degree did not differ between species with different floral symmetries or sexual systems. After controlling for phylogenetic relationships and interactions among factors, only self-compatibility was found to influence pollen limitation. The positive effects of increased pollinator community attributes on crop yield were evident only in certain species, including sunflower, coffee, buckwheat, and avocado, but absent in the majority of studied species. These results indicate the consistent and divergent drivers on PL between wild and cultivated plants, suggesting that the degree of PL in crops can be partially predicted by plant traits and pollinator attributes. This trait-based approach has the potential to assess pollen limitation risks and guide pollinator management for crop yield improvement.

Key words: crop pollination, crop yield, plant trait, phylogenetic relatedness, pollen limitation, pollinator