Data from: Density-dependent dispersal strategy of pollinator moderates the adverse effect of habitat loss on plant reproduction

1. Major challenges for plant conservation are predicting the effect of
habitat loss on pollination success and plant reproduction potential. Most
studies report that pollinator movement is affected by quantitative and
spatial characteristics of landscapes. However, little is known about the
role of pollinator movement, impacted by floral volatiles and intraspecies
interaction, on plant reproduction in fragmented landscapes. 2. To clarify
the effect of pollinator movement on plant reproduction relative to
habitat loss, we developed an integrated model incorporating
pollinator's foraging response with its dispersal process mediated by
a density-dependent dispersal (DDD) strategy. This model performed better
in capturing behaviorals response of pollinators than do current methods.
The integrated model was verified with field results of pollinator
visitation and plant reproduction of saltcedar (Tamarix chinensis)
inhabiting the Yellow River Delta, and then was compared against a
dispersal strategy called density-independent dispersal (DID). The model
was applied to landscapes with various non-habitat percentage (NHP) to
explore the effect of habitat loss on plant reproduction. 3. Results
suggested that saltcedar populations differ in their responses to habitat
loss, which depended on the spatial scales considered. At landscape scale,
increasing NHP significantly inhibited the dispersion extent of floral
volatiles and therefore reduced pollinator visitation and subsequent seed
production, especially when NHP exceeded the critical threshold of 0.6.
However, at patch scale, comparing with DID strategy, the DDD strategy
enabled pollinators to increase their utilization of flowers by 43.42% and
6.79% in low-density and distant plant patches, whereas their utilization
was reduced by 7.75% and 2.24% in high-density and central patches,
respectively. Plant reproduction was improved correspondingly in
low-density and distant patches under different NHPs. 4. Consequently,
habitat loss inhibits the volatiles dispersion and interferes with the
foraging success of pollinators, a major factor influencing plant
reproduction at landscape scale. At patch scale, adaptive utilization of
pollinators exhibiting DDD strategy alleviates the negative effect of
habitat loss on plant production and maintains plant population
persistence. Since pollinator behavioral response is critical to plant
reproduction, we recommend the use of the here-presented integrated model
to assess the impact of habitat loss on plant reproduction.