Pollination by bats enhances both quality and yield of a major cash crop in Mexico

We used exclusion experiments to determine the effect of different
pollinator taxa on the yield and quality of pitayas (fruit of Stenocereus
queretaroensis (F.A.C. Weber) Buxbaum), a major crop in central Mexico. We
studied the three most economically important cultivars and wild
individuals in the principal region for pitaya production. For each
pollinator taxa we recorded fruit set and measured three key parameters of
fruit quality: weight, sucrose concentration and seed set. When bats were
excluded from flowers and flowers were pollinated by other taxa (i.e.
diurnal birds and insects), pitaya yield decreased by 35%, though
pollination dependence varied between cultivars. Fruit quality decreased
significantly in the absence of bat pollination across all cultivars, with
fruits 46% lighter and 13% less sweet when pollinated by other taxa, thus
reducing economic value as size determines market price. Additionally,
seed set (an indicator of effective pollination) was significantly lower
in the absence of bat pollinators.