Unibo Team Leader: Prof. Marta Galloni (Scientific Coordinator).
The general premise of the PP-ICON project
About 90% of angiosperm species profit from animal pollination for their reproduction.
The mutualistic pollination interactions are beneficial to both plants and animals but also benefit humanity, directly through crop productivity and indirectly through ecosystem health.
Pollination systems are under increasing threat from anthropogenic sources, including fragmentation of habitat, changes in land use, modern agricultural practices, use of pesticides and herbicides. Rare plants are commonly more sensitive to habitat loss and fragmentation and often occur in small populations, which may decrease the attractiveness to pollinators and reduce pollinator service.
Partners
Three institutions are involved in the PP-ICON project:
- University of Bologna as Coordinating Beneficiary (Department of Experimental Evolutionary Biology - BES, Department of Agro-Environmental Science and Technology, University Botanic Garden),
- Italian Agricultural Research Council (CRA-Honeybee and silkworm Research Unit)
- Villa Ghigi Foundation as Associated Beneficiaries.
Start date 1/1/2011
End date 30/6/2015
Duration 54 months
Project cost 603.007 Euro
Project Funding 300.996 Euro
Grant Contract N° LIFE09/NAT/IT000212
Subprogramme Area Nature &Biodiversity