Mark-Release-Recapture Experiments in a North Sumatra Oil Palm Plantation: Assessing the Impact of Super-Male Planting Material on Fruit Set and Elaeidobius kamerunicus population size
- 1CIRAD
Abstract
Yield improvement is a main issue in the oil palm industry. Several ways to achieve this goal are possible, like, for instance, improving fruit set. Here we explore a planting strategy to increase two major factors influencing pollination; i.e. (1) the number of individuals of its main pollinator, Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust, and (2) pollen availability, by mixing oil palm planting material, usually highly feminine, with a new oil palm material, the "super-male" (SM) planting material, with a high ratio of male inflorescences. We design and study a field trial comprising extremely feminine planting material mixed with different SM densities. Using Mark-Release-Recapture experiments we estimate the average dispersal of the pollinators over three different periods of the year, from 2017 till 2022. Second, using phenological data recorded over the same period, we studied the impact of the SM planting density on the population size of the pollinators. Finally, we assess the impact over time of different SM planting densities on the fruit set, the fruit-to-bunch, and the number of trapped wild pollinators. The combination of SM material with a highly feminine planting material provides very promising results in terms of fruit set, linked with increased pollinator population and pollen availability, demonstrating its potential for application in oil palm plantations.
Related
- Mutualistic relationships between male inflorescences of Elaeis guineensis Jacquin and its pollinator Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Derelominae): Comparison between two cultivars for E. kamerunicus progeny emergence in North Sumatra Indonesia
- Capacity of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacquin) male inflorescences to host Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Derelominae). Comparison between two cultivars in northern Sumatra
- Application of close‐kin mark–recapture to an American black bear population using harvest samples
- Inflorescence attractivity and dynamics of emergence of Elaeidobius sp. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a key pollinator in oil palm agrosystem in Cameroun
- Pyrochar versus hydrochar: contrasting modulation of soil bacterial communities under severe nitrate-dominated acid rain stress in a Quercus acutissima plantation
BibTeX
@misc{dumont2026markreleaserecapture,
title = {{Mark-Release-Recapture Experiments in a North Sumatra Oil Palm Plantation: Assessing the Impact of Super-Male Planting Material on Fruit Set and Elaeidobius kamerunicus population size}},
author = {Y. DUMONT and L. BEAUDOIN-OLLIVIER and H. REY and A. LABEYRIE and C. MADEC and A. DOIZY and I. SYAHPUTRA and D. AFANDI and F. JACOB},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.10.750641},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.10.750641v1},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Mark-Release-Recapture Experiments in a North Sumatra Oil Palm Plantation: Assessing the Impact of Super-Male Planting Material on Fruit Set and Elaeidobius kamerunicus population size
AU - Y. DUMONT
AU - L. BEAUDOIN-OLLIVIER
AU - H. REY
AU - A. LABEYRIE
AU - C. MADEC
AU - A. DOIZY
AU - I. SYAHPUTRA
AU - D. AFANDI
AU - F. JACOB
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/10
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.10.750641
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.10.750641v1
AB - Yield improvement is a main issue in the oil palm industry. Several ways to achieve this goal are possible, like, for instance, improving fruit set. Here we explore a planting strategy to increase two major factors influencing pollination; i.e. (1) the number of individuals of its main pollinator, Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust, and (2) pollen availability, by mixing oil palm planting material, usually highly feminine, with a new oil palm material, the "super-male" (SM) planting material, with a high ratio of male inflorescences. We design and study a field trial comprising extremely feminine planting material mixed with different SM densities. Using Mark-Release-Recapture experiments we estimate the average dispersal of the pollinators over three different periods of the year, from 2017 till 2022. Second, using phenological data recorded over the same period, we studied the impact of the SM planting density on the population size of the pollinators. Finally, we assess the impact over time of different SM planting densities on the fruit set, the fruit-to-bunch, and the number of trapped wild pollinators. The combination of SM material with a highly feminine planting material provides very promising results in terms of fruit set, linked with increased pollinator population and pollen availability, demonstrating its potential for application in oil palm plantations.
ER -