Losses of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning due to rainforest destruction and agricultural intensification are prime concerns for science and society alike. Potentially, ecosystems show nonlinear responses to land-use intensification that would open management options with limited ecological losses but satisfying economic gains. However, multidisciplinary studies to quantify ecological losses and socioeconomic tradeoffs under different management options are rare. Here, we evaluate opposing land use strategies in cacao agroforestry in Sulawesi, Indonesia, by using data on species richness of nine plant and animal taxa, six related ecosystem functions, and on socioeconomic drivers of agroforestry expansion. Expansion of cacao cultivation by 230% in the last two decades was triggered not only by economic market mechanisms, but also by rarely considered cultural factors. Transformation from near-primary forest to agroforestry had little effect on overall species richness, but reduced plant biomass and carbon storage by Ϸ75% and species richness of forest-using species by Ϸ60%. In contrast, increased land use intensity in cacao agroforestry, coupled with a reduction in shade tree cover from 80% to 40%, caused only minor quantitative changes in biodiversity and maintained high levels of ecosystem functioning while doubling farmers' net income. However, unshaded systems further increased income by Ϸ40%, implying that current economic incentives and cultural preferences for new intensification practices put shaded systems at risk. We conclude that low-shade agroforestry provides the best available compromise between economic forces and ecological needs. Certification schemes for shade-grown crops may provide a market-based mechanism to slow down current intensification trends.agricultural economics ͉ agroforestry management ͉ land use change ͉ plant-animal interactions ͉ ecosystem goods and services G lobal-scale conversion of tropical rainforests and agricultural intensification are major causes of biodiversity loss, and threaten ecosystem functioning, sustainable land use and local economies depending on natural resources (1-3). Developing strategies to reconcile human needs with the integrity of our environment is a major task for ecologists and socio-economists alike (4), but multitaxa studies are rare (5-6) and too little is known about the human dimension of land use changes (4, 7-11) and consequences for ecosystem functioning (1,2,(12)(13)(14). Furthermore, most ecological and economic studies on ecosystem services are carried out separately so that information cannot be brought together (15). Particularly, quantitative data on potential tradeoffs between biodiversity loss and agricultural intensification including natural habitat conversion is missing. Two competing solutions propose either wildlife-friendly farming on the cost of agricultural yields or land sparing by agricultural intensification to minimize the demand for natural habitat (16). The evaluation of such opposing land use options depends on t...

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The objectives of this experiment were to determine response of epycotyl of nine peanut cultivars against polyethylene glycol (PEG 6000) induced stress under in vitro conditions, effective concentration of PEG to inhibit growth and development of epycotyl, evaluate tolerance of the cultivars against PEG stress, and evaluate changes in total proline content due to PEG stress. Growing epycotyls from peanut seeds (TDK) or from embryo axis (TTK) were planted on liquid MS-0 medium containing PEG 6000 (0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 percent). Growth, development, and the tissue damage score of the epycotyl were observed after six weeks. Total content of proline were analyzed for stressed and non stressed epycotyl to determine effect of PEG stress on proline accumulation. Results of the experiment indicated that addition of PEG 6000 in to MS-0 medium inhibited growth and development of peanut epycotyls and increased its total proline content. Addition of PEG 6000 might be used to simulate drought stress under in vitro condition. PEG at 15% concentration was effective for inhibiting growth and development of epycotyl explant. The response of peanut epycotyls against medium containing 15% PEG 6000 might be used as alternative methods for screening peanut tolerance against drought stress. The TDK and TTK might be used as explant, while increased in shoot length (TTK), in leaf number (TDK and TTK), in milted leaf number (TDK and TTK), in root number (TDK) and score of tissue damage (TDK) might be used as criteria for drought tolerance.