An Evaluation of the Contribution of Cultivated Allspice (Pimenta Dioca) to Vertebrate Biodiversity Conservation in Nicaragua

Abstract

Tropical deforestation has emerged as one of the most important conservation challenges of our time, both because of the high species diversity and rates of endemism of tropical forests, and because of the rapid rate at which this process is proceeding. Recent studies indicate that areas of low-intensity agroforestry have similar levels of vertebrate diversity as some primary habitats, leading some researchers and conservationists to conclude that this type of commodity production could contribute to the conservation of biodiversity. We compared the composition of bird, mammal and herpetofaunal communities in primary forest, secondary forest, and pasture-and within the allspice productive systems that have replaced pasture. We found that mammal species richness was higher in primary forest than all other habitats; however for resident and migrant birds, amphibians and reptiles, species richness was similar between primary forest and the other habitats. Despite similarities in overall numbers of species, there were numerous species that were encountered only in primary habitats. We conclude that the cultivation of allspice in a mixed productive system can offset some of the losses to biodiversity; however it should be complemented by the establishment and maintenance of protected areas to accommodate populations of primary forest specialists that are unable to persist in altered habitats.

A Small‐Scale Land‐Sparing Approach to Conserving Biological Diversity in Tropical Agricultural Landscapes

“…Regardless of the semantics in the land‐sparing debate, our results demonstrate that IOC coffee improves on alternative agroforestry systems from the standpoint of biological diversity conservation by accommodating forest‐dependent bird species that are of high conservation concern and that do not use shade coffee. This is consistent with the results of other studies in which forest‐dependent species are absent or uncommon in shade coffee (Tejeda‐Cruz & Sutherland ) and other land‐sharing production systems (King et al ). Our finding that >80% more forest‐dependent species occurred in IOC coffee than in shade coffee shows that IOC coffee is more effective at providing habitat for these threatened bird species.…”

Effects of Land‐Use Change on Community Composition of Tropical Amphibians and Reptiles in Sulawesi, Indonesia

“…Abundance was low in secondary forest and planted‐shade cacao agroforest. Results of other studies show similar responses of amphibians and reptiles to disturbance in humid forests, mostly in the Neotropics (Faria et al 2007; Suaz‐Ortuno et al 2008; but see King et al 2007). These patterns are often explained by changes in leaf‐litter thickness that affect microhabitats (humidity and food‐source abundance; Whitfield et al 2007) or changes in heat exposure as canopy cover decreases (Pineda et al 2005; Luja et al 2008).…”

Effect of distance to forest and habitat characteristics on endemic versus introduced rat species in agroforest landscapes of Central Sulawesi, Indonesia

“…Even if some endemic species are able to adapt to cacao agroforest as a habitat under certain conditions most endemic small mammals of Sulawesi can be expected to be highly specialised to primary forest as a habitat and be very sensitive to the changes in habitat characteristics that accompany the conversion of natural forest (King et al 2007). Maryanto and Yani (2003) surveyed small mammals in Lore Lindu National Park to determine small mammal distribution according to altitude and habitat type.…”