Application of oil palm empty fruit bunch effects on soil biota and functions: A case study in Sumatra, Indonesia

Tao, Hsiao-Hang; Snaddon, Jake L.; Slade, Eleanor M.; Henneron, Ludovic; Caliman, Jean‐Pierre; Willis, Katherine J.

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2017.12.012

Cited by 42 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Functional diversity and composition were primarily related to the structural complexity of the habitat, specifically to the amount of litter and ground vegetation density and height, while predation by spiders was related to plant diversity. Thus, the negative impacts of land‐use change on spider communities might be mitigated by adopting management strategies such as mulching and reduced weeding/herbicide application (Ashton‐Butt et al , Tao et al ) or intercropping monocultures with other trees (Teuscher et al ). Further, to improve colonization of monoculture plantations from refuge areas, our findings suggest that plantations are best integrated into complex landscapes comprising different habitat types including rainforest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional losses in ground spider communities due to habitat structure degradation under tropical land‐use change

Potapov

Dupérré

Eisenhauer

et al. 2020

Ecology

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Deforestation and land‐use change in tropical regions result in habitat loss and extinction of species that are unable to adapt to the conditions in agricultural landscapes. If the associated loss of functional diversity is not compensated by species colonizing the converted habitats, extinctions might be followed by a reduction or loss of ecosystem functions including biological control. To date, little is known about how land‐use change in the tropics alters the functional diversity of invertebrate predators and which key environmental factors may mitigate the decline in functional diversity and predation in litter and soil communities. We applied litter sieving and heat extraction to study ground spider communities and assessed structural characteristics of vegetation and parameters of litter in rainforest and agricultural land‐use systems (jungle rubber, rubber, and oil palm monocultures) in a Southeast Asian hotspot of rainforest conversion: Sumatra, Indonesia. We found that (1) spider density, species richness, functional diversity, and community predation (energy flux to spiders) were reduced by 57–98% from rainforest to oil palm monoculture; (2) jungle rubber and rubber monoculture sustained relatively high diversity and predation in ground spiders, but small cryptic spider species strongly declined; (3) high species turnover compensated losses of some functional trait combinations, but did not compensate for the overall loss of functional diversity and predation per unit area; (4) spider diversity was related to habitat structure such as amount of litter, understory density, and understory height, while spider predation was better explained by plant diversity. Management practices that increase habitat‐structural complexity and plant diversity such as mulching, reduced weeding, and intercropping monocultures with other plants may contribute to maintaining functional diversity of and predation services provided by ground invertebrate communities in plantations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional losses in ground spider communities due to habitat structure degradation under tropical land‐use change

Potapov

Dupérré

Eisenhauer

et al. 2020

Ecology

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“…Indeed, enriched levels of soil biota have been found to enhance agricultural sustainability by improving crop yield and nutrient uptake and reduce nitrogen leaching (Bender & van der Heijden, 2015). Furthermore, activity and abundance of soil fauna have been found to positively correlate with other soil characteristics that are beneficial to oil palm yield, although the mechanisms that drive these relationships are not well understood (Tao et al, 2018). In addition, the impact of management on soil biodiversity, within oil palm agriculture, is largely understudied (Bessou et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Replanting of first‐cycle oil palm results in a second wave of biodiversity loss

Ashton‐Butt

Willcock

Purnomo³

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Conversion of forest to oil palm plantations results in a significant loss of biodiversity. Despite this, first‐cycle oil palm plantations can sustain relatively high biodiversity compared to other crops. However, the long‐term effects of oil palm agriculture on flora and fauna are unknown. Oil palm has a 25‐year commercial lifespan before it must be replanted, due to reduced productivity and difficulty of harvesting. Loss of the complex vegetation structure of oil palm plantations during the replanting process will likely have impacts on the ecosystem at a local and landscape scale. However, the effect of replanting on biodiversity is poorly understood. Here, we investigate the effects of replanting oil palm on soil macrofauna communities. We assessed ordinal richness, abundance, and community composition of soil macrofauna in first‐ (25‐ to 27‐year‐old) and second‐cycle oil palm (freshly cleared, 1‐year‐old, 3‐year‐old, and 7‐year‐old mature). Macrofauna abundance and richness drastically declined immediately after replanting. Macrofauna richness showed some recovery 7 years after replanting, but was still 19% lower than first‐cycle oil palm. Macrofauna abundance recovered to similar levels to that of first‐cycle oil palm plantations, 1 year after replanting. This was mainly due to high ant abundance, possibly due to the increased understory vegetation as herbicides are not used at this age. However, there were subsequent declines in macrofauna abundance 3 and 7 years after replanting, resulting in a 59% drop in macrofauna abundance compared to first‐cycle levels. Furthermore, soil macrofauna community composition in all ages of second‐cycle oil palm was different to first‐cycle plantations, with decomposers suffering particular declines. After considerable biodiversity loss due to forest conversion for oil palm, belowground invertebrate communities suffer a second wave of biodiversity loss due to replanting. This is likely to have serious implications for soil invertebrate diversity and agricultural sustainability in oil palm landscapes, due to the vital ecosystem functions that soil macrofauna provide.

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“…In this paper we present initial results on the effects of management on structural complexity and microclimate. Other published studies from the BEFTA Programme present results on the effects of management on a range of environmental conditions, biodiversity, and functions Slade et al, 2014;Kurz et al, 2016;Tao et al, 2016Tao et al, , 2017Tao et al, , 2018Ashton-Butt et al, 2018, 2019Spear et al, 2018;Eycott et al, 2019;Hood et al, 2019;Luke et al, 2019a;Woodham et al, 2019). Additional studies, which are still in preparation, will further extend our understanding of these linkages, and also consider impacts on yield, profitability, and recommendations for the industry.…”

Section: Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

“…• Additional studies that are within the wider landscape, and have been facilitated by the development of the BEFTA Programme research set-up and collaborations. Example studies include: testing the effectiveness of beneficial planting for herbivory control (Hinsch, 2013); considering the potential for cattle grazing within mature oil palm to provide ecosystem function benefits (Slade et al, 2014); assessing the benefits of Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) fertilisers and other soil management techniques for soil biodiversity, function, and yield (Tao et al, 2016(Tao et al, , 2017(Tao et al, , 2018; and measuring ecosystem functions in mature oil palm riparian buffers (Woodham et al, 2019). • Ability to test the impacts of oil palm replanting.…”

Section: Additional Projects and Collaborationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing Oil Palm Plantations More Sustainably: Large-Scale Experiments Within the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Programme

Luke

Advento

Aryawan

et al. 2020

Front. For. Glob. Change

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Application of oil palm empty fruit bunch effects on soil biota and functions: A case study in Sumatra, Indonesia

Abstract: 19Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is an important tropical crop which provides one-fifth of the 20 world's vegetable oil, yet its rapid expansion can negatively influence the soil ecosystem. 21Identifying suitable agronomic management such as crop residue application is important 22

Cited by 42 publications

References 46 publications

Functional losses in ground spider communities due to habitat structure degradation under tropical land‐use change

Functional losses in ground spider communities due to habitat structure degradation under tropical land‐use change

Replanting of first‐cycle oil palm results in a second wave of biodiversity loss

Managing Oil Palm Plantations More Sustainably: Large-Scale Experiments Within the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Programme

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