Biodiversity Conservation, Ecosystem Functioning, and Economic Incentives under Cocoa Agroforestry Intensification

Abstract:  World chocolate demand is expected to more than double by 2050. Decisions about how to meet this challenge will have profound effects on tropical rainforests and wild species in cocoa-producing countries. Cocoa, "the chocolate tree," is traditionally produced under a diverse and dense canopy of shade trees that provide habitat for a high diversity of organisms. The current trend to reduce or eliminate shade cover raises concerns about the potential loss of biodiversity. Nevertheless, few studies have assessed the ecological consequences and economic trade-offs under different management options in cocoa plantations. Here we describe the relationships between ant ecology (species richness, community composition, and abundance) and vegetation structure, ecosystem functions, and economic profitability under different land-use management systems in 17 traditional cocoa forest gardens in southern Cameroon. We calculated an index of profitability, based on the net annual income per hectare. We found significant differences associated with the different land-use management systems for species richness and abundance of ants and species richness and density of trees. Ant species richness was significantly higher in floristically and structurally diverse, low-intensity, old cocoa systems than in intensive young systems. Ant species richness was significantly related to tree species richness and density. We found no clear relationship between profitability and biodiversity. Nevertheless, we suggest that improving the income and livelihood of smallholder cocoa farmers will require economic incentives to discourage further intensification and ecologically detrimental loss of shade cover. Certification programs for shade-grown cocoa may provide socioeconomic incentives to slow intensification.     

海南省集约化种植园中谷物、蔬菜和水果中重金属累积程度及健康风险

集约化种植园中植物有害元素的累积会危及人类健康.本研究共采集海南省典型集约化种植园中谷物、蔬菜和水果样品673份.分析了7种重金属（Cu、Pb、Zn、Cr、Cd、As和Hg）的分布特征,并采用单因子指数和内梅罗指数进行污染物评价.同时,结合中国营养学会推荐的日常膳食摄入量,分析重金属的膳食暴露风险.结果表明,673件农作物的Cu、As和Hg含量均低于国家食品限量标准,Pb、Zn、Cr和Cd的超标率分别为2.67%、3.71%、2.53%和3.71%.6类农作物的重金属综合污染程度表现为：叶类蔬菜 > 薯类 > 非叶类蔬菜类 > 豆类 > 水果 > 谷类.其中,叶类蔬菜中Cr的风险系数（HQ）显著高于其它类型农作物,并且大于1,表明通过叶类蔬菜摄入重金属具有潜在健康风险.薯类、非叶菜蔬菜类、豆类、水果类和谷类农作物的危害指数（HI）较低,表明这几类农作物更适合集约化生产模式.     

Frog, Bat, and Dung Beetle Diversity in the Cloud Forest and Coffee Agroecosystems of Veracruz, Mexico

Abstract:  We compared the species diversity of copronecrophagous beetles (Scarabaeinae) , bats, and frogs in tropical montane cloud forest (original vegetation) and shaded coffee plantations (an agroecosystem common to the region) for a landscape in central Veracruz, Mexico. We sampled in three tropical montane cloud forest fragments and in three coffee plantations with traditional polyculture shade between 1998 and 2001. The three indicator groups responded differently to the transformation of tropical montane cloud forest into shaded coffee plantations. The species richness of frogs was one-fifth less in coffee plantations than in forest fragments, and only one-third of the frog species occurred in both forest fragments and coffee plantations. The number of beetle species and their abundance was significantly greater in coffee plantations than in the forest fragments, whereas species richness and species composition of bats were virtually the same in both habitats. The majority of the abundant species remained as such in both communities, but species that were less abundant were not scarce in both habitats. We attributed differences in the species assemblages to the differing degrees of penetrability of the borders of the two habitat types (especially for the coffee plantations) and to the differences in life-history traits among species. Shaded coffee plantations form a matrix that envelops the remaining fragments of cloud forest. Together they connect the forest fragments with the other habitats of the landscape and represent a highly functional resource for the preservation of biodiversity that serves as a complement to but not a substitute for cloud forest in this notably modified landscape.     

退耕植茶对川西低山丘陵区土壤活性有机碳组分的影响

为探讨退耕植茶对土壤活性有机碳组分的影响,选取退耕2~3年(RT 2~3)、9~10年(RT 9~10)和16~17年(RT 16~17)的茶园为研究对象,以邻近撂荒地为对照(CK),测定其土壤颗粒有机碳(POC)、微生物量碳(MBC)、水溶性有机碳(WSOC)、可矿化有机碳(MOC)含量,并分析其分配比例随退耕植茶年限推移的变化.结果表明,POC、MBC和WSOC对退耕植茶的响应较为一致,与对照相比,退耕植茶初期(RT 2~3),各组分含量均降低,但随着植茶时间的推移,各组分含量逐渐增加,在植茶9~10或16~17年后显著高于撂荒地;退耕植茶后MOC含量显著降低,总体表现为CKRT 16~17RT 9~10RT 2~3,0~10 cm土层,RT 2~3、RT 9~10和RT 16~17土壤MOC含量分别较对照显著下降35.25%、23.89%和16.87%,10~20 cm土层中分别下降32.31%、13.09%和23.22%,20~40 cm土层中分别下降36.43%、28.79%和30.76%.植茶后,土壤活性有机碳在总有机碳中的比例整体现为0~10 cm高于20~40 cm,相较于表层土壤,深层土壤碳库的稳定性更强.退耕植茶有利于土壤肥力的保持,对提升土壤有机质水平起到积极作用,且随植茶时间的推移,土壤对碳的固持作用增强,土壤质量得到提升.     

生物炭施用5 a后对桂北桉树人工林土壤有机氮组分和活性氮的影响

研究施用不同量生物炭5 a后桉树人工林土壤有机氮组分和活性氮特征,探讨土壤有机氮组分和活性氮之间的关系,明确生物炭不同施用量下土壤的供氮潜力,为桉树林业废弃物生物炭的实践应用提供科学依据.利用开始于2017年的桉树人工林生物炭中长期定位试验,选取CK(0%)、 T1(0.5%)、 T2(1.0%)、 T3(2%)、 T4(4%)和T5(6%)这6个处理,一次性施用生物炭5 a后测定不同处理下有机氮组分、微生物生物量氮和溶解性有机氮含量.结果表明：(1)与对照相比,随着生物炭施用量的增加,不同土层全氮、酸解总氮、酸解铵态氮、酸解氨基酸态氮、微生物生物量氮、溶解性有机氮和氮储量含量均呈递增趋势,增幅分别为45.48%～156.32%、 44.31%～171.31%、 38.06%～223.37%、 39.42%～163.32%、 36.72%～109%、 23.27%～113.51%和29.45%～62.37%,在T5处理最大;未知态氮和非酸解态氮含量总体亦呈增加的趋势,增幅分别为88.41%～158.71%和50.24%～139.01%;酸解氨基糖态氮含量趋于降低,降幅为7.72%～32...     

Soil physicochemical properties of Pinus tabuliformis plantations of different ages in Yanqing,Beijing北大核心CSCD

Soil physicochemical properties are important parameters to characterize soil quality. To evaluate the effects of different stand ages from young to mature on the soil physicochemical properties of Pinus tabulaeformis plantations, four different aged P. tabulaeformis plantations (14, 28, 36, and 51-year old) were investigated in Yanqing district, Beijing, China. Soil samples were collected at depths of 0-10, 10-20, and 20-30 cm, to analyze the effect of soil depth on soil physicochemical indexes. With increasing soil depth, the soil moisture content, water holding capacity, and porosity decreased gradually, but pH value increased. There was no significant difference in soil bulk density (BD) between different soil depths. Organic matter (OM), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) content also decreased gradually with increasing soil depth, but there was no uniform change in electrical conductivity (EC). With the growth and development of P. tabulaeformis plantations, the soil moisture content, water holding capacity, and porosity of the same depth increased gradually, but pH value decreased. The difference in BD between different ages was not significant. The OM, N, and P content showed an increasing trend with increasing stand age. The K content in 14 a and 28 a plantations was significantly higher than that in 36 a and 51 a plantations. EC was the highest in 51 a plantations. The correlation analysis showed that there was a significant negative correlation between BD and water characteristics, porosity. There was a significant positive correlation between OM and N, P. The negative correlation between OM and pH reached a significant level at P < 0.01. OM was negatively correlated with BD, total potassium (TK, P < 0.05) and available potassium (AK, P > 0.05). Therefore, the soil physicochemical properties of P. tabulaeformis plantations improved with increasing stand age. Our results provide a theoretical basis for the management of P. tabulaeformis plantations in Beijing, such as thinning, fertilization management, and mixed forest forestation. © 2018 Science Press. All rights reserved.     

Changes in Species Diversity of Rove Beetles (Coleoptera,Staphylinidae) Depending on the Age of Pine Plantations in Central Belarus

Trends of changes in species richness and dominance in staphylinid communities depending on the age of pine plantations have been analyzed. The species richness of these communities is high in the plantations of age classes 1 and 2 (11 and 28 years, respectively) but decreases in the plantations of age class 3 (60 years). The highest and lowest indices of species diversity are observed in the plantations of age classes 2 and 3, respectively. Four groups of rove beetles have been distinguished by the criterion of their dominance in pine plantations of different ages.__________Translated from Ekologiya, No. 4, 2005, pp. 306–313.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Derunkov.     

Termite assemblages in a West-African semi-deciduous forest and teak plantations

Responses of termite assemblages to the conversion of semi-deciduous forest into teak plantations were studied in the Lama Forest Reserve in Benin, West Africa. Four belt transect surveys were run in each of the two forest types, adopting a modified termite diversity assessment protocol. Termite assemblages were remarkably species-poor in both forest types, with only 19 species encountered altogether. The low species richness was due to the rarity of soil-feeders of the soil/humus interface and the absence of true soil-feeders in the compact vertisol soil. Species richness was significantly higher in semi-deciduous forest than in teak plantations, but termite encounters were significantly lower. Termite assemblage and feeding group structure differed significantly among forest types. Wood-feeders were recorded only in semi-deciduous forest. In contrast, fungus-growers were more species-rich and about four times more abundant in teak plantations, mainly due to one Ancistrotermes species. The humification score, which depicts the position of termite assemblages along a gradient of increasing humification of their food substrate, was significantly higher in teak plantations, due to the absence of wood-feeders and the preponderance of fungus-growers. Combined principal components and multiple regression analysis identified two significant predictors of termite assemblages, soil water content and leaf litter biomass. The abundance of fungus-growers in teak plantations seemed to be mainly related to the high leaf litter biomass. Indirect evidence also suggests that lower predation pressure by ants on termites in teak plantations may have contributed to the abundance of termites.     

Baseline Carbon Stocks Assessment and Projection of Future Carbon Benefits of a Carbon Sequestration Project in East Timor

Climate change is one of the most pressing environmental problems humanity is facing today. Forest ecosystems serve as a source or sink of greenhouse gases, primarily CO₂. With support from the Canadian Climate Change Fund, the Community-based Natural Resource Management for Carbon Sequestration project in East Timor (CBNRM-ET) was implemented to “maintain carbon (C) stocks and increase C sequestration through the development of community-based resource management systems that will simultaneously improve livelihood security”. Project sites were in the Laclubar and Remexio Sub-districts of the Laclo watershed. The objective of this study was to quantify baseline C stocks and sequestration benefits of project components (reforestation with fast-growing species, primarily Casuarina equisetifolia, and agroforestry involving integration of Paraserianthes falcataria). Field measurements show that mature stands (≥30 years) of P. falcataria and C. equisetifolia contain up to 200 Mg C ha⁻¹ in above ground biomass, indicating the vast potential of project sites to sequester carbon. Baseline C stocks in above ground biomass were very low in both Laclubar (6.2 Mg C ha⁻¹ for reforestation sites and 5.2 Mg C ha⁻¹ for agroforestry sites and Remexio (3.0 Mg C ha⁻¹ for reforestation and 2.5 Mg C ha⁻¹ for agroforestry). Baseline soil organic C levels were much higher reaching up to 160 Mg C ha⁻¹ in Laclubar and 70 Mg C ha⁻¹ in Remexio. For the next 25 years, it is projected that 137 671 Mg C and 84 621 Mg C will be sequestered under high- and low C stock scenarios, respectively.     

红椿凋落叶全碳释放的林窗效应

为了调整低山丘陵区低效林林分结构,探明马尾松人工林不同林窗下凋落物的全碳释放规律,论文以长江上游低山丘陵区人为采伐形成的马尾松（Pinus massoniana）人工林7种不同大小林窗（G1：100 m²,G2：225 m²,G3：400 m²,G4：625 m²,G5：900 m²,G6：1 225 m²,G7： 1 600 m²）为研究对象,以林下为对照,研究了乡土阔叶树种红椿（Toona ciliata）凋落叶近1 a的全碳释放率和全碳释放速率（每30 a）。结果表明：1）相对小型（100~200 m²）和大型（1 225~ 1 600 m²）林窗以及林下,中型（400~625 m²）林窗更能促进凋落叶全碳的释放;2）全碳释放速率表现出先快后慢的变化趋势,在分解中后期（90~270 d）,出现碳的富集现象;3）凋落物全碳的释放受林窗大小、位置、分解时间的交互作用,分解时间对红椿凋落叶的全碳释放率影响极显著（P < 0.01）,林窗大小对全碳释放有显著影响（P < 0.05）,而林窗内不同位置（中心和边缘）对凋落叶碳释放无显著影响;4）凋落物分解温度、含水率和全碳释放率、质量损失速率表现出极显著正相关（P < 0.01）。