Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region
Tropical rainforests offer a diverse array of real or potential forest products (FP). However, the ongoing conversion of these forests to agriculture raises concerns about the future availability and sustainability of FP. In this study, we examined the changes in availability (tree density and above...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Trees, Forests and People |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719323001139 |
| _version_ | 1797289637067096064 |
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| author | Mayra del C. Fragoso-Medina Armando Navarrete-Segueda Eliane Ceccon Miguel Martínez-Ramos |
| author_facet | Mayra del C. Fragoso-Medina Armando Navarrete-Segueda Eliane Ceccon Miguel Martínez-Ramos |
| author_sort | Mayra del C. Fragoso-Medina |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Tropical rainforests offer a diverse array of real or potential forest products (FP). However, the ongoing conversion of these forests to agriculture raises concerns about the future availability and sustainability of FP. In this study, we examined the changes in availability (tree density and above-ground biomass) and species richness of native trees, recognized by local communities as sources of FP, with the forest-to-agriculture conversion in a Mesoamerican tropical rainforest region. Specifically, we tested hypotheses on whether species with FP had a higher, equal, or lower reduction in the availability, diversity, and probability of persistence than species without FP with the forest conversion. We interviewed landowners to identify tree species with FP and documented management practices and regulations for using these species. In fourteen 1 km2 landscapes, encompassing the entire range of forest-to-agriculture conversion (from 0 % to ∼100 % old-growth forest cover), we analyzed changes in the availability and richness of species with and without FP. In each landscape, we randomly established 30 plots (each 706.8 m2, totaling 420 plots and 29.7 ha sampling area) covered by old-growth forest, secondary forest, or agricultural fields (mostly cattle pastures). Over four years, we surveyed all trees with a diameter at breast height ≥ 10 cm in these plots. With the forest conversion, assemblages of tree species with FP exhibited a higher reduction in aboveground biomass than species without FP. However, assemblages of species with FP exhibited a significantly lower reduction in abundance, species richness, and a higher probability of persistence than assemblages of species without FP. Furthermore, we found evidence of implementing forest management practices favoring the preservation of species with FP in agricultural lands. Thus, we conclude that people intentionally foster the persistence of valuable species in their agricultural fields, which could have important implications for the structure and composition of future regenerating forests on abandoned agricultural lands. In the long term, this might lead to an overabundance of locally valuable species, as observed in old-growth tropical rainforests that native people ancestrally managed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:07:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-00aa8d780ea04f368c6c565242f5946b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2666-7193 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:07:59Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Trees, Forests and People |
| spelling | doaj.art-00aa8d780ea04f368c6c565242f5946b2024-03-01T05:07:29ZengElsevierTrees, Forests and People2666-71932024-03-0115100481Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest regionMayra del C. Fragoso-Medina0Armando Navarrete-Segueda1Eliane Ceccon2Miguel Martínez-Ramos3Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico; Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Unidad de Posgrado, Edificio D, 1° Piso, Circuito de Posgrados, Ciudad Universitaria, Coyoacán, CDMX 04510, Mexico; Corresponding author at: Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico.Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, MexicoCentro Regional de Investigaciones Multidisciplinarias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 62210, Cuernavaca, Morelos, MexicoInstituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, MexicoTropical rainforests offer a diverse array of real or potential forest products (FP). However, the ongoing conversion of these forests to agriculture raises concerns about the future availability and sustainability of FP. In this study, we examined the changes in availability (tree density and above-ground biomass) and species richness of native trees, recognized by local communities as sources of FP, with the forest-to-agriculture conversion in a Mesoamerican tropical rainforest region. Specifically, we tested hypotheses on whether species with FP had a higher, equal, or lower reduction in the availability, diversity, and probability of persistence than species without FP with the forest conversion. We interviewed landowners to identify tree species with FP and documented management practices and regulations for using these species. In fourteen 1 km2 landscapes, encompassing the entire range of forest-to-agriculture conversion (from 0 % to ∼100 % old-growth forest cover), we analyzed changes in the availability and richness of species with and without FP. In each landscape, we randomly established 30 plots (each 706.8 m2, totaling 420 plots and 29.7 ha sampling area) covered by old-growth forest, secondary forest, or agricultural fields (mostly cattle pastures). Over four years, we surveyed all trees with a diameter at breast height ≥ 10 cm in these plots. With the forest conversion, assemblages of tree species with FP exhibited a higher reduction in aboveground biomass than species without FP. However, assemblages of species with FP exhibited a significantly lower reduction in abundance, species richness, and a higher probability of persistence than assemblages of species without FP. Furthermore, we found evidence of implementing forest management practices favoring the preservation of species with FP in agricultural lands. Thus, we conclude that people intentionally foster the persistence of valuable species in their agricultural fields, which could have important implications for the structure and composition of future regenerating forests on abandoned agricultural lands. In the long term, this might lead to an overabundance of locally valuable species, as observed in old-growth tropical rainforests that native people ancestrally managed.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719323001139Land use changeConservationDeforestationSelva LacandonaSocioecological systemsSustainable management |
| spellingShingle | Mayra del C. Fragoso-Medina Armando Navarrete-Segueda Eliane Ceccon Miguel Martínez-Ramos Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region Trees, Forests and People Land use change Conservation Deforestation Selva Lacandona Socioecological systems Sustainable management |
| title | Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| title_full | Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| title_fullStr | Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| title_short | Effects of the forests-agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| title_sort | effects of the forests agriculture conversion on the availability and diversity of forest products in a neotropical rainforest region |
| topic | Land use change Conservation Deforestation Selva Lacandona Socioecological systems Sustainable management |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719323001139 |
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