Land Use
The role of land-use history in driving successional pathways and its implications for the restoration of tropical forestsBackgroundAcross tropical landscapes, large portions of forest have been removed or degraded. Regenerating or secondary forests are becoming increasingly valuable to maintaining and restoring the biodiversity and ecosystem services in the tropics. However, it is apparent that succession does not always happen at the same rate or in the same patterns/quality. It is thought that the history of the land and its usage heavily impact the regeneration patterns of a forest landscape. Open access copy available |
Climate-Smart Conservation Agriculture, Farm Values and Tenure Security: Implications for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in the Congo BasinBackgroundThe Congo Basin forest houses a high amount of biodiversity and is an important area to conserve in light of climate change. This region is also important for agriculture and local livelihoods, though current practices are degrading the forest. Certain policy issues surrounding land tenure and investments may be hindering climate smart agriculture. Open access copy available |
Lightly-harvested rustic cocoa is a valuable land cover for amphibian and reptile conservation in human-modified rainforest landscapesBackgroundTropical biodiversity is impacted by anthropogenic land covers such as agriculture. Land use has the ability to both negatively and positively impact tropical biodiversity. In the tropics, important crops are grown in tropical forested landscapes such as coffee and cocoa. These forest understories are also important habitats for highly sensitive and ecologically vulnerable amphibian species. Amphibians and reptiles are an understudied taxa in conservation ecology and targeted in this study. Open access copy available |
Tropical fruit production depends on wild insect communities: bees and lychees in ThailandBackgroundMost of the agricultural crops around the world depend on wild animal/insect pollination. Insect pollination is the most common in tropical regions, and is something that tropical tree fruits such as the native Asian lychee (Litchi chinensis). The roles of wild insects on lychee production in northern Thailand has not yet been evaluated. Available with subscription or purchase |
Linking disturbance history to current forest structure to assess the impact of disturbances in tropical dry forestsBackgroundTropical dry forests are given less attention in studies compared to tropical humid forests, but they still experience high levels of disturbance, both natural and human-made. These disturbances heavily alter the characteristics of valuable remaining forest structures. There are gaps in knowledge about how the timing and type of disturbance affects forest structure in seasonally dry tropical forests. Open access copy available |
Towards integrated pest and pollinator management in tropical cropsBackgroundInsect-mediated services such as pollination and pest control are important for agriculture. Nearly 75% of the worlds’ crops depend on animal pollination. Overuse of pesticide impacting the health of agricultural landscapes and animal species is a growing concern. Integrated pest and pollinator management (IPPM) co-manages pollination and pest control with preventative and biodiversity-based practices. However, IPPM is newly conceptualized and remains mostly theoretical. Available with subscription or purchase |
Controlling invasive plant species in ecological restoration: A global reviewBackgroundInvasive plant species are known to impede the growth and establishment of many native plant species while influencing other ecosystem features such as soil properties, fire regimes, hydrology, and human well-being. This article presents the findings of a literature review of 372 articles to better understand the impact of invasive species and control methods to highlight gaps in overall knowledge of the topic. Available with subscription or purchase |
A cautionary note for forest landscape restoration in drylands: cattle production systems in northwest Madagascar’s dry forestsBACKGROUNDIt is evident that land tenure security is crucial for successful restoration. Unfortunately, in Madagascar, dry forests are considered unoccupied and unowned even when communities have long-established claims under customary tenure systems. The authors stated that collective tenure recognition efforts were underway in Madagascar, but limited knowledge of agropastoralist cattle production strategies impeded the efforts to develop tenure reforms. The authors examined how cattle raisers in the Boney Region in northwest Madagascar organize pastoral spaces and cattle production strategies in the area’s dry forest. Open access copy available |
The political ecology playbook for ecosystem restoration: Principles for effective, equitable, and transformative landscapesBackgroundGlobally, land degradation and forest loss continue despite an increasing number of projects working towards ecological restoration. The authors of this paper argue that one of the reasons that restoration projects have been unable to achieve their goals and ensure ecological resilience is that they ignore the underlying issues of political inequity and injustice that drive ecological degradation. Open access copy available |
Designing optimal human-modified landscapes for forest biodiversity conservationIntroductionCurrent land-use patterns have resulted in the rapid conversion of forests to human modified forest landscapes (HMFLs). This degradation of forest landscapes can threaten species diversity and disrupt the ecological functions and services they provide. As such, designing and implementing effective landscape conservation strategies that benefit biodiversity as well as promote human well-being is essential. Open access copy available |
