Modern coffee agroecosystems and their relationship with butterflies conservation in fragmented landscapes

Published source details Perez-Garcia O., Benjamin T.J. & Tobar D.E. (2018) Los agroecosistemas cafetaleros modernos y su relación con la conservación de mariposas en paisajes fragmentados. Revista de Biología Tropical, 66, 394-402.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

	Action	Category
	Grow native trees within perennial crop plantations Action Link

Grow native trees within perennial crop plantations

A replicated, site comparison study in 2007 in 18 coffee farms and six forest fragments in Costa Rica (Pérez-Garcia et al. 2018) found that farms with a native tree species had a greater diversity of butterflies than farms with one non-native species, but a similar diversity to farms with two non-native species, while abundance and species richness were similar on all farms. On farms with coffee crops mixed with a native tree there was a higher diversity of forest butterflies than farms with crops mixed with one non-native tree, but a similar diversity to farms with crops mixed with two non-native trees and lower than forest fragments (see paper for details). However, the abundance (12.5 individuals/site) and species richness (6.5 species/site) of forest butterflies on farms with native trees was similar to farms with one (abundance: 15.8 individuals/site; richness: 4.3 species/site) or two non-native trees (abundance: 18.5 individuals/site; richness: 7.0 species/site), and lower on all farms than in forest fragments (abundance: 49.0 individuals/site; richness: 19.3 species/site). Eighteen coffee farms were managed with mountain immortelle Erythrina poeppigiana shade trees. Six farms also mixed crops with native salmwood Cordia alliodora, six mixed with non-native banana or plantain Musa spp., and six had no additional trees. From May–July 2007, butterflies were surveyed once/month along three parallel 80-m transects (25 m apart) in each farm, and in six forest fragments.

(Summarised by: Andrew Bladon)