Dataset Information

Ensemble composition and activity levels of insectivorous bats in response to management intensification in coffee agroforestry systems.

ABSTRACT: Shade coffee plantations have received attention for their role in biodiversity conservation. Bats are among the most diverse mammalian taxa in these systems; however, previous studies of bats in coffee plantations have focused on the largely herbivorous leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae). In contrast, we have virtually no information on how ensembles of aerial insectivorous bats--nearly half the Neotropical bat species--change in response to habitat modification. To evaluate the effects of agroecosystem management on insectivorous bats, we studied their diversity and activity in southern Chiapas, Mexico, a landscape dominated by coffee agroforestry. We used acoustic monitoring and live captures to characterize the insectivorous bat ensemble in forest fragments and coffee plantations differing in the structural and taxonomic complexity of shade trees. We captured bats of 12 non-phyllostomid species; acoustic monitoring revealed the presence of at least 12 more species of aerial insectivores. Richness of forest bats was the same across all land-use types; in contrast, species richness of open-space bats increased in low shade, intensively managed coffee plantations. Conversely, only forest bats demonstrated significant differences in ensemble structure (as measured by similarity indices) across land-use types. Both overall activity and feeding activity of forest bats declined significantly with increasing management intensity, while the overall activity, but not feeding activity, of open-space bats increased. We conclude that diverse shade coffee plantations in our study area serve as valuable foraging and commuting habitat for aerial insectivorous bats, and several species also commute through or forage in low shade coffee monocultures.

SUBMITTER: Williams-Guillen K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3027674 | biostudies-other | 2011

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Ensemble composition and activity levels of insectivorous bats in response to management intensification in coffee agroforestry systems.

Williams-Guillén Kimberly K Perfecto Ivette I

PloS one 20110126 1

Shade coffee plantations have received attention for their role in biodiversity conservation. Bats are among the most diverse mammalian taxa in these systems; however, previous studies of bats in coffee plantations have focused on the largely herbivorous leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae). In contrast, we have virtually no information on how ensembles of aerial insectivorous bats--nearly half the Neotropical bat species--change in response to habitat modification. To evaluate the effects of agroec ...[more]

PMID: 21298059

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Project description:Appropriate genotype selection and management can impact wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) yield in dryland environments, but their impact on yield components and their role in yield modulation are not well understood. Our objectives were to evaluate the yield response of commercial winter wheat genotypes to different management practices reflecting a stepwise increase in management intensity (including a reduction in crop density under high input), and to quantify how the different yield components modulate wheat yield. A factorial experiment evaluated six management (M) intensities ["farmer practice" (FP), "enhanced fertility" (EF), "ecological intensification" (EI), "increased foliar protection" (IFP), "water-limited yield" (Yw), and "increased plant productivity" (IPP)] and four winter wheat genotypes (G) in four Kansas environments (E). Average grain yield was 4.9 Mg ha-1 and ranged from 2.0 to 7.4 Mg ha-1, with significant two-way interactions (E × M and E × G). The EF usually maximized yields in dry environments, while EI, which consisted of EF plus one fungicide application, maximized yields in environments with greater water availability. Across all sources of variation, kernels m-2 and aboveground biomass were the strongest modulators of yield as compared to kernel weight and harvest index, while spikes m-2 and kernels spike-1 modulated yields at a similar magnitude. Foliar fungicides improved yield through increased green canopy cover duration and greater radiation intercepted during grain filling. When crop density was reduced from 2.7 to 1.1 million plants per hectare in an otherwise high-input system, plants produced more productive tillers (with genotype-specific response); however, reduced green canopy cover at anthesis and reduced cumulative solar radiation intercepted during grain filling limited wheat yield-although large differences in canopy cover or intercepted radiation were needed to cause modest changes in yield. Treatments more intensive than EI were not warranted as EF or EI maximized yields at all environments, and practices that promote biomass and kernels m-2 are to be targeted for future increases in wheat yield.

Dataset Information

Ensemble composition and activity levels of insectivorous bats in response to management intensification in coffee agroforestry systems.

Publications

Ensemble composition and activity levels of insectivorous bats in response to management intensification in coffee agroforestry systems.

Similar Datasets

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