Alley-cropping system can boost arthropod biodiversity and ecosystem functions in oil palm plantations

Ashraf, Mohamad; Zulkifli, Raja; Sanusi, Ruzana; Tohiran, Kamil Azmi; Terhem, Razak; Moslim, Ramle; Norhisham, Ahmad R.; Ashton‐Butt, Adham; Azhar, Badrul

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2018.03.017

Cited by 63 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…Nevertheless, understory vegetation can provide habitat and food plants for predatory arthropods (Ashraf et al, ; Spear et al, ; Tews et al, ). Therefore, reducing herbicide use and allowing understory vegetation to proliferate could be an important management tool, in all three land‐use types, where arthropods were by far the most significant predator.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predation of potential insect pests in oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards

Denan

Zaki

Norhisham

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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In human‐modified landscapes, important ecological functions such as predation are negatively affected by anthropogenic activities, including the use of pesticides and habitat degradation. Predation of insect pests is an indicator of healthy ecosystem functioning, which provides important ecosystem services, especially for agricultural systems. In this study, we compare predation attempts from arthropods, mammals, and birds on artificial caterpillars in the understory, between three tropical agricultural land‐use types: oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards. We collected a range of local and landscape‐scale data including undergrowth vegetation structure; elevation; proximity to forest; and canopy cover in order to understand how environmental variables can affect predation. In all three land‐use types, our results showed that arthropods and mammals were important predators of artificial caterpillars and there was little predation by birds. We did not find any effect of the environmental variables on predation. There was an interactive effect between land‐use type and predator type. Predation by mammals was considerably higher in fruit orchards and rubber tree than in oil palm plantations, likely due to their ability to support higher abundances of insectivorous mammals. In order to maintain or enhance natural pest control in these common tropical agricultural land‐use types, management practices that benefit insectivorous animals should be introduced, such as the reduction of pesticides, improvement of understory vegetation, and local and landscape heterogeneity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predation of potential insect pests in oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards

Denan

Zaki

Norhisham

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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“…An intercrop could serve as an incentive for farmers to manage their immature palms better. In addition, intercropping has a positive effect on biodiversity (Ashraf et al, 2018). I think there is an urgent need for agronomically sound experiments with different intercropping species and management practices, to establish best practices for optimising the yields of the intercrop without incurring large losses in palm yields later on.…”

Section: Increasing the Potential Yieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

On yield gaps and better management practices in Indonesian smallholder oil palm plantations

Woittiez

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“…Further upcoming analyses that bring together the biodiversity, ecosystem function, yield, and profitability data from the BEFTA Understory Vegetation Project will provide further valuable information which can be used to inform vegetation management decisions. Other recent studies have also successfully manipulated vegetation structure and diversity within plantations, for example via intercropping with fruit trees and other crops (Teuscher et al, 2016;Gérard et al, 2017;Ashraf et al, 2018), and have found substantial impacts on birds and invertebrates (Teuscher et al, 2016), arthropod diversity and ecosystem functions (Ashraf et al, 2018), and potential benefits for yield (Gérard et al, 2017). Recent early results from a study testing the effects of herbicide and fertiliser inputs on oil palm ecosystems are indicating that lower intensity management can help support biodiversity, without significant harm to yield (Darras et al, 2019).…”

Section: Habitat Complexity Within the Plantationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing Oil Palm Plantations More Sustainably: Large-Scale Experiments Within the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Programme

Luke

Advento

Aryawan

et al. 2020

Front. For. Glob. Change

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Alley-cropping system can boost arthropod biodiversity and ecosystem functions in oil palm plantations

Cited by 63 publications

References 63 publications

Predation of potential insect pests in oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards

Predation of potential insect pests in oil palm plantations, rubber tree plantations, and fruit orchards

On yield gaps and better management practices in Indonesian smallholder oil palm plantations

Managing Oil Palm Plantations More Sustainably: Large-Scale Experiments Within the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Programme

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