Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

What is the relevance of smallholders’ agroforestry systems for conserving tropical tree species and genetic diversity in circa situm, in situ and ex situ settings? A review

  • Review Paper
  • Published:
Biodiversity and Conservation Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Smallholders’ agroforests may be valuable for conserving tropical trees through three main mechanisms. First, trees planted and/or retained by farmers in agricultural landscapes where wild stands were once found may be circa situm reservoirs of biodiversity. Second, farmland trees may support conservation in situ by providing an alternative source of product to reduce extraction from forest, and by acting as ‘corridors’ or ‘stepping stones’ that connect fragmented wild stands. Third, the additional value that planting assigns to trees may result in greater interest in including them in seed collections, field trials and field ‘genebanks’ that support ex situ conservation. Here, we critically review the evidence for these mechanisms, and highlight areas for research and for intervention so that agroforestry practices can better support conservation in each setting, with an emphasis on often neglected genetic-level considerations. Based on current global challenges to diversity, conservation will need to rely increasingly on a smallholder-farm circa situm approach, but concerns on long-term effectiveness need to be properly quantified and addressed. Connectivity between widely dispersed, low density trees in agricultural landscapes is an important factor determining the success of the circa situm approach, while improving farmers’ access to a diversity of tree germplasm that they are interested in planting is required. The circumstances in which agroforestry plantings can support in situ conservation need to be better defined, and research on the stability of active tree seed collections (how long are species and populations retained in them?) as ex situ reservoirs of biodiversity is needed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Also referred to in the literature as circa situ conservation; circa situm is formally the more correct term (Heywood and Dulloo 2005) and is applied in the current paper.

  2. The TSSD, the only major global effort to catalogue tree seed suppliers, is available at www.worldagroforestry.org/Sites-old/TreeDBS/tssd/treessd.htm.

References

  • Aerts R, Berecha G, Gijbels P, Hundera K, Van Glabeke S, Vandepitte K, Muys B, Roldan-Ruiz I, Honnay O (2013) Genetic variation and risks of introgression in the wild Coffea arabica gene pool in south-western Ethiopian montane rainforests. Evol Appl (in press)

  • Aitken SN, Yeaman S, Holliday JA, Wang T, Curtis-McLane S (2008) Adaptation, migration or extirpation: climate change outcomes for tree populations. Evol Appl 1:95–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angelsen A, Kaimowitz D (2004) Is agroforestry likely to reduce deforestation? In: Schroth G, Fonseca GAB, Harvey CA, Gascon C, Vasconcelos HL, Izac A-MN (eds) Agroforestry and biodiversity conservation in tropical landscapes. Island Press, Washington, DC, pp 87–106

    Google Scholar 

  • Asaah EK, Tchoundjeu Z, Leakey RRB, Takousting B, Njong J, Edang I (2011) Trees, agroforestry and multifunctional agriculture in Cameroon. Int J Agric Sustain 9:110–119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balmford A, Green R, Phalan B (2012) What conservationists need to know about farming. Proc R Soc B 279:2714–2724

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barrance A, Schreckenberg K, Gordon J (2009) Conservation through use: lessons from the Mesoamerican dry forest. Overseas Development Institute, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Beukema H, Danielson F, Vincent G, Hardiwinoto S, van Andel J (2007) Plant and bird diversity in rubber agroforests in the lowlands of Sumatra, Indonesia. Agrofor Syst 70:217–242

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bhagwat SA, Willis KJ, Birks HJB, Whittaker RJ (2008) Agroforestry: a refuge for tropical biodiversity? Trends Ecol Evol 23:261–267

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Boshier DH (2004) Agroforestry systems: important components in conserving the genetic viability of native tropical tree species? In: Schroth G, da Fonseca GAB, Harvey CA, Gascon C, Vasconcelos HL, Izac A-MN (eds) Agroforestry and biodiversity conservation in tropical landscapes. Island Press, Washington, DC, pp 290–313

    Google Scholar 

  • Bourdeix R, Johnson V, Baudouin L, Tuia VS, Kete T, Planes S, Lusty C, Weise S (2011) Polymotu: a new concept of island-based germplasm bank based on an old Polynesian practice. Ogasawara Research 37:33–51

    Google Scholar 

  • Brockerhoff EG, Jactel H, Parrotta JA, Quine CP, Sayer J (2008) Plantation forests and biodiversity: oxymoron or opportunity? Biodivers Conserv 17:925–951

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cassano CR, Schroth G, Faria D, Delabie JHC, Bede L (2009) Landscape and farm scale management to enhance biodiversity conservation in the cocoa producing region of southern Bahia, Brazil. Biodivers Conserv 18:577–603

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • CGIAR Consortium (2011) CGIAR Research Program 6. Forests, trees and agroforestry: livelihoods, landscapes and governance. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), CGIAR Consortium Office, Montpellier, France

  • Charlesworth D, Charlesworth B (1987) Inbreeding depression and its evolutionary consequences. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 18:237–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clapp RA (2001) Tree farming and forest conservation in Chile: do replacement forests leave any originals behind? Soc Nat Resour 14:341–356

    Google Scholar 

  • Clement CR (1999) 1492 and the loss of Amazonian crop genetic resources. I. The relation between domestication and human population decline. Econ Bot 53:188–202

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clement CR, Junqueira AB (2010) Between a pristine myth and an impoverished future. Biotropica 42:534–536

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Correia M, Diabaté M, Beavogui P, Guilavogui K, Lamanda N, de Foresta H (2010) Conserving forest tree diversity in Guinée Forestière (Guinea, West Africa): the role of coffee-based agroforests. Biodivers Conserv 19:1725–1747

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cossalter C, Pye-Smith C (2003) Fast-wood forestry: myths and realities. The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor, Indonesia

  • Danielsen F, Beukema H, Burgess ND, Parish F, Brühl CA, Donald PF, Murdiyarso D, Phalan B, Reijnders L, Struebig M, Fitzherbert EB (2009) Biofuel plantations on forested lands: double jeopardy for biodiversity and climate. Conserv Biol 23:348–358

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dawson I (1997) Prunus africana: how agroforestry can help save an endangered medicinal tree. Agrofor Today 9(2):15–17

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawson IK, Jamnadass R (2007) Mainstreaming biodiversity around threatened biodiversity hotspots in Africa, building on the innovative Allanblackia business. Supporting synthesis for a proposal to the Global Environment Facility. The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawson IK, Hollingsworth PM, Doyle JJ, Kresovich S, Weber JC, Sotelo-Montes C, Pennington TD, Pennington RT (2008) Origin and genetic conservation of tropical trees in agroforestry systems: a case study from the Peruvian Amazon. Conserv Genet 9:361–372

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dawson IK, Lengkeek A, Weber JC, Jamnadass R (2009) Managing genetic variation in tropical trees: linking knowledge with action in agroforestry ecosystems for improved conservation and enhanced livelihoods. Biodivers Conserv 18:969–986

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dawson IK, Vinceti B, Weber JC, Neufeldt H, Russell J, Lengkeek AG, Kalinganire A, Kindt R, Lillesø J-PB, Roshetko J, Jamnadass R (2011) Climate change and tree genetic resource management: maintaining and enhancing the productivity and value of smallholder tropical agroforestry landscapes. A review. Agrofor Syst 81:67–78

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delplancke M, Alvarez N, Espindola A, Joly H, Benoit L, Brouck E, Arrigo N (2012) Gene flow among wild and domesticated almond species: insights from chloroplast and nuclear markers. Evol Appl 5:317–329

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dick CW (2001) Genetic rescue of remnant tropical trees by an alien pollinator. Proc R Soc B 268:2391–2396

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Doerr VAJ, Doerr ED, Davies MJ (2010) Does structural connectivity facilitate dispersal of native species in Australia’s fragmented terrestrial landscapes? Systematic Review No. 44, Collaboration for Environmental Evidence, CSIRO, Canberra, Australia

  • Donald PF (2004) Biodiversity impacts of some agricultural commodity production systems. Conserv Biol 18:17–37

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doran J, Bush D, Page T, Glencross K, Sethy M, Viji I (2012) Variation in growth traits and wood density in whitewood (Endospermum medullosum): a major timber species in Vanuatu. Int For Review 14:476–485

    Google Scholar 

  • Duncan RS, Chapman CA (1999) Seed dispersal and potential forest succession in abandoned agriculture in tropical Africa. Ecol Appl 9:998–1008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edmands S (2007) Between a rock and a hard place: evaluating the relative risks of inbreeding and outbreeding for conservation and management. Mol Ecol 16:463–475

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ekadinata A, Vincent G (2011) Rubber agroforests in a changing landscape: analysis of land use/cover trajectories in Bungo District, Indonesia. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods 20:3–14

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellstrand NC (2003) Dangerous liaisons? When cultivated plants mate with their wild relatives. John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore

    Google Scholar 

  • FAO (2008) Rapid assessment of pollinators’ status: a contribution to the international initiative for the conservation and sustainable use of pollinators. Global Action on Pollination Services for Sustainable Agriculture. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome

    Google Scholar 

  • FAO (2010a) Global forest resources assessment 2010. FAO Forestry Paper No. 163, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, Italy

  • FAO (2010b) The second report on the state of the world’s plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome

    Google Scholar 

  • Faye MD, Weber JC, Abasse TA, Boureima M, Larwanou M, Bationo AB, Diallo BO, Sigué H, Dakouo J-M, Samaké O, Sonogo Diaité D (2011) Farmers’ preferences for tree functions and species in the West African Sahel. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods 20:113–136

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garen EJ, Saltonstall K, Ashton MS, Slusser JL, Mathias S, Hall JS (2011) The tree planting and protecting culture of cattle ranchers and small-scale agriculturalists in rural Panama: opportunities for reforestation and land restoration. For Ecol Manage 261:1684–1695

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garrity DP (2004) Agroforestry and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Agrofor Syst 61:5–17

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giam X, Bradshaw CJA, Tan HTW, Sodhi NS (2010) Future habitat loss and the conservation of plant biodiversity. Biol Conserv 143:1594–1602

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert-Norton L, Wilson R, Stevens JR, Beard KH (2010) A meta-analytic review of corridor effectiveness. Conserv Biol 24:660–668

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gilman RT, Fabina NS, Abbott KC, Rafferty NE (2012) Evolution of plant–pollinator mutualisms in response to climate change. Evol Appl 5:2–16

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Groves CR, Game ET, Anderson MG, Cross M, Enquist C, Ferdana Z, Girvetz E, Gondor A, Hall KR, Higgins J, Marshall R, Popper K, Schill S, Shafer SL (2012) Incorporating climate change into systematic conservation planning. Biodivers Conserv 21:1651–1671

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guevara S, Laborde J (1993) Monitoring seed dispersal at isolated standing trees in tropical pastures: consequences for local species availability. Vegetatio 107(108):319–338

    Google Scholar 

  • Gyau A, Chiatoh M, Franzel S, Asaah E, Donovan J (2012) Determinants of farmers’ tree planting behaviour in the North West Region of Cameroon: the case of Prunus africana. International Forestry Review 14:265–274

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harvey CA, Haber WA (2008) Remnant trees and the conservation of biodiversity in Costa Rican pastures. Agrofor Syst 44:37–68

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harvey CA, Villalobos JAG (2007) Agroforestry systems conserve species-rich but modified assemblages of tropical birds and bats. Biodivers Conserv 16:2257–2292

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harwood CE, Bell JC, Moran GF (1992) Isozyme studies on genetic variation and the breeding system in Grevillea robusta. In: Harwood CE (ed) Grevillea robusta in agroforestry and forestry. The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi, pp 165–176

    Google Scholar 

  • Harwood CE, Moran GF, Bell JC (1997) Genetic differentiation in natural populations of Grevillea robusta. Aust J Bot 45:669–678

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayes TM (2006) Parks, people, and forest protection: an institutional assessment of the effectiveness of protected areas. World Dev 34:2064–2075

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heywood VH, Dulloo ME (2005) In situ conservation of wild plant species: a critical global review of best practices. IPGRI Technical Bulletin No. 11. Bioversity International, Rome, Italy

  • Holl KD (1999) Factors limiting tropical rain forest regeneration in abandoned pasture: seed rain, seed germination, microclimate and soil. Biotropica 31:229–242

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hollingsworth PM, Dawson IK, Goodall-Copestake WP, Richardson JE, Weber JC, Sotelo-Montes C, Pennington RT (2005) Do farmers reduce genetic diversity when they domesticate tropical trees? A case study from Amazonia. Mol Ecol 14:497–501

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Homma AKO (1996) Modernisation and technological dualism in the extractive economy in Amazonia. In: Ruiz-Perez M, Arnold JEM (eds) Current issues in non-timber forest product research. The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor, pp 59–81

    Google Scholar 

  • Jamnadass R, Hanson J, Poole J, Hanotte O, Simons TJ, Dawson IK (2005) High differentiation among populations of the woody legume Sesbania sesban in sub-Saharan Africa: implications for conservation and cultivation during germplasm introduction into agroforestry systems. For Ecol Manage 210:225–238

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jamnadass R, Dawson IK, Anegbeh P, Asaah E, Atangana A, Cordeiro N, Hendrickx H, Henneh S, Kadu CAC, Kattah C, Misbah M, Muchugi A, Munjuga M, Mwaura L, Ndangalasi HJ, Njau CS, Nyame SK, Ofori D, Peprah T, Russell J, Rutatina F, Sawe C, Schmidt L, Tchoundjeu Z, Simons T (2010) Allanblackia, a new tree crop in Africa for the global food industry: market development, smallholder cultivation and biodiversity management. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods 19:251–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jamnadass RH, Dawson IK, Franzel S, Leakey RRB, Mithöfer D, Akinnifesi FK, Tchoundjeu Z (2011) Improving livelihoods and nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa through the promotion of indigenous and exotic fruit production in smallholders’ agroforestry systems: a review. International Forest Review 13:338–354

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janzen DH (1986) Blurry catastrophes. Oikos 47:1–2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jha S, Dick CW (2010) Native bees mediate long-distance pollen dispersal in a shade coffee landscape mosaic. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 107:13760–13764

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kehlenbeck K, Kindt R, Sinclair FL, Simons AJ, Jamnadass R (2011) Exotic tree species displace indigenous ones on farms at intermediate altitudes around Mount Kenya. Agrofor Syst 83:133–147

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kelly BA, Hardy OJ, Bouvet J-M (2004) Temporal and spatial genetic structure in Vitellaria paradoxa (shea tree) in an agroforestry system in southern Mali. Mol Ecol 13:1231–1240

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kindt R (2002) Methodology for tree species diversification planning in African agroecosystems. PhD Thesis, University of Gent, Gent, Belgium

  • Kindt R, Van Damme P, Simons AJ, Beeckman H (2006) Planning tree species diversification in Kenya based on differences in tree species composition between farms. I. Analysis of tree uses. Agrofor Syst 67:215–228

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirschenmann FL (2007) Potential for a new generation of biodiversity in agroecosystems of the future. Agronomy Journal 99:373–376

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kozlowski G, Gibbs D, Huan F, Frey D, Gratzfeld J (2012) Conservation of threatened relict trees through living ex situ collections: lessons from the global survey of the genus Zelkova (Ulmaceae). Biodivers Conserv 21:671–685

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kramer AT, Ison JL, Ashley MV, Howe HF (2008) The paradox of forest fragmentation genetics. Conserv Biol 22:878–885

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kull CA, Tassin J (2012) Australian acacias: useful and (sometimes) weedy. Biol Invasions 14:2229–2233

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Labouisse J, Bellachew B, Kotecha S, Bertrand B (2008) Current status of coffee (Coffea arabica L.) genetic resources in Ethiopia: implications for conservation. Genet Resour Crop Evol 55:1079–1093

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laikre L, Allendorf FD, Aroner LC, Baker CS, Gregovich DP, Hansen MH, Jackson JA, Kendall KC, Mckelvey K, Neel MC, Olivieri I, Ryman N, Schwartz MK, Bull RS, Jeffrey B, Stetz JB, Tallmon DA, Taylor BL, Vojta CD, Waller DM, Waples RS (2010) Neglect of genetic diversity in implementation of the convention of biological diversity. Conserv Biol 24:86–88

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lambert J, Srivastava J, Vietmeyer N (1997) Medicinal plants: rescuing a global heritage. World Bank Technical Paper 355. The World Bank, Washington DC

  • Leakey RRB (2010) Agroforestry: a delivery mechanism for multi-functional agriculture. In: Kellimore LR (ed) Handbook on agroforestry: management practices and environmental impact. Environmental Science, Engineering and Technology Series. Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge, pp 461–471

  • Leakey RRB, Tchoundjeu Z, Schreckenberg K, Shackleton SE, Shackleton CM (2005) Agroforestry tree products (AFTPs): targeting poverty reduction and enhanced livelihoods. Int J Agric Sustain 3:1–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leakey RRB, Tchoundjeu Z, Schreckenberg K, Simons AJ, Shackleton S, Mander M, Wynberg R, Shackleton C, Sullivan C (2007) Trees and markets for agroforestry tree products: targeting poverty reduction and enhanced livelihoods. In: Garrity D, Okono A, Parrott M, Parrott S (eds) World agroforestry into the future. The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi, pp 11–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Ledig FT (1992) Human impacts on genetic diversity on forest ecosystems. Oikos 63:87–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lengkeek AG, Jaenicke H, Dawson IK (2005a) Genetic bottlenecks in agroforestry systems: results of tree nursery surveys in East Africa. Agrofor Syst 63:149–155

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lengkeek AG, Kindt R, van der Maesen LJG, Simons AJ, van Oijen DCC (2005b) Tree density and germplasm source in agroforestry ecosystems in Meru, Mount Kenya. Genet Resour Crop Evol 52:709–721

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lengkeek AG, Muchugi Mwangi A, Agufa CAC, Ahenda JO, Dawson IK (2006) Comparing genetic diversity in agroforestry systems with natural forest: a case study of the important timber tree Vitex fischeri in central Kenya. Agrofor Syst 67:293–300

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lillesø JB, van Breugel P, Kindt R, Bingham M, Demissew S, Dudley C, Friis I, Gachathi F, Kalema J, Mbago F, Minani V, Moshi H, Mulumba J, Namaganda M, Ndangalasi H, Ruffo C, Jamnadass R, Graudal LOV (2011) VECEA: potential natural vegetation of Eastern Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia). Volume 1: the atlas. Forest & Landscape Working Paper No. 61. Forest & Landscape, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

  • López-Gómez AM, Williams-Linera G, Manson RH (2008) Tree species diversity and vegetation structure in shade coffee farms in Veracruz, Mexico. Agric Ecosyst Environ 124:160–172

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Low T (2012a) Australian acacias: weeds or useful trees? Biol Invasions 14:2217–2227

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Low T (2012b) In denial about dangerous aid. Biol Invasions 14:2235–2236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lowe AJ, Boshier D, Ward M, Bacles CFE, Navarro C (2005) Genetic resource impacts of habitat loss and degradation; reconciling empirical evidence and predicted theory for neotropical trees. Heredity 95:255–273

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Malcolm JR, Markham A, Neilson RP, Garaci M (2002) Estimated migration rates under scenarios of global climate change. J Biogeogr 29:835–849

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Malhi Y, Aragao LEOC, Galbraith D, Huntingford C, Fisher R, Zelazowski P, Sitch S, McSweeney C, Meir P (2009) Exploring the likelihood and mechanism of a climate change-induced dieback of the Amazon rainforest. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 106:20610–20615

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Marjokorpi A, Ruokolainen K (2003) The role of traditional forest gardens in the conservation of tree species in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Biodivers Conserv 12:799–822

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marshall D, Schreckenberg K, Newton AC (eds) (2006) Commercialization of non-timber forest products: factors influencing success. Lessons learned from Mexico and Bolivia and policy implications for decision-makers. UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Maunder M, Culham A, Alden B, Zizka G, Orliac C, Lobin W, Bordeu A, Ramirez JM, Glissmann-Gough S (2000) Conservation of the toromiro tree: case study in the management of a plant extinct in the wild. Conserv Biol 14:1341–1350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McNeely JA (2004) Nature vs. nurture: managing relationships between forests, agroforestry and wild biodiversity. Agrofor Syst 61:155–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Méndez VE, Gliessman SR, Gilbert GS (2007) Tree biodiversity in farmer cooperatives of a shade coffee landscape in western El Salvador. Agric Ecosyst Environ 119:145–159

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller AJ, Gross BL (2011) From forest to field: perennial fruit crop domestication. Am J Bot 98:1389–1414

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller AJ, Schaal BA (2005) Domestication of a Mesoamerican cultivated fruit tree, Spondias purpurea. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 102:12801–12806

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Miller AJ, Schaal BA (2006) Domestication and the distribution of genetic variation in wild and cultivated populations of the Mesoamerican fruit tree Spondias purpurea L. (Anacardiaceae). Mol Ecol 15:1467–1480

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mohan Jain S, Priyadarshan PM (eds) (2009) Breeding plantation tree crops. Tropical species. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Murniati, Garrity DP, Gintings AN (2001) The contribution of agroforestry systems to reducing farmers’ dependence on the resources of adjacent national parks: a case study from Sumatra, Indonesia. Agrofor Syst 52:171–184

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nair PKR, Kumar BM, Nair VD (2009) Agroforestry as a strategy for carbon sequestration. J Plant Nutr Soil Sci 172:10–23

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Newton AC (2008) Conservation of tree species through sustainable use: how can it be achieved in practice? Oryx 42:195–205

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oldfield SF (2009) Botanic gardens and the conservation of tree species. Trends Plant Sci 14:581–583

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Oldfield S, Lusty C, MacKinven A (1998) The world list of threatened trees. World Conservation Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Otegbeye GO (1991) Age trends in the genetic-control of stem diameter of Eucalyptus tereticornis and the implication for selection. Silvae Genetica 40:85–87

    Google Scholar 

  • Paquette A, Messier C (2010) The role of plantations in managing the world’s forests in the Anthropocene. Front Ecol Environ 8:27–34

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peprah T, Ofori DA, Siaw DEKA, Addo-Danso SD, Cobbinah JR, Simons AJ, Jamnadass R (2009) Reproductive biology and characterization of Allanblackia parviflora A. Chev. in Ghana. Genet Resour Crop Evol 56:1037–1044

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peres CA, Gardner TA, Barlow J, Zuanon J, Michalski F, Lees AC, Vieira ICG, Moreira FMS, Feeley KJ (2010) Biodiversity conservation in human-modified Amazonian forest landscapes. Biol Conserv 143:2314–2327

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petit RJ, Hampe A (2006) Some evolutionary consequences of being a tree. Annu Rev Ecol Evol Syst 37:187–214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Philpott SM, Bichier P, Rice RA, Greenberg R (2008) Biodiversity conservation, yield, and alternative products in coffee agroecosystems in Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodivers Conserv 17:1805–1820

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Place F, Ajayi OC, Masters E (2011) Tree-based and other land management technologies for landscape restoration and livelihood in Africa. In: Dewees P, Place F, Scherr SJ, Buss C (principal authors). Investing in trees and landscape restoration in Africa: what, where, and how. Program on Forests (PROFOR), Washington DC, pp 17–44

  • Potts BM, Barbour RC, Hingston AB (2001) The risk of genetic pollution from farm forestry using eucalypt species and hybrids. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, Kingston

    Google Scholar 

  • Ricketts TH, Daily GC, Ehrlich PR, Michener CD (2004) Economic value of tropical forest to coffee production. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 101:12579–12582

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rolim SG, Chiarello AG (2004) Slow death of Atlantic forest trees in cocoa agroforestry in southeastern Brazil. Biodivers Conserv 13:2679–2694

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruf FO (2011) The myth of complex cocoa agroforests: the case of Ghana. Human Ecology 39:373–388

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sambuichi RHR, Haridasan M (2007) Recovery of species richness and conservation of native Atlantic forest trees in the cacao plantations of southern Bahia in Brazil. Biodivers Conserv 16:3681–3701

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sanou H, Korbo A, Tougani A, Rabiou A, Kambou S, Ouedraogo M, Diallo BO, Parkouda C, Ræbild A, Jensen JS (2007) Protocol for establishment of trials with baobab and tamarind within the SAFRUIT project. Working Paper No. 21-2007. Forest and Landscape Denmark, Hørsholm, Denmark

  • Scherr SJ, McNeely JA (2008) Biodiversity conservation and agricultural sustainability: towards a new paradigm of ‘ecoagriculture’ landscapes. Philos Trans R Soc B 363:477–494

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schippmann U, Leaman DJ, Cunningham AB,(2002) The impact of cultivation and gathering of medicinal plants on biodiversity: global trends and issues. In: Biodiversity and the ecosystem approach in agriculture, forestry and fisheries. Satellite event on the occasion of the Ninth Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Rome, 12–13 October 2002. Inter-Departmental Working Group on Biological Diversity for Food and Agriculture, Rome, Italy

  • Schmidt L (2007) Tropical forest seed. Springer, Heidelberg

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Schoen DJ, Brown AHD (2001) The conservation of wild plant species in seed banks. Bioscience 51:960–966

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schroth G, da Mota MSS (2004) The role of agroforestry in biodiversity conservation in the tropics: a synthesis of evidence. Paper presented at the International Ecoagriculture Conference and Practitioners’ Fair, held in Nairobi, Kenya. The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi, September–October 2004

  • Schroth G, Faria D, Araujo M, Bede L, Van Bael SA, Cassano CR, Oliveira LC, Delabie JHC (2011) Conservation in tropical landscape mosaics: the case of the cacao landscape of southern Bahia, Brazil. Biodivers Conserv 20:1635–1654

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sheil D, Basuki I, German L, Kuyper TW, Limberg G, Puri RK, Sellato B, van Noordwijk M, Wollenberg E (2012) Do anthropogenic dark earths occur in the interior of Borneo? Some initial observations from East Kalimantan. Forests 3:207–229

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simons AJ, Dawson IK, Duguma B, Tchoundjeu Z (1998) Passing problems: prostate and Prunus africana. Herbalgram 43:49–53

    Google Scholar 

  • Sonwa DJ, Nkongmeneck BA, Weise SF, Tchatat M, Adesina AA, Janssens MJJ (2007) Diversity of plants in cocoa agroforests in the humid forest zone of Southern Cameroon. Biodivers Conserv 16:2385–2400

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steffan-Dewenter I, Kessler M, Barkmann J, Bos MM, Buchori D, Erasmi S, Faust H, Gerold G, Glenk K, Gradstein SR, Guhardja E, Harteveld M, Hertel D, Hohn P, Kappas M, Kohler S, Leuschner C, Maertens M, Marggraf R, Migge-Kleian S, Mogea J, Pitopang R, Schaefer M, Schwarze S, Sporn SG, Steingrebe A, Tjitrosoedirdjo SS, Tjitrosoemito S, Twele A, Weber R, Woltmann L, Zeller M, Tscharntke T (2007) Tradeoffs between income, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning during tropical rainforest conversion and agroforestry intensification. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 104:4973–4978

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Strandby-Andersen U, Prado Cordova JP, Nielsen UB, Smith-Olsen C, Nielsen C, Sørensen M, Kollmann J (2008) Conservation through utilization: a case study of the vulnerable Abies guatemalensis in Guatemala. Oryx 42:206–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tchoundjeu Z, Degrande A, Leakey RRB, Nimino G, Kemajou E, Asaah E, Facheux C, Mbile P, Mbosso C, Sado T, Tsobeng A (2010) Impacts of participatory tree domestication on farmer livelihoods in West and Central Africa. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods 19:217–234

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tscharntke T, Sekercioglu CH, Dietsch TV, Sodhi NS, Hoehn P, Tylianakis JM (2008) Landscape constraints on functional diversity of birds and insects in tropical agroecosystems. Ecology 89:944–951

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tscharntke T, Clough Y, Wanger TC, Jackson L, Motzke I, Perfecto I, Vandermeer J, Whitbread A (2012) Global food security, biodiversity conservation and the future of agricultural intensification. Biol Conserv 151:53–59

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van Breugel P, Kindt R, Lillesø JB, Bingham M, Demissew S, Dudley C, Friis I, Gachathi F, Kalema J, Mbago F, Minani V, Moshi H, Mulumba J, Namaganda M, Ndangalasi H, Ruffo C, Védaste M, Jamnadass R, Graudal LOV (2011) VECEA: potential natural vegetation of Eastern Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia). Volume 7: projected distributions of potential natural vegetation types and two important agroforestry species (Prunus africana and Warburgia ugandensis) for six possible future climates. Forest & Landscape Working Paper No. 69. Forest & Landscape, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

  • van Leeuwen J, Lleras Pérez E, Clement CR (2005) Field genebanks may impede instead of promote crop development: lessons of failed genebanks of “promising” Brazilian palms. Agrociencia, Montevideo 9:61–66

    Google Scholar 

  • Varghese M, Kamalakannan R, Harwood CE, Lindgren D, McDonald MW (2009) Changes in growth performance and fecundity of Eucalyptus camaldulensis and E. tereticornis during domestication in southern India. Tree Genetics and Genomes 5:629–640

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waldron A, Justicia R, Smith L, Sanchez M (2012) Conservation through chocolate: a win-win for biodiversity and farmers in Ecuador’s lowland tropics. Conservation Letters 5:213–221

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ward M, Dick CW, Gribel R, Lowe AJ (2005) To self, or not to self… A review of outcrossing and pollen-mediated gene flow in neotropical trees. Heredity 95:246–254

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Weber JC, Labarta-Chávarri RL, Sotelo-Montes C, Brodie AW, Cromwell E, Schreckenberg K, Simons AJ (1997) Farmers’ use and management of tree germplasm: case studies from the Peruvian Amazon Basin. In: Simons AJ, Kindt R, Place F (eds) Policy aspects of tree germplasm demand and supply. Proceedings of an international workshop. The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nairobi, pp 57–63

    Google Scholar 

  • Weeks AR, Sgro CM, Young AG, Frankham R, Mitchell NJ, Miller KA, Byrne M, Coates DJ, Eldridge MDB, Sunnucks P, Breed MF, James EA, Hoffmann AA (2011) Assessing the benefits and risks of translocations in changing environments: a genetic perspective. Evol Appl 4:709–725

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • White GM, Boshier DH, Powell W (2002) Increased pollen flow counteracts fragmentation in a tropical dry forest: an example from Swietenia humilis Zuccarini. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 99:2038–2042

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wiersum KF (1997) Indigenous exploitation and management of tropical forest resources: an evolutionary continuum in forest–people interactions. Agric Ecosyst Environ 63:1–16

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wiersum KF, Dold AP, Husselman M, Cocks M (2006) Cultivation of medicinal plants as a tool for biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation in the Amatola region, South Africa. In: Bogers RJ, Craker LE, Lange D (eds) Medicinal and aromatic plants. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 43–57

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Williams MC, Wardle GM (2009) Pinus radiata invasion in New South Wales: the extent of spread. Plant Prot Q 24:146–156

    Google Scholar 

  • Zomer RJ, Trabucco A, Coe R, Place F (2009) Trees on farm: analysis of global extent and geographical patterns of agroforestry. Working Paper No. 89. The World Agroforestry Centre, Nairobi, Kenya

Download references

Acknowledgments

We contacted over 60 scientists working on agroforestry and related disciplines to ask for their views on the topics covered in this essay, and to provide relevant case studies. Many responded, including Manuel Bertomeu, Charles Clement, Sammy Carsan, Delia Catacutan, Steve Cobb, Ric Coe, Steve Franzel, Dennis Garrity, Anja Gassner, Lars Graudal, Chris Harwood, Verina Ingram, Hannah Jaenicke, Katja Kehlenbeck, Roger Leakey, Jens-Peter Lillesø, Seline Meijer, Edward Millard, Simon Mngomba, Mathew Mpanda, Jonathan Muriuki, Lucy Mwaura, Frank Place, Roberto Porro, Jim Roshetko, Cuauhtémoc Sáenz-Romero, Kate Schreckenberg, Tony Simons, Pal Singh, Marcos Tito, Julio Ugarte, Patrick van Damme, Meine van Noordwijk and Maarten van Zonneveld. Charles Clement also reviewed an earlier version of this manuscript. Several of the authors involved in this paper are part of the CGIAR Research Programme ‘Forests, trees and agroforestry: livelihoods, landscapes and governance’. This Programme aims to enhance management and use of forests, agroforestry and tree genetic resources across the landscape, from forests to farms. This Programme involves the Center for International Forestry Research, Bioversity International, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, the World Agroforestry Centre, and others.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ian K. Dawson.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Dawson, I.K., Guariguata, M.R., Loo, J. et al. What is the relevance of smallholders’ agroforestry systems for conserving tropical tree species and genetic diversity in circa situm, in situ and ex situ settings? A review. Biodivers Conserv 22, 301–324 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-012-0429-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-012-0429-5

Keywords

Navigation