Combining high biodiversity with high yields in tropical agroforests

TLDR

Agricultural intensification at local and landscape scales drives global biodiversity loss, prompting debate over wildlife‑friendly farming versus high‑intensity farming with land‑sparing. The study integrates biodiversity and crop productivity data for smallholder cacao in Indonesia to show that yield and biodiversity are largely unrelated under current management, highlighting opportunities for wildlife‑friendly agroforests. The authors used moderate shade, sufficient labor, and input levels alongside complex habitat structure to achieve high biodiversity and high yields. Species richness across trees, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates was unchanged by yield, and the results indicate that agroforests can simultaneously optimize biodiversity and crop production without increasing pressure to convert natural habitat.

Abstract

Local and landscape-scale agricultural intensification is a major driver of global biodiversity loss. Controversially discussed solutions include wildlife-friendly farming or combining high-intensity farming with land-sparing for nature. Here, we integrate biodiversity and crop productivity data for smallholder cacao in Indonesia to exemplify for tropical agroforests that there is little relationship between yield and biodiversity under current management, opening substantial opportunities for wildlife-friendly management. Species richness of trees, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates did not decrease with yield. Moderate shade, adequate labor, and input level can be combined with a complex habitat structure to provide high biodiversity as well as high yields. Although livelihood impacts are held up as a major obstacle for wildlife-friendly farming in the tropics, our results suggest that in some situations, agroforests can be designed to optimize both biodiversity and crop production benefits without adding pressure to convert natural habitat to farmland.