Do riparian reserves support dung beetle biodiversity and ecosystem services in oil palm-dominated tropical landscapes?

ABSTRACT: Agricultural expansion and intensification are major threats to global biodiversity, ecological functions, and ecosystem services. The rapid expansion of oil palm in forested tropical landscapes is of particular concern given their high biodiversity. Identifying management approaches that maintain native species and associated ecological processes within oil palm plantations is therefore a priority. Riparian reserves are strips of forest retained alongside rivers in cultivated areas, primarily for their positive hydrological impact. However, they can also support a range of forest-dependent species or ecosystem services. We surveyed communities of dung beetles and measured dung removal activity in an oil palm-dominated landscape in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. The species richness, diversity,

SUBMITTER: Gray CL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3997321 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature