The role of canopy structure on the diversity and function of arthropods in coffee agroscapes of the Northern Andes.

Abstract

Increasing sustainable productive activities to provide food, fiber, and energy is a global necessity for an increasingly populated planet. However, managing productive landscapes requires integrative approaches in which changes in diversity, microhabitat effects and managing conditions are assessed. We analyzed patterns of arthropod diversity, composition, and functional guilds in response to changes in canopy structure (solar radiation, geometry, and openness) in sun and shade coffee plantations in a coffee-producing landscapes of the northern Andes. We found that the response of the arthropod community varied according to the variables analyzed. On the one hand, we found that sun coffee plantations have higher arthropod richness and diversity. However, shaded coffee plantations show higher abundance and biomass values. Similarly, when the arthropod community was separated by functional guilds, a positive effect of solar radiation was observed in shade coffee plantations. Our results suggest that sun coffee plantations are not necessarily an inhospitable environment for arthropod diversity but may be so in terms of ecosystem functions. We conclude that a wider range of variables should be included to get a clearer picture of which productive landscape designs may be best for conserving arthropod biodiversity and ecosystem functions in productive landscapes.