Agroforestry and Biodiversity Conservation in Tropical Landscapes

Chapter 1

Biodiversity Conservation

in Deforested and Fragmented Tropical

Landscapes: An Overview

Claude Gascon, Gustavo A. B. da Fonseca, Wes Sechrest,

Kaycie A. Billmark, and James Sanderson

Our planet is in the midst of a sixth mass extinction. The earth is losing its bio-
logical resources at an ever-increasing rate, a trend that began with the emergence
of humans. The majority of the earth’s land surface has been colonized over the
last few tens of thousands of years and was increasingly affected by the agricul-
tural revolution around 10,000 years BPand the industrial revolution in more
recent times. If this trajectory is maintained, many of the planet’s biological
resources will disappear. There is a need for a more thorough scientific under-
standing of natural systems and their functioning as a base for crucial global,
regional, and local conservation decisions. The earth’s tropical regions, in partic-
ular, are highly vulnerable to human impact. The wealth and distinctiveness of
their biodiversity, combined with the multifaceted threats that they face make
these regions an urgent priority for biodiversity conservation. Current scientific
research efforts in tropical areas have yielded insight into many important biolog-
ical questions. Conservation actions, including the implementation of protected
areas and corridors, and attention to the surrounding matrix of agricultural and
degraded land must be integrated into cohesive regional plans. The application of
more conservation-friendly land uses, such as agroforestry, for improving bio-
diversity conservation in tropical landscapes can contribute to such landscape-
scale conservation strategies. The implementation of these efforts is an important
step in translating science into effective conservation action.
The goal of this chapter is to provide an overview of important global bio-
diversity conservation issues, with special attention to terrestrial tropical
ecosystems. Additionally, this chapter provides a framework for the discus-
sions in later chapters with regard to biodiversity threats and conservation
strategies and applications, including agroforestry.

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