Agroforestry does not reduce rubber yield and may give some biodiversity benefit

What is it about?

Reported rubber yields did not differ between agroforests and monocultures, meaning adoption of agroforestry should not increase land demand for natural rubber. Butterfly richness was greater in agroforests. Bird and reptile richness were similar between agroforests and monocultures, but bird richness increased with the height of herbaceous vegetation inside rubber plots. Species composition of butterflies differed between agroforests and monocultures, while bird composition was influenced by herbaceous vegetation height within plots, the density of non-rubber trees within plots (representing agroforestry complexity). Reptile composition was influenced by canopy cover and open habitat extent in the landscape. Landscape context was also important. Butterfly richness increased and butterfly and bird species composition differed with greater natural forest extent in the landscape. However, importantly, conservation priority and forest-dependent birds were not supported within rubber.

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Why is it important?

Rubber agroforestry using clonal varieties provides modest biodiversity benefits relative to monocultures, without compromising yields. Agroforests may also generate ecosystem service and livelihood benefits. Management of monocultural rubber production to increase inter-row vegetation height and complexity may further benefit biodiversity. However, biodiversity losses from encroachment of rubber onto forests will not be offset by rubber agroforestry or rubber plot management. This evidence is important for developing guidelines around biodiversity-friendly rubber and sustainable supply chains, and for farmers interested in diversifying rubber production.