Home garden coffee as a repository of epiphyte biodiversity in Ethiopia. 2008. K. Hylander and S. Nemomissa. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 6:524-528. Nearly all the work that’s been done examining the relationship between shade coffee and biodiversity has…
Research on coffee growing
Research: Shade coffee promotes genetic diversity of native trees
Shade coffee farms promote genetic diversity of native trees. This study looked found that shade coffee farms are valuable for dispersal of genes between forest remnants.
Research: Shade coffee provides additional income besides the coffee crop
Agricultural intensification within agroforestry: the case of coffee and wood products. 2008. Rice, R. A. Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Environment 128:212-218. doi:10.1016/j.agee.2008.06.007 Robert Rice, of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, surveyed 338 owners of coffee farmers in Peru and Guatemala to…
Research: Meta-analysis of biodiversity loss in coffee farms
Biodiversity loss in Latin American coffee landscapes: review of the evidence on ants, birds, and trees. 2008.
Research: Higher beetle diversity in shade coffee, more pests in sun
Simplification of a coffee foliage-dwelling beetle community under low-shade management. C. E. Gordon, B. McGillb, G.Ibarra-NÁºÁ±ezc, R. Greenberg, and I. Perfecto. 2008. Basic and Applied Ecology, in press. doi:10.1016/j.baae.2008.04.004 This study looked at beetle abundance and diversity in coffee farms…
Research: Shade coffee = more pollinators = higher fruit set
Pollinator diversity increases fruit production in Mexican coffee plantations: The importance of rustic management systems. C. H. Vergara and E. I. Badano. 2009. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 129: 117-123. Although arabica coffee is self-pollinating, it can benefit from the activity…
Research: migratory birds provide pest control, increase profit, in Jamaican coffee farms
Migratory birds prey on serious insect pests on Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee farms, providing economic benefits to farmers — as long as there was natural habitat for the birds nearby.
Research: Sumatran coffee weak on preserving forest biodiversity
Biodiversity conservation, yield, and alternate products in coffee agrosystems in Sumatra, Indonesia.
Blogging bird and coffee research
At the Partners in Flight 4th International Conference Background Wearing my occupational hat as an ornithologist, I just attended the Partners in Flight (PIF) conference in south Texas. PIF is a consortium of conservation agencies and organizations that partner to…
Research: Spiders on Indian coffee farms
Kapoor, V. (2008). Effects of rainforest fragmentation and shade-coffee plantations on spider communities in the Western Ghats, India.
Research: Butterflies in Indian coffee farms
Adult butterfly communities in coffee plantations around a protected area in the Western Ghats, India. J. Dolia, M. S. Devy, N. A. Aravind, and A. Kumar. 2008. Animal Conservation 11:26-34. Butterfly diversity was examined in 12 coffee plantations in India’s…
Research: Tree species diversity in Veracruz coffee farms
Tree species diversity and vegetation structure in shade coffee farms in Veracruz, Mexico. A. M. LÁ³pez-GÁ³meza, G. Williams-Linera, and R. H. Manson. 2008. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 124:160-172. 10.1016/j.agee.2007.09.008 Fifteen shade coffee farms, under different types of shade management, and…
Research: Mammals in coffee plantations in India’s Western Ghats
The mammalian communities in coffee plantations around a protected area in the Western Ghats, India. A. Balia, A. Kumarb, and J. Krishnaswamy. 2007. Biological Conservation 139: 93-102. This study looked at the number of mammal species found in 15 coffee…
Research: Evaluating benefits of coffee certification programs
Field-testing ecological and economic benefits of coffee certification programs.
Research: Ants eat more coffee borers on shade farms
Testing ant predation on the coffee berry borer in shaded and sun coffee plantations in Colombia. I. Armbrecht and M. C. Gallego. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 124:261-267. The study took place in Apia, Colombia (Risaralda dept., red on map). Prior…