Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) cultivation has expanded dramatically in recent decades and is frequently cited as a major threat to tropical biodiversity. This is because oil palm is grown in lowland tropical regions and so impacts on the most biodiverse terrestrial habitats: tropical rainforests. Analysis of the published literature by scientists led by Edgar Turner at the University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge has revealed significant changes in the focus of oil palm research over the last 30 years. The findings are published in PLoS ONE on February 13.
Recent years have seen a broadening in the scope of the research with a slight increase in research focusing on the environment and a dramatic increase in research focusing on biofuel. Despite this, hardly any oil palm publications focused on biodiversity and species conservation. Of these publications, the majority were related to mammals and birds. Although these larger animals are important flagships for the state of the tropical environment, they are not good indicators of oil palm biodiversity. The vast majority of the species worldwide are insects and it is they that carry out the lion’s share of the ecosystem function.
Head of the Insect Ecology Research Group, Dr William Foster said: “Much more research must be carried out to determine the impacts of habitat conversion on insect biodiversity. We need to move on from merely cataloguing biodiversity impacts, to understanding how all aspects of ecosystem services are affected by agricultural expansion.”
Citation: Turner EC, Snaddon JL, Fayle TM, Foster WA (2008) Oil Palm Research in Context: Identifying the Need for Biodiversity Assessment. PLoS ONE 3(2): e1572. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0001572 (
http://www.plosone.org/doi/pone.0001572)
Source: Public Library of Science
Related stories:
Biofuel plantations on tropical forestlands are bad for the climate and biodiversity
(PhysOrg.com) -- Keeping tropical rain forests intact is a better way to combat climate change than replacing them with biofuel plantations, according to a new in-depth study by an international team of scientists, including Matt Struebig from Queen Mary, University of London.
Biofuel plantations on tropical forestlands are bad for the climate and biodiversity, study finds
Keeping tropical rain forests intact is a better way to combat climate change than replacing them with biofuel plantations, a study in the journal
Conservation Biology finds.
Oil palm plantations are no substitute for tropical rainforests
The continued expansion of oil palm plantations will worsen the dual environmental crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, unless rainforests are better protected, warn scientists in the most comprehensive review of the subject to date.
Biofuels and biodiversity don't mix, ecologists warn
Rising demand for palm oil will decimate biodiversity unless producers and politicians can work together to preserve as much remaining natural forest as possible, ecologists have warned. A new study of the potential ecological impact of various management strategies published in the British Ecological Society's
Journal of Applied Ecology found that very little can be done to make palm oil plantations more hospitable for local birds and butterflies. The findings have major implications for the booming market in biofuels and its impact on biodiversity.
Study finds concerns with biofuels
Biofuels are widely considered one of the most promising sources of renewable energy by policy makers and environmentalists alike. However, unless principles and standards for production are developed and implemented, certain biofuels will cause severe environmental impacts and reduce biodiversity – the very opposite of what is desired.
Body part by body part, Sumatran tigers are being sold into extinction
Laws protecting the critically endangered Sumatran Tiger have failed to prevent tiger body parts being openly sold in Indonesia, according to a TRAFFIC report launched today.
Monkey species discovery overshadowed by threat
The discovery of a new monkey species that’s found only in Uganda is being overshadowed by the imminent destruction of much of the animal’s habitat.
WWF: 52 New Species Discovered on Borneo
Scientists have discovered at least 52 new species of animals and plants this past year on the island of Borneo. The discoveries, described in a new WWF report, include 30 unique fish species, two tree frog species, 16 ginger species, three tree species and one large-leafed plant species.