Sample-based rarefaction curves of control and treatment coffee agroforests.

<p>Curves compare treatment (H+; supplemental steady-state floral resources) and control (C) coffee agroforests using Mao Tau expected richness in EstimateS. Rarefaction was performed on presence/absence data for hummingbirds (a) and abundance data for butterflies (b) and wasps (c). Curves were rescaled by the number of individuals for butterflies and wasps to compare species richness between agroforest types, and show the mean ± 95% CI. Non-overlapping CI show statistically significant group differences.</p

Habitat specificity of flower-visiting species in control and treatment coffee agroforests.

<p>Expected habitat specificity and 95% CI were obtained from 1000 sample-based randomizations. Observed habitat specificity is an area unweighted index obtained by dividing the number of species in each treatment by the harmonic mean of species abundances. Observed habitat specificity is shown as either significantly higher or lower than expected by chance if the observed value falls on the outer limits of the 95% CI of the null distribution.</p

Moran’s I statistics for testing spatial autocorrelation in response variables.

<p>Moran’s I statistics for testing spatial autocorrelation in response variables.</p

<i>Hamelia patens</i> attracts a generalist assemblage of insect species in the study area.

<p>(a) Nectar-robbing assassin bug and ant species, (b) <i>Aphrissa</i> sp. foraging for nectar, (c) <i>Calephelis</i> sp. robbing nectar, (d) Diptera species robbing nectar, (e) <i>Heliconius</i> sp. foraging for nectar, (f-h) Wasp species were observed to systematically visit <i>H. patens</i> floral ovaries after flowers had fallen off, (i) Coleoptera species inside corolla.</p

Intercropping with Shrub Species That Display a ‘Steady-State’ Flowering Phenology as a Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation in Tropical Agroecosystems

<div><p>Animal species in the Neotropics have evolved under a lower spatiotemporal patchiness of food resources compared to the other tropical regions. Although plant species with a steady-state flowering/fruiting phenology are rare, they provide predictable food resources and therefore may play a pivotal role in animal community structure and diversity. I experimentally planted a supplemental patch of a shrub species with a steady-state flowering/fruiting phenology, <i>Hamelia patens</i> Jacq., into coffee agroforests to evaluate the contribution of this unique phenology to the structure and diversity of the flower-visiting community. After accounting for the higher abundance of captured animals in the coffee agroforests with the supplemental floral resources, species richness was 21% higher overall in the flower-visiting community in these agroforests compared to control agroforests. Coffee agroforests with the steady-state supplemental floral patch also had 31% more butterfly species, 29% more hummingbird species, 65% more wasps and 85% more bees than control coffee agroforests. The experimental treatment, together with elevation, explained 57% of the variation in community structure of the flower-visiting community. The identification of plant species that can support a high number of animal species, including important ecosystem service providers, is becoming increasingly important for restoration and conservation applications. Throughout the Neotropics plant species with a steady-state flowering/fruiting phenology can be found in all aseasonal forests and thus could be widely tested and suitable species used throughout the tropics to manage for biodiversity and potentially ecosystem services involving beneficial arthropods.</p></div

Bees pollinating <i>Hamelia patens</i>.

<p>(a) <i>Trigona fulviventris</i> with collected <i>H. patens</i> pollen (b) Halictidae species emerging from <i>H. patens</i> corolla, covered in pollen (c) <i>Ceratina</i> species, emerging from corolla and covered in pollen (d) <i>Bombus pullatus</i> with collected <i>H. patens</i> pollen.</p

Seasonality of floral resources in coffee agroforests.

<p><i>Hamelia patens</i> blooms (first y-axis) and open, non-coffee flowers (second y-axis). H+ represents agroforests with supplemental <i>H. patens</i> plantings and C represents control agroforests.</p

Total abundance, mean total species richness, species evenness and habitat specificity measures for flower-visiting community in coffee agroforests in Costa Rica.

a<p>Coffee agroforests with supplemental <i>H. patens</i> patch.</p>b<p>Coffee agroforests without <i>H. patens.</i></p>c<p>Flower- visiting community includes hummingbirds, butterflies, wasps, and bees.</p><p>*Denotes that the observed habitat specificity was significantly different than the expected for both H+ and C sites.</p

Annual avian capture bouts during four seasons in seven sites near San Luis, Costa Rica, 2005–2008.

<p>The annual cycle of seasons follow a chronological sequence: (1) dry, non-peak breeding (December–January); (2) dry, peak breeding (February–April); (3) wet, peak breeding (May–August); and (4) wet, non-peak breeding (September–November). An×in a cell indicates that a particular site was sampled during a particular season-year combination.</p

Variation in patch occupancy (A) and seasonal patch use (B) among habitats and avian dietary guilds based on a multi-scale occupancy model fit to mist-net data from four shade coffee plantations and three secondary forest fragments near San Luis, Costa Rica, 2005–2008.

<p>Habitat types included forest (F) and shade coffee (C); avian dietary guilds included frugivores (FRUG), insectivores (INSE), and omnivores (OMNI). Whiskers represent 95% Bayesian credibility intervals.</p