SISTEMAS AGROFORESTALES Y BIODIVERSIDAD

Biodiversity conservation and food production involve a balance with simple route solutions, however, a change from conventional agrarian models and animal breeding to agroforestry is important to reach a balance between the economy and conservation. Agroforestry systems (AFS) of tropical countries provide an old approach renovated to face the need to feed a growing population and avoid damage to the ecosystems where food production is achieved. New studies have increased the evidence that it is possible to consider the potential of agroforestry since the decade of 1980, to improve the status of biodiversity without stopping agricultural production, and the countries of Costa Rica, México and Nicaragua stand out in this practice. Notably, researchers of biological diversity associated to Mesoamerican agroforestry systems have centered their attention primarily on nine biological groups: ants, bats, birds, butterflies, dung beetles, mammals, soil macrofauna, mollusks and land plants. There is an increasingly large tendency of studies about biodiversity conservation in areas under cultivation or livestock production, and in both cases trees are included. AFS can only help to reduce the negative impact that agriculture and grazing systems have on biodiversity, in conjunction with the network of protected areas in a region, and this synergy can increase the ability for biological conservation of the territory, together with an increase in economic benefits for the rural society.La conservación de la biodiversidad y producción de alimentos implican un equilibrio con soluciones de rutas simples, sin embargo, el cambio de los modelos agrarios convencionales y de la crianza de animales a una agroforestería es importante para alcanzar equilibrio entre la economía y conservación. Los sistemas agroforestales (SAF) de países tropicales proporcionan un enfoque antiguo renovado para hacer frente a la necesidad de alimentar a una población creciente y evitar daño a los ecosistemas en los que se logra la producción de alimentos. Nuevos estudios han incrementado desde la década de 1980, evidencia de que es posible considerar el potencial de la agroforestería para mejorar el estado de la biodiversidad sin detener la producción agrícola, los países que destacan en el tema son Costa Rica, México y Nicaragua. Notablemente, los investigadores de la diversidad biológica asociada a los SAF mesoamericanos han centrado su atención principalmente en nueve grupos biológicos: hormigas, murciélagos, pájaros, mariposas, escarabajos coprófagos, mamíferos, la macrofauna del suelo, moluscos y plantas terrestres. Existe una tendencia cada vez mayor a estudios sobre conservación de la biodiversidad en áreas bajo cultivo o ganadería, y en ambos casos se incluyen árboles. El SAF en conjunción con la red de áreas protegidas en una región pueden ayudar a reducir el impacto negativo que causan los sistemas de agricultura y pastoreo sobre la biodiversidad, este sinergismo puede aumentar la capacidad de la conservación biológica del territorio con el aumento de beneficios económicos para la sociedad rural

Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae): ÁRBOL EXÓTICO CON GRAN POTENCIAL PARA LA GANADERÍA ECOLÓGICA EN EL TRÓPICO

In tropical countries of America, exotic plants such as Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae) have been poorly evaluated despite having various agro-ecological attributes for livestock production. The objective of this review is to present M. oleifera, as a tree species with high potential for ecological livestock production in the tropical zones of Mexico and Latin America. The results indicate that it is a species of fast growth, and has high production of fresh biomass (up to 25.8 t ha-1 yr-1) compared to other forage tree species. Its leaves are rich in protein (>18 %) and low in fiber (32.0 %), which allows increases in animal production. Additionally, under field conditions, M. oleifera can be associated with various soil microorganisms that contribute to improving the assimilation efficiency of soil nutrients. Also, its leaves have a fast rate of decomposition (85.3 %) and release of N to the soil (89.0 %) in four weeks of incubation, which could contribute to improve the physical-chemical properties of the soil. The characteristics of fast growth, high production of biomass, good nutritional quality of the M. oleifera forage, show that it is a tree with high potential for ecological livestock production and which can contribute to the conservation of soils in tropical zones.En países tropicales de América, plantas exóticas como Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae), han sido escasamente evaluadas a pesar de poseer diversos atributos agro-ecológicos para la ganadería. El objetivo de esta revisión es presentar a M. oleifera, como una especie arbórea con alto potencial para la ganadería ecológica en las zonas tropicales de México y en Latinoamérica. Los resultados encontrados indican que esta especie es de rápido crecimiento, posee una alta producción de biomasa fresca (hasta 25.8 t ha-1 año-1), comparado con otras especies arbóreas forrajeras. Sus hojas son ricas en proteína (>18 %) y bajas en fibra (32.0 %), lo cual permite tener incrementos en la producción animal. Adicionalmente, en condiciones de campo M. oleifera puede asociarse con diversos microorganismos del suelo que contribuyen a mejorar la eficiencia de absorción de nutrimentos del suelo. También, sus hojas poseen una rápida tasa de descomposición (85.3 %) y liberación de N al suelo (89.0 %) en cuatro semanas de incubación, lo que podría contribuir a mejorar las propiedades físico-químicas del suelo. Las características del rápido crecimiento, alta producción de biomasa, buena calidad nutricional del forraje de M. oleifera, demuestran que es un árbol con alto potencial para la ganadería ecológica y que puede contribuir a la conservación de los suelos en las zonas tropicales

Birdlife, a tourist attraction for the southern portion of Bacalar Lagoon, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Abstract The Bacalar Lagoon (BL) in Quintana Roo, Mexico; is an area of high interest due to its tourist potential. However, the changes in landuse patterns, urbanization, extensive cattle ranching and rapidly expanding agriculture, have generated negative impacts on areas of adjacent plan communities and wildlife habitats. The objective of this study has to evaluate the level of vegetation conservation in the southern portion of the BL through the avifauna present in sites with contrasting degrees of conservation. Additionally, change “and their habitat preference(s) in the different communities” to and their habitat use preferences in the different communities. To evaluate the level of conservation of the BL, field visits and botanical collections were carried out to identify species. For the counting and identification of birds, monthly surveys were made through coastal tours along the cenote Xul-ha in 2.5 km transects. Four transects were established: two for sites characterized as semi-conserved and two with disturbed sites. A total richness of 40 taxa was observed, which corresponds to 8.1% of the Quintana Roo avifauna and 32% to wetland birds (125 species). The species accumulation curves indicated that semi-conserved and disturbed sites tend to reach asymptotes and with a coverage percentage greater than 90%. In terms of diversity and community structure, no significant differences were observed. However, the semi-conserved and disturbed sites each have 11 unique species and share 18 species. The LB has an intermediate diversity of bird species compared to studies at the Mexican level, the habitat is important for the conservation of birdlife; as it functions as a reservoir of diversity. Strategies has been suggested that promote sustainable tourism, support the restoration of natural vegetation; and facilitate the economic development of the region

In vitro propagation and germplasm conservation of wild orchids from South America

Orchids are an important part of plant biodiversity on this planet due to their high variability among species and their habitats. South America represents more than thirty percent of all known orchid species, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Peru, and Bolivia being among the richest countries in the world in terms of orchid biodiversity. Nevertheless, concerning the orchid conservation status, in Colombia precisely orchids occupy the unlucky first place as the plant family with the highest number of threatened species. There is a similar situation in the rest of the South American countries. The two main threats to orchid survival are both anthropogenic: the first one is deforestation, and the second largest threat to orchids is collection from the wild. One desirable action to safeguard these endangered species is to develop procedures that make possible their massive propagation, which would provide material for both environmental restoration and commercial purposes avoiding extractions from nature. Likewise, the development of systems that allow the ex situ conservation of orchid germplasm is imperative. This chapter reviews the progresses of different in vitro approaches for orchid propagation and germplasm conservation, safeguarding the genetic biodiversity of these species. Several study cases are presented and described to exemplify the protocols developed in the Botanical Institute of Northeast (UNNE-CONICET) for propagating and long-term storing the germplasm of wild orchids from Argentina (Cattleya lundii, Cohniella cepula, C. jonesiana, Gomesa bifolia, Aa achalensis, Cyrtopodium brandonianum, C. hatschbachii, Habenaria bractescens). Moreover, it has been attempted to put together most of the available literature on in vitro propagation and germplasm conservation for South American orchids using different explants and procedures. There are researches of good scientific quality that even cover critical insights into the physiology and factors affecting growth and development as well as storage of several orchid materials. Moreover, studies are still necessary to cover a major number of South American species as well as the use of selected material (clonal) for both propagation and conservation approaches.Fil: Dolce, Natalia Raquel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Medina, Ricardo Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Terada, Graciela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: González Arnao, María Teresa. Universidad Veracruzana; MéxicoFil: Flachsland, Eduardo Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentin