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Basham, E. W., González del Pliego, P., Acosta-Galvis, A. R., Woodcock, P., Medina Uribe, C. A., Haugaasen, T., Gilroy, J. J. 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7597-5780 and Edwards, D. P.
(2016)
Quantifying carbon and amphibian co-benefits from secondary forest regeneration in the Tropical Andes.
Animal Conservation, 19 (6).
pp. 548-560.
ISSN 1367-9430
Abstract
Tropical land-use change is a key driver of global declines in biodiversity and a major source of anthropogenic carbon emissions, yet there is a substantial shortfall in the funding available to tackle these issues. We urgently need mechanisms that can simultaneously tackle both biodiversity and carbon losses, with carbon-based payments for ecosystem services (e.g. REDD+) of particular interest. A critical question is whether such payments offer strong carbon–biodiversity co-benefits via the regrowth of forests on abandoned farmlands (carbon enhancements) for amphibians, which are the most threatened vertebrate group and reach the greatest richness of threatened and small-ranged species in the montane tropics (>1000 m a.s.l.). Here, we study changes in amphibian communities across a typical Andean habitat transition from cattle pasture through secondary forests (8–35 years) to primary forest. As secondary forests mature, they recovered the abundance, species richness, species composition and Red-listed (near threatened and threatened) species typically found in primary forest. By contrast, cattle pasture contained much lower richness of Red-listed species and a different species composition compared to forest. We then reveal positive relationships between carbon stocks and amphibian species richness and abundance, Red-listed species richness and abundance and the similarity of communities to primary forests, confirming significant carbon–biodiversity co-benefits. Our results underscore the high conservation value of secondary forests and the strong potential for carbon and biodiversity recovery. Using carbon-based funding initiatives to support the regrowth of forests on marginal agricultural land is therefore likely to conserve threatened biodiversity in the Tropical Andes.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | anurans,carbon stocks,colombian andes,land abandonment,montane cloud forest,reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation,secondary forest regrowth,sdg 15 - life on land ,/dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/life_on_land |
| Faculty \ School: | Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences |
| UEA Research Groups: | Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Organisms and the Environment Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Environmental Biology |
| Related URLs: | |
| Depositing User: | Pure Connector |
| Date Deposited: | 06 Jun 2016 14:00 |
| Last Modified: | 12 May 2023 00:10 |
| URI: | https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/59223 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/acv.12276 |
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