Managing the tropical landscape: a comparison of the effects of logging and forest conversion to agriculture on ants, birds, and lepidoptera

Most tropical forest will not be conserved, but instead will be used in some way, most often for logging, agriculture, or both. Management of tropical forest landscapes for diversity depends upon an understanding of how many and which species can persist in different types of managed ecosystems. I compared the effects of logging and conversion of forest to agriculture or pasture on ant, bird, and lepidoptera species richness by combining data from 34 studies from tropical forests in Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Forest conversion to agriculture or pasture decreased the species richness of ants and of animals overall, whereas logging did not decrease species richness overall or of ants, birds or lepidoptera. After sites were abandoned, the diversity of logged sites did not change over time. In contrast, the diversity of old fields increased with time. Ants, birds, and lepidoptera responded similarly to forest clearance or disturbance, whether it be for logging or conversion to agriculture or pasture. In terms of faunal diversity, selective logging appears to have much less impact on faunal diversity than does forest conversion, both initially and after sites are abandoned.