Consequences of Swidden Transitions for Crop and Fallow Biodiversity in Southeast Asia |
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Authors: | Kanok Rerkasem Deborah Lawrence Christine Padoch Dietrich Schmidt-Vogt Alan D Ziegler Thilde Bech Bruun |
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Institution: | (1) Plant Genetic Resource and Nutrition Lab, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand;(2) Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA;(3) Institute of Economic Botany, New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY, USA;(4) School of Environment, Resources and Development, Asian Institute of Technology, Pathum Thani, Thailand;(5) Geography Department, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore;(6) Department of Geography and Geology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark |
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Abstract: | Swidden agriculture, once the dominant form of land use throughout the uplands and much of the lowlands of Southeast Asia,
is being replaced by other land uses. While change and adaptation are inherent to swiddening, the current rapid and widespread
transitions are unprecedented. In this paper we review some recent findings on changes in biodiversity, especially plant diversity
at various scales, as swidden farming is replaced by other land uses. We focus particularly on two areas of Southeast Asia:
northern Thailand and West Kalimantan. We examine actual and potential changes in the diversity of crops that characterize
regional swidden systems, as well as that of the spontaneously occurring plants that appear in swidden fields and fallows.
Severe declines in plant diversity have been observed in most areas and at most spatial scales when swidden is replaced by
permanent land use systems. However, shifts away from swidden agriculture do not invariably result in drastic declines or
losses of biological diversity, but may maintain or even enhance it, particularly at finer spatial scales. We suggest that
further research is necessary to understand the effects of swidden transitions on biodiversity. |
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Keywords: | Swidden agriculture Agrobiodiversity Crop diversity Swidden fallows Agrodiversity |
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