Arthropods at the Interface between Monoculture and Native Forest

Abstract

The current study has investigated whether arthropod richness in soybean monoculture (Glycine max) decreases, whereas the abundance, mainly of herbivores, increases as distance from Parque Nacional do Iguaçu (PNI) increases. Active and passive arthropod collections were performed at different distances (5, 50, 300 and 600 m) from PNI. Arthropod richness in agricultural area decreased as distance from PNI increased. Results have shown that Conservation Units can act as source of ecosystem services for surrounding monocultures. The presence of pollinators in collections has confirmed the important role played by protected natural areas in agriculture, since they contribute to this economic activity by providing ecosystem services such as pollination.