Social perception of the ecosystem services provided by the family orchards of the Mexican highlands

Abstract

Ecosystem services refer to the benefits that people obtain from the ecosystem. In this sense, agroecosystems with family orchards host a great diversity of species, associated with the provision of said services, however, these have been scarcely studied from this perspective. In this paper, we identify the main ecosystem services of the agroecosystems with family orchards, and analyze the social perceptions about their importance, in the rural towns of El Carmen, Colonia Juarez and Progreso Hidalgo, located in the south of the State of Mexico. From an in-depth review of the literature, application of surveys, direct observation and field trips, we identified 17 ecosystem services, which were perceived as important, being the most representative, according to their ecosystem category: cultural (beauty of the landscape, relaxation and rest), support (conservation of biodiversity), regulation (improvement of pollination and erosion control) and provision (diversity of food). The analysis of social perception of ecosystem services works as a maintenance and conservation strategy for family orchards.