Year-end Sale % OFF 
Abstract
BackgroundTEK, ecological and economic aspects of columnar cacti were studied in the Tehuacán Valley, Mexico to design sustainable regimes of fruit harvest. We analysed the amounts of edible fruit, seeds and flowers produced per hectare of cardonal, jiotillal and tetechera forests, their economic value and actual extraction rates, hypothesizing that the economic benefits of these NTFP would potentially be comparable to maize agriculture, which involves forest removal.MethodsOur study comprised the whole territory of the community of Quiotepec, Oaxaca. Sustainable gathering rates were analysed through population dynamics models and simulations of harvesting regimes (10%, 25%, and 50% of fruit gathered) per hectare of forest type. We used estimations on economic benefit and ecological impact of these scenarios to evaluate their relative sustainability, compared with maize agroforestry systems harbouring 2-47% of vegetation cover.ResultsFor the whole territory, the total annual fruit production is 509.3 ton of Pachycereus weberi, 267.4 ton of Neobuxbaumia tetetzo, 99.5 ton of Escontria chiotilla, and 8.1 ton of Myrtillocactus geometrizans. The total economic value of fruits per hectare was $315.00 U.S. dollars for cardonal, $244.60 for jiotillal, and $113.80 for tetechera, whereas rainfed agriculture of maize was on average $945.52. Demographic models for E. chiotilla and N. tetetzo indicate that 70% and 95% of fruit harvesting, respectively maintain λ > 1, but these harvest rates cannot be recommendable since the models do not consider the high inter-annual environmental variations and the non-estimated amount of fruit consumed by natural frugivorous. Extracting 25% of fruit is ecologically more sustainable, but with low economic benefits. Agroforestry systems maintaining the higher vegetation cover provide economic benefits from agriculture and forest resources.ConclusionsCombining forest extraction and agroforestry systems are ideal scenarios to sustainable fruit harvest programmes. In addition, fair commerce of transformed products would substantially favour goals of sustainable management.
Highlights
Arid and semiarid zones cover nearly one-half of the Mexican territory, lodging a high biological and cultural diversity
Casas et al [2] identified 30 indigenous groups living in Mexican arid zones, out of the 58 registered in
One of the cacti forests is jiotillal, dominated by Escontria chiotilla, another is tetechera dominated by Neobuxbaumia tetetzo, and the other cardonal dominated by Pachycereus weberi
Summary
Arid and semiarid zones cover nearly one-half of the Mexican territory, lodging a high biological and cultural diversity. Decreasing numbers of arboreal and shrubby species may determine the depletion or local extinction of numerous succulent plant species, which are not able to survive in arid environments during the first stages of their life cycle in absence of nurse plants [8]. Other interactions such as pollination and seed dispersal may be specialized and the scarcity or absence of pollinators and seed dispersers on one hand, or plant resources for maintaining these organisms on the other hand, may cause drastic negative effects on the biotic communities of arid ecosystems [9]. We analysed the amounts of edible fruit, seeds and flowers produced per hectare of cardonal, jiotillal and tetechera forests, their economic value and actual extraction rates, hypothesizing that the economic benefits of these NTFP would potentially be comparable to maize agriculture, which involves forest removal
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
