I examined the effects of two farm management variables, shade-tree species and crop structure, on the winter (dry season) arthropod and bird communities in a Jamaican shade coffee plantation. Birds and canopy arthropods were more abundant in areas of the plantation shaded by the tree Inga vera than by Pseudalbizia berteroana. The abundance of arthropods (potential pests) on the coffee crop, ho...

INTRODUCTION Several arthropod pests infest strawberry crop in California and cause a significant yield loss according to Zalom, Bolda, Dara, and Joseph [1]. Strawberry is an important commercial crop and the annual report from California Department of Pesticide Regulations [2] indicates that large quantities of acaricides, fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides are applied to manage a variet...

Arthropods can strongly impact ecosystems through pollination, herbivory, predation, and parasitism. As such, characterizing arthropod biodiversity is vital to understanding ecosystem health, functions, services. Emerging environmental DNA (eDNA) methods targeting trace eDNA left behind on flowers have the potential track interactions. The goal of this study was determine extent which metabarco...

The challenge of managing agroecosystems on a landscape scale and the novel structure of soil communities in agroecosystems both provide reason to focus on in-field management practices, including cover crop adoption, reduced tillage, and judicial pesticide use, to promote soil community diversity. Belowground and epigeal arthropods, especially exotic generalist predators, play a significant ro...