TCD Alumnus Publishes Work on Brazil Nut Productivity in Amazon

Check Eduardo Bongiolo and colleagues’ recent paper from his Masters at UF: Swidden fallow management to increase landscape-level Brazil nut productivity. The journal allowed a 50 days “grace” access period (no fees or registration required). Use the link here until April 29th to have access to the full paper.

Highlights

• Data confirm higher densities of B. excelsa in swidden fallows than in mature forest.

• Abandoning such swidden fallows could increase landscape-level Brazil nut productivity.

• Models predict the production of almost 1500 fruits (or ~US$ $55) ha−1 after 40 years.

• Most landowners agree that this practice could increase productivity and nut earnings.

• Our simulation is the first to explore B. excelsa productivity in secondary forest.

Brazil nut or Amazonian nut (Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl.) is considered the cornerstone non-timber species of Amazonian conservation. Nuts (or seeds) of this massive tree are harvested by local people living in and near old growth forests, supporting local livelihoods and regional economies. Secondary forests, however, particularly plots previously used for agriculture (swidden fallows), present better B. excelsa seedling and sapling recruitment than mature forest. This study examines the extent to which forest residents could increase nut productivity by allowing their fallows to grow into Brazil nut rich forests. We conducted B. excelsa inventories in the Brazilian state of Acre in abandoned swidden fallows of different ages. We also conducted interviews to determine landowner perspectives on the fallow potential for increasing nut production. To finalize we build an individual-based model (IBM) to simulated growth, survivorship and production of the inventoried trees. Our simulation model is the first to explore fruit productivity of Brazil nut in secondary forest. In conclusion, our findings support previous research that suggests that higher B. excelsa recruitment rates observed in abandoned swidden fallows could indeed translate into greater adult densities and thus potentially, higher nut production – a conclusion mirrored by most participant landowners.

Eduardo Bongiolo received his Master of Science degree in 2019 from the School Forest Resources and Conservation (SFRC), and a Graduate Certificate from the Tropical Conservation and Development (TCD) Program in the Center for Latin American Studies (LAS), at the University of Florida under the advisement of Dr. Karen Kainer, who has a joint appointment with LAS and is a core faculty member of TCD Program.