Effects of proximity to forest habitat on hymenoptera diversity in a Costa Rican coffee agroecosystem

Abstract The incorporation of natural, non-crop vegetation in and around farmlands is a common practice in many agroecosystems, and may provide benefits both for production and conservation of biological diversity. In coffee agroecosystems, non-crop vegetation is routinely incorporated in the form of shade trees or forest habitat in and around coffee plants. In order to assess the importance of adjacent forest habitat to Hymenoptera associated with coffee farms, we sampled Hymenoptera on twelve coffee farms in the Tarrazu region in the central highlands of Costa Rica. Six of the farms were adjacent to forest habitat, and six were spatially isolated from forest; farms were sampled in both the dry (flowering) and the rainy (non-flowering) seasons. On adjacent farms, Hymenoptera samples taken in coffee and forest habitat were also compared. Finally, we also conducted pollinator observations in each type of farm, comparing Hymenoptera visitors to coffee plants in adjacent vs. isolated farms. Our results revea...