Title 1: Spatial and temporal Dynamic of parasitic Hymenoptera Diversity in Cacao Agroforestry-system, Lore-Lindu National Park, Central Sulawesi.

Parasitic Hymenoptera represent a substantial portion of the local insect diversity and are very important for controlling the populations of (potential) pest species. This study investigated species richness and beta diversity of parasitic Hymenoptera in cacao agroforestry systems with a focus on (1) the differences between this particular land-use system and an adjacent forest and (2) the effects of increasing isolation of plantations from the forest on assemblages of parasitic Hymenoptera.
The study was conducted at the eastern margin of the Lore Lindu National Park in Palolo Valley (Central Sulawesi, Indonesia). Overall, we collected 690 individuals belonging to 229 species of parasitic Hymenoptera at 14 sites of cacao agroforestry systems and two forest sites. Our data for parasitic Hymenoptera from Sulawesi showed an effect of anthropogenic disturbance on the species richness. The transformation from forest to agroforestry systems such as cacao plantations has a strong effect on the species composition of parasitic Hymenoptera. At forest sites a higher number of species was recorded than at cacao plantations. Isolation of cacao agroforestry systems from natural forest has a strong effect on species diversity of parasitic Hymenoptera. Both, the number of species as well as the abundance of parasitic Hymenoptera decreased with increasing distance to the forest margin. The findings from cacao agroforestry systems situated in different distances from the nearest forest showed a significant relation of the species composition of parasitic Hymenoptera to the habitat type. The analysis of similarity clearly showed an effect of the three defined habitats (forest, nearby forest and far from forest) on faunal composition. Implications of our findings toward conservation of parasitic Hymenoptera are discussed.

Parasitic Wasp Insect

Title 2: Effects of Forest Disturbance and Land-use Change on Parasitic Hymenoptera Diversity  In Salak Mountain

Parasitic wasps are unquestionably one of the most important insect groups. Many species play crucial roles in maintaining the diversity of natural communities. Mount Salak represents one of the last remaining large areas (about 70,000 ha) of primary forest in Java. However, although protected, illegal logging and the transformation of natural forest to plantations of fast-growing tree species (e.g. teak) can still be frequently observed along its margins due to the weak law enforcement. These activities are expected to harm many species of parasitic Hymenoptera. Unfortunately, studies documenting the impact of such activities on assemblages of parasitic Hymenoptera are still missing. For this reason, the aim of this study was to analyze the effects of habitat transformation and land-use changes on (1) diversity and (2) species composition of parasitic Hymenoptera along a disturbance gradient ranging from land-use systems with different structural complexity towards different forest types representing secondary as well as undisturbed forest.’
So far we found 326 specimens belonging to 62 species. Braconidae, Cerapronidae, and Encyrtidae are the most species-rich and abundant families collected from all sampling areas. The species composition in paddy fields differed totally from forest habitats, while the species composition in almost all selected paddy fields resembled. In contrast, at the forest ecosystem, the species composition was absolutely different at each selected location. Our analysis proved that the community structure of parasitic Hymenoptera was significantly related to the habitat type. The species number in undisturbed habitats was higher than in production forests and disturbed habitats. Based on those findings, we concluded that habitat transformation may contribute to the change of species composition of parasitic Hymenoptera. That would affect its ecological function in the ecosystems.