Effects of scale insects on forest dynamics in tropical montane oak forests of Veracruz, Mexico

The montane cloud forests of northeastern Mexico have a high concentration of endemism, and are increasingly vulnerable to climate change, deforestation, and habitat fragmentation. Ninety percent of the original montane cloud forest in Mexico has been lost. As habitat fragmentation becomes more pervasive throughout the world, our understanding of forest fragmentation has also grown more sensitive to context. The species interactions initiated with fragmentation, and post-fragmentation disturbance regimes may magnify the impacts of fragmentation. This dissertation research seeks to develop a better understanding of post-fragmentation pattern and processes in the montane oak cloud forests of northeastern Mexico.;Central to this goal is the documentation of a forest change occurring within these fragmented forests. An endemic scale insect, Stigmacoccus garmilleri, which typically occurs in low densities in the upper canopy of intact oak forests, has expanded throughout forest fragments within the oak forests of Chiconquiaco, Mexico.;This research focuses on how the high population densities of S. garmilleri may augment local diversity in fragmented habitat by providing a food source upon which other species depend. Of critical importance is how these scale insects, at the high densities that augment diversity, impact their host trees. The majority of scale insects are considered pests in agricultural settings. How the host oaks respond to scale determines not only the diversity of these forest fragments, but also their future persistence.;As part of this dissertation research, the potential for these fragmented forested areas to support beekeeping and lessen the dependence upon the agricultural land uses that are driving forest fragmentation are discussed. The sociecological context of deforestation and the promotion of beekeeping for the township of Chiconquiaco lends itself to critical examination of apicultural development. This case study in Veracruz state serves as a template for a more adaptive framework for implementing forest conservation beekeeping projects.