Assessment of Ecosystem Services Provided by Agroforestry Tree Species in the Agrarian Community of Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Agroforestry practices are sustainable methods of managing lands as they support biodiversity conservation and the provision of ecosystem services that are critical for sustaining rural livelihoods. This indicates its importance as a holistic and integrative area-based measure supporting human-nature interactions. However, the biodiversity conservation efforts of agroforestry practices and the associated beneficial services to rural farmers and their households, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, are underexplored. In this study, we assessed the biodiversity conserved through agroforestry practices, associated provisioning ecosystem services, and the perception of farmers on practising agroforestry in selected rural communities in Southwestern Nigeria. We employed a mixed-methods approach to achieve these objectives, combining well-structured questionnaires with field-based observations for validation processes. We identified 38 forest tree species belonging to 24 families and 14 Agricultural tree species belonging to 11 families. The identified tree species offer various benefits to farmers and their households, with medicinal resources being the most prominent. Additionally, most farmers across selected communities expressed a willingness to adopt agroforestry practices, regardless of demographic differences. We provided recommendations for facilitating the adoption of agroforestry practices among rural farmers. Additionally, we suggested prospects for assessing tree biodiversity and beneficial services of agroforestry systems across various scales.