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This website documents the ongoing research on cacao pollinators in the community ecology lab at VUB. With a strong background in entomology and aquatic ecology, the Community Ecology Lab started a more applied research line in 2015. After several projects studying small aquatic habitats in neotropical rainforests our focus shifted to similar habitats that occur in agroforestry systems and cacao cultivation in particular.

After initial pilot projects investigating the potential role of small aquatic habitats as breeding habitats for cacao pollinators in cacao agroforestry systems, we are now focusing on several main research questions.

1. Which are the main pollinators of cacao in different regions and on different continents?
2. Where do cacao pollinators reproduce?
3. Can we promote cacao pollination by promoting pollinator breeding habitats?
4. Which management practices can promote biodiversity in cacao plantations?