541 research outputs found
Hierarchic species-area relationships and the management of forest habitat islands in intensive farmland
Habitat loss and fragmentation due to land use changes are major threats to biodiversity in forest ecosystems,
and they are expected to have important impacts on many taxa and at various spatial scales.
Species richness and area relationships (SARs) have been used to assess species diversity patterns and
drivers, and thereby in the establishment of conservation and management strategies. Here we propose a
hierarchical approach to achieve deeper insights on SARs in small forest islets in intensive farmland and
to address the impacts of decreasing naturalness on such relationships.
In the intensive dairy landscapes of Northwest Portugal, where small forest stands (dominated by
pines, eucalypts or both) represent semi-natural habitat islands, 50 small forest stands were selected
and surveyed for vascular plant diversity. A hierarchical analytical framework was devised to determine
species richness and inter- and intra-patch SARs for the whole set of forest patches (general patterns) and
for each type of forest (specific patterns). Differences in SARs for distinct groups were also tested by considering
subsets of species (native, alien, woody, and herbaceous).
Overall, values for species richness were confirmed to be different between forest patches exhibiting
different levels of naturalness. Whereas higher values of plant diversity were found in pine stands, higher
values for alien species were observed in eucalypt stands. Total area of forest (inter-patch SAR) was found
not to have a significant impact on species richness for any of the targeted groups of species. However,
significant intra-patch SARs were obtained for all groups of species and forest types.
A hierarchical approach was successfully applied to scrutinise SARs along a gradient of forest naturalness
in intensively managed landscapes. Dominant canopy tree and management intensity were found to
reflect differently on distinct species groups as well as to compensate for increasing stand area, buffering
SARs among patches, but not within patches. Thus, the maintenance of small semi-natural patches dominated
by pines, under extensive practices of forest management, will promote native plant diversity
while at the same time contributing to limit the expansion of problematic alien invasive specie
Assessing the potential delivery of ecosystem services by farmlands under contrasting management intensities
Research, part of a Special Feature on High Nature Value Farming Systems in EuropeFarming systems under contrasting management practices can contribute differently to the delivery of bundles of
ecosystem services (ES) in agricultural landscapes. Low intensity farming systems, such as High Nature Value farmlands, are expected
to deliver a wider range of ES, whereas landscapes under more intensive management are expected to deliver mainly provisioning
services. Understanding the management practices associated with desirable outcomes in terms of biodiversity and ES in agricultural
landscapes is needed. Our research aimed to understand the links between the delivery of ES bundles associated with agricultural
landscapes, and their socio-ecological drivers, using a region in northern Portugal as a case study. Based on publicly available data on
ecosystems services and drivers, we analyzed ES associations, delineated ES bundles, and investigated their relationship with socioecological
drivers. Overall, our results suggested spatial trade-offs between landscapes delivering provisioning services of high economic
value, and landscapes delivering a more balanced set of multiple ES. Bundle analysis highlighted an association between higher landscape
multifunctionality and higher values of landscape complexity, higher number of farmers, and farm sizes. Our results reflected the
complexity of social and ecological factors operating at the landscape level, pinpointed landscapes with higher multifunctionality and
disclosed the conditions underlying their occurrence. The results also highlighted the importance of low-intensity farming systems,
namely those supporting High Nature Value farmlands, for the delivery of a wider range of ES at the landscape scaleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
A farming systems approach to linking agricultural policies with biodiversity and ecosystem services
Concepts and QuestionsMany countries are reshaping their agricultural policies to better enhance biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) in farmlands,
but measuring the effectiveness of policy instruments in BES delivery is challenging. Using the European Agricultural Policy as an
example, we propose the application of a farming systems (FS) approach as a cost-effective tool for linking policy design and
expected BES outcomes. On the basis of available data from subsidy payment agencies, such an approach can identify groups of
farms that share similar management practices as well as the associations between FS and corresponding BES potential, and
improve modeled outputs of farm management responses to policies and other drivers of change. We describe how this relatively
unexplored source of information can help to support applied ecological research and relevant policy, and call for these data to be
made available across Europe and elsewhereN/
Impacts of sheep versus cattle livestock systems on birds of Mediterranean grasslands
Mediterranean pastures are experiencing strong changes in management, involving shifts from
sheep to cattle-based livestock systems. The impacts of such shifts on biodiversity are still poorly
understood. Here, we sought to contrast the grazing regime, vegetation structure, bird species
richness and abundance, between sheep and cattle grazed parcels, to understand the mechanisms
through which management decisions impact farmland birds. During spring 2019, we characterized
livestock management, bird populations and sward structure in 23 cattle and 27 sheep grazed parcels.
We used a Structural Equation Model to infer the direct and indirect effects of sheep and cattle grazing
on birds. Although no effects were found on overall species richness, there were species-specific
responses to sheep and cattle grazed systems. Grazing pressure (variable integrating stocking rate
and the number of days in the parcel) had negative impacts on the prevalence/abundance of Zitting
Cisticola, Corn Bunting and Little Bustard, either directly or indirectly, through the effects of grazing
pressure on vegetation height. Animal density and vegetation cover had direct positive effects in
Galerida spp. and Common Quail, respectively. Zitting Cisticola and Little Bustard also showed a direct
response to livestock type. Our study emphasizes the importance of grazing pressure as a driver of
negative impacts for bird populations in Mediterranean grasslands. Since the ongoing transition from
sheep to cattle-based systems involves increases in stocking rate, and therefore potentially higher
grazing pressure, we propose a policy change to cap the maximum allowed grazing pressure. At
the landscape scale, a mix of sheep and cattle grazed fields would be beneficial for maintaining bird
diversityinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Conservation Management of EU Priority Habitats after Collapse of Traditional Pastoralism: Navigating Socioecological Transitions in Mountain Rangeland
Agricultural abandonment is a major driver of change in rural landscapes. Assumed to provide beneficial results to the environment and the conservation of biota, rural abandonment triggers landscape and biotic homogenization and loss of valuable species and habitats. This article focuses on the ecological effects and conservation challenges of shifts in extensive grazing regimes on marginal pastureland of Mediterranean mountains. We conceptualize a navigated socioecological transition toward conservation-oriented management after the collapse of historical land systems. The article provides examples from the LIFE+ project “Higro,” developed in mountainous protected areas in Portugal, of how management for conservation could sustain disturbance-dependent habitats. We argue that actively and regularly managing large habitat areas should be envisaged as a short-term approach to limit the immediate effects of rural abandonment. A gradual integration of conservation targets with other activities in changing rural economies is necessary to foster long-term conservation of species and habitats, building on the link between conservation-oriented habitat management and ecosystem services in rural landscapes. Conservation goals should run alongside recovery of social systems and innovation applied to traditional sources of income. This parallel development would contribute to building up social-ecological resilience by maintaining a diversity of social and ecological capital in rural areas.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Back to the future: rethinking socioecological systems underlying high nature value farmlands
Additional, web-only material may be found in the online
version of this article at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.
1002/fee.2116/suppinfoFarmlands are currently among the dominant uses of the land. When managed under low-input
farming systems, farmlands are
associated with diverse cultural and natural heritages around the world. Known in Europe as high nature value (HNV) farmlands,
these agricultural landscapes and their associated farming systems evolved as tightly coupled socioecological systems, and are
essential to biodiversity conservation and the delivery of ecosystem services to society. However, HNV farmlands are vulnerable to
socioeconomic changes that lead to either agricultural intensification or land abandonment. We present a range of plausible
future scenarios for HNV farmlands, and discuss the related management options and expected socioecological outcomes for each
scenario. We then provide recommendations for policy, practice, and research on how to best ensure the socioecological viability
of HNV farming systems in the futureinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Using fire to enhance rewilding when agricultural policies fail
Rewilding has been proposed as an opportunity for biodiversity conservation in abandoned landscapes. However,
rewilding is challenged by the increasing fire risk associated with more flammable landscapes, and the
loss of open-habitat specialist species. Contrastingly, supporting High Nature Value farmlands (HNVf) has been
also highlighted as a valuable option, but the effective implementation of agricultural policies often fails leading
to uncertain scenarios wherein the effects of wildfire management remain largely unexplored. Herein, we simulated
fire-landscape dynamics to evaluate howfire suppression scenarios affect fire regime and biodiversity (102
species of vertebrates) under rewilding and HNVf policies in the future (2050), in a transnational biosphere reserve
(Gerês-Xurés Mountains, Portugal-Spain). Rewilding and HNVf scenarios were modulated by three different
levels of fire suppression effectiveness. Then, we quantified scenario effects on fire regime (burned and
suppressed areas) and biodiversity (habitat suitability change for 2050). Simulations confirm HNVf as a longterm
opportunity for fire suppression (up to 30,000 ha of additional suppressed areas between 2031 and 2050 in comparison to rewilding scenario) and for conservation (benefiting around 60% of species). Rewilding benefits
some species (20%), including critically endangered, vulnerable and endemic taxa, while several species (33%)
also profit from open habitats created by fire. Although HNVf remains the best scenario, rewilding reinforced
by low fire suppression management may provide a nature-based solution when societal support through
agricultural policies failsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio
Evaluating population and community structure against climate and land-use determinants to improve the conservation of the rare <em>Narcissus pseudonarcissus</em> subsp. <em>nobilis</em>
Late Quaternary range shifts of marcescent oaks unveil the dynamics of a major biogeographic transition in southern Europe
GrassPlot v. 2.00 – first update on the database of multi-scale plant diversity in Palaearctic grasslands
Abstract: GrassPlot is a collaborative vegetation-plot database organised by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) and listed in the Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases (GIVD ID EU-00-003). Following a previous Long Database Report (Dengler et al. 2018, Phyto- coenologia 48, 331–347), we provide here the first update on content and functionality of GrassPlot. The current version (GrassPlot v. 2.00) contains a total of 190,673 plots of different grain sizes across 28,171 independent plots, with 4,654 nested-plot series including at least four grain sizes. The database has improved its content as well as its functionality, including addition and harmonization of header data (land use, information on nestedness, structure and ecology) and preparation of species composition data. Currently, GrassPlot data are intensively used for broad-scale analyses of different aspects of alpha and beta diversity in grassland ecosystems
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