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Landscape heterogeneity rather than crop diversity mediates bird diversity in agricultural landscapes

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • S. Redlich
  • Emily A. Martin
  • B. Wende
  • I. Steffan-Dewenter

External Research Organisations

  • Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere0200438
JournalPLOS ONE
Volume13
Issue number8
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2018
Externally publishedYes

Abstract

Crop diversification has been proposed as farm management tool that could mitigate the externalities of conventional farming while reducing productivity-biodiversity trade-offs. Yet evidence for the acclaimed biodiversity benefits of landscape-level crop diversity is ambiguous. Effects may strongly depend on spatial scale and the level of landscape heterogeneity (e.g. overall habitat diversity). At the same time, contrasting within-taxon responses obscure benefits to specific functional groups (i.e. species with shared characteristics or requirements) if studied at the community level. The objectives of this study were to 1) disentangle the relative effects of crop diversity and landscape heterogeneity on avian species richness across five spatial scales ranging from 250 to 3000 m radii around focal winter wheat fields; and 2) assess whether functional groups (feeding guild, conservation status, habitat preference, nesting behaviour) determine the strength and direction of responses to crop diversity and landscape heterogeneity. In central Germany, 14 landscapes were selected along independent gradients of crop diversity (annual arable crops) and landscape heterogeneity. Bird species richness in each landscape was estimated using four point counts throughout the breeding season. We found no effects of landscape-level crop diversity on bird richness and functional groups. Instead, landscape heterogeneity was strongly associated with increased total bird richness across all spatial scales. In particular, insect-feeding and non-farmland birds were favoured in heterogeneous landscapes, as were species not classified as endangered or vulnerable on the regional Red List. Crop-nesting farmland birds, however, were less species-rich in these landscapes. Accordingly, crop diversification may be less suitable for conserving avian diversity and associated ecosystem services (e.g. biological pest control), although confounding interactions with management intensity need yet to be confirmed. In contrast, enhancement of landscape heterogeneity by increasing perennial habitat diversity, reducing field sizes and the amount of cropland has the potential to benefit overall bird richness. Specialist farmland birds, however, may require more targeted management approaches.

Keywords

    Animals, Biodiversity, Birds/physiology, Crops, Agricultural, Ecosystem, Germany, Seasons

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Cite this

Landscape heterogeneity rather than crop diversity mediates bird diversity in agricultural landscapes. / Redlich, S.; Martin, Emily A.; Wende, B. et al.
In: PLOS ONE, Vol. 13, No. 8, e0200438, 08.2018.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Redlich S, Martin EA, Wende B, Steffan-Dewenter I. Landscape heterogeneity rather than crop diversity mediates bird diversity in agricultural landscapes. PLOS ONE. 2018 Aug;13(8):e0200438. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0200438
Redlich, S. ; Martin, Emily A. ; Wende, B. et al. / Landscape heterogeneity rather than crop diversity mediates bird diversity in agricultural landscapes. In: PLOS ONE. 2018 ; Vol. 13, No. 8.
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title = "Landscape heterogeneity rather than crop diversity mediates bird diversity in agricultural landscapes",
abstract = "Crop diversification has been proposed as farm management tool that could mitigate the externalities of conventional farming while reducing productivity-biodiversity trade-offs. Yet evidence for the acclaimed biodiversity benefits of landscape-level crop diversity is ambiguous. Effects may strongly depend on spatial scale and the level of landscape heterogeneity (e.g. overall habitat diversity). At the same time, contrasting within-taxon responses obscure benefits to specific functional groups (i.e. species with shared characteristics or requirements) if studied at the community level. The objectives of this study were to 1) disentangle the relative effects of crop diversity and landscape heterogeneity on avian species richness across five spatial scales ranging from 250 to 3000 m radii around focal winter wheat fields; and 2) assess whether functional groups (feeding guild, conservation status, habitat preference, nesting behaviour) determine the strength and direction of responses to crop diversity and landscape heterogeneity. In central Germany, 14 landscapes were selected along independent gradients of crop diversity (annual arable crops) and landscape heterogeneity. Bird species richness in each landscape was estimated using four point counts throughout the breeding season. We found no effects of landscape-level crop diversity on bird richness and functional groups. Instead, landscape heterogeneity was strongly associated with increased total bird richness across all spatial scales. In particular, insect-feeding and non-farmland birds were favoured in heterogeneous landscapes, as were species not classified as endangered or vulnerable on the regional Red List. Crop-nesting farmland birds, however, were less species-rich in these landscapes. Accordingly, crop diversification may be less suitable for conserving avian diversity and associated ecosystem services (e.g. biological pest control), although confounding interactions with management intensity need yet to be confirmed. In contrast, enhancement of landscape heterogeneity by increasing perennial habitat diversity, reducing field sizes and the amount of cropland has the potential to benefit overall bird richness. Specialist farmland birds, however, may require more targeted management approaches.",
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N1 - Funding information: The European Union within the FP7 project LIBERATION (“LInking farmland Biodiversity to Ecosystem seRvices for effective ecological intensificatION“, grant number: 311781). Funding website: https://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/. Additional funding for Open Access Publishing was provided to I.S.D. by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the University of Wuerzburg. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. We are grateful to the editor and two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments. We thank the Lower Franconian farmers and landowners who permitted us to work on their land and made this study possible. This research was conducted within the FP7 project LIBERATION (“LInking farmland Biodiversity to Ecosystem seRvices for effective ecological intensificatION“), funded by the European Union, grant number: 311781.

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