Journal Article
The interplay of landscape composition and configuration: new pathways to manage functional biodiversity and agroecosystem services across Europe
Emily A. Martin; Matteo Dainese; Yann Clough; András Báldi; Riccardo Bommarco; Vesna Gagic; Michael P.D. Garratt; Andrea Holzschuh; David Kleijn; Anikó Kovács‐Hostyánszki; Lorenzo Marini; Simon G. Potts; Henrik G. Smith; Diab Al Hassan; Matthias Albrecht; Georg K.S. Andersson; Josep D. Asís; Stéphanie Aviron; Mario V. Balzan; Laura Baños‐Picón; Ignasi Bartomeus; Péter Batáry; Francoise Burel; Berta Caballero‐López; Elena D. Concepción; Valérie Coudrain; Juliana Dänhardt; Mario Diaz; Tim Diekötter; Carsten F. Dormann; Rémi Duflot; Martin H. Entling; Nina Farwig; Christina Fischer; Thomas Frank; Lucas A. Garibaldi; John Hermann; Felix Herzog; Diego Inclán; Katja Jacot; Frank Jauker; Philippe Jeanneret; Marina Kaiser; Jochen Krauss; Violette Le Féon; Jon Marshall; Anna‐Camilla Moonen; Gerardo Moreno; Verena Riedinger; Maj Rundlöf; Adrien Rusch; Jeroen Scheper; Gudrun Schneider; Christof Schüepp; Sonja Stutz; Louis Sutter; Giovanni Tamburini; Carsten Thies; José Tormos; Teja Tscharntke; Matthias Tschumi; Deniz Uzman; Christian Wagner; Muhammad Zubair‐Anjum; Ingolf Steffan‐Dewenter
Ecology Letters · Vol. 22, Issue 7 · pp. 1083-1094 · 2019
Abstract
Managing agricultural landscapes to support biodiversity and ecosystem services is a key aim of a sustainable agriculture. However, how the spatial arrangement of crop fields and other habitats in landscapes impacts arthropods and their functions is poorly known. Synthesising data from 49 studies (1515 landscapes) across Europe, we examined effects of landscape composition (% habitats) and configuration (edge density) on arthropods in fields and their margins, pest control, pollination and yields. Configuration effects interacted with the proportions of crop and non‐crop habitats, and species’ dietary, dispersal and overwintering traits led to contrasting responses to landscape variables. Overall, however, in landscapes with high edge density, 70% of pollinator and 44% of natural enemy species reached highest abundances and pollination and pest control improved 1.7‐ and 1.4‐fold respectively. Arable‐dominated landscapes with high edge densities achieved high yields. This suggests that enhancing edge density in European agroecosystems can promote functional biodiversity and yield‐enhancing ecosystem services.