The ecology and ecosystem services of native trees: Implications for reforestation and land restoration in Mesoamerica

Abstract Background Reconciling agriculture and biodiversity conservation is a challenge given the growing demand for agricultural products. In recent decades, Argentina has witnessed agricultural expansion and intensification affecting biodiversity and associated ecosystem services. Within agroecosystems, the level of habitat quality is critical for birds, and may depend on vegetation structure, availability of invertebrate prey, and the use of pesticides. Although the relationship between vegetation structure and avian occurrence has been widely studied, to our knowledge, there are no studies that also incorporate prey availability throughout the cycle of soybean crops in Argentina. We estimated and predicted the effects of land cover and temporal variation on the occurrence of avian foraging guilds in Entre Ríos, Argentina, in order to guide management related to potential ecosystem services provided by birds. We also estimated temporal effects of vegetation structure and insecticides on the main arthropod orders consumed by birds to evaluate prey availability. Methods We conducted bird and arthropod surveys for 2 years along transects located in 20 randomly selected soybean fields (N = 60) and their adjacent borders (N = 78) throughout the crop growing season, in four seasons. We estimated avian occupancy, accounting for imperfect detection, and arthropod counts fitting generalized linear mixed models. Results The number of native trees in field borders positively influenced the occurrence of most bird species, mainly insectivores. Granivore foliage gleaners, also were positively affected by grass height. Salliers and aerial foragers were weakly affected by distance to forest and native trees. In general, the availability of invertebrates to birds was highest during the third season. Arthropod counts in borders were greater during the last three crop stages than during the pre-sowing period. Conclusions We found that with 10 to 15 native tree species in borders, coupled with a complex vegetation structure with shrubs and grasses, we could conserve a wide spectrum of insectivorous birds, and may contribute to the invertebrate pest control service. Vegetated field borders function as a refuge for arthropods, especially agriculturally beneficial taxa such as Hymenopterans. Finally, several groups of birds use the interior of the fields and could help control pests.

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Earth observation and social media: Evaluating the spatiotemporal contribution of non-native trees to cultural ecosystem services

Remote Sensing of Environment ◽

10.1016/j.rse.2019.05.012 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 230 ◽

pp. 111193 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Ana Sofia Vaz ◽

João F. Gonçalves ◽

Paulo Pereira ◽

Frederico Santarém ◽

Joana R. Vicente ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Earth Observation ◽

Cultural Ecosystem Services ◽

Native Trees

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Impacts of large-scale landscape restoration on spatio-temporal dynamics of ecosystem services in the Chinese Loess Plateau

Landscape Ecology ◽

10.1007/s10980-021-01346-z ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hao Chen ◽

Luuk Fleskens ◽

Johanna Schild ◽

Simon Moolenaar ◽

Fei Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Large Scale ◽

Temporal Dynamics ◽

Chinese Loess Plateau ◽

Land Restoration ◽

Restoration Project ◽

Cultural Services ◽

Chinese Loess ◽

Regulating Services ◽

Trade Offs

Abstract Context From 1999 onwards, China has initiated a large-scale landscape restoration project in the Chinese Loess Plateau, which has had profound but variable impacts on the local ecosystem services supply. The dynamics of ecosystem services throughout the restoration process remain poorly understood. Objectives To analyze the spatial and temporal dynamics in ecosystem services before and after the implementation of the land restoration project, and to understand trade-offs and synergies between multiple ecosystem services. Methods We used the InVEST model and statistical yearbook data to quantify the ecosystem services over the period 1990–2018 for the Yan’an area and applied the concept of ecosystem service bundles to understand the dynamics of 11 ecosystem services over its 13 constituent counties. Results A significant increase of fruit production, sediment retention, habitat quality, aesthetic landscape value, and learning and inspiration value was found over time in the Yan’an area, while a decrease of timber production and water yield was also observed. The majority of the county-level ecosystem service bundles were transformed from having a focus on timber production to aesthetic landscape value. The dynamics of ecosystem services change induced by land restoration was discovered to start with increasing regulating services at the expense of provisioning services, while cultural services exceeded regulating services and occupied the main proportion subsequently. Conclusion Both trade-offs and synergies were found between provisioning, regulating and cultural services. Implementation of the large-scale restoration project is recognized as a key driving force inducing change of ecosystem services, starting with an improvement of regulating services followed by a gradually evolving prominence of cultural services.

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Native Trees as a Provider of Vital Urban Ecosystem Services in Urbanizing New Zealand: Status Quo, Challenges and Prospects

Land ◽

10.3390/land11010092 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 92

Author(s):

Jihwi Jang ◽

Su Young Woo

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Native Species ◽

Urban Ecosystem ◽

Air Pollutant ◽

Urban Trees ◽

Pollutant Emissions ◽

Planted Forests ◽

Native Trees ◽

Native Tree

In New Zealand, over 87% of the population currently resides in cities. Urban trees can face a myriad of complex challenges including loss of green space, public health issues, and harm to the existence of urban dwellers and trees, along with domestic greenhouse gas (GHG) and air pollutant emissions. Despite New Zealand being a biodiversity hotspot in terms of natural environments, there is a lack of knowledge about native tree species’ regulating service (i.e., tree development and eco-physiological responses to low air quality, GHG, rising air temperatures, and drought) and how they grow in built-up environments such as cities. Therefore, we argue for the value of these native species in terms of ecosystem services and insist that they need to be viewed in relation to how they will respond to urban abiotic extremes and climate change. We propose to diversify planted forests for several reasons: (1) to improve awareness of the benefits of diverse planted urban forests; (2) to foster native tree research in urban environments, finding new keystone species; and (3) to improve the evidence of urban ecosystem resilience based on New Zealand native trees’ regulating services. This article aims to re-evaluate our understanding of whether New Zealand’s native trees can deal with environmental stress conditions similarly to more commonly planted alien species.

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Effects of widespread non-native trees on regulating ecosystem services

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146141 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 778 ◽

pp. 146141

Author(s):

Pilar Castro-Díez ◽

Álvaro Alonso ◽

Asunción Saldaña-López ◽

Elena Granda

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Native Trees

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Wastewater Management to Conservation and It's Coping to Climate Change Impacts

10.20944/preprints202103.0102.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Kristiyanto Kristiyanto

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Water Cycle ◽

Climate Change Impacts ◽

Tectona Grandis ◽

Global Scale ◽

Wastewater Management ◽

Land Restoration ◽

Ecological Disturbance ◽

Lost Productivity

The drought is one of all phenomena at local to a global scale that caused climate change impacts, alongside it also the human activities related, which were deforested and land use changed that caused to ecological disturbance, which one is hydrological changes. Hence, it’s a lot of lost productivity, chiefly to farming land aspects and the other, so the land restoration by reforestation is needed in framework to water cycle (hydrology) process kindly. The aim of this research has identified and analyzed ecological restoration to ecosystem services, chiefly in wastewater management (treatment) to conservation, especially in Al Zaytun areas (Pesantren), so observing and in-depth individual interview (with some of personage and pesantren of boards) is one method that used to data collected, alongside land survey management to classified type development in Al Zaytun areas. The result of this research revealed that Al Zaytun successfully in water management to conservation by wastewater treated management by Eichhornia crassipes (Enceng gondok), afterward to the reservoir as water saved development. Those conservation types considered capability in reviving to ecological systems to ecosystem services increased kindly, alongside to land restoration by some of the plant species or trees to grow and developed in which Tectona grandis L. f is more dominantly and it's favorite because of investment economic that advantage based on ecological perspective. These were type management that did by Al Zaytun, alongside its able in coping to both drought and climate change impacts kindly and adaptively, and of course, it’s part of an obligation as the follower’s Islam religion in preserving and maintaining natural resources, chiefly to water resources.

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Ecosystem services of native trees: experiences from two traditional agroforestry systems in Karnataka, Southern India

International Journal of Biodiversity Science Ecosystems Services & Management ◽

10.1080/21513732.2014.918057 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 101-111 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

B. Dhanya ◽

B.N. Sathish ◽

Syam Viswanath ◽

Seema Purushothaman

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Agroforestry Systems ◽

Southern India ◽

Native Trees ◽

Traditional Agroforestry

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Using Ecosystem Service Bundles to Evaluate Spatial and Tmporal Impacts of Large-scale Landscape Restoration on Ecosystem Services on the Chinese Loess Plateau

10.21203/rs.3.rs-273669/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hao Chen ◽

Luuk Fleskens ◽

Johanna Schild ◽

Simon Moolenaar ◽

Fei Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Large Scale ◽

Chinese Loess Plateau ◽

Land Restoration ◽

Landscape Restoration ◽

Restoration Project ◽

Chinese Loess ◽

Trade Offs ◽

Landscape Value ◽

The Chinese Loess Plateau

Abstract ContextFrom 1999 onwards, China has initiated a large-scale landscape restoration project on the Chinese Loess Plateau, which has had profound but variable impacts on the local ecosystem services supply. There was less understood of land restoration impacts on the ecosystem services and dynamics of ecosystem services thoroughout the restoration process.ObjectivesTo to analyse the spatial and temporal dynamics in ecosystem services before and after the implementation of the land restoration project, and to understand trade-offs and synergies between multiple ecosystem services. MethodsWe used InVEST model and statistical yearbook data to quantify the ecosystem, the concept of ecosystem service bundles was applied to understand the dynamics of ecosystem services.ResultsA significant increase of fruit production, sediment retention, habitat quality, aesthetic landscape value, learning and inspiration value was found overtime in Yan’an area, while a decrease of timber production and water yield was also observed. The majority of ecosystem services bundles area were transformed from having a focus on timber production to aesthetic landscape value. The dynamics of ecosystem services change by land restoration was discovered, to start with increasing regulating services at expense of provisioning services, cultural services exceeding regulating services and occupied the main proportion subsequently.ConclusionBoth trade-offs and synergies were found between provisioning, regulating and cultural services, implementation of the large-scale restoration project is recognized as a key driving force inducing change of ecosystem services.

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