The look of agricultural landscapes – How do non-crop landscape elements contribute to visual preferences in a large-scale agricultural landscape?

Dangerous and useful at the same time: management strategies for the invasive black locust The North American black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is considered controversial as many other introduced tree species because of its both positive and negative properties. Based on a literature review and own data we analyze the occurrence of black locust in Czechia and Switzerland and present the management approaches in place. In both countries, black locust is on the blacklist of invasive introduced species. It can grow in a wide range of habitats from urban and agricultural landscape to dry grassland and forest. Meanwhile, the species became in many places part of the environment and human culture, so that neither unrestricted cultivation nor large-scale eradication is feasible. We suggest a context-dependent management which respects the different needs and takes into account the local environmental conditions, land-use, habitat type, risk of spread as well as economic, cultural and biodiversity aspects. To this purpose we propose three management strategies: 1) control respectively gradual suppression of black locust in forests where the species is not welcome, 2) its eradication in sensitive ecosystems as dry grasslands or clear and dry forests and 3) its tolerance in intensively managed agricultural landscapes and in urban environment.

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Agricultural Landscapes

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199978427.013.39 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Kurt Anschuetz ◽

Eileen L. Camilli ◽

Christopher D. Banet

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

American Southwest ◽

Late Archaic ◽

Canal Irrigation ◽

Farming Communities ◽

Large Scale Field ◽

Northern Rio Grande

The discussion in this chapter is based on the premise that agricultural landscapes are the foundations of the economies, social organizations, and cultural identities of farming communities. It reviews selected archaeological districts between Sonora and the northern Rio Grande in which technologically diverse agricultural features, including trincheras, terraces, rock-bordered grids, gravel mulches, and canals, are well documented. This examination shows that large-scale field complexes, including those dependent on canal irrigation, are widespread throughout the pre-colonial North American Southwest, with some dating to the Late Archaic. Consideration of the Tewa Basin of north-central New Mexico as a case study introduces the idea that shrines are other essential agricultural landscape features, which possess the potential to contribute toward fuller understandings of farming settlement dynamics.

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Hedgerows Have a Barrier Effect and Channel Pollinator Movement in the Agricultural Landscape

Journal of Landscape Ecology ◽

10.1515/jlecol-2015-0001 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 22-31 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Felix Klaus ◽

Julia Bass ◽

Lisa Marholt ◽

Birte Müller ◽

Björn Klatt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Pollen Dispersal ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Fluorescent Dye ◽

Natural Habitats ◽

Pollination Services ◽

Landscape Elements ◽

Mobile Species ◽

Management Plans ◽

Linear Landscape Elements

Abstract Agricultural intensification and the subsequent fragmentation of semi-natural habitats severely restrict pollinator and pollen movement threatening both pollinator and plant species. Linear landscape elements such as hedgerows are planted for agricultural and conservation purposes to increase the resource availability and habitat connectivity supporting populations of beneficial organisms such as pollinators. However, hedgerows may have unexpected effects on plant and pollinator persistence by not just channeling pollinators and pollen along, but also restricting movement across the strip of habitat. Here, we tested how hedgerows influence pollinator movement and pollen flow. We used fluorescent dye particles as pollen analogues to track pollinator movement between potted cornflowers Centaurea cyanus along and across a hedgerow separating two meadows. The deposition of fluorescent dye was significantly higher along the hedgerow than across the hedgerow and into the meadow, despite comparable pollinator abundances. The differences in pollen transfer suggest that hedgerows can affect pollinator and pollen dispersal by channeling their movement and acting as a permeable barrier. We conclude that hedgerows in agricultural landscapes can increase the connectivity between otherwise isolated plant and pollinator populations (corridor function), but can have additional, and so far unknown barrier effects on pollination services. Functioning as a barrier, linear landscape elements can impede pollinator movement and dispersal, even for highly mobile species such as bees. These results should be considered in future management plans aiming to enhance the persistence of threatened pollinator and plant populations by restoring functional connectivity and to ensure sufficient crop pollination in the agricultural landscape.

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Increasing crop heterogeneity enhances multitrophic diversity across agricultural regions

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1906419116 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 116 (33) ◽

pp. 16442-16447 ◽

Cited By ~ 52

Author(s):

Clélia Sirami ◽

Nicolas Gross ◽

Aliette Bosem Baillod ◽

Colette Bertrand ◽

Romain Carrié ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Mean Field ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Crop Diversity ◽

Field Size ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Synthetic Index ◽

Crop Types ◽

Landscape Level

Agricultural landscape homogenization has detrimental effects on biodiversity and key ecosystem services. Increasing agricultural landscape heterogeneity by increasing seminatural cover can help to mitigate biodiversity loss. However, the amount of seminatural cover is generally low and difficult to increase in many intensively managed agricultural landscapes. We hypothesized that increasing the heterogeneity of the crop mosaic itself (hereafter “crop heterogeneity”) can also have positive effects on biodiversity. In 8 contrasting regions of Europe and North America, we selected 435 landscapes along independent gradients of crop diversity and mean field size. Within each landscape, we selected 3 sampling sites in 1, 2, or 3 crop types. We sampled 7 taxa (plants, bees, butterflies, hoverflies, carabids, spiders, and birds) and calculated a synthetic index of multitrophic diversity at the landscape level. Increasing crop heterogeneity was more beneficial for multitrophic diversity than increasing seminatural cover. For instance, the effect of decreasing mean field size from 5 to 2.8 ha was as strong as the effect of increasing seminatural cover from 0.5 to 11%. Decreasing mean field size benefited multitrophic diversity even in the absence of seminatural vegetation between fields. Increasing the number of crop types sampled had a positive effect on landscape-level multitrophic diversity. However, the effect of increasing crop diversity in the landscape surrounding fields sampled depended on the amount of seminatural cover. Our study provides large-scale, multitrophic, cross-regional evidence that increasing crop heterogeneity can be an effective way to increase biodiversity in agricultural landscapes without taking land out of agricultural production.

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The Relict Ecosystem of Maytenus senegalensis subsp. europaea in an Agricultural Landscape: Past, Present and Future Scenarios

Land ◽

10.3390/land10010001 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Antonio J. Mendoza-Fernández ◽

Fabián Martínez-Hernández ◽

Esteban Salmerón-Sánchez ◽

Francisco J. Pérez-García ◽

Blas Teruel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plant Communities ◽

Ecological Niche ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Eastern Coast ◽

Ecological Value ◽

Distribution Models ◽

European Continent ◽

Major Interest ◽

Maytenus Senegalensis

Maytenus senegalensis subsp. europaea is a shrub belonging to the Celastraceae family, whose only European populations are distributed discontinuously along the south-eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, forming plant communities with great ecological value, unique in Europe. As it is an endangered species that makes up plant communities with great palaeoecological significance, the development of species distribution models is of major interest under different climatic scenarios, past, present and future, based on the fact that the climate could play a relevant role in the distribution of this species, as well as in the conformation of the communities in which it is integrated. Palaeoecological models were generated for the Maximum Interglacial, Last Maximum Glacial and Middle Holocene periods. The results obtained showed that the widest distribution of this species, and the maximum suitability of its habitat, occurred during the Last Glacial Maximum, when the temperatures of the peninsular southeast were not as contrasting as those of the rest of the European continent and were favored by higher rainfall. Under these conditions, large territories could act as shelters during the glacial period, a hypothesis reflected in the model’s results for this period, which exhibit a further expansion of M. europaea’s ecological niche. The future projection of models in around 2070, for four Representative Concentration Pathways according to the fifth report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, showed that the most favorable areas for this species would be Campo de Dalías (southern portion of Almería province) as it presents the bioclimatic characteristics of greater adjustment to M. europaea’s ecological niche model. Currently, some of the largest specimens of the species survive in the agricultural landscapes in the southern Spain. These areas are almost totally destroyed and heavily altered by intensive agriculture greenhouses, also causing a severe fragmentation of the habitat, which implies a prospective extinction scenario in the near future.

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Predation on Drosophila suzukii within Hedges in the Agricultural Landscape

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects12040305 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 305

Author(s):

Alexandra Siffert ◽

Fabian Cahenzli ◽

Patrik Kehrli ◽

Claudia Daniel ◽

Virginie Dekumbis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Vital Role ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Gut Content ◽

Drosophila Suzukii ◽

Natural Habitats ◽

Host Fruit ◽

Molecular Gut Content Analysis ◽

Wild Fruits ◽

Diverse Community

The invasive Drosophila suzukii feeds and reproduces on various cultivated and wild fruits and moves between agricultural and semi-natural habitats. Hedges in agricultural landscapes play a vital role in the population development of D. suzukii, but also harbor a diverse community of natural enemies. We investigated predation by repeatedly exposing cohorts of D. suzukii pupae between June and October in dry and humid hedges at five different locations in Switzerland. We sampled predator communities and analyzed their gut content for the presence of D. suzukii DNA based on the COI marker. On average, 44% of the exposed pupae were predated. Predation was higher in dry than humid hedges, but did not differ significantly between pupae exposed on the ground or on branches and among sampling periods. Earwigs, spiders, and ants were the dominant predators. Predator communities did not vary significantly between hedge types or sampling periods. DNA of D. suzukii was detected in 3.4% of the earwigs, 1.8% of the spiders, and in one predatory bug (1.6%). While the molecular gut content analysis detected only a small proportion of predators that had fed on D. suzukii, overall predation seemed sufficient to reduce D. suzukii populations, in particular in hedges that provide few host fruit resources.

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Determinants of bird assemblage composition in riparian vegetation on sugarcane farms in the Queensland Wet Tropics

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc14904 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

pp. 60 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Anita F. Keir ◽

Richard G. Pearson ◽

Robert A. Congdon

Keyword(s):

Riparian Vegetation ◽

Wildlife Conservation ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Riparian Zone ◽

Riparian Forest ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Generalist Species ◽

Assemblage Composition ◽

Bird Assemblages ◽

Wet Tropics

Remnant habitat patches in agricultural landscapes can contribute substantially to wildlife conservation. Understanding the main habitat variables that influence wildlife is important if these remnants are to be appropriately managed. We investigated relationships between the bird assemblages and characteristics of remnant riparian forest at 27 sites among sugarcane fields in the Queensland Wet Tropics bioregion. Sites within the remnant riparian zone had distinctly different bird assemblages from those of the forest, but provided habitat for many forest and generalist species. Width of the riparian vegetation and distance from source forest were the most important factors in explaining the bird assemblages in these remnant ribbons of vegetation. Gradual changes in assemblage composition occurred with increasing distance from source forest, with species of rainforest and dense vegetation being replaced by species of more open habitats, although increasing distance was confounded by decreasing riparian width. Species richness increased with width of the riparian zone, with high richness at the wide sites due to a mixture of open-habitat species typical of narrower sites and rainforest species typical of sites within intact forest, as a result of the greater similarity in vegetation characteristics between wide sites and the forest proper. The results demonstrate the habitat value for birds of remnant riparian vegetation in an agricultural landscape, supporting edge and open vegetation species with even narrow widths, but requiring substantial width (>90 m) to support specialists of the closed forest, the dominant original vegetation of the area.

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The Assessment of the Tourism Potential of the Tagus International Nature Reserve Landscapes Using Methods Based on the Opinion of the Demand

Land ◽

10.3390/land11010068 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 68

Author(s):

Dora Isabel Rodrigues Ferreira ◽

José-Manuel Sánchez-Martín

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Nature Reserve ◽

Pairwise Comparison ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Agricultural Activity ◽

Aesthetic Value ◽

Analytic Hierarchy ◽

Natural Protected Areas ◽

Double Approach ◽

Tourism Potential

There are different methodologies to assess landscape preferences, however there is no consensual methodology that can be replicated to identify their tourism potential. Recent studies have focused on agricultural landscape preferences due to their cultural characteristics. Although agricultural activity conflicts with the management models of natural protected areas, traditional models and sustainable practices reveal opportunities to boost tourism in this area, both for their aesthetic value, and for the opportunity to preserve biodiversity and maintain “lively landscapes”. The present study focuses on a double approach to collect data to measure the preferences for landscape typologies to realize outdoor/recreative activities in Tagus International Nature Reserve (TINR), among them, agricultural landscapes, such as the agro-silvopastural system “Dehesa/Montado” or olive grove. The preference of the landscapes were evaluated through photographs with pairwise comparison and without photographs observation, in which 174 respondents were consulted with. The different methodologies applied allowed for the extraction of different results, which led to the assumption that in fact there is no single methodology to assess preferences. However, the application of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) methodology with photographical pairwise comparison allowed for the extraction of more robust results when considering attractions with tourism typologies, revealing that “Cultural tourism/Rural mixed” and “Agritourism” were the most valued. This information is pertinent to support TINR managers and local tourism promoters to plan and structure products and services based on button-up methodologies.

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Methods of Landscape Valorization and Possibilities of Its Application in Hunting Area Categorisation

10.5772/intechopen.94048 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Szewczyk Grzegorz ◽

Krzysztof Lipka ◽

Piotr Wężyk ◽

Karolina Zięba-Kulawik ◽

Monika Winczek

Keyword(s):

Natural Environment ◽

Functional Role ◽

Large Scale ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Environmental Values ◽

Small Game ◽

Forest Habitats

As a result of environmental changes, assessment indexes for the agricultural landscape have been changing dramatically. Being at the interface of human activity and the natural environment, hunting is particularly sensitive to environmental changes, such as increasing deforestation or large-scale farming. The classical categorisation of hunting grounds takes into account the area, forest cover, number of forest complexes, fertility of forest habitats, lack of continuity of areas potentially favourable to wild animals. Landscape assessment methods used in architecture often better reflect the actual breeding and hunting value of a given area, especially in relation to fields and forests. The forest-field mosaic, large spatial fragmentation as well as interweaving of natural environment elements with buildings do not have to be the factors that limit the numbers of small game. Identification of the constituents of architectural-landscape interiors: content and significance assessment, determination of the functional role or assessment based on the general environmental values being represented take into account factors important for the existence of game, in particular small game.

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GIS analysis of change in an agriculture landscape in Central Finland

Agricultural and Food Science ◽

10.23986/afsci.72770 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 5 (6) ◽

pp. 567-576 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Riitta Ruuska ◽

Juha Helenius

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Average Rate ◽

Aerial Photographs ◽

Landscape Elements ◽

Average Proportion ◽

Linear Landscape Elements ◽

Land Survey ◽

Ecosystem Level ◽

Agricultural Use ◽

Index Value

Changes in landscape over a period of 50 years were analysed in a rural area of 324 ha in Central Finland. The data were digitized from aerial photographs of the National Land Survey taken in 1944, 1959, 1979 and 1991, and analysed with the IDRISI™ geographic information system (GIS). The average proportion of land in agricultural use in the sample area was 17.4%. The arable area declined from the maximum of 62.3 ha (1959) to 47.6 ha. The total length of linear landscape elements, predominantly ditch bank habitats, halved, from 876 m/ha of field (1944) to 449 m/ha by the end of the period. The average rate of loss of field boundary habitat was 9.1 m/ha/ year. At the same time, the Shannon-Weaver index of diversity of agricultural landscape elements dropped from 0.37 to 0.24. The number of field parcels declined by 29%, and the mean parcel size increased by 45%, from 1.2 ha to 1.7 ha. The index value of the fractal dimension measuring the complexity of parcel shapes also fell, from 1.88 (1959) to 1.86 (1991). The change in spatial structure reflects the intensification of farming in Finland. Biodiversity at ecosystem level has clearly declined. However, the implications for the agroecosystem and its sustainability are still unknown.

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