The role of wild pollinators in highly fragmented agricultural landscapes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Reynolds
Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 807
Author(s):  
Simone Valeri ◽  
Laura Zavattero ◽  
Giulia Capotorti

In promoting biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service capacity, landscape connectivity is considered a critical feature to counteract the negative effects of fragmentation. Under a Green Infrastructure (GI) perspective, this is especially true in rural and peri-urban areas where a high degree of connectivity may be associated with the enhancement of agriculture multifunctionality and sustainability. With respect to GI planning and connectivity assessment, the role of dispersal traits of tree species is gaining increasing attention. However, little evidence is available on how to select plant species to be primarily favored, as well as on the role of landscape heterogeneity and habitat quality in driving the dispersal success. The present work is aimed at suggesting a methodological approach for addressing these knowledge gaps, at fine scales and for peri-urban agricultural landscapes, by means of a case study in the Metropolitan City of Rome. The study area was stratified into Environmental Units, each supporting a unique type of Potential Natural Vegetation (PNV), and a multi-step procedure was designed for setting priorities aimed at enhancing connectivity. First, GI components were defined based on the selection of the target species to be supported, on a fine scale land cover mapping and on the assessment of land cover type naturalness. Second, the study area was characterized by a Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA) and connectivity was assessed by Number of Components (NC) and functional connectivity metrics. Third, conservation and restoration measures have been prioritized and statistically validated. Notwithstanding the recognized limits, the approach proved to be functional in the considered context and at the adopted level of detail. Therefore, it could give useful methodological hints for the requalification of transitional urban–rural areas and for the achievement of related sustainable development goals in metropolitan regions.


Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Yacamán Ochoa ◽  
Daniel Ferrer Jiménez ◽  
Rafael Mata Olmo

Green infrastructure (GI), as a concept and as a tool for environmental land-use planning at various scales, has burst onto the academic, political, and policy-making scenes in the last two decades. This tool, associated with strategic planning, offers integrated solutions for improving the ecological connectivity and urban resilience of open spaces, especially those affected by processes of urban sprawl, the abandonment of agriculture, and the territorial fragmentation of habitats and traditional agricultural landscapes. In spite of the advantages of GI, its design and implementation face a range of challenges and limitations. In this context, this paper has two objectives: Firstly, to address a critical review of recent literature on the subject, which, among other things, highlights the lack of references to the role of peri-urban agriculture in GI planning, and the positive contribution made by peri-urban agriculture to the local food supply and other regulatory and cultural services. Secondly, to propose a methodology to contribute to integrating practical GI planning in metropolitan regions to maximize the activation of traditional agricultural landscapes and the improvement of landscape connectivity in metropolitan regions for the reconnection of rural-urban relationships.


Birds of Prey ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 197-228
Author(s):  
Juan Manuel Grande ◽  
Paula Maiten Orozco-Valor ◽  
María Soledad Liébana ◽  
José Hernán Sarasola

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 2236
Author(s):  
Elena Tamburini ◽  
Elisa Soana ◽  
Mauro Monti ◽  
Elisa Anna Fano ◽  
Giuseppe Castaldelli

Nitrate pollution remains an unsolved issue worldwide, causing serious effects on water quality and eutrophication of freshwater and brackish water environments. Its economic costs are still underestimated. To reduce nitrogen excess, constructed wetlands are usually recognized as a solution but, in recent years, interest has been raised in the role of ditches and canals in nitrogen removal. In this study, we investigated the environmental and economical sustainability of nitrogen removal capacity, using as a model study a lowland agricultural sub-basin of the Po River (Northern Italy), where the role of aquatic vegetation and related microbial processes on the mitigation of nitrate pollution has been extensively studied. Based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach and costs and benefits analysis (CBA), the effectiveness of two different scenarios of vegetation management, which differ for the timing of mowing, have been compared concerning the nitrogen removal via denitrification and other terms of environmental sustainability. The results highlighted that postponing the mowing to the end of the vegetative season would contribute to buffering up to 90% of the nitrogen load conveyed by the canal network during the irrigation period and would reduce by an order of magnitude the costs of eutrophication potential.


2015 ◽  
Vol 58 (12) ◽  
pp. 2113-2136 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.J. Villanueva ◽  
S. Targetti ◽  
L. Schaller ◽  
M. Arriaza ◽  
J. Kantelhardt ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Della Rocca ◽  
Silvia Stefanelli ◽  
Elisa Cardarelli ◽  
Giuseppe Bogliani ◽  
Francesco Bracco

Flooded semi-natural grasslands are endangered ecosystems throughout Europe. In Italy, amongst flooded meadows, one special type called “marcita” is strongly threatened. It is a stable flooded grassland used to produce green forage even during winter months due to the thermal properties of water coming from springs and fountains that prevent the soil from freezing. To date, some research has been carried out to investigate the role of the marcita for ornithological and herpetological communities. However, no comprehensive data on invertebrates inhabiting this particular biotope available. The aim of this study was to characterise the terrestrial entomological community of these typical winter-flooded meadows in northern Italy and, in particular, in six marcita fields located in the Ticino Valley Regional Park. We collected data on species richness and diversity of Carabidae, Staphylinidae, Araneae, Lepidoptera and Orthoptera inhabiting marcita during the summers of 2014 and 2015 and data on overwintering Coleoptera during the winter of 2014-2015. Amongst the collected species, we identified those highly linked to this habitat. We found a total of 47 ground beetle species, 35 rove beetle species, 29 spider species, one Lucanidae, 16 butterfly species and 24 grasshopper and cricket species. Most of the species were collected during the summers of 2014 and 2015, while some others were also, or exclusively, overwintering (17 ground beetles, four rove beetles and one Lucanidae) and were collected during the winter of 2014-2015. Marcita fields hosted specialised species and species typical of hygrophilous habitats, amongst which are included the butterfly Lycaena dispar, the ground beetle Dolichus halensis and the grasshopper Chrysochraon dispar. This study represents the first contribution to the knowledge of terrestrial arthropod communities associated with this particular type of winter-irrigated meadow in Europe and confirms the importance of this biotope for invertebrate conservation in agricultural landscapes.


2021 ◽  
pp. 5-26
Author(s):  
V. I. Kiryushin

The main stages of the formation of ecological paradigms of environmental management are considered, the fundamental role of V.V. Dokuchaev ideas and the importance of following V.I. Vernadskiy works in their development are shown. The role of scientists of the Club of Rome in the development of the ideology of sustainable development and its controversial perception by the world scientific community is reflected. The analysis of the existing paradigms, in particular of the co-evolutionary paradigm, and its implementation in the theory and practice of adaptive-landscape farming systems is given. The priority tasks for its improvement are defined. Further prospects for its development are considered in the framework of the proposed constructive-biospheric paradigm of environmental management, which implies the creation of a network of agricultural landscapes (agricultural, water, land reclamation, agro-industrial, rural forestry, livestock, residential) in compliance with the ecological status of the territory. The grouping of ecological functions of the landscape and mechanisms of their transformation into socio-economic functions are considered as tools for landscape-ecological planning and design.


2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 80 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. C. Lefroy ◽  
F. P. Smith

The current effort in Australia to increase the proportion of perennial vegetation in agricultural landscapes to manage dryland salinity presents opportunities to improve the viability of remnant vegetation and its dependant biota. At this intersection of ecology and agriculture, many questions arise concerning interpretations of biodiversity from the perspectives of landowners and conservationists, the conservation priorities in agricultural landscapes, and the role of ecological science in understanding the functional contribution of emerging perennial-plant based farming systems to the viability of the native biota. This paper provides the background for the four papers that follow, presented originally at a workshop at Rutherglen in Victoria in October 2003 to discuss the issue of biodiversity values in agricultural landscapes. It then puts forward an approach to research into the biodiversity value of perennial land use systems based on three principles; understanding regional conservation priorities, appreciating farm scale priorities and constraints from the perspective of the landholder, and identifying response functions to establish the role of revegetation in maintaining the viability of the native biota.


Author(s):  
Peter Pylenok

The article deals with the theory of hydromeliorative recycling as a tool for multiple reuse of drainage water in order to moisten the drained land, improve the environmental sustainability of reclaimed agricultural landscapes and reduce the risk of fires of peatlands. The place and role of hydromeliorative cycle in the system of large geological and small biotic cycle of substances are determined. The calculated dependences of the main technological parameters, methods and methods of hydromeliorative recycling are developed. The technology has been tested in conditions of drainage of alluvial and peat soils.


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