Abstract
Extensive farming practices and landscape heterogeneity promote biodiversity in agroecosystems. However, the effect of such practices might be landscape dependent; specifically, the effect might be greatest where the loss of heterogeneity has been the largest. In recent decades, agricultural intensification and landscape simplification have dramatically affected the Mediterranean region, where olive groves are one of the predominant crops. For instance, in Spain from 1996 to 2008, the amount of land dedicated to olive groves increased by 300,000 ha (12 %). In conventional olive farming, herbicides are applied intensively to minimize competition between crops and swards for water; however, to prevent erosion, many farmers are maintaining swards within crops. This practice likely benefits farmland biodiversity, although the heterogeneity of the surrounding landscape might influence the extent of these effects. This study assessed the effects of herbaceous cover on the abundance and species richness of songbird communities in six matched pairs of olive groves (ground cover or bare ground) in homogeneous and heterogeneous landscapes over a 3-year period. We predicted that (1) the presence of ground cover and landscape heterogeneity would have a positive effect on songbird communities, and (2) the effect would be greatest in homogeneous environments. Although bird community composition differed among landscape types and farming practices in the olive groves in southern Spain, the effect of ground cover was not landscape dependent. The presence of ground cover had a positive effect on the abundance and richness of songbirds, including sensitive species, but landscape heterogeneity did not have an effect. This study underscores the important role of agricultural practices in preserving farmland bird communities, while it also suggests that landscape heterogeneity might not be very important in Mediterranean perennial farming systems. The positive effects of ground cover can be important for preserving the wintering quarters of numerous European bird species, including species of conservation concern.
Zusammenfassung
Sind die Auswirkungen landwirtschaftlicher Methoden auf Singvogelgemeinschaften von der Landschaftsform abhängig? Eine Fallstudie an Olivenhainen in Südspanien
Extensive Anbaumethoden und heterogene Landschaften fördern die Biodiversität in agrarischen Ökosystemen. Die Auswirkungen solcher Methoden können allerdings von der jeweiligen Landschaft abhängen; dieser Effekt könnte vor allem dort besonders stark sein, wo die Verluste an Heterogenität am größten sind. In den letzten Jahrzehnten haben Intensivierung der Landwirtschaft und Flurbereinigung den Mittelmeerraum, wo Olivenhaine eine der prägenden Kulturen sind, dramatisch verändert. So hat sich zum Beispiel in Spanien die als Olivenhaine ausgewiesene Landfläche zwischen 1996 und 2008 um 300,000 ha (12 %) vergrößert. Beim konventionellen Olivenanbau werden intensiv Herbizide ausgebracht, um die Konkurrenz zwischen den Anbaupflanzen und der Grasflur um Wasser zu minimieren; allerdings belassen viele Farmer zur Erosionsvermeidung Grasfluren zwischen den Kulturen, von denen die Biodiversität der Ackerlandschaft vermutlich profitiert, obwohl die Heterogenität der umgebenden Landschaft das Ausmaß dieser Auswirkungen beeinflussen könnte. In dieser Studie untersuchten wir über einen Zeitraum von drei Jahren die Auswirkungen der Bodenbedeckung auf die Häufigkeit und den Artenreichtum von Singvogelgemeinschaften in sechs vergleichbaren Paaren von Olivenhainen (Bodenbedeckung oder kahler Boden) in homogenen und heterogenen Landschaften. Wir machten die Voraussagen, dass (1) das Vorhandensein von Bodenbedeckung und die Heterogenität der Landschaft einen positiven Effekt auf die Singvogelgemeinschaften hätten, und dass (2) dieser Effekt in einem homogenen Umfeld am stärksten sein müsste. Obgleich sich die Zusammensetzung der Vogelgemeinschaften in den südspanischen Olivenhainen zwischen den Landschaftstypen und Anbaumethoden unterschied, hing der Effekt der Bodenbedeckung nicht von der Landschaftsform ab. Das Vorhandensein von Bodenbedeckung wirkte sich positiv auf Häufigkeit und Artenreichtum der Singvögel aus, darunter auch sensible Arten; die Heterogenität der Landschaft zeigte allerdings keinen Effekt. Diese Studie unterstreicht die wichtige Rolle landwirtschaftlicher Methoden für den Erhalt der Vogelgemeinschaften der Agrarlandschaft, deutet aber gleichzeitig darauf hin, dass eine heterogene Landschaft im Fall der dauerhaften Anbauformen des Mittelmeerraumes von geringerer Bedeutung sein könnte. Der positive Einfluss der Bodenbedeckung kann für den Erhalt der Winterquartiere vieler europäischer Vogelarten, darunter auch solche, die schutzbedürftig sind, von Belang sein.
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Acknowledgments
We thank all the farmers who gave us permission to work in their fields. Special thanks go to C. G. Bueno for useful discussions and statistical advice, and B. MacWhirter for improving the English version of the manuscript. The University of Córdoba funded this project. ICB was supported by a postdoctoral fellowship provided by the Consejería de Educación, Ciencia y Cultura (JCCM, Spain) and the European Social Fund.
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Communicated by T. Gottschalk.
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Castro-Caro, J.C., Barrio, I.C. & Tortosa, F.S. Is the effect of farming practices on songbird communities landscape dependent? A case study of olive groves in southern Spain. J Ornithol 155, 357–365 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-013-1010-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-013-1010-z