Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Is there a benefit of excluding sheep from pastures at flowering peak on flower-visiting insect diversity?

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Journal of Insect Conservation Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Permanent grasslands are an important habitat for insect communities, including pollinator populations which are in pan-European decline. Here, we investigated the benefits of temporarily excluding sheep from pastures on butterfly (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera and Zygaenidae) and bumblebee (Hymenoptera: Bombidae) communities in two semi-natural grasslands differing in soil fertility and surrounding landscapes. We compared the impact of continuous grazing against rotational grazing (RG) at the same stocking rate but in which a subplot was excluded from the rotation during the main flowering period. We predicted that the diversity of flower-visiting insect community would be improved by RG due to the preservation of flower-rich patches and the maintenance of sward heterogeneity. Benefits of RG management were mainly evidenced on bumblebee density and species richness, with some additional effects on local density of butterflies during the subplot-exclusion period. Temporarily excluding sheep from pastures during peak flowering could thus offer an opportunity to preserve the diversity of flower-visiting insects, in spite of weaker benefits than could have been expected from previous surveys with cattle.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bachelard P, Fournier F (2008) Papillons du Puy de Dôme. Atlas écologique des Rhopalocères et Zygènes, Revoir, Nohanent

    Google Scholar 

  • Bardat J, Bioret F, Boniteau M, Boullet V, Delpech R, Gehu JM, Haury J, Lacoste A, Rameau JC, Royer JM, Roux G, Touffet J (2004) Prodrome des Végétations de France. Publications scientifiques du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris

    Google Scholar 

  • Barthram GT (1986) Experimental techniques: the HFRO sward stick. Biennial report, 1984–85, Hill Farming Research Organization, Penicuik, pp 29–30

  • Biedermann R, Achtziger R, Nickel H, Stewart AJA (2005) Conservation of grassland leafhoppers: a brief review. J Insect Conserv 9:229–243. doi:10.1007/s10841-005-0531-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braun-Blanquet J (1932) Plant sociology, the study of plant communities. McGraw-Hill, New-York

    Google Scholar 

  • Carvell C (2002) Habitat use and conservation of bumblebees (Bombus spp.) under different grassland management regimes. Biol Conserv 103:33–49. doi:10.1016/S0006-3207(01)00114-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clarke KR, Somerfield PJ, Chapman MG (2006) On resemblance measures for ecological studies, including taxonomic dissimilarities and a zero-adjusted Bray-Curtis coefficient for denuded assemblages. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 330:55–80. doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2005.12.017

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crawley MJ (2007) The R Book. Wiley, Chichester

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dahms H, Mayr S, Birkhofer K, Chauvat M, Melnichnova E, Wolters V, Dauber J (2010) Contrasting diversity patterns of epigeic arthropods between grasslands of high and low agronomic potential. Basic Appl Ecol 11:6–14. doi:10.1016/j.baae.2009.06.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dramstad W, Fry D (1995) Foraging activity of bumblebees (Bombus) in relation to flower resources on arable land. Agric Ecosyst Environ 53:123–135. doi:10.1016/0167-8809(94)00561-R

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dumont B, Carrère P, Ginane C, Farruggia A, Lanore L, Tardif A, Decuq F, Darsonville O, Louault F (2011) Plant-herbivore interactions affect the initial direction of community changes in an ecosystem manipulation experiment. Basic Appl Ecol 12:187–194. doi:10.1016/j.baae.2011.02.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farruggia A, Dumont B, Scohier A, Leroy T, Pradel P, Garel JP (2012) An alternative grazing management strategy designed to favour butterflies in permanent grassland. Grass Forage Sci 67:136–149. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2494.2011.00829.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Franzén M, Nilsson SG (2008) How can we preserve and restore species richness of pollinating insects on agricultural land? Ecography 31:698–708. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0587.2008.05110.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goffart P, Schtickzelle N, Turlure C (2010) Conservation and management of the habitats of two relict butterflies in the Belgian Ardennes: Proclossiana eunomia and Lycaena helle. In: Habel JC, Assmann T (eds) Relict species—phylogeography and conservation biology. Springer, Berlin, pp 357–370

    Google Scholar 

  • Gotelli N, Colwell R (2001) Quantifying biodiversity: procedures and pitfalls in measurement and comparison of species richness. Ecol Lett 4:379–391. doi:10.1046/j.1461-0248.2001.00230.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goulson D (2010) Bumblebees, behaviour, ecology, and conservation. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Grime JP, Hodgson JG, Hunt R (1988) Comparative plant ecology. A Functional Approach to Common British Species, Unwin Hyman

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanley ME, Franco M, Pichon S, Darvill B, Goulson D (2008) Breeding system, pollinator choice and variation in pollen quality in British herbaceous plants. Funct Ecol 22:592–598. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2435.2008.01415.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs J (1974) Quantitative measurements of food selection. A modification of the forage ratio and Ivlev’s electivity index. Oecologia 14:413–417

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kruess A, Tscharntke T (2002) Grazing intensity and the diversity of grasshoppers, butterflies and trap-nesting bees and wasps. Conserv Biol 16:1570–1580. doi:10.1046/j.1523-1739.2002.01334.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lye CG, Kaden JC, Park KJ, Goulson D (2010) Forage use and niche partitioning by non-native bumblebees in New Zealand: implications for the conservation of their populations of origin. J Insect Conserv 14:607–615. doi:1007/s10841-010-9287-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morris MG, Clarke RT, Rispin WE (2005) The success of a rotational grazing system in conserving the diversity of chalk grassland Auchenorrhyncha. J Insect Conserv 9:363–374. doi:10.1007/s10841-005-8825-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Öckinger E, Eriksson AK, Smith HG (2006) Effects of grassland abandonment, restoration and management on butterflies and vascular plants. Biol Conserv 133:291–300. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2006.06.009

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olff H, Ritchie ME (1998) Effects of herbivores on grassland plant diversity. Trends Ecol Evol 13:261–265. doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(98)01364-0

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pasta DJ (2011) Those confounded interactions: building and interpreting a model with many potential confounders and interactions. In: Statistics and Data Analysis SAS Global Forum 2011, paper 347

  • Pollard E, Yates TJ (1993) Monitoring Butterflies for Ecology and Conservation. Chapman and Hall, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Potts SG, Biesmeijer JC, Kremen C, Neumann P, Schweiger O, Kunin WE (2010) Global pollinator declines: trends, impacts and drivers. Trends Ecol Evol 25:345–353. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2010.01.007

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Prŷs-Jones OE, Corbet SA (1991) Bumblebees. Naturalists’ Handbooks. The Richmond Publishing Co, Slough

    Google Scholar 

  • Rasmont P, Terzo M (2010) Catalogue et clé des sous-genres et espèces du genre Bombus de Belgique et du nord de la France (Hymenoptera, Apoidea). Université de Mons, Laboratoire de Zoologie

    Google Scholar 

  • Rook AJ, Dumont B, Isselstein J, Osoro K, WallisDeVries MF, Parente G, Mills J (2004) Matching type of livestock to desired biodiversity outcomes in pastures: a review. Biol Conserv 119:137–150. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2003.11.010

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scohier A, Dumont B (2012) How do sheep affect plant communities and arthropod populations in temperate grasslands? Animal 6:1129–1138. doi:10.1017/S1751731111002618

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sebastià MT, De Bello F, Puig L, Taull M (2008) Grazing as a factor structuring grasslands in the Pyrenees. Appl Veg Sci 11:215–222. doi:10.3170/2008-7-18358

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shochat E, Wolfe DH, Patten MA, Reinking DL, Sherrod SK (2005) Ecological traps in isodars: effects of tallgrass prairie management on bird nest success. Oikos 111:159–169. doi:10.1111/j.0030-1299.2005.13907.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sjödin NE (2007) Pollinator behavioural responses to grazing intensity. Biodivers Conserv 16:2103–2121. doi:0.1007/s10531-006-9103-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sjödin NE, Bengtsson J, Ekbom B (2008) The influence of grazing intensity and landscape composition on the diversity and abundance of flower-visiting insects. J Appl Ecol 45:763–772. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2664.2007.01443.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stewart GB, Pullin AS (2008) The relative importance of grazing stock type and grazing intensity for conservation of mesotrophic ‘old meadow’ pasture. J Nat Conserv 16:175–185. doi:10.1016/j.jnc.2008.09.005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thomas JA, Telfer MG, Roy DB, Preston CD, Greenwood JJD, Asher J, Fox R, Clarke RT, Lawton JH (2004) Comparative losses of British butterflies, birds, and plants and the global extinction crisis. Science 303:1879–1881. doi:10.1126/science.1095046

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tolman T, Lewington R (1997) Butterflies of Britain and Europe. Harpers-Collins Publishers, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Swaay C, Warren M, Lois G (2006) Biotope use and trends of European butterflies. J Insect Conserv 10:189–209. doi:10.1007/s10841-006-6293-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • WallisDeVries MF, Poschlod P, Willems JH (2002) Challenges for the conservation of calcareous grasslands in northwestern Europe: integrating the requirements of flora and fauna. Biol Conserv 104:265–273. doi:10.1016/S0006-3207(01)00191-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • WallisDeVries MF, Parkinson AE, Dulphy JP, Sayer M, Diana E (2007) Effects of livestock breed and grazing intensity on biodiversity and production in grazing systems. 4. Effects on animal diversity. Grass For Sci 62:185–197. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2494.2007.00568.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woodcock BA, Pywell R, Roy DB, Rose R, Bell D (2005) Grazing management of calcareous grasslands and its implications for the conservation of beetle communities. Biol Conserv 125:192–202. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2005.03.017

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yoshihara Y, Chimeddorj B, Buuueibaatar B, Lhaquasuren B, Takatsuki S (2008) Effects of livestock grazing on pollination on a steppe in Eastern Mongolia. Biol Conserv 14:2376–2386. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2008.07.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Philippe Bachelard and Benjamin Calmont (Société d’Histoires Naturelles Alcide-d’Orbigny) for insect counts and identification. We are also grateful to Mickael Bernard and Pascal Payard from the INRA UERT Unit for providing us with excellent research facilities, and to Laurent Lanore and student Manon Bonnot for help with vegetation measurements. The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007-2013) under the grant agreement n° FP7-244983 (MULTISWARD).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. INRA, UMR Herbivores, Theix, 63122, Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France

    Alexandra Scohier, Anne Farruggia & Bertrand Dumont

  2. INRA/INP-ENSAT, UMR DYNAFOR, BP 32 607, 31326, Castanet-Tolosan Cedex, France

    Annie Ouin

Authors
  1. Alexandra Scohier
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Annie Ouin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anne Farruggia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Bertrand Dumont
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bertrand Dumont.

Appendices

Appendix 1

See Table 1.

Table 1 Species richness and abundance of butterflies and moths in the Berzet and Vigerale sites
Full size table

Appendix 2

See Table 2.

Table 2 Species richness and abundance of social and cuckoo bumblebees in the Berzet and Vigerale sites
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Scohier, A., Ouin, A., Farruggia, A. et al. Is there a benefit of excluding sheep from pastures at flowering peak on flower-visiting insect diversity?. J Insect Conserv 17, 287–294 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-012-9509-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-012-9509-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation