Effects of surrounding crop and semi-natural vegetation on the plant diversity of paddy fields

Abstract

Background: The ecosystems around, and plant composition in, paddy fields in Java are varied, owing to differences in climate, altitude, and traditional farming practice. This study examines the effects of different types of surrounding land use and vegetation on the plant diversity in paddy fields.

Relevance of local scale factors in winter host‐plant selection by the rice pest Tibraca limbativentris (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

“…In our study, no live nymphs of any instar, or T. limbativentris oviposition were found in any of the recorded host plants, not even in the winter rice sprouts found in grassland. This agrees with previous winter studies that involved individuals of T. limbativentris in imaginal diapause (Klein et al, ; Kruger, ). This suggests that the winter host plant selection by T. limbativentris may be related more to plant characteristics that ensure a good refuge than to the characteristics of the plants that facilitate reproduction/performance.…”

“…On the other hand, the higher abundance of T. limbativentris on grassland vegetation in relation to the rice stubble could be associated with the hostile habitat offered by the rice plots during the post‐harvest time (dry, high humidity, destruction of habitat, among others). These are unfavourable conditions for stink bug survival, and in these conditions, the population moves to areas near the rice plots, with more favourable habitats for hibernation (Ferreira et al, ; Kruger, ; Pazini et al, ).…”

“…The pathogenicity of this species has been studied in the laboratory, with the findings suggesting it to be the most efficient species in the control of T. limbativentris in the target area (D. Fuentes‐Rodríguez, A. Toledo, P. Gervazoni, N. Pedrini, M. Santana, A. Sosa, …C. Franceschini unpublished data; Kruger, ). In the case of incorporating some type of winter biological control in common for the target rice fields, an excellent option would be to use some native strain of M. anisopliae for its incidence in all the rice fields studied.…”

Importance of native vegetation for detection and management of rice stink bug (Tibraca limbativentris)

“…However, other studies suggest that high natural plant biodiversity can positively contribute to agroecosystem productivity by enhancing natural pest biocontrol, because native vegetation can host natural enemies of crop pests which may assist natural regulation of pest outbreaks (Tscharntke et al ., 2007; Haddad et al ., 2011). Because of this role, many recent studies have concluded that conserving natural plant biodiversity around agricultural systems plays a positive function in helping to maintain crop health (e.g., Garbach et al ., 2014; Kumalasari and Bergmeier, 2014; Luo et al ., 2014).…”

Weed germinable seedbanks of rice–wheat systems in the Eastern Indo‐Gangetic Plains: Do tillage and edaphic factors explain community variation?

“…For example, lowland rice systems in Java have greater rice weed diversity compared to upland ecosystems (Kumalasari and Bergmeier, 2014); however, to our knowledge, there has been no work characterising differences in wheat weed communities within farms located in either an upland versus lowland topography.…”