Habitat edges affect patterns of artificial nest predation along a wetland-meadow boundary

Suvorov, Petr; Svobodová, Jana; Albrecht, Tomáš

doi:10.1016/j.actao.2014.06.003

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…Strips can hold more territories per ha than larger (rectangular) areas because the birds also use habitats around the strip as foraging habitat and only a part of the territory (and the territory center) lies within the fallow strip. Yet, in strips or small areas, the risk of predation may be higher than in large areas due to the increased proportion of edge area (Donald, Evans, Pain, Muirhead, & Buckingham, 1998;Suvorov, Svobodova, & Albrecht, 2014). Predators prefer to roam along edges and linear structures like field margins (Fernex, Nagel, & Weber, 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of size, location, and vegetation composition of perennial fallows for farmland birds

Meichtry-Stier

Duplain

Lanz

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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Across Europe, patches of un‐cropped land (field margins, fallows, etc.) have been established and managed as part of agri‐environment schemes (AES) to counteract the decrease in farmland biodiversity. Various studies demonstrate a positive impact of such un‐cropped land on different taxa. However, there is potential to further improve the efficiency of fallow options for farmland birds. In a long‐term monitoring, 12 breeding farmland bird species and sizes of perennial fallows were recorded from 1992 to 2015 in a 6.1 km2 area in Switzerland. Furthermore, habitat composition and fallow characteristics were mapped in 2012. We calculated population trends, analyzed habitat associations and revealed the impact of fallow habitat characteristics on territory density. The proportion of fallows in the study site increased from 1.4% (1992) to 8.5% (2012). Population trends of six of 12 censused species increased significantly over the same time, four species showed no trend and trends of two species decreased. Seven species were analyzed in more detail, for five of them fallows were overrepresented around their territory center points compared to arable fields and grassland. The overall territory density of these five species was higher in small fallows which were not placed next to a wood and which held bramble rubus spp., shrubs and the tall‐growing forb goldenrod (Solidago canadensis and S. gigantea). Our study confirms that perennial fallows are a highly suitable option to support different farmland birds in arable landscapes. Yet, we recommend optimizing fallows through careful site selection and management, such that they are not established on shady locations and are structurally diverse by allowing brambles, shrubs, and tall‐growing forbs to occur. We suggest adapting the Swiss AES in this regard. Biodiversity‐related advisory services available for farmers could increase the probability that fallow options are implemented and managed properly for targeted species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of size, location, and vegetation composition of perennial fallows for farmland birds

Meichtry-Stier

Duplain

Lanz

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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“…primates (Lenz et al, 2014) and other mammals (Brodie et al, 2015;Woodroffe and Ginsberg, 1998), invertebrates Didham, 2008, 2006;Soga et al, 2012) and herbivorous insects (Guimarães et al, 2014). Likewise, while we investigated a tropical forest biome, edge effects are pervasive in other natural biomes, including temperate forests (Crockatt and Bebber, 2015), peatlands (Wilson et al, 2014), grasslands (Perkins et al, 2013), wetlands (Suvorov et al, 2014) and steppe (Knight et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

To what extent could edge effects and habitat fragmentation diminish the potential benefits of land sparing?

Lamb

Balmford

Green

et al. 2016

Biological Conservation

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Land sharing and land sparing are contrasting proposals for minimising the impacts of agriculture on wild species. Edge effects (biophysical gradients near habitat boundaries) might reduce population sizes on spared land, particularly in highly-fragmented landscapes, so might change conclusions about whether land sparing or land sharing is better for species' persistence. We assessed this possibility by modelling the population sizes of 120 Ghanaian bird species in the presence of a range of hypothetical edge effects under land-sparing and land-sharing strategies, and at different levels of habitat fragmentation and agricultural production. We found that edge effects can reduce population densities on spared land, and in highly-fragmented landscapes can-at modest levels of agricultural production combined with high edge penetration distances-cause the optimal strategy to switch from land sparing to land sharing. Nevertheless, land sparing maximised population sizes for more species in most cases tested. This conclusion was best supported for sensitive species with small global geographical ranges, which are likely to include those of greatest future conservation concern. The size of patches of spared land affected conservation outcomes: population sizes were maximised under a land-sparing strategy that spared large blocks of natural habitat of ~1,000 or, better, ~10,000 ha. To effect land sparing in practice would require policies that promoted both increases in agricultural yield and the establishment or protection of natural habitats on spared land. Because the optimum scale of patches of spared land for edgesensitive species is generally larger than the size of individual farms, policies that facilitate coordinated action by farmers or other land managers might be required.

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“…For example, Fagan et al [ 9 ] suggest several mechanisms by which species interactions may be intensified along habitat edges. Organisms may show preferences for edges if they can exploit resources from both sides of the edge, encouraging them to spend more time at edges than in interior habitats [ 10 ]. Similarly, when edges act as barriers animals often move parallel to them, treating them as ‘travel lanes’ [ 9 ], which could result in increased interspecific contacts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An example of changing species interactions along habitat boundaries are avian nest predation rates, where proximity to an edge increases the probability of a nest being predated [ 12 ]. Increased predator activity along edges, and the spillover of predators into neighbouring habitats could provide mechanisms by which encounter rates between predators and nests are increased [ 10 ]. As nest success is explicitly related to an individual’s fitness, and is thus a vital demographic rate in bird populations [ 13 ], edge effects on nest predation rates have been extensively explored.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Batáry & Báldi [ 12 ] review studies in marsh habitats and demonstrate, overall, a significant edge effect on nest predation rates. However, subsequent experiments involving artificial nests have shown more variable results, suggesting effects may be dynamic [ 10 , 23 – 27 ]. Indeed, several studies have alluded to dynamic spatial and temporal effects within reedbeds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Seasonal Dynamics of Artificial Nest Predation Rates along Edges in a Mosaic Managed Reedbed

Malzer

Helm

2015

PLoS ONE

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Boundaries between different habitats can be responsible for changes in species interactions, including modified rates of encounter between predators and prey. Such ‘edge effects’ have been reported in nesting birds, where nest predation rates can be increased at habitat edges. The literature concerning edge effects on nest predation rates reveals a wide variation in results, even within single habitats, suggesting edge effects are not fixed, but dynamic throughout space and time. This study demonstrates the importance of considering dynamic mechanisms underlying edge effects and their relevance when undertaking habitat management. In reedbed habitats, management in the form of mosaic winter reed cutting can create extensive edges which change rapidly with reed regrowth during spring. We investigate the seasonal dynamics of reedbed edges using an artificial nest experiment based on the breeding biology of a reedbed specialist. We first demonstrate that nest predation decreases with increasing distance from the edge of cut reed blocks, suggesting edge effects have a pivotal role in this system. Using repeats throughout the breeding season we then confirm that nest predation rates are temporally dynamic and decline with the regrowth of reed. However, effects of edges on nest predation were consistent throughout the season. These results are of practical importance when considering appropriate habitat management, suggesting that reed cutting may heighten nest predation, especially before new growth matures. They also contribute directly to an overall understanding of the dynamic processes underlying edge effects and their potential role as drivers of time-dependent habitat use.

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Habitat edges affect patterns of artificial nest predation along a wetland-meadow boundary

Cited by 14 publications

References 66 publications

The importance of size, location, and vegetation composition of perennial fallows for farmland birds

The importance of size, location, and vegetation composition of perennial fallows for farmland birds

To what extent could edge effects and habitat fragmentation diminish the potential benefits of land sparing?

The Seasonal Dynamics of Artificial Nest Predation Rates along Edges in a Mosaic Managed Reedbed

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