Semi‐natural habitat surrounding farms promotes multifunctionality in avian ecosystem services

Abstract

1. Farmland birds can suppress insect pests, but may also consume beneficial insects, damage crops and potentially carry foodborne pathogens. As bird communities shift in response to farming practices, so too do the benefits (services) and costs (disservices) from birds. Understanding how and why ecosystem services and disservices covary can inform management interventions that enhance synergies, avoid trade-offs and promote multifunctionality.2. We investigated how farmland diversification practices influence the services and disservices provided by wild birds on 21 California strawberry farms. Specifically, we coupled 285 bird surveys, metabarcoding and other molecular analyses of ~1,000 faecal samples representing 55 bird species (mostly passerines) to determine which individuals consumed pests, natural enemies, and crops and carried foodborne pathogens. Then, we explored how farming practices shape ecosystem service bundles, or suites of consistently co-occurring services/disservices.3. Avian services and disservices were shaped by interactions between local farming practices and landscape context. We found that the amount of semi-natural habitat surrounding each farm was the single most important driver of ecosystem services, with the best outcomes (highest multifunctionality) occurring on farms surrounded by semi-natural habitat. 4. Bundles were primarily influenced by landscape context. Increasing semi-natural habitat around farms was associated with more multifunctional bird communities that maximized services and minimized disservices. However, not all tradeoffs were minimized in landscapes with more semi-natural habitat, suggesting that specific farming contexts can exacerbate or mitigate trade-offs as bird communities shift in response to diversification practices. Synthesis and applications.Though growers are often pressured to remove noncrop habitat to reduce food-safety risks, our work suggests that conserving habitat can support bird conservation, mitigate food-safety risks and decrease | 899

Remnant vegetation in farmland - its significance in ethnobotany and local ecosystem

“…3), as was also observed by Rey Benayas and Bullock in a European context (49). Maintaining native plants along field margins is beneficial for local biodiversity, pest control, crop pollination, better water retention and soil quality, food/nutrition security and additional ecosystem services (50)(51)(52)(53). Few particular tree species like A. indica, Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Pongamia pinnata received local attention due to their religious affiliations and importance to serve as effective shade trees for the farmers, agriculture laborers or pastoralists.…”

Avian regulation of crop and forest pests, a meta‐analysis

“…Studying and identifying the underlying mechanisms, which usually involve cascading effects by suppression of herbivore pest predators, 23,30,69,84,87,88 are complicated but elemental to understand interactions across all levels of the food chain (crops, pests, and birds) 84 . Birds can suppress agricultural pest predators, and numerous articles highlight that this is a context‐dependent phenomenon 87,89 . Moreover, we identified some structural factors conditioning pest control by birds that should be considered in further studies.…”

“…84 Birds can suppress agricultural pest predators, and numerous articles highlight that this is a context-dependent phenomenon. 87,89 Moreover, we identified some structural factors conditioning pest control by birds that should be considered in further studies. At a landscape scale, factors such as landscape complexity, 22,28 land-use gradient, 62 and distance to natural habitats 90 may modulate pest regulation by birds.…”

“…85,86 We encourage research that focuses on the net effect of birds because the number of observations accounting for negative effects of birds in our meta-analysis was low. Studying and identifying the underlying mechanisms, which usually involve cascading effects by suppression of herbivore pest predators, 23,30,69,84,87,88 are complicated but elemental to understand interactions across all levels of the food chain (crops, pests, and birds). 84 Birds can suppress agricultural pest predators, and numerous articles highlight that this is a context-dependent phenomenon.…”

Interactive effects of multiscale diversification practices on farmland bird stress

“…Strawberry farms could represent an ecological trap if birds preferentially exploit strawberries as an abundant food resource, but a strawberry-rich diet is a poor nutritional regime that ultimately decreases feather growth (Robertson et al, 2013). Our previous work in this system indicated that nearly half of all birds captured in this study area consume strawberries (Olimpi et al, 2022a). However, a deeper understanding of the relative importance of strawberries in bird diets precludes testing the effects of strawberry consumption on nutritional condition.…”