Assessment of semi-natural habitats and landscape features on Irish farmland: New insights to inform EU Common Agricultural Policy implementation

Rotchés‐Ribalta, Roser; Ruas, Sara; Ahmed, Karzan D.; Gormally, Michael J.; Moran, James; Stout, Jane C.; White, Blánaid; hUallacháin, Daire Ó

doi:10.1007/s13280-020-01344-6

Cited by 25 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Looking at a gradient of farming intensity from extensive to intermediate to intensive, the Farm Ecos project in Ireland showed that the area of semi-natural habitat was 42% to 15.6% to 6.1%, respectively (Rotchés-Ribalta et al, 2020). Overall, these studies demonstrate how intensive agricultural management such as occurs on most dairy systems is generally associated with a reduced area of habitat available for wild populations of plants and animals, and especially when there is low protection afforded to habitats by policy (Rotchés-Ribalta et al, 2020). There is also a wider off-farm impact of livestock systems that may not be captured by farmscale metrics e.g., biodiversity impacts that arise from conversion of tropical rainforest for cultivation of soy to supplement animal intake of protein, and biodiversity impacts from downstream impacts on water quantity.…”

Section: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service Provisionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Pasture-Based Dairy Systems in Temperate Lowlands: Challenges and Opportunities for the Future

Delaby¹,

Finn²,

Grange³

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Improved efficiency in dairy systems is a significant challenge for the future, to meet increased food demand while competing for inputs, adapting to climate change, and delivering ecosystem services. Future grazing systems can play a major role to supply healthier foods within systems with a reduced reliance on fossil fuels and chemical inputs, while also delivering environmental, biodiversity, and animal welfare benefits. Can we design lower-input systems that deliver efficient levels of output in a positive environmental context? Lower-input systems will have a lower reliance on concentrates and inorganic fertilizers, and an increased reliance on extended grazing seasons and high quality forage. Multiple strategies will be needed to maximize nitrogen use efficiency, including a strong reliance on legume-based swards that displace inorganic nitrogen fertilizer. Expected environmental benefits include a reduction in GHG emissions and nitrate leaching, an increase in C sequestration and a reduced reliance on the use of herbicides and pesticides. In comparison with confinement feeding systems, the relatively low energy density and high climate sensitivity of grazing diets requires both effective pasture management and robust and adaptive animals. The appropriate cow for grazing systems must be able to harvest pasture efficiently by re-calving every 365 days to efficiently utilize peak pasture supply, achieve large intakes of forage relative to their genetic potential for milk production (i.e., aggressive grazers) and be adaptable to fluctuations in feed supply. Legume-based multi-species grassland mixtures can maximize the use of symbiotically-fixed nitrogen, and displace the use of inorganic N fertilizer. There is a need for system-scale experiments that use legume-based mixtures within paddocks, and in grassland leys within crop rotations. Moreover, lower-input systems will need a combined focus on research and knowledge transfer for rapid testing and implementation. New opportunities and requirements will arise as policy, society, and the markets demand a higher level of environmental sustainability from food systems and products. This raises the possibility of public-private partnerships for the demand and reward of provision of environmental benefits. To deliver these benefits, future food systems will need to be redesigned to incorporate the enhanced supply of a range of ecosystem goods and services, which should be better incentivized through the market price returned to producers.

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Section: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service Provisionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Pasture-Based Dairy Systems in Temperate Lowlands: Challenges and Opportunities for the Future

Delaby¹,

Finn²,

Grange³

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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“…For linear habitats, the quality surveys were conducted along 30 m length; two surveys were conducted when a linear habitat was >80 m long (Foulkes et al ., 2013). From the RACs, a score of quality was obtained for each habitat, which was scaled between 0 and 1, with 0 being the lowest quality habitat and 1 the highest quality (see Rotchés‐Ribalta et al ., 2020). The number of flowering plant species (flowering plant species richness) in the linear features and in the grassland was recorded at each site.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The quality of habitats was assessed using rapid assessment cards (RACs) developed for each habitat type in both fields and linear habitats (Rotchés‐Ribalta et al ., 2020) and used to rate the ecosystem condition and provide a picture of the conservation status of habitats. Surveys of habitat quality in both grasslands and linear habitats involved the collection of several variables that were identified as indicators of environmental condition (e.g.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…number and cover of positive/negative plant species indicators) and management pressure (e.g. visual assessment of the level of grazing or poaching pressure) (see Rotchés‐Ribalta et al ., 2020). Habitat quality surveys in grasslands were conducted while walking a “W” shaped route in fields, as recommended in the RBAPS assessment (Maher et al ., 2018b).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Linear habitats across a range of farming intensities contribute differently to dipteran abundance and diversity

D.Ahmed

Volpato

Day

et al. 2020

Insect Conserv Diversity

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While the value of linear farm habitats for the protection and enhancement of farmland biodiversity in general is known, less is understood about their contribution to Diptera, especially those with different ecological requirements. In this study, we examined the impact of a range of linear farm habitats in agricultural grassland on Syrphidae and Sciomyzidae (Diptera) both of which provide important ecosystem services. Species richness and abundance for each family were measured across five different linear habitat types (dense and open hedgerows with/without adjacent watercourses and watercourses only). While dense hedgerows with adjacent watercourses showed the greatest numbers of Syrphidae species and individuals, open hedgerows with adjacent watercourses had significantly more Sciomyzidae species and individuals than dense hedgerows without watercourses or open hedgerows only. Syrphidae species richness was significantly correlated with the flowering plant species richness of linear habitats, while Sciomyzidae species richness was correlated with a habitat quality score for grasslands adjacent to the linear habitats. Overall, Syrphidae and Sciomyzidae species richness and community composition are shown to reflect a farming intensity gradient with significantly greater species richness for both families on extensive farms. Our results suggest that different dipteran taxa which utilise linear habitats may have different requirements. This has implications for future agri‐environmental schemes in the context of how we assess the conservation value of linear habitats on farmlands.

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“…More intensively managed livestock systems are associated with lower levels and diversity of semi-natural habitats. Looking at a gradient of farming intensity from extensive to intermediate to intensive, the Farm-Ecos project in Ireland showed that the area of semi-natural habitat declined from 42% to 15.6% to 6.1%, respectively ( Rotchés-Ribalta et al, 2021 ). Surveys of mostly grassland farms in Ireland reported average semi-natural habitat areas of 13% to 15% ( Sheridan et al, 2011 , 2017 ; Sullivan et al, 2011 ).…”

Section: Livestock Production and Biodiversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability of ruminant livestock production in Ireland

et al. 2021

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Assessment of semi-natural habitats and landscape features on Irish farmland: New insights to inform EU Common Agricultural Policy implementation

Cited by 25 publications

References 27 publications

Pasture-Based Dairy Systems in Temperate Lowlands: Challenges and Opportunities for the Future

Pasture-Based Dairy Systems in Temperate Lowlands: Challenges and Opportunities for the Future

Linear habitats across a range of farming intensities contribute differently to dipteran abundance and diversity

Sustainability of ruminant livestock production in Ireland

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