Search

Understanding long-term changes in topography and topsoil grain composition is crucial for the management of agricultural landscapes, especially in areas prone to wind erosion. This study investigates long-term changes in topography and topsoil grain composition within an agricultural landscape in south-western Slovakia. To analyse topographic changes over time, we used high-precision positioning measurements and airborne laser scanning to create digital terrain models (DTM) for the years 2011, 2017 and 2020. To assess changes in soil grain composition, we performed grain size analyses on soil samples collected during three different periods: M1 (1961-1970), M2 (2009-2015) and M3 (2015-2016). Changes in soil texture were evaluated to understand the impact of wind erosion on soil composition. The influence of windbreaks was also analysed by comparing the accumulation and deflation processes. The results showed significant changes in both topography and soil texture over the study period. The DTMs showed marked differences in the accumulation and deflation processes, highlighting areas affected by wind erosion. Comparisons of soil samples showed a shift in dominant soil types from loam and clay loam to silty loam, highlighting the effects of wind erosion. Analysis revealed a decrease in clay and silt content and an increase in sand content, indicating wind-induced soil degradation. The presence of windbreaks played a crucial role in reducing soil erosion by reducing wind speed, promoting soil accumulation and stabilising the landscape up to 80 m windward and 20 m leeward. The study highlights the complex interplay of climate and wind factors in shaping topography and soil properties and emphasises the protective role of windbreaks in agricultural landscapes over time. Our results show that wind erosion significantly alters soil texture, which can affect agricultural productivity. However, windbreaks have proven to be an effective measure in reducing soil erosion and maintaining soil quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tropical deforestation and forest degradation have resulted in substantial losses of goods and services and a decline in the quality of life. Agroforestry is a viable land-use option to counteract such declines in ecosystem services, including biodiversity and supporting local livelihoods. However, it is unclear how socioecological factors mediate these roles, which hinders the implementation of initiatives to conserve biodiversity. This study aimed to investigate perennial plant species composition and diversity in relation to socioecological variables and agroforestry practices in central Ethiopia. The vegetation data were collected from 243 sample farms that belonged to 81 randomly chosen households from nine kebeles. Across all practices, 92 plant species from 75 genera and 46 families were identified. Of these, 77% were native plant species, and the remaining were exotic ones. Margalef species richness and the Shannon diversity index were both significantly higher (p < 0.05) in homegardens and middle elevations. Furthermore, species richness and the Shannon diversity index were positively and significantly related to slope, farm size, farm age, and wealth status. Parklands, lowland altitude, and younger farms had the highest Simpson's evenness, whereas wealth status, farm size, and slope had no significant association with Simpson's evenness. Overall, this study showed that agroforestry serves as a refuge for native species and helps reverse species loss in natural forests. However, native species are gradually being replaced with exotic species, compromising the integrity of agricultural landscapes. Our study also emphasizes the urgent need to consider socioecological factors when examining biodiversity and planning agricultural landscape management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Berichte aus dem Julius Kühn-Institut is the property of Julius Kuehn Institut and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Th e European hare (Lepus europaeus) is one of the farmland specialists inhabiting agroecosystems. It is particularly sensitive to negative changes in agricultural management and landscape homogenization. Th e quality of the environment affects not only the hare population dynamics but also the behaviour of individuals, which is reflected in the variation in home range sizes. Preliminary results of the GPS telemetry monitoring in the Czech Republic revealed signifi cant differences in the home range size of hares in high-diversified farmland (18.62 ± 4.14 ha) and conventionally managed agroecosystems (129.96 ± 55.64 ha) during the spring. Th ese results demonstrate that the hare can thrive in a relatively small area, provided there are sufficient food sources and suitable shelter opportunities. However, increasing the biodiversity of the landscape can benefit not only the European hare but also other wildlife including protected birds and animals, which can respond to positive changes in the agroecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Landscape fragmentation carries the risk of habitat loss for many animal species. This may include wild boars, which are one of the main culprits of conflicts with humans, while isolated patches of forest (forest islands) scattered in the agricultural landscape may affect its ecology and the pressure on the crops. Objectives: This study aimed to understand the importance of small forest islands located in a human-dominated agricultural landscape in the ecology of wild boar. It explores what features, both of the interior and exterior of the islands, influence their use. Methods: The study area covered approximately 220,000 ha of northern Poland, where wild boar use of 200 islands distributed across the agricultural landscape was investigated. For this purpose, the method of counting pellet groups was applied on transects of a total length of 51.6 km. In order to compare the use of islands with compact forest complexes, 84 km of transects were made in the latter, divided into developmental stages and forest type. Results: Among the features of the interior of the islands, increasing cover conditions and the main species of trees (pine, spruce and alder) had a positive influence on the wild boar use. The utilization also depended on the presence of human settlements, other islands, and the type of agricultural crop around the island. When comparing island use to compact forest complexes, islands were used more often than forest regeneration sites and mature stands, but less often than pre-thickets. For the 25% most frequently used by wild boar, islands were more attractive than virtually all stand development stages in compact forest complexes. Conclusions: Due to the cover conditions provided, the occurrence of islands in the agricultural space enables wild boars to use areas more distant from compact forest complexes. This may cause the spread of damage caused by wild boars in the fields, but on the other hand it may reduce the pressure on agricultural areas in the immediate vicinity of compact forest complexes. Intensification of hunting pressure in the vicinity of islands with specific characteristics e.g. good cover conditions, considerable distance from human settlements) will increase the effectiveness of wild boar population control in the agricultural landscape and will have a limiting effect on the damage caused by this species in the fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landscapes combine a physical dimension and intangible aspects related to perception and representation. Agricultural landscapes are the result of a combination of natural (ecological conditions, climate, topography) and agronomic factors (cultivation choices, farming techniques and infrastructure, such as terraces or hydraulic infrastructure), as well as intangible factors (practices, know-how, values). Four example of agricultural landscapes are presented and discussed: landscapes related to a complex irrigation system with historical channels, called bisses, in the canton of Valais, Switzerland; hydraulic infrastructure for water and sediment harvesting - called jessour - in the arid context of Southeast Tunisia; wooded pastures in the Jura karstic mountains in Switzerland; and finally the terraced vineyard of Lavaux (canton of Vaud, Switzerland) inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The description of agricultural and landscape characteristics and the overview of some important management challenges allow proposing four recommendations for the sustainable management of agricultural landscapes: (i) to consider agricultural landscapes as living cultural landscapes, which means that landscape protection needs to go beyond pure conservationist approaches; (ii) to ensure healthy agricultural economy in order to sustainably manage agricultural landscapes; (iii) to consider not only the physical landscape (crops, infrastructure) but also the intangible farming practices and their transmission when speaking of agricultural landscape management; (iv) to adopt systemic approaches including various actors, in particular farmers, to guarantee sustainable management of agricultural landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wise-use of land resources determines sustainability of environment and human welfare. But, the ongoing land-use change constrains environmental sustainability. Thus, this study aims to quantify past and future land-use change trend with its associated drivers in Koore's agricultural landscape of Southern Ethiopia. To quantify the change trends, geospatial tools were applied. A CA–Markov model was used to predict land-use changes. Relative Importance Index was used to identify major drivers of the change. The result of the study showed agroforestry, built-up and cultivation rise by 192%, 152% and 18% at the expense of natural environment. Population growth and agricultural expansion are among the leading land-use change drivers. CA–Markov model revealed a continued increment of anthropogenically modified land-use classes which adversely affect the sustainability of the landscape. Information on spatiotemporal dynamics has been confirmed as effectual measure for nature conservation, agriculture, urban planners, and policymakers to plan sustainable development actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loss of biological diversity is one of the greatest challenges that our civilization must face nowadays. Reaction to the diminishing biodiversity of agricultural landscapes is various measures promoting free-living organisms. The study deals with the vegetation composition and structure of agro-environmental-climatic measures applied on arable land in operating conditions (intensively farmed regions of the Czech Republic). Additional study focus was applied to a popular measure of the feeding bio-belts. Bio-belts are not only hiding places for free-living animals but can provide them a rich food offer in the period from the harvest of main crops until winter. Thanks to the bio-belts, the landscape gains in biodiversity, and sloping sites can be protected from soil erosion. The vegetation of land parts used as bio-belts was assessed using phytocoenological relevés. Dominant plant species sown in the bio-belts were Avena sativa, Panicum miliaceum, Brassica oleracea var. acephala, Fagopyrum esculentum, Phacelia tanacetifolia, and Pisum arvense. Apart from the sown plants, there were also weeds occurring in the bio-belts, of which the most abundant were Chenopodium album, Amaranthus retroflexus, Setaria verticillata, Cirsium arvense, Equisetum arvense, etc. Risks connected with the realization of feeding bio-belts in respect of weeds occurring on arable land are negligible. Weeds from bio-belts have only a limited potential to spread to adjacent arable land. A potential spreading of weeds from the bio-belts to adjacent arable land was not demonstrated. On the contrary, thanks to its composition, the vegetation of bio-belts has the potential to extend the food offer for animals. Thus, bio-belts are useful for supporting biodiversity in regions intensively used for agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rozwój Regionalny & Polityka Regionalna is the property of Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza (IH UAM) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Kettle holes are found in young moraine landscapes and serve as an important habitat for amphibians. The loss of amphibians has been dramatic in recent decades, mainly because of the increase in land use intensity and deterioration of habitats e.g., kettle holes in agricultural landscapes. We monitored amphibian species on three organically managed farms in north-eastern Germany to get an overview of their occurrence and proof of reproduction to develop effective protection strategies. From 2016 to 2020, we investigated 50 kettle holes in cultivated fields. In 2018, we implemented the nature conservation measure 'cutting back dense wooded belts' in six of these kettle holes. Here, we focused on seven species considering four highly endangered species. We found six to seven species in up to 17 kettle holes in the 44 kettle holes without the measure 'cutting back dense wooded belts'. Bombina bombina occurred at the most kettle holes (57%). The number of kettle holes where amphibians reproduced differed strongly. On average, at least one species reproduced at 58% of the kettle holes. Many kettle holes become overgrown with negative effects for amphibians due to the reduction in solar irradiation and higher water consumption. The nature conservation measure increased the number of species on average from two to four and the number of species with reproduction from one to three. It is one of more than 100 measures in the 'Farming for Biodiversity' project that farmers can choose to receive a nature conservation certificate, which can be used for marketing purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terraced tourism sustainability depends on maintenance for terraced landscape. The effective measures for protecting terraces rest on the cooperation among multi-stakeholders. Therefore, a multi-stakeholder involvement mechanism (MSIM) is very important for terraced landscape conservation. Dazhai village in Longji Terraces, Guangxi Province, Southwest China, explored a MSIM to maintain terraced tourism sustainability in the past 20 years. Based on the statistical data and the data from household interviews, this study analyses the development history of Dazhai tourism. Comparing the changes in different stages in components of MSIM of Dazhai, we revealed the successful key factors of MSIM for maintaining terraces tourism sustainability includes identifying accurately core attractions and stakeholders, an effective communication strategy, a democratic decision-making mechanism, dynamic benefit distribution schemes (BDS) facing terraced conservation, coordination teams with foresight and selflessness, and the effective supervision and management. In the end, we conclude that economic income is the most important driver stimulating villagers in Dazhai to insist on growing rice. It is crucial factor to drive farmers to protect their terraces. but economic income improvement of the households depends on a systemic and dynamic MSIM. The most important causes for Dazhai MSIM success results from the wise coordination teams and the effective communication strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensification of agricultural landscapes represent a major threat for biodiversity conservation also affecting several ecosystem services. The natural and semi-natural remnants, available in the agricultural matrix, represent important sites for small mammals and rodents, which are fundamental for sustaining various ecosystem functions and trophic chains. We studied the populations of two small mammals (Apodemus agrarius, A. sylvaticus) to evaluate the effects of landscape and habitat features on species abundance along a gradient of agricultural landscape intensification. The study was performed in Friuli Venezia Giulia (north-eastern Italy) during 19 months, in 19 wood remnants. Species abundance was determined using CaptureMark-Recapture (CMR) techniques. In the same plots, main ecological parameters of the habitat (at microhabitat and patch scale) and landscape were considered. Abundance of A. agrarius increased in landscapes with high extent of permanent crops (i.e., orchards and poplar plantations) and low content of undecomposed litter in the wood understory. Instead, A. sylvaticus, a more generalist species, showed an opposite, albeit less strong, relationship with the same variables. Both species were not affected by any landscape structural feature (e.g., patch shape, isolation). Our findings showed that microhabitat features and landscape composition rather than wood and landscape structure affect populations’ abundance and species interaction. The opposite response of the two study species was probably because of their specific ecological requirements. In this light, conservation management of agricultural landscapes should consider the ecological needs of species at both landscape and habitat levels, by rebalancing composition patterns in the context of ecological intensification, and promoting a sustainable forest patch management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (IAHS) were launched by the FAO to protect the sustainable traditional agricultural systems around the world, their conservation has become a new difficult issue under the context of urbanization. Farmers in IAHS sites giving up small-scale traditional farming due to their low economic benefit and high labor intensity are considered as the main cause hindering effective conservation of these heritages. This study takes the Kuancheng traditional chestnut cultivation system (KTCCS) in northern China as a case to assess its economic and socio-cultural sustainability. Based on questionnaires and interviews, this study found that: the traditional ecological farming methods were still used by local farming households to plant chestnut trees; and most farmers support IAHS conservation. KTCCS performs economic and socio-cultural sustainability. For a household, the labor productivity of chestnut cultivation was 1.33 times that of their non-farm jobs because of the low labor input of chestnut cultivation. Farmers widely consider they live in a harmonious social environment but are lower than other households in economic status. Most farmers still lack an understanding of indigenous traditional knowledge and cultures. In the future, secondary and tertiary industries should be developed to provide farmers with employment opportunities in their hometowns for protecting KTCCS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Anxi Tieguanyin Tea Culture System, as the proposed location of a globally important agricultural heritage system (GIAHS), has demonstrated the great significance of a network of heritage settlements and landscapes and supported rural revitalization and the participation and empowerment of women, based on agricultural heritage. Through fieldwork, participant observation, and in-depth interviews, this study attempts to analyze the experience of rural revitalization in Xiping. Firstly, the unique cultural heritage found within the agricultural landscape, formed by the multiparty linkage and dynamic adaptation of the surrounding natural environment by local residents, has shaped the Anxi Tieguanyin tea culture system of Xiping. Secondly, local residents actively participate in tea competitions and tea associations, so that the implementation process of agricultural cultural heritage preservation and development can be from the perspective of a shared experience. Thirdly, intangible cultural heritage features, such as the Female Tea Master Training Institute, have played a vital role in the development of tea towns and have proved conducive to women's participation and empowerment. The results show that the agricultural heritage of the area, based on the Tea Manor and its multi-functional resources, has helped Xiping to move toward a more sustainable future, while eventually supporting a local society with a more distinctive rural landscape of which people can be proud. This system meets the need for local socio-economic and cultural development, and the promotion of the sustainable development of the entire region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protecting agricultural land from erosion continues to be the most important task within the overall issue of the protection and rational use of land resources. That is why it is necessary to comprehensively study patterns of development in the erosion processes, and to assess the specific nature and features of their impact upon soil and vegetation, water resources, and landscapes in various natural conditions. The work is based on the results of many years of experimental research on problems that are related to soil erosion, and on the accumulation of slope sediments in catchments and in the valleys of small rivers, based on the use of landscape geography, soil morphology, and cartography methods of research. The research methodology that is included the collection covers the analysis of cartographic and experimental materials on the geo-ecological situation regarding an formation and manifestation of spatial and temporal erosion processes in the territory, and, the carrying out of research work which cover the soil washout and erosion processes in key areas of agricultural landscapes. The methodology also includes, the process of conducting a determination of the influence of natural and anthropogenic factors on the intensity of erosion processes, and the cameral processing of results that have been obtained in the field, all of which characterise the erosion and hydrology situation in the basins of small rivers. The paper presents the latest levels of research on the spatial and temporal variability of the features of erosion processes, depending upon their mechanisms of functioning, the complexity of the territory's geomorphological landscape conditions, and the intensity of anthropogenic load on the catchment areas of small rivers. The management of the migration of biogenic elements in agricultural landscapes can be improved if, on the one hand, the share of cultivated land is reduced and, on the other hand, the area of meadow land and small forest plots is increased, which significantly serve to slow down the flow of erosion products, including biogenic elements, into the hydrosphere. It has been established that, with an increase in the share of arable land, the removal of biogenic elements with runoff increases in direct proportion. Therefore, with up to 50% of the territory being cultivated, nitrogen removal was seven times higher - and phosphorus two times higher - than with the same territory under 20% of cultivation. With 80% cultivation, nitrogen removal increases two times and phosphorus and potassium removal increases four times when compared to 40-50% cultivation of the same territory in the catchments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sessions related to geoheritage have been held under different convenorships and titles since 2012 at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna. 2020 was a special year, since the session was held online. The author participated with a contribution in 2019 and without one in 2020, and it was an occasion to compare a physical session with oral and poster presentations and a splinter meeting to a digital session. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social representations (SRs) are systems of values, ideas, and practices that characterize individuals' and social groups' relationships to both their social and natural environment. Comparing SRs between places, social groups, and through time is critical to understanding how social-ecological systems (SESs) and their diverse uses are perceived, interpreted, and understood. This knowledge needs to be taken into account to achieve efficient land use management of SESs such as agricultural landscapes. People's perceptions of the landscape are increasingly studied in sustainability sciences and a growing number of studies use the SR framework for analyzing differences in SRs between stakeholders and localities or for detecting changes over time. Robust methodologies able to compare SRs are required for this purpose. In this paper, we propose a modular approach to studying SRs from words collected from free listing tasks. This approach relies on standardizing definitions of frequency thresholds commonly used to assess SR content, consensus level, and structure. We then illustrate the value of this methodological approach through a comparative study of farmers' social representations of the agricultural landscape among four contrasted social-ecological contexts in France. We show how our comparative method allows for characterizing spatial variations in SRs and identifying social-ecological factors that influence the structuration and content of SRs. Finally, we discuss our methodological progress and the implications of our results for public policies aimed at managing SESs and in particular agricultural landscapes for conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assessed the nesting preferences of the Syrian woodpecker Dendrocopos syriacus. For this purpose, basic tree parameters (trunk diameter, health condition and species diversity of trees) of 22 nest tree stands were compared to the tree stands present in the territories of the Syrian woodpecker (n=22) and those outside breeding territories (n=22). The study was conducted in 2006 in the agricultural landscape of SE Poland. During the study, no significant differences were found between the tree stands situated in and outside the woodpeckers' breeding territories. This may be an indication of the high ecological flexibility of the Syrian woodpecker as well as the wide availability of suitable habitats for this species in the studied region. However, in order to protect the nesting habitats of the Syrian woodpecker in the agricultural landscape, the presence of older trees in poor health condition, which also often includes dead trees or trees with visible mycelia, is needed. Tree stands with higher species diversity and numbers of trees may also be important for these woodpeckers, as this may positively affect foraging conditions in nesting territories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid development of the economy, people’s living standards have been improved constantly. As people’s material life has been gradually improved, people pay more attention to the pursuit of high-quality spiritual life, and the flourishing development of rural tourism just meets people’s pursuit about returning to nature that is far away from the hustle and bustle of the city, and about experiencing funny and quiet life in the countryside. The development of rural tourism relies on agricultural landscape resources, and the correct understanding and protection of the original value of agricultural landscape resources can effectively ensure the sustainable use of agricultural landscape resources. If land for agricultural landscape resource is occupied for developing blindly without reasonable planning and construction, it will lead to the distortion of the authentic value of agricultural landscape, which in turn affects the sustainable development of rural tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agroforestry intercropping systems have been developed as an alternative to conventional monocropping systems to address environmental, social and economic issues in a wide array of agricultural contexts. As research on the biological properties of these systems tends to demonstrate their potential, fostering their integration in agricultural landscapes requires an in-depth understanding of local stakeholders' perceptions. Our study used the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats approach in combination with the analytical hierarchy process (SWOT-AHP) to investigate the factors influencing local stakeholders' decision to integrate agroforestry intercropping systems in two Regional County Municipalities and their perception of the relative suitability of three agroforestry intercropping system designs (crop-oriented, tree-oriented and landscape aesthetic-oriented). We conducted focus groups with farmers, farm and forestry advisors, urban planners and local authorities in a very intensive and a very extensive agricultural landscape in Quebec (Canada) and compared the results between stakeholders within and across the areas. Our results show that social factors seem to have more impact than biophysical factors on the decision to integrate agroforestry intercropping systems in intensive and extensive agricultural landscapes. The relative value given to the decision factors varies greatly across stakeholders' categories and areas. Agroforestry intercropping systems designed to meet crop production needs or landscape aesthetic purposes are perceived as more suitable in both agricultural contexts than the tree-oriented design. Our results highlight crucial issues for agroforestry intercropping system deployment and the development of relevant agroforestry system designs through collective decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Geographical Indication (GI) is expected to facilitate agri-environmental management in agricultural landscapes. Currently, local products from small-scale farms and national branded products with a relatively large scale of production are being registered using GI schemes. Considering the relationships among GI products, their agricultural landscapes, and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), as a GI case study, we examined small GI farms in Odate City, Akita Prefecture, Japan, which produce edible plants called Tonburi. This research explored the complex cause-effect relationship between TEK and landscapes and found that the TEK of Tonburi production influenced biological diversity and vice versa. The TEK and skills of small farmers were confined to the family members of each farmer and were not shared at the community level until GI registration. However, the farmers shared their TEK of sustainable agricultural landscape management through the process of GI registration. Through negotiation between local agricultural cooperatives and farmers, TEK was provided as a form of cultural capital and shared with new producers after GI registration. We concluded that enclosed TEK negatively affects production maintenance and landscape management in the long term. However, the GI registration process contributes to the sharing of TEK as a form of cultural capital among Tonburi farmers. • GI registration contributes to sharing of traditional knowledge as a form of cultural capital among Tonburi farmers. • Cultural capital and natural capital are intertwined in a cause-effect relationship, with the GI scheme as a catalyst. • Region-specific variations in cause-effect relationships are related to biophysical conditions and agricultural management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The ability to accurately and precisely perform soil nutrient mapping over large areas is essential in the decision-making processes for precision agriculture. However, existing grid-based or non-grid-based digital soil mapping (DSM) can lead to the problem of mixed units of input information, which causes the mapping results to be unsuitable for direct use in guiding the implementation of precision agriculture. Instead, the goal of this study was to achieve DSM based on land parcels, which are the basic units of agricultural management and have practical geographical significance for precision mapping in agricultural areas. This study established a convolutional neural network-based automatic extraction model to extract land parcels from high resolution remote sensing images. Thirty environmental covariates were chosen and calibrated at land parcels to establish the relationships between soils and landscapes. Four prediction algorithms, namely, ordinary kriging, cokriging, random forest and artificial neural network, were combined with the land-parcel-based DSM framework to develop and evaluate their effectiveness in predicting four topsoil nutrient properties in an alluvial-diluvia plain agricultural region located in Ningxia province, China. The results of comparisons show that, overall, the land-parcel-based RF model achieved the best prediction accuracy; its relative improvement (RMSE %) values over the competing models were 1.27, 4.23, 3.19 and 9.01 for soil organic matter, soil total nitrogen, available phosphorus and available potassium, respectively. In addition, land-parcel-based mapping can improve algorithmic efficiency by approximately 4 times by effectively reducing the mapping units for complex agricultural areas compared with the grid-based mapping results when using the same algorithm, and it also achieves a better performance at the detail level. Overall, the land-parcel-based DSM approach achieved good results in plain agricultural areas, but the model still needs improvement for land-parcel-based DSM in mountainous and hilly agricultural areas, and a challenge remains in selecting the most appropriate environmental covariates. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • Soil nutrient properties are predicted using a land parcel-based DSM method. • Land parcel are automatically extracted from GF-2 fusion image (0.8 m). • Four models and two mapping units are compared in their performance. • The land parcel-based digital soil maps include spatial prediction and uncertainty. • The spatial variations and influence factors at land-parcel scale were analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Afforestation effects on soil N 2 O emissions were assessed under subtropical climate. • Afforestation sites constituted the lowest recorded N 2 O fluxes for forest globally. • Afforestation significantly decreased soil N 2 O emissions. • Spatiotemporal dynamics of N 2 O emissions were driven by soil temperature and moisture. Abstract Afforestation, through the conversion of upland cropland to forest, is of great significance to land use change in montane (hilly) agricultural landscapes worldwide. Such afforestation is implemented to improve soil and water conservation and facilitate terrestrial carbon sequestration. However, particularly for subtropical and tropical regions, the effects of afforestation on soil N 2 O emissions have not been well investigated. Therefore, a three-year field experiment was conducted to simultaneously monitor N 2 O emissions from three paired sites of afforestation with cypress (Cypressus funebris) and adjacent cropland under a wheat-maize rotation system. The experiment was carried out in a subtropical montane agricultural landscape in southwest China. In both forest and cropland ecosystems, the N 2 O emissions exhibited a pronounced spatial and temporal variability. These variations in N 2 O emissions can be well explained by the spatiotemporal dynamics of environmental variables, such as soil temperature, WFPS, soil NH 4 + or NO 3 − availability, because these environmental variables correlated significantly with the N 2 O emissions across different experimental sites and years. The average annual N 2 O fluxes were 2.69 kg N ha-1 for cropland and 0.13 kg N ha-1 for afforestation. It is noteworthy that the annual N 2 O fluxes for afforestation found in the present study constitute one of the lowest recorded N 2 O fluxes for unfertilized forest ecosystems globally. Overall, across all experimental sites and years, afforestation with cypress (Cypressus funebris) stands significantly decreased N 2 O fluxes by over twenty times relative to the adjacent cropland. This outcome suggests that afforestation could be an effective mitigation strategy for soil N 2 O emissions in a subtropical montane agricultural landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Agricultural landscape generators (ALGs) work in a systematic and automatic way. • ALGs differ widely in underlying methods and agricultural details. • ALGs use either pattern-based or process-based approaches. • So far, there are powerful building blocks, but no generic and ready-to-use ALGs. • Generic ALGs are required to cover a variety of scenarios, regions and model types. Abstract There is an increasing need for an assessment of the impacts of land use and land use change (LUCC). In this context, simulation models are valuable tools for investigating the impacts of stakeholder actions or policy decisions. Agricultural landscape generators (ALGs), which systematically and automatically generate realistic but simplified representations of land cover in agricultural landscapes, can provide the input for LUCC models. We reviewed existing ALGs in terms of their objectives, design and scope. We found eight ALGs that met our definition. They were based either on generic mathematical algorithms (pattern-based) or on representations of ecological or land use processes (process-based). Most ALGs integrate only a few landscape metrics, which limits the design of the landscape pattern and thus the range of applications. For example, only a few specific farming systems have been implemented. We conclude that existing ALGs contain useful approaches that can be used for specific purposes, but ideally generic modular ALGs are developed that can be used for a wide range of scenarios, regions and model types. We have compiled features of such generic ALGs and propose a possible software architecture. Considerable joint efforts are required to develop such generic ALGs, but the benefits in terms of a better understanding and development of more efficient agricultural policies would be high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract There is increasing recognition that ecosystems and their services need to be managed at landscape scale and greater. The development of landscape-scale conservation strategies need to incorporate information from multiple sources. In this study, we combine various research tools to link landscape patterns with production units and systems in the Usumacinta River Basin, and inform the discussion of key questions around decision-making related to conservation action and policy in Southern Mexico. A typology based on policy-relevant farmer characteristics (land tenure, farm size, source of income, farming system) differentiated between farmers (traditional vs. cattle ranching) with different motivations that determine how management affects landscape configuration. Five main types of traditional farming systems were identified that combine different forms of land use and vary in their degree of land intensification. Major fragmentation and decrease in connectivity coincided spatially with floodplains dominated by large-scale commercial farms that specialize in livestock production. Traditional practices within large units with low-sloped high quality land were also seen to be intensive; however the presence of trees was notable throughout these units. Policies that promote livestock farming are among the principle causes motivating deforestation. Land intensification by traditional farmers decreased as the landscape became increasingly rugged. Traditional farmers are the focus of initiatives developed by the Biological Corridor project which seeks to increase forest cover and landscape connectivity. These initiatives have shown high levels of rural participation (10,010 farmers benefited from 27,778 projects involving 95,374 ha of land) and acceptance (producers carried out more than one project and several types of projects during the first eight years of work). Strong action is still required to take on the segment of large-scale ranchers. Changes in the structure of land tenure over the past decade are highlighted that could have a profound impact on conservation policies and programs. Highlights • Key to address conservation options is the heterogeneity of farming systems. • Conservation programs receive high degree of acceptance from traditional farmers. • Strong action is still required to take on the segment of large-scale ranchers. • Well-managed areas tend to increase more with moderate and sustained financial support. • Recent changes in the structure of land tenure threatens conservation programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Non-crop habitats enhanced wheat aphid abundance in early season. • Different responses to landscape features occurred among aphid species. • Landscape context affected aphid initial population composition. Abstract Agricultural landscape composition is reported to have effects on the occurrence of natural enemies in fields, but the responses of herbivorous pests to landscape features have rarely been studied. Our previous landscape-level study in northern China found that natural enemies had no significant effects on the population growth of wheat aphids at the colonization stage. Hence, we hypothesised that the initial aphid population in wheat fields may largely depend on immigration events from other habitats. In this study, we investigated the effects of landscape pattern on wheat aphid abundance and species composition at the colonization stage by surveying population densities of different aphid species along a landscape gradient. We found that noncrop habitats such as woodlots, fallow lands and vegetation around dwellings or wetlands in the landscape all had positive correlations with aphid abundance in wheat fields because they provided a source for aphid colonization. More specifically, the proportion of woodlots, fallow lands, dwellings, and other crops increased the abundance of Rhopalosiphum padi (L.), and the existence of water and dwellings in an agricultural landscape facilitated the occurrence of Sitobion avenae (Fabricius). Likewise, the abundance of Schizaphis graminum (Rondani) in wheat fields was found to be significantly promoted by the presence of water. The habitats around water and dwellings usually provide the overwintering sites for the aphids. Furthermore, wheat production acreage had a significant negative correlation with the abundance of R. padi , S. avenae and S. graminum. Landscape characteristics had a significant effect on the species composition of wheat aphids. Our study suggests that noncrop habitats in a landscape enhance aphid occurrence at the population colonization stage, and differences in overwintering host plants among aphid species may be responsible for the differing responses of the abundance of different aphids to landscape variables, which greatly altered aphid population composition across different landscapes. These results highlight the need for taking landscape effects on the pest itself into consideration when designing landscape-level pest management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensification of agriculture has led, among other negative consequences, also to drying out of wetlands. Nevertheless, some of the wetland biotopes were preserved as small spots. This paper discusses the importance of those areas serving as refugia for small terrestrial mammals. Because small terrestrial mammals in the middle of food webs, they serve as an indicator for the presence of food sources (plants and invertebrates) and suggest the potential of the area as a living space for predators. The experiment took place at lowland agricultural landscape with wetland patches in west and west-east Slovakia (Záhorská and Podunajská nížina lowlands) using catch-mark-release method from 2015 to 2017. The importance was assessed according to abundance, biodiversity, persistence of species during seasons and habitat preference of small terrestrial mammals and equitability of the biotopes. Overall 368 individuals belonging to 12 species were recorded. The lowest abundance and diversity were registered at field biotopes where Apodemus sylvaticus was the most abundant. Microtus arvalis, Clethrionomys glareolus and Sorex araneus dominate at wetland biotopes. The higher biodiversity and abundance of small mammals were recorded at the wetland refugia. The results, together with position of small mammals in food webs, lead to conclusion that the wetland refugia are important habitats for the overall preservation of biodiversity and maintaining them is a part of the strategy for sustainable agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study shows the importance of landscape scene composition in relation to aesthetic ratings used in preference research where static and dynamic presentation methods substitute landscape onsite evaluation. We aimed to evaluate whether the method of presenting a landscape scene influenced aesthetic ratings and whether these potential differences in ratings were affected by the composition of the static presentation. Using a questionnaire for rating the same scenes of agricultural landscapes presented both in photographs and in videos, it was determined that the presentation method used significantly affected ratings. Respondents (N = 145, age 20-25 years, students) rated scenes presented in photographs higher than videos. Concerning the effect of composition, well-composed photographs had higher mean ratings than poorly composed photographs. Moreover, the difference in ratings between static and dynamic presentation methods determined for well-composed scenes was larger than that for poorly composed scenes, always in favor of photographs. The results indicate that preference ratings can be influenced both by the medium and by composition. This is a crucial aspect for environmental assessments using a visual preference approach as part of planning and management strategies, and it should always be taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The improvement of biocontrol services provided by natural enemies is important for realizing sustainable agriculture. While it has been well demonstrated that landscape context affects the occurrence of natural enemies in agricultural ecosystems, the response of natural enemies and their ability to suppress pest population growth over time has rarely been studied in relation to landscape composition and diversity. In this study, we investigated natural enemy (ladybeetle) and pest (wheat aphids) population abundance in wheat fields in the early period (defined as the main period for aphid colonization) and the late period (i.e., the main period for aphid reproduction) in different landscapes. Non-crop habitats surrounding wheat fields were found to enhance ladybeetle abundance. More specifically, the proportion of dwellings and woodlots were positively correlated with ladybeetle abundance in early period, and those of fallow and woodlot habitats were positively associated with ladybeetle abundance in late period. The most predictive spatial scales of ladybeetle abundance were landscape features within 0.5 and 2.0 km of wheat fields in the early and late periods, respectively. In contrast with the significantly negative correlation between ladybeetle abundance and aphid population growth during the late period, the relative low density of ladybeetles in the early period appeared to have no effect on aphid population growth. These findings suggest that non-crop habitats have differing effects on ladybeetle populations, both in their spatial scale and over time, and the continuity of functional habitat types is essential to support ladybeetle populations. While ladybeetles do indeed suppress aphid growth in the later part of the cycle, aphid control is also dependent on early colonization and constrained by external circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the methodological features of sampling soil for agrochemical, microbiological and metagenomic analysis. The possibility of integrating soil sampling methods on the basis method for sampling soil from equidistant points with GPS positioning is discussed, as a single methodical technique, most accurately reflecting the features of the distribution of physical and chemical properties and microbial communities of soil. Standardization of soil sampling methods for physicochemical, microbiological and metagenomic research is necessary for the construction of a GIS "Microbial communities of agricultural landscape". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aim was to define the landscape determinants as certificates of natural and cultural heritage which identify the young glacial landscape under traditional agricultural management. These studies were conducted in the upper Parsęta basin (Pomerania, Poland) covered by the many annual environmental monitoring programs since 1994. The aim of this monitoring is to observe changes in geoecosystems of the temperate climate zone. The parameters of the abiotic landscape subsystem have been monitored in a wide range of terms, whereas biotic elements and cultural resources only in a very limited way. This was the reason for undertaking complementary studies. The paper presents the so-called "zero-state" for 2014, which will be a reference point from which to track the direction of landscape changes in the future. The abiotic, geobotanical, and cultural determinants of this state chosen have been characterized on the basis of field mapping data and the available literature. They were chosen based on the methodology of landscape audit to define the specificity of the traditional agricultural landscape. They were selected on the basis of assessment criteria for landscape structure: complexity (diversification of land use and cover), naturalness (syngenesis of plant communities, hydrochemical properties of surface waters), coherence of composition with natural conditions, stewardship (intensity of use, crop weeds, ecological succession, fallows, anthropogenic denudation), aesthetic and visual perception, historicity (continuity of natural landscape elements, continuation of traditional agricultural use, architectural objects), and disharmonious elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nishapur, as a metropole and one of the main urban centers in Khurasan, expanded over a vast geographical area with a heartland and a hinterland that together constitute the extensive Nishapur. In this paper, we investigate the variety and distribution of agricultural products in the extensive Nishapur as a whole. By focusing on the landscape of fibers and fabrics we explore the role they performed in the economy of Nishapur from the 4th AH/10th CE to 6th AH/12th CE century. The results demonstrate how the heartland and the hinterland in the extensive Nishapur acted together as a cohesive socio-economic system and why it is crucial, for understanding the agricultural landscape, to consider Nishapur in its entirety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Czech Republic, a significant amount of agricultural landscape nutrients is swept away by surface washes and leakages to subsoil. Subsequently there is a negative influence on surface water quality, where of course also point sources of pollution participate in. Flowing surface water often becomes stagnant while the certain self-purifying processes proceed both in the flowing and stagnant waters. It can be simultaneously stated that the self-purifying process is practically uncontrollable, primarily due to the impact of many entering factors. One of the environmental and technical elements providing quality improvement of water running off a water reservoir is deployment of constructed floating wetlands (CFW). The theoretical background, as well as the laboratory measurements carried out on the test land of the Brno University of Technology in experimental tanks, evidence the significant treatment efficiency of the CFW. Within the research activities, we focused on the general pollution parameters set for surface waters. The first results show that the total phosphorus concentration removal efficiency is 38.8 % after 22 days with employment of the CFW which is a considerably higher value compared to the lysimeter with no CFW where the removal efficiency was only 4.37 %. The results can be large-scale applied to most of the small water reservoirs situated in the agricultural landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cropland diversity was the focus of this work to support regional policy in a land planning perspective for the development of both the agriculture and renewable energy sectors. Considering the Capitanata region (South of Italy) as a case study, the land share-out in agricultural crops have been assessed by using two different approaches: a) multi-year census data and b) land use/land cover digital maps through GIS assisted techniques. In the first case, the smallest land unit was the administrative municipality while in the second, it was the cell of a grid having a regular sized mesh (3 km) superimposed to the digital map. The share of the cultivated surfaces among the main crop categories was computed with reference to the region as a whole and its geographical sub-regions, the latter statistically determined according to the main characters in their crop composition. Thereafter, the Shannon’s Diversity Index was applied to the crop share of cultivated areas. Finally, a potential scenario of possible land use changes due to the introduction of energy crops was presented, according to defined land conversion criteria, in order to improve the crop spatial diversity, particularly in those sub-regions where lower diversity levels were previously detected. An attempt in describing and explaining the dynamic traits of cropland diversity was performed. The essential elements resulting from the analysis were: 1) The stronger the environmental constraints, the narrower is the crop choice and the consequent crop diversity. 2) By eliminating the link between support payments and production, the EU-CAP “decoupling” scheme had positive effects in terms of cropland diversity. Further reinforcing effects are probably expected by strengthening the CAP rural development and the agro-environmental measures. The “greening” scheme applied in the last CAP programming period (2014–2020) is probably acting in the same direction. 3) Through a simulated new planning scenario, a limited but well-targeted agroenergy land conversion may produce a significant improvement in cropland diversity even though not necessarily translated in a lower environmental burden due to agriculture, at least immediately. Diversification is the sign of a progressive reorientation of agriculture towards a multifunctional activity that combines producing quality food, maintaining rural livelihoods and landscapes, promoting environmental stewardship, preserving biodiversity, establishing a better agro-ecosystem functioning. In this respect, the scope of the work was to provide a planning case study at regional scale in order to promote a reconciling approach between productive and ecological services of agriculture, coming from a diversified and multifunctional agricultural system made of both food- and energy-crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its popular adoption and use, neutral landscape models have been unexplored in data scarce areas of the Sudanian Savanna region where its application could serve as inputs for spatial ecosystem service assessment. Thus, the need for an easy to use tool to produce landscape patterns similar to real landscapes in this area is imminent. In this article, we aimed at introducing SG4GISCAME as a tool to meet this purpose by exploring it capabilities to generate landscapes similar to real agricultural landscapes of the Vea catchment area in Ghana in three steps. We used Voronoi tessellation polygons to develop the image patterns. The resulting artificial patterns were subsequently evaluated through a visual and landscape structural metric comparison between the simulated and real landscapes. Finally, we used a modified Turing Test to test the credibility of SG4GISCAME model output through expert pattern identification cues. The results show that SG4GISCAME can successfully generate agricultural landscape mosaics similar to real landscape under different parameters and user specifications. We attribute this to the tools’ intuitive and interactive user interface. Statistical test outcomes of the modified Turing Test suggested that geographic information systems and remote sensing map experts found marked pattern similarities between real and synthesis maps, resulting in challenges in identifying real maps from synthetic ones. Our approach could be replicated in other landscapes of West Africa to provide a substitute for unavailable or expensive spatial data and to test the hypothetical relationship between patchy landscape structure and ecosystem service provision through modelling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design of landscape is the process of the arrangement of spatial features with the objective of sustaining ecosystem services, and maintaining ecological functionality to meet societal needs. Along a gradient of cultivation intensity, the functional quality of agricultural landscape was explored and the relationships between landscape metrics and functional quality were analyzed, in order to make effective recommendations for landscape design aimed at sustainable land use schemes. The functional quality of landscape was calculated using the InVest model for 20 farm landscapes (North-Eastern Italy) where biodiversity (plant taxa) and sensitivity to disturbance (hemeroby) were used as model inputs. Results highlighted the importance of specific habitat types such as meadows and woodlands rather than other habitats for improving the biodiversity of agricultural landscapes. A high proportion of these habitats enhanced the functional quality of the landscape when the habitats were organized in large and not isolated patches in heterogeneous landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Understanding the influence of environmental factors on the hydrobiota structure of small aquatic ecosystems is essential for effective landscape management. In this study of 165 small water bodies situated in the lowland high-productive agricultural landscape of western Poland we evaluate the effect of catchment, buffer zone, water body and water quality parameters on macrophyte functional groups (nymphaeids, elodeids, pleustophytes, helophytes) and zooplankton diversity. The potential pressure of the catchment on ponds was high (mean Ohle index 140). For macrophytes, shore length and depth of pond were highly significant and, subsequently the type of catchment and buffer, while for zooplankton, apart from water depth, trophic features of the habitat were decisive. Cluster analysis was used to identify functional types of water bodies on the basis of catchment and buffer zone attributes. Regardless of physico-geographical macroregion, water bodies of arable catchments with herbage buffer prevailed in a landscape. For protection and prevention of ecological deterioration of ponds and stability of trophic conditions the optimal situation is a buffer which is created by shrubs and trees around the pond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sixteen honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies were placed in four different agricultural landscapes to study the effects of agricultural landscape and exposure to pesticides on honey bee health. Colonies were located in three different agricultural areas with varying levels of agricultural intensity (AG areas) and one nonagricultural area (NAG area). Colonies were monitored for their performance and productivity for one year by measuring colony weight changes, brood production, and colony thermoregulation. Palynological and chemical analyses were conducted on the trapped pollen collected from each colony and location. Our results indicate that the landscape's composition significantly affected honey bee colony performance and development. Colony weight and brood production were significantly greater in AG areas compared to the NAG area. Better colony thermoregulation in AG areas' colonies was also observed. The quantities of pesticides measured in the trapped pollen were relatively low compared to their acute toxicity. Unexplained queen and colony losses were recorded in the AG areas, while colony losses because of starvation were observed in the NAG area. Our results indicate that landscape with high urban activity enhances honey bee brood production, with no significant effects on colony weight gain. Our study indicates that agricultural crops provide a valuable resource for honey bee colonies, but there is a trade-off with an increased risk of exposure to pesticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decline in farmland birds observed throughout Europe during recent decades has attracted much attention. Agricultural intensification or land abandonment are commonly forwarded as key drivers. Several countries have established agri-environmental schemes (AES) to counter these negative trends among farmland birds. This paper reports a study of the relationship between land use and bird species in the agricultural landscape of Norway. The main objective was to investigate the effect of spatial heterogeneity and diversity of land use on total richness and abundance of farmland birds at a national level. Monitoring the distribution and abundance of birds is part of the Norwegian monitoring programme for agricultural landscapes. The monitoring programme is based on mapping of 1 × 1 km squares distributed across the entire agricultural landscape. Within these squares permanent observation points are established for bird monitoring. Detailed interpretation of aerial photographs provides the land classification. We tested the relationship between landscape metrics at different levels of land type detail and species richness and abundance of farmland and non-farmland birds. There was a positive relationship between species richness and abundance of farmland birds and agricultural area. For non-farmland birds the relationship was negative. Spatial heterogeneity of land use was a significant positive factor for both farmland and non-farmland species. High land type diversity was positive for farmland bird richness, but negative for abundance. Non-farmland bird richness was not affected by land type diversity, but abundance had a negative response. The results presented in this paper highlight the importance of a spatial heterogeneous landscape. However, we also found that land type diversity could negatively affect the abundance of both farmland and non-farmland birds. Our findings suggest a need for different management approaches depending on whether the aim is increased species richness or abundance. Achieving both aims with the same means might be difficult. We thus suggest a need for land use analyses before proper management strategies can be implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tuntian system was a state-promoted system of military–agriculture, which originated in the Western Han dynasty (206 BC–9 AD). All the imperial dynasties in Chinese history adopted the practice of tuntian to cultivate and guard frontier areas as an important state policy for developing border areas and consolidating frontier defense. This paper describes the use of satellite remote sensing data to uncover an ancient canal-based tuntian system located in an oasis agricultural landscape adjacent to the ancient Kingdom of Loulan at the southern margin of the Tarim Basin. The remote sensing data examined include Chinese Gaofen-1 (GF-1) VHR imagery, Landsat-8 (LS-8) OLI data and ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model Version 2 (ASTER GDEMV2) products. The effective irrigated tuntian area was estimated to be 2800 ha and the maximum irrigated tuntian area was found to be more than 8000 ha during the area's most prosperous period. The overall spatial structure of Milan's tuntian agricultural landscape was explored using the patch–corridor–matrix model. By detailed analysis of satellite remote sensing data, this study reconstructed a 3D view of Milan's tuntian agricultural landscape in a GIS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy makers and farmers need to know the status of farmland biodiversity in order to meet conservation goals and evaluate management options. Based on a review of 11 monitoring programs in Europe and North America and on related literature, we identify the design choices or attributes of a program that balance monitoring costs and usefulness for stakeholders. A useful program monitors habitats, vascular plants, and possibly faunal groups (ecosystem service providers, charismatic species) using a stratified random sample of the agricultural landscape, including marginal and intensive regions. The size of landscape samples varies with the grain of the agricultural landscape; for example, samples are smaller in Europe and larger in North America. Raw data are collected in a rolling survey, which distributes sampling over several years. Sufficient practical experience is now available to implement broad monitoring schemes on both continents. Technological developments in remote sensing, metagenomics, and social media may offer new opportunities for affordable farmland biodiversity monitoring and help to lower the overall costs of monitoring programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing the landscape as a whole is an important step towards the understanding the landscape’s functionality and, consequently, identifying areas with different levels of ecosystem functions (EF)/landscape functions (LF) and services (ES). The main aim of this paper is present a framework to map LF considering the landscape approach. Our study case was a watershed located in the mountain region of Rio de Janeiro state. To achieve the goal, we defined landscape units and ecosystem functions. Based on it, a correlation matrix was produced and sent to experts for consultation. Then, we map the potential of landscape units to provide EF. The result showed that, of 23 landscape units, six units had relevance for habitat, information and regulation functions; five showed potential to perform production and regulation functions, one unit showed potential to perform habitat maintenance and information functions. Seven units showed relevance for only one function category. This study highlights how multifunctional a landscape can be. It was evident that different landscape components are able to provide a wild range of EF. Moreover, this represent a high capacity to propose sustainable alternatives for landscapes—knowing the landscape unit potential to provide LF it is possible to indicate the best options for its use and potentialize the LF provision. It was evident that well managed landscapes are also capable to provide LF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many agricultural landscapes have been formed through the interaction and co-evolution of nature and people, and represent the living landscapes shaped over time through intensive and continuous human cultivation. Terraced paddy fields are being re-evaluated to take into account the multiple functions they fill beyond only rice cultivation, particularly their contribution to the national biodiversity strategy of Japan. Since the 1990s, terraced paddy fields have been considered a representative cultural landscape of Japan and, at the same time, multi-stakeholder conservation activities have been conducted throughout Japan to reverse the increasing abandonment of terraces. Shiroyone Senmaida is an outstanding cultural landscape and a major tourist attraction in Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was designated through an initiative by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) pilot site in 2011. It is important to clarify tourist preference for terraced paddy field landscapes to contribute to future policy making toward improved agricultural landscape conservation. A key finding of this study is that tourists visiting to enjoy the agricultural landscape are also concerned on the sustainability of the farming methods and preferred to maintain the naturalness of the landscape. Respondents with higher educational levels and greater concern for the biological and traditional farming knowledge aspects of the rice terraces were also more inclined to favor sustainable farming practices. Tourists preferred to maintain the naturalness and rurality of the agricultural landscape, and indicated that construction of excessive tourist facilities would cause the landscape to deteriorate. It was suggested that the local community and surroundings, including rural settlements, hills, and forests, should also be conserved together with the scenic terrace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early 2000s a Land Parcel Identification System (LPIS) was set up by each member state of the European Union, to manage agricultural subsidies. These databases describe field geometry and landcover, and provide information on farm characteristics. LPIS data could therefore be used to describe agricultural landscape dynamics, but are seldom put to this purpose by scientists and local stakeholders because it requires the use of GIS software and programming skills. The objective of this paper is thus to present RPG Explorer, a new tool that we developed to analyze agricultural landscape dynamics with LPIS data. RPG Explorer doesn’t require any specific skills in GIS and programming allowing non specialist to deal with complex data. RPG Explorer includes a first module which computes the changes in crop proportions and farm characteristics (numbers of farm, farm area, farm type). A second module computes crop sequences on each farmer block of LPIS data. We also included a crop rotation model in a third module. We illustrated the use of RPG Explorer for two example neighboring catchments located in western France, the Vivier catchment (16,000 ha) and the Courance catchment (15,000 ha). For example, RPG Explorer easily revealed the evolution of crop proportions, such as the increase of temporary grasslands in the Courance catchment (from 7.2% of the Utilized Agricultural Area (UAA) in 2007 to 11.7% in 2013). The number of farms was also shown to vary a lot: from 230 in 2007 to 207 in 2013 for the Vivier catchment, with a subsequent increase of their mean UAA (from 101 ha to 119 ha). RPG Explorer also showed that more than half of the Vivier catchment UAA (59%) was occupied by only 50 farms in 2013. Concerning crop sequences, the sunflower → winter wheat sequence was the most frequent 2-year sequence in both catchments, but some differences appeared with for example, a higher proportion of winter wheat → winter wheat sequence in the Courance catchment (7.2% against 3.6%). Crop rotation modeling indicated that the rapeseed → winter wheat → sunflower → winter wheat, sunflower → winter wheat and maize monoculture were the three main crop rotations. Finally, these examples illustrate well the ability for scientist and local stakeholders to easily describe some major agricultural landscape dynamics with RPG Explorer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Anthropogenic activities readily result in the fragmentation of habitats such that species persistence increasingly depends on their ability to disperse. However, landscape features that enhance or limit individual dispersal are often poorly understood. Landscape genetics has recently provided innovative solutions to evaluate landscape resistance to dispersal. Objectives: We studied the dispersal of the common meadow brown butterfly, Maniola jurtina, in agricultural landscapes, using a replicated study design and rigorous statistical analyses. Based on existing behavioral and life history research, we hypothesized that the meadow brown would preferentially disperse through its preferred grassy habitats (meadows and road verges) and avoid dispersing through woodlands and the agricultural matrix. Methods: Samples were collected in 18 study landscapes of 5 × 5 km in three contrasting agricultural French regions. Using circuit theory, least cost path and transect-based methods, we analyzed the effect of the landscape on gene flow separately for each sex. Results: Analysis of 1681 samples with 6 microsatellites loci revealed that landscape features weakly influence meadow brown butterfly gene flow. Gene flow in both sexes appeared to be weakly limited by forests and arable lands, whereas grasslands and grassy linear elements (road verges) were more likely to enhance gene flow. Conclusion: Our results are consistent with the hypothesis of greater dispersal through landscape elements that are most similar to suitable habitat. Our spatially replicated landscape genetics study allowed us to detect subtle landscape effects on butterfly gene flow, and these findings were reinforced by consistent results across analytical methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This comment cautions against dismissing agricultural practices as a significant cause of hydrologic change in Midwestern agricultural landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land cover mapping (LCM) in complex surface-mined and agricultural landscapes could contribute greatly to regulating mine exploitation and protecting mine geo-environments. However, there are some special and spectrally similar land covers in these landscapes which increase the difficulty in LCM when employing high spatial resolution images. There is currently no research on these mixed complex landscapes. The present study focused on LCM in such a mixed complex landscape located in Wuhan City, China. A procedure combining ZiYuan-3 (ZY-3) stereo satellite imagery, the feature selection (FS) method, and machine learning algorithms (MLAs) (random forest, RF; support vector machine, SVM; artificial neural network, ANN) was proposed and first examined for both LCM of surface-mined and agricultural landscapes (MSMAL) and classification of surface-mined land (CSML), respectively. The mean and standard deviation filters of spectral bands and topographic features derived from ZY-3 stereo images were newly introduced. Comparisons of three MLAs, including their sensitivities to FS and whether FS resulted in significant influences, were conducted for the first time in the present study. The following conclusions are drawn. Textures were of little use, and the novel features contributed to improve classification accuracy. Regarding the influence of FS: FS substantially reduced feature set (by 68% for MSMAL and 87% for CSML), and often improved classification accuracies (with an average value of 4.48% for MSMAL using three MLAs, and 11.39% for CSML using RF and SVM); FS showed statistically significant improvements except for ANN-based MSMAL; SVM was most sensitive to FS, followed by ANN and RF. Regarding comparisons of MLAs: for MSMAL based on feature subset, RF achieved the greatest overall accuracy of 77.57%, followed by SVM and ANN; for CSML, SVM had the highest accuracies (87.34%), followed by RF and ANN; based on the feature subsets, significant differences were observed for MSMAL and CSML using any pair of MLAs. In general, the proposed approach can contribute to LCM in complex surface-mined and agricultural landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]