Abstract
Many studies have investigated the benefits of agri-environmental schemes, such as organic farming, on biodiversity conservation in annual systems, but their effectiveness in perennial systems is less well understood, particularly in bird communities in temperate regions of Asia. This study examined the effects of organic farming practices on species richness and abundance of breeding birds in apple orchards in northern Japan. Bird counts were conducted in six pairs of organic and conventional orchards during the breeding season in April and May 2015. The total species richness of birds, estimated by sample- and coverage-based rarefaction and extrapolation curves, was greater in organic orchards than in conventional orchards. Among the three dietary guilds (insectivore, granivore, and omnivore), only insectivorous species were more abundant in organic orchards than in conventional ones. This study offers the first quantitative evidence that organic farming can be beneficial for enhancing the diversity of birds, particularly of insectivores, in fruit orchards in Japan.
Highlights
Barn swallow Japanese tit Meadow bunting White wagtail Bull-headed shrike Oriental greenfinch Eurasian tree sparrow Chestnut-cheeked starling Carrion crow Brown-eared bulbul White-cheeked starling Naumann’s thrush
This study provides the first quantitative report of how organic farming affects the species richness or abundance of birds compared with conventional agriculture in apple orchards in Japan
The higher sampling coverage and narrower confidence intervals of species richness in conventional orchards than in organic ones suggest that more of the species present were observed in conventional orchards due to lower species richness
Summary
Barn swallow Japanese tit Meadow bunting White wagtail Bull-headed shrike Oriental greenfinch Eurasian tree sparrow Chestnut-cheeked starling Carrion crow Brown-eared bulbul White-cheeked starling Naumann’s thrush. Total species richness Total abundance Abundance of insectivores Abundance of granivores Abundance of omnivores agricultural landscapes for conversion to protected areas in Japan, facilitating their sustainable use for farming and wildlife is a more realistic option[23]. The effects of wildlife-friendly farming on biodiversity have been investigated in annual systems (i.e., rice fields26,27), few empirical studies have been conducted in fruit orchards. Filling this knowledge gap will advance our understanding of the development of robust conservation planning adapted for future changes in climate and land use.
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