Agricultural Land Use Intensity Research Articles

Restoration of soil fertility and improvement of phytosanitary condition of soil in short rotation of crops in Polissia of Ukraine

With the intensification of agricultural land use and changes in natural conditions, soil quality in Ukraine is deteriorating, with a decrease in humus content, the average annual loss of which is about 0.6 t/ha. Therefore, its reproduction is now becoming increasingly important through the use of organic raw materials and the introduction of legumes into the crop rotation, which leads to a partial replacement of nitrogen from mineral fertilisers with biological nitrogen. The purpose of this study was to find ways to provide the topsoil with organic residues, develop soil microflora, and improve the activity of nitrogen-fixing bacteria in a short grain legume crop rotation. The study was conducted in 2019-2023 using the following methods: visual – to determine the stages of organogenesis; field – to determine the interaction of abiotic factors; physiological – to determine the symbiotic fixation of atmospheric nitrogen. It was found that due to mineralisation of organic residues of legume crop rotation, the amount of macro- and microelements in the soil layers 0-10 cm, 10-20 cm, and 20-30 cm increased by 45.1-46.9-43.1 mg/kg, respectively. It was found that saturation of short crop rotation by 50% with legumes, straw residues, and green manure contributed to the reduction of pathogenic microorganisms and the growth of suppressive ones. It was found that in a short rotation of crops, 10.3 t/ha of organic matter in the form of stubble and root residues, straw and green manure enters the soil, which contributed to the cultivation of environmentally friendly agricultural products with the restoration of soil fertility. The biological activity of the soil during the growing season in the layer of 10-20 cm reached 47.4%, and the content of alkaline hydrolysed nitrogen in the rhizosphere of the root system increased by 43.9 mg/kg. The value of the study lies in the fact that the introduction of short organic crop rotations in farms of various forms of ownership is an innovative approach to providing light grey soils with organic raw materials, restoring and maintaining their fertility, improving their phytosanitary condition, promoting biodiversity, achieving environmental sustainability and high yields

Quantifying agricultural land-use intensity for spatial biodiversity modelling: implications of different metrics and spatial aggregation methods

ContextAgricultural intensification is a major driver of farmland biodiversity declines. However, the relationship between land-use intensity (LUI) and biodiversity is complex and difficult to characterise, not least because of the difficulties in accurately quantifying LUI across heterogeneous agricultural regions.ObjectivesWe investigated how the use of different LUI metrics and spatial aggregation methods can lead to large variations in LUI estimation across space and thus affect biodiversity modelling.MethodsWe used three spatial aggregation methods (square, hexagonal, and voronoi grids) to calculate ten commonly used LUI metrics describing three LUI dimensions: land use, land management and landscape structure. Using a virtual species approach, we compared how LUI values sampled at biodiversity monitoring sites vary across different metrics and grids. We modelled the distribution of three virtual species using Generalised Additive Models to test how omitting certain LUI dimensions from the models affected the model results.ResultsThe density distributions of LUI values at the presence points of the virtual species were significantly different across metrics and grids. The predefined species-environment relationships characterising the environmental niches of two out of three virtual species remained undetected in models that omitted certain LUI dimensions.ConclusionsWe encourage researchers to consider the implications of using alternative grid types in biodiversity models, and to account for multiple LUI dimensions, for a more complete representation of LUI. Advances in remote sensing-derived products and increased accessibility to datasets on farm structure, land-use and management can greatly advance our understanding of LUI effects on biodiversity.

ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКА ЗЕМЕЛЬНОГО ФОНДА СУБЪЕКТОВ СЕВЕРО-КАВКАЗСКОГО ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОГО РАЙОНА РОССИИ

The article examines the land fund of the subjects of the North Caucasus Economic Region of Russia. The Rostov region, Republics: Adygea, Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, North Ossetia–Alania, Chechnya; Territories: Krasnodar, Stavropol are analyzed. The current and organizational issues of combining the productivity and intensity of agricultural land use with the suitability and value of the latter for the production of crop production, and the key risks constraining the solution of the problems of this important agricultural region of Russia are considered. The risks associated with a slowdown in investment attractiveness, competitive advantage and dependence on foreign economic conditions have been identified. Despite the significant interest in this topic, there are currently a number of problems, both theoretical and practical, related to the study of models of economic development at the level of this region. In the process of studying, methods of statistical analysis, normative and dialectical were used. The information base of the study was data from Rosstat and its regional services, Rosreestr and the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia.

Scenario of Agricultural Land-Use Intensification Practice and Production Efficiency among Food Crop Farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria: A Two-Stage Least Square Regression

Scenario of Agricultural Land-Use Intensification Practice and Production Efficiency among Food Crop Farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria: A Two-Stage Least Square Regression

Participatory mapping of local stakeholders’ perceptions of nature’s contributions to people in an intensified agricultural area in the Colombian Andes

ABSTRACT Intensification of agricultural land use in traditional Andean production landscapes has led to changes in the provision of nature’s contributions to people (NCP) that can threaten people’s wellbeing. Understanding local stakeholders’ valuation of these NCP is crucial for improving land use decisions. We implemented a spatially explicit and participatory NCP valuation method, using semi-structured interviews and participatory mapping, followed by a spatial multi-criteria decision analysis, to identify priority areas for NCP provision in a highly intensified production landscape in the Colombian Andes. We considered multiple value types, ecological, economical and sociocultural, and the points of view of different actors, orienting this towards decision-making on land use. Our results show that local actors can identify and value a wide range of NCP. However, there are also significant differences between actors. Environmentalists attached special importance to regulating NCP, while agricultural laborers focused more on agriculture-related material NCP. As we expected, tourism entrepreneurs especially valued non-material NCP related to their business experiences. Small-scale farmers tended to put more importance on regulating and non-material NCP than big farmers did. Although there was a consensus between actors as to the importance of natural ecosystems for NCP provision, agricultural actors tended to attach more importance to material NCP in areas deemed important for regulating and non-material NCP by other actors. Our main results confirm the importance of involving different stakeholders in spatial NCP valuation exercises, recognizing their different points of view to help identify possible trade-offs and synergies related to land use.

Оценка влияния интенсивности использования сельскохозяйственных земель на экономическую эффективность

Abstract. The purpose is to assess the impact of the intensity of agricultural land use on the level of their economic efficiency. Methodology and methods. In the course of the study, nonparametric statistical methods were used to identify dependencies in the data set. When constructing predictive models, ROC analysis was used to find the values of the cut off point. Results. The study made it possible to localize three groups of regions of the Russian Federation that differ quite significantly in terms of the intensity of land use and are characterized by a sufficiently high level of dispersion within the groups. The analysis of the interrelations between the parameters characterizing the intensity level allowed us to identify factors that influence economic efficiency: the degree of ploughing of agricultural land, the share of reclaimed land in the area of farmland and the degree of use of arable land, the latter of which has the most significant influence. The ROC analysis regarding the degree of use of arable land as a potential predictive parameter for increasing land yield showed that its threshold value at the cut off point is 63.8 %, above which the maximum values of economic efficiency are achievable. The scientific novelty lies in the formation of the evidence base of the dependence of economic efficiency on the level of intensity of land use, necessary for understanding the mechanisms of formation of rational parameters of land use.

Cascading effects of management and landscape on insect pollinators, pollination services and yield in apple orchards

Recent insect pollinator declines, mainly due to the expansion and intensification of agricultural land use, are jeopardizing ecosystem service provisioning in agroecosystems. Organic farming has been suggested as a biodiversity-friendly alternative to conventional farming, but additional insights evaluating its effectiveness in perennial cropping systems are needed. Here, we provide a comprehensive analysis of local and landscape effects on the provided pollination services and yield in apple crops. We first used mixed models to disentangle effects of agricultural management and landscape effects on both taxonomic and functional diversity of wild bees and hoverflies during bloom in both organic and integrated pest management (IPM) apple orchards in Belgium, and then compared these biodiversity indicators with semi-natural grasslands as a benchmark. Next, we applied piecewise structural equation modeling to quantify the direct and indirect effects of orchard management type and landscape on fruit set, seed set and ultimately on crop yield. Orchards, regardless of their type of management, hosted lower taxonomic and functional pollinator diversity compared to the semi-natural benchmark. Yet, pollinator abundance and diversity were higher in orchard edges and increased with small-scale landscape diversity, which was positively associated with the presence of semi-natural habitat, as well as arable and urban land. Investigating the cascading effects on apple yield, we found that yield levels were not shaped by the observed pollinator diversity or by the measured pollination services, but were lower in organic orchards. Overall, we conclude that apple yield was likely not pollinator limited in our study system, but that conserving and restoring semi-natural habitats, maintaining and expanding orchard edges through reducing field sizes and promoting landscape diversity are the most promising avenues for pollinator conservation in orchard landscapes.

Livestock density affects species richness and community composition of butterflies: A nationwide study

Extensively managed grasslands are globally recognized for their high biodiversity value. Over the past century, a continuous loss and degradation of grassland habitats has been observed across Europe that is mainly attributable to agricultural intensification and land abandonment. Particularly insects have suffered from the loss of grassland habitats due to land-use change and the decrease in habitat quality, either due to an increase in livestock density, higher mowing frequency, and an increase in nitrogen fertilization, or by abandonment. However, only a few studies have used nationwide datasets to analyse the effects of land cover and land-use intensity on insects. It further remains largely unexplored how these effects are modulated by species traits, i.e. habitat specialisation and mobility. Using nationwide butterfly data originating from the German Butterfly Monitoring Scheme, we investigated the effect of three indicators related to land cover and agricultural land-use intensity on species richness as well as trait composition of butterfly communities. Based on agricultural census data at the municipality scale, we calculated the share of permanent grasslands (measure of habitat availability), the total livestock density (proxy for organic fertilization) and the livestock density of domestic herbivores (proxy for management intensity in grasslands) within a 2 km buffer surrounding each butterfly transect. To analyse the relationships between butterflies and indicators of land cover and land-use intensity, we applied generalised linear mixed effect models. We found a negative relationship between butterfly species richness and the livestock density of domestic herbivores. Further, the ratio of butterfly generalist to specialist species shifted towards generalists and the size of butterflies increased with higher herbivore livestock density, indicating a shift in communities towards mobile habitat generalists. Our results are in accordance with previous studies carried out across smaller geographic extents, highlighting the importance of low herbivore livestock densities to halt the loss of pollinating insects and safeguard biodiversity and associated ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes. We here demonstrate that indicators based on livestock distribution data at the municipality scale can provide insights into processes and spatial diversity patterns of butterflies at the national level. Further, we highlight potentials and limitations of using agricultural census data to quantify and assess effects of land cover and land-use intensity on butterflies, and make recommendations for further research needs.

Evaluation of Shallow Groundwater Quality at Regional Scales Using Adaptive Water Quality Indices.

Groundwater, which is the main source of water for human consumption in many rural areas, has its quality determined by the complex interaction of environmental factors and anthropogenic activities. The present study evaluated the quality of shallow groundwater (1 to 25 m depth) in the rural area of the Târgovişte Plain, a densely populated area (200 inhabitants/km2) using 80 water samples collected from public wells. In order to explain the spatial distribution of the concentrations of the 19 physicochemical parameters considered (including heavy metals), the evaluation of groundwater quality for human consumption and potential impact on human health was conducted using the Water Quality Index (WQI), Integrated Weight Water Quality Index (IwWQI), Total Hazard Index (THI), and cumulative carcinogenic risk (CCR). For the WQI/IwWQI the comparative analysis of the two indices showed that for the WQI, it is important to select an optimal set of parameters, because use of a large number of physicochemical parameters can eclipse the values that exceed WHO guideline limits. In contrast, the use of entropy in the calculation of the IwWQI did not lead to eclipsing of exceedance, no matter the number of parameters used. Areas with poor and very poor groundwater quality according to the WQI/IwWQI overlapped, with a moderate risk to human health (THI > 1) for noncarcinogenic contaminants and also a risk of developing cancer according to the CCR average value (1.15 × 10−2). The health of 43% of the rural population in the Târgovişte Plain can be affected if they drink contaminated groundwater, and it is estimated that about 600 people can develop cancer during their lifetime. If the risk of developing cancer is reduced only in the rural population that does not have access to a water source from a centralized and verified network, the results suggest that 385 people (1.15%) can develop cancer as a result of consuming groundwater contaminated with heavy metals based on the average value of CCR. This value is lower than the general mortality rate in areas with high CCR and below the average number of cancer patients in Romania (2.65%). The quality of groundwater and the risk of developing diseases and cancer due to water consumption is directly proportional to the intensity of agricultural land use and inversely proportional to the depth of the groundwater layer, the distance from the main hydrographic network and the reservoirs, and the distance from the main city, Târgovişte. The complex and integrated analysis of groundwater quality using quality indices and indicators of health risk for the population, validated by hot-spot analysis and compared to the mortality rate, is an approach with practical applicability. This integrated approach allows public authorities, policymakers, and health services to implement an efficient monitoring program and optimize anthropogenic activities in order to prevent groundwater contamination and finally improve the quality of life for the residents in the area of this study.

Global land-use intensity and anthropogenic emissions exhibit symbiotic and explosive behavior

SummaryThe intensification of land use is accelerating and remains a threat to achieving environmental sustainability. Although prior literature identifies unsustainable demand for resources as crucial to ecosystem vitality, we highlight explosive behavior and indicators associated with changing global land-use intensity and emissions. We assess emission footprints, forestry, and agricultural land-use intensity across income groups. We find that long-term income growth above US$1005/capita has mitigation effects on emissions, whereas emissions stimulate the global expansion of land use for agricultural and forestry activities. Urban expansion has diminishing effects on agricultural lands in developed countries, which may alter future agricultural production and food consumption. The heterogeneous effects across countries demonstrate the need for domestic context, including cultural and historical factors, in assessing forest decline, agricultural expansion, and land-use intensity. The co-benefits of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) in developing economies are crucial to mitigating emissions while improving forest-dependent livelihoods.

Effects of local climate and habitat heterogeneity on breeding-bird assemblages of semi-natural grasslands

The intensification of agricultural land-use, abandonment and afforestation have caused severe loss and degradation of nutrient-poor, semi-natural grasslands across Europe. Calcareous grasslands have an outstanding value for nature conservation due to their highly diverse flora and fauna, including birds. However, knowledge of environmental factors driving the composition of bird communities in calcareous grasslands is still scarce. The aim of our study was to compare the breeding-bird assemblages of calcareous grasslands and the second most common semi-natural grassland type in the study area (Diemel Valley, Central Germany), mesic grasslands, along an elevation (climate) gradient. For each grassland type, we randomly selected 27 square-shaped plots with a size of 5 ha each and a cover of the focal grassland type of at least 50% within the plot. Our study revealed that both the number and density of threatened species of breeding birds were higher in plots of calcareous grasslands than in those of mesic grasslands. Based on multivariable generalised linear mixed-effects models, the most important predictors of overall species richness and density of breeding birds in plots of calcareous grasslands were the area of juniper-rich calcareous grassland and Shannon habitat diversity. By contrast, the number and density of threatened species were in both grassland types mainly driven by breeding-season temperature. Heterogeneous, juniper-rich calcareous grasslands seem to be a key habitat for bird assemblages with high species richness and density. These grasslands usually consisted of small-scale habitat mosaics providing suitable nesting sites and foraging grounds in close proximity. By contrast, mesic grasslands had rather homogeneous swards and shrubs or trees were normally restricted to the edges of the grassland patches. Based on our study, increasing habitat heterogeneity at the landscape scale and within grasslands is the key to enhancing species richness and density of breeding birds.

Optimization of economic and ecological components of using agricultural lands for balansed land use and rural areas development

The study is devoted to solving a topical problem related to the deterioration of land quality in Ukraine and in many countries around the world. This article proposes the use of economic and mathematical modelling to optimize the structure of sown areas of crops on the example of the whole of Ukraine in the direction of ensuring the balance of humus in the soil depending on the influence of a number of environmental and economic factors. The formation of the economic and mathematical model was the basis of the research methodology in this work. Based on the use of a systematic approach to assessing the effectiveness of the agricultural land use system, a number of environmental and economic indicators were selected and three groups of restrictions in the field of intensification of agricultural land use were formed. The applied approach made it possible to develop a task to optimize the sown area of crops in order to preserve the quality of land. The results of solving the formed problem showed the need to limit the sown area under crops, the cultivation of which leads to the loss of humus in the soil; in particular, it is proposed to limit the sown area under sunflower. The results of the study allowed us to draw the following conclusions: a positive effect on the quality of soils from the cultivation of annual and perennial grasses was established, which requires an increase in sown areas under these crops; promising indicators for achieving a deficit-free balance of humus in soils during the cultivation of crops have been identified; an algorithm for choosing solutions to ensure balanced use of agricultural land in the agricultural sector has been developed that the presented procedure for choosing solutions will increase the environmental and economic efficiency of agricultural land use; it is established that for the realization of certain goals in the system of land use, the decisive importance should be given to the consideration and coordination of environmental, economic and social interests.

Biodiversity decline with increasing crop productivity in agricultural fields revealed by satellite remote sensing

Increasing land-use intensity is a main driver of biodiversity loss in farmland, but measuring proxies for land-use intensity across entire landscapes is challenging. Here, we develop a novel method for the assessment of the impact of land-use intensity on biodiversity in agricultural landscapes using remote sensing parameters derived from the Sentinel-2 satellites. We link crop phenology and productivity parameters derived from time-series of a two-band enhanced vegetation index with biodiversity indicators (insect pollinators and insect-pollinated vascular plants) in agricultural fields in southern Sweden, with contrasting land management (i.e. conventional and organic farming). Our results show that arable land-use intensity in cereal systems dominated by spring-sown cereals can be approximated using Sentinel-2 productivity parameters. This was shown by the significant positive correlations between the amplitude and maximum value of the enhanced vegetation index on one side and farmer reported yields on the other. We also found that conventional cereal fields had 17% higher maximum and 13% higher amplitude of their enhanced vegetation index than organic fields. Sentinel-2 derived parameters were more strongly correlated with the abundance and species richness of bumblebees and the richness of vascular plants than the abundance and species richness of butterflies. The relationships we found between biodiversity and crop production proxies are consistent with predictions that increasing agricultural land-use intensity decreases field biodiversity. The newly developed method based on crop phenology and productivity parameters derived from Sentinel-2 data serves as a proof of concept for the assessment of the impact of land-use intensity on biodiversity over cereal fields across larger areas. It enables the estimation of arable productivity in cereal systems, which can then be used by ecologists and develop tools for land managers as a proxy for land-use intensity. Coupled with spatially explicit databases on agricultural land-use, this method will enable crop-specific cereal productivity estimation across large geographical regions.

Land use intensity determines soil properties and biomass recovery after abandonment of agricultural land in an Amazonian biodiversity hotspot

There has been widespread clearance of tropical forests for agriculture, but in many cases the cultivation phase is only transient. The secondary forests recovering on these abandoned sites may contribute to mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and protection of biodiversity, but the rates of recovery may be dependent on land-use intensity and changes in soil properties during cultivation. However fine-scale details on these changes are poorly known for many tropical forest locations. We quantified soil properties and recovery of woody biomass in 42 tropical forest fragments representing a chronosequence following two types of agricultural land-uses, and in 15 comparable reference old growth forests, between the Andes and the Amazon in Peru. Soil fertility, particularly base cation concentrations, responded negatively to increasing intensity of agricultural land-use, and either decreased or increased with time after abandonment dependent on prior land-use. The predicted mean recovery rate of woody biomass over the first 20 years following abandonment matched that predicted by a general model for the Neotropics, but recovery was three-fold higher on sites abandoned following traditional agriculture than on sites recovering from intensive agriculture. Estimated total biomass recovered to just above half that of reference old growth forests within 71 years. The inclusion of the biomass of lianas and smaller tree stems did not modify the apparent rate of ecosystem biomass recovery, however the proportion of the total biomass stored in small stems was greater following intensive than traditional agriculture, which suggests that patterns of stand structural development are sensitive to land-use history. We conclude that effects of historic land use on soil nutrient concentrations and their changes through time are required for a more complete interpretation of variation in biomass recovery rates at local scales. These results also highlight the critical importance of contemporary agricultural intensification for carbon storage in tropical forests.

Impact of land use intensification and local features on plants and pollinators in Sub-Saharan smallholder farms

Sub-Saharan African crop production largely relies on smallholder farms, located both in urban and agricultural landscapes. In this context, the investigation of plant and pollinator diversity and their interactions is of primary importance since both these factors are threatened by land use intensification and the consequent loss of natural habitats. In this study, we evaluated for the first time how plant and pollinator insect assemblages and interactions in Sub-Saharan farming conditions are shaped by land use intensification. To do that, we complemented biodiversity field surveys in Northern Tanzania with a modern DNA metabarcoding approach to characterize the foraged plants and thus built networks describing plant-pollinator interactions at the individual insect level. Moreover, we coupled this information with quantitative traits of landscape composition and floral availability surrounding each farm. We found that pollinator richness decreased with increasing impervious and agricultural cover in the landscape, whereas the flower density at each farm correlated with pollinator richness. The intensification of agricultural land use and urbanization correlated with a higher foraging niche overlap among pollinators due to convergence of individuals’ flower visiting strategies. Furthermore, within farms, the higher availability of floral resources drove lower niche overlap among individuals, while a greater flower visitors abundance shaped higher generalization at the networks level (H2′), possibly due to increased competition. These mechanistic understandings leading to individuals’ foraging niche overlap and generalism at the network level, could imply stability of interactions and of the pollination ecosystem service. Our integrative survey proved that plant-pollinator systems are largely affected by land use intensification and by local factors in smallholder farms of Sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, policies promoting nature-based solutions, among which the introduction of more pollinator-friendly practices by smallholder farmers, could be effective in mitigating the intensification of both urban and rural landscapes in this region, as well as in similar Sub-Saharan contexts.

Crops modify habitat quality beyond their limits

Edge effect is a strong driver of change in fragmented landscapes. In the last few decades, agricultural land-use intensity at field scale has increased and, consequently, the edges between crops and natural vegetation matrix have sharpened. Interspersed crops produce now negative effects not only by direct habitat destruction, but also by inputs of agrochemicals that may spread their effects on the surroundings. These processes are taking place worryingly in steppe habitats in Iberian Peninsula where the high diversity of bird communities and other taxa they hold is at risk. The aims of this study were to evaluate the edge effect of crops on i) the microhabitat quality of a natural landscape matrix and ii) the space use of a threatened habitat-specialist steppe bird, the Dupont’s lark (Chersophilus duponti). We carried out microhabitat sampling and bird surveys within and around crops interspersed in a typical Iberian shrub-steppe matrix during spring and autumn 2016 and spring 2017. Microhabitat quality was measured by sampling vegetation structure and arthropod biomass (as proxy of food availability) within and at increasing distances (1, 10 and 50 m) to seven crops. The intensity of space use by the Dupont’s lark was estimated applying a Kernel density function on the spatial point pattern of the males’ territories. Vegetation structure variables were summarized by Principal Components Analysis. Linear Mixed Models and model averaging were used to test for effects of distance to crop on microhabitat quality and space use by the Dupont’s lark. Distance to crop significantly affected microhabitat quality. A patchy structure of herbaceous and shrub was found outside crops in all sampling dates, with more shrub cover and less herbaceous cover as the distance to crops increased. Biomass of hypogeous arthropods significantly decreased when the distance to crops was lower than 50 m. The intensity of space use by Dupont’s lark varied according to the sampling date, being higher in spring, and as the distance to crops and the biomass of hypogeous arthropods increased. Negative effects of crops on the space use of this bird species might be shaped both by the effect of the crop itself and by its edge effect on hypogeous arthropods. Our results point to an edge effect of crops of 10–50 m on natural vegetation structure, arthropod availability and use of space by the Dupont`s lark, which suggests that the effective area of optimal habitat available for true steppe species could be overestimated.

Orchids of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (West Bank, Palestine)

Literature data and new records of members of the orchid family (Orchidaceae) in the Occupied Palestinian Territories were reviewed and updated with field data. Using data from the Palestine Museum of Natural History (PMNH), data from fellow botanists, and the Biodiversity databases (BioGIS and GBIF), the distribution patterns were analyzed with the QGIS package. Twenty-three taxa of eight genera were found in this preliminary study. For two species, no recent data from the last 20 years were available and in some cases likely declined due to human activity. Most species are from the Mediterranean phytogeographical zone, Epipactis veratrifolia Boiss. & Hohen was found in the Sudanian-Ethiopian zone (Dead Sea valley). The majority of the species found prefer semi-open shrublands (garrigue). Nine species had fewer than 20 records overall. Trends observed from the historical data, and current spatial data revealed major threats, including habitat fragmentation, urbanization, intensification of agricultural land use, afforestation and reduced precipitation due to global warming. We noted the proximity to thorny shrubs in many species indicating pressure by grazing animals during field visits. As recent data is scarce, surveys of sites where rare species have been encountered in the past are recommended, and measures to protect vulnerable populations are discussed.

Long-term variability in deposited fine sediment and macroinvertebrate communities across different land-use intensities in a regional set of New Zealand rivers

ABSTRACT Macroinvertebrate communities in running waters are commonly used as bioindicators of fine sediment pollution, but few studies evaluate impacts across multiple years. We used a 5-year dataset from 46 rivers in Southland, New Zealand to investigate the consistency of the relationship between deposited fine sediment and stream macroinvertebrates across three categories of agricultural land-use intensity (low, medium, and high). We also compared the performance of four widely used invertebrate stream health metrics and their recently developed sediment-specific counterparts. Linear and non-linear regressions were fitted and effect sizes were interpreted to identify biologically meaningful relationships (r 2 ≥ 0.1). Sites within medium-intensity catchments showed the greatest number of such relationships (29 of 40 cases), compared to low- (8) or high-intensity catchments (23). Invertebrate metrics responded more frequently, and mostly negatively, to increasing sediment in medium- and high-intensity catchments. Overall, sediment-specific metrics performed better than their widely used counterparts. Our findings show that land-use intensity influences the multi-year dynamics of deposited fine sediment and the corresponding stream invertebrate responses. These temporal dynamics can be substantial and should be considered in future stream biomonitoring efforts.

Partnerships Generate Co-Benefits in Agricultural Stream Restoration (Canterbury, New Zealand)

In Aotearoa New Zealand, agricultural land-use intensification and decline in freshwater ecosystem integrity pose complex challenges for science and society. Despite riparian management programmes across the country, there is frustration over a lack in widespread uptake, upfront financial costs, possible loss in income, obstructive legislation and delays in ecological recovery. Thus, social, economic and institutional barriers exist when implementing and assessing agricultural freshwater restoration. Partnerships are essential to overcome such barriers by identifying and promoting co-benefits that result in amplifying individual efforts among stakeholder groups into coordinated, large-scale change. Here, we describe how initial progress by a sole farming family at the Silverstream in the Canterbury region, South Island, New Zealand, was used as a catalyst for change by the Canterbury Waterway Rehabilitation Experiment, a university-led restoration research project. Partners included farmers, researchers, government, industry, treaty partners (Indigenous rights-holders) and practitioners. Local capacity and capability was strengthened with practitioner groups, schools and the wider community. With partnerships in place, co-benefits included lowered costs involved with large-scale actions (e.g., earth moving), reduced pressure on individual farmers to undertake large-scale change (e.g., increased participation and engagement), while also legitimising the social contracts for farmers, scientists, government and industry to engage in farming and freshwater management. We describe contributions and benefits generated from the project and describe iterative actions that together built trust, leveraged and aligned opportunities. These actions were scaled from a single farm to multiple catchments nationally.

ANALYSIS OF AGRICULTURAL LAND RESOURCES USING ON THE EXAMPLE OF CENTRAL FEDERAL DISTRICT REGIONS

Over the past 30 years, our country has undergone many changes in the field of land legislation. Many of them were aimed at regulating land relations in the field of rural land use and were expressed in the adoption of various types of amendments and changes to laws and tightening fiscal measures for the resuscitation of unused land. However, such regulation has not led to an improvement in the use of agricultural land, and their quantitative and qualitative potential has deteriorated, which has led to inefficiency of budget funds allocated for the implementation of targeted programs in the field of agriculture. Rational use of land resources in agriculture is one of the most important tasks of land management. This article analyzes the use of land resources in the agro-industrial complex on the example of Central Federal district regions. The main indicators of production and economic activities of the regions of Central Federal district in agriculture, such as investments in agriculture, value of gross output of agriculture, yields of major agricultural crops, productivity of the main types of livestock, profitability of production agriculture, as well as indicators of the intensity of agricultural land using: the proportion of acreage in the total area of land, use of fertilizers, volume of agrochemical operations, availability of improved lands, involvement in economic turnover of previously unused land.. Weight coefficients were calculated for all indicators, groups of regions were formed for production and economic activity in the agro-industrial complex and the intensity of agricultural land use, cartograms were drawn up and proposals were made for planning land use.