Field Margins Research Articles

Habitat type modulates sharp body mass oscillations in cyclic common vole populations

Cyclic rodent populations exhibit pronounced changes in body mass associated with the population cycle phase, long-known as Chitty effect. Although Chitty effect is a common epiphenomenon in both America and Europe, there is still incomplete evidence about the generality of these patterns across the entire range of most species. Moreover, despite decades of research, the underlying factors driving Chitty effect remains poorly understood. Here, we examined the influence of intrinsic and extrinsic factors that may underlie observed patterns in vole size variation in the Iberian common vole Microtus arvalis asturianus. We weighed and measured 2816 adult voles that were captured during 6 trapping periods. Vole numbers and body mass showed strong period- and phase-related variation both in females and males, demonstrating marked Chitty effect in the studied population. Body mass of adult males correlated with body length, evidencing that heavier males are also structurally larger. Statistical models showed that probability of occurrence of large-sized vole (> 37 g) was significantly more likely in reproductive males, during increase and peak phases, and it was modulated by habitat, with crop fields and field margins between crops showing an increased likelihood. We suggest an effect of the habitat on vole body mass mediated by predation.

Deterioration of bio-based polylactic acid plastic teabags under environmental conditions and their associated effects on earthworms

In response to the plastic waste crisis, teabag producers have substituted the petrochemical-plastic content of their products with bio-based, biodegradable polymers such as polylactic acid (PLA). Despite widespread use, the degradation rate of PLA/PLA-blended materials in natural soil and their effects on soil biota are poorly understood. This study examined the percentage mass deterioration of teabags with differing cellulose:PLA compositions following burial (−10 cm depth) in an arable field margin for 7-months, using a suite of analytical techniques, such as size exclusion chromatography, 1H nuclear magnetic resonance, dynamic scanning calorimetry, and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of 28-d exposure to teabag discs at environmentally relevant concentrations (0.02 %, 0.04 % and 0.07 % w/w) on the survival, growth and reproduction (OECD TG 222 protocol) of the key soil detritivore Eisenia fetida was assessed in laboratory trials. After 7-month burial, Tbag-A (2.4:1 blend) and Tbag-B (3.5:1 cellulose:PLA blend) lost 66 ± 5 % and 78 ± 4 % of their total mass, primarily attributed to degradation of cellulose as identified by FTIR spectroscopy and a reduction in the cellulose:PLA mass ratio, while Tbag-C (PLA) remained unchanged. There were clear treatment and dose-specific effects on the growth and reproductive output of E. fetida. At 0.07 % w/w of Tbag-A adult mortality marginally increased (15 %) and both the quantity of egg cocoons and the average mass of juveniles also increased, while at concentrations ≥0.04 % w/w of Tbag-C, the quantity of cocoons was suppressed. Adverse effects are comparable to those reported for non-biodegradable petrochemical-based plastic, demonstrating that bio-based PLA does not offer a more ‘environmentally friendly’ alternative. Our study emphasises the necessity to better understand the environmental fate and ecotoxicity of PLA/PLA-blends to ensure interventions developed through the UN Plastic Pollution Treaty to use alternatives and substitutes to conventional plastics do not result in unintended negative consequences.

A GIS‐based approach to site vegetated buffer strips for erosion control within an agricultural catchment in southern England

AbstractAgricultural soil erosion is largely attributed to arable intensification and increased mechanization. Runoff from arable land and intensively managed grassland transports sediment and contaminants across the landscape and into watercourses, causing crop loss, land degradation, and water quality issues. One low‐cost and low‐maintenance nature‐based mitigation approach is the implementation of vegetated buffer strips (VBS): grassland sited along field margins to trap sediment and contaminants, reducing transportation and diffuse pollution rates. GIS modelling using remotely sensed landscape indices and land parcel data can provide an efficient means of identifying priority areas for intervention at sub‐catchment or farm system scales. We develop and test a scalable runoff risk model in the lower Rother catchment, West Sussex. The model uses the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) applied to satellite images as an erodibility proxy and identifies locations along pathways that are conceivably at greatest risk of sediment accumulation and transfer, guided by field observations. We assess current and historical field boundaries near high‐risk locations, evaluating the potential capacity of their margins to contribute to runoff risk reduction using an innovative ranking system. Recommendations are made for VBS implementation and the value of historical field boundary and margin restoration is discussed. Our method offers a rapid approach with minimal data requirements to identify high‐risk sediment runoff locations and priority sites for intervention. The tool has the potential to guide decision‐makers responsible for targeting and implementing soil erosion and runoff control measures such as VBS, while also maximizing agri‐environmental and cultural benefits.

Land-use interactions, Oil-Field infrastructure, and natural processes control hydrocarbon and arsenic concentrations in groundwater, Poso Creek Oil Field, California, USA

Like many hydrocarbon production areas in the U.S., the Poso Creek Oil Field in California includes and is adjacent to other land uses (agricultural and other developed lands) that affect the hydrology and geochemistry of the aquifer overlying and adjacent to oil development. We hypothesize that the distributions of hydrocarbons and arsenic in groundwater in such areas will be controlled by complex interactions between mixed land uses, oil-field infrastructure, and natural processes. In 2020–2021, samples of groundwater and surface water were collected and analyzed for a large suite of inorganic and organic chemicals and isotope and gas tracers to test this hypothesis. Those data are supplemented with ancillary data on historical geochemistry, hydrology, geology, and oil-field infrastructure. Hydrocarbons in groundwater (e.g., methane through pentane gases and benzene) are associated with natural processes (e.g., fault offsets or transition in sediment depositional environment) and oil-field infrastructure (e.g., fluid-migration pathways associated with uncemented annulus in oil wells or unlined pits). Arsenic concentrations >10 μg per liter (μg/L; maximum concentration 12.9 μg/L) are associated with natural processes in old, high-pH groundwater, and more recent recharge of water from natural and/or engineered recharge processes. Along the southwest margin of the oil field, pumping for drinking-water and irrigation supplies in combination with engineered groundwater recharge produce a depression in groundwater elevations where groundwater with elevated sulfate concentrations from agricultural areas and groundwater with hydrocarbons from the oil field mix to produce a zone of sulfate reduction that removes hydrocarbons and arsenic from groundwater but produces elevated sulfide (S2-) concentrations (maximum concentration 29 mg per liter, mg/L). In this study, multiple approaches were required to resolve the overlapping effects of land uses, oil-field infrastructure, and natural processes on the distributions of hydrocarbons and arsenic in groundwater. The combined use of geographic, historical, physical, chemical, isotopic, and other information to constrain processes could be a useful approach for studies in other hydrocarbon-production areas. This is particularly important where land uses affect aquifer hydrology to an extent that causes mixing of groundwaters with different chemical compositions.

Effect of plant edges strips on the conservation soil properties in modern farming field.

The European Green Deal encourages the use of non-productive activities in agriculture. One of the measures is the cultivation of melliferous floral plants at the field margins. Their influence on soil compaction and other deterioration is due to heavy machinery, its inappropriate use and frequent driving on field margins, is little studied. Plants of a high environmental value though rarely grown by farmers were selected for melliferous plant strips: perennial grass swards (PGS), perennial legume swards (PLS), annual floral plats mixture (AEP) and natural grassland swards (NGS). The experiment was installed on a clay loam and loam Cambisol with the aim to determine the effect of different plant composition strips grown at the field edges on the physical and chemical soils parameters of with different granulometric structure. It was found that the highest amounts of roots and plant residues in the soil were left after cultivating sward strips of PGS and NGS compared to the field where cereals had been intensively grown. The amounts of root and plant residues produced by plants, soil rest increase the amount of organic carbon in the soil. During the five-year period, the plants edges strips improved the properties of the field margin top and subsoil.

A multi-taxa approach reveals contrasting responses of arthropod communities and related ecosystem services to field margin proximity and crop type

Agricultural intensification and landscape simplification are among the major drivers of biodiversity loss in agricultural landscapes. Increasing field edges might be a key solution for enhancing biodiversity and related ecosystem services within arable fields. In this study, we investigated the spatial distribution of nine arthropod groups and weed seed and pest predation rates across different distances from field edges and crop types. Furthermore, we tested the relationship between local carabid abundance and species richness and directly measured weed seed and pest predation rates. Most of the investigated taxa were not affected by field margin proximity, except for carabid species richness and the abundance of bees and wasps, hoverflies, and myriapods, which were high near the edge. We found a higher abundance of carabids and herbivores in oilseed rape compared to other crops, while hoverflies, bees and wasps were more abundant in cereal. True bug abundance was significantly higher in oilseed rape interiors compared to edges. Weed seed predation and pest predation by small mammals were the highest at 36 m from the field margin, probably due to small mammal distribution, while pest predation by arthropods did not show any significant pattern. Both weed seed predation rate and arthropod pest predation were positively related to carabid abundance and negatively to species richness. Contrasting responses across nine investigated arthropod taxa indicate that re-designing agricultural landscapes to support biodiversity across taxa will be challenging, and further studies are needed to fully understand the spatial distribution of arthropods and related ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes.

Detecting flowers on imagery with computer vision to improve continental scale grassland biodiversity surveying

Abstract Large‐scale biodiversity monitoring is essential for assessing biodiversity trends, yet traditional surveying methods are limited in the spatial/temporal scale they can cover. Recent technological developments have led to computer vision‐based species identification tools, such as the Pl@ntNet application. Increasing accuracy of such algorithms presents an opportunity of integrating computer vision into larger monitoring schemes and could lead to automating ground‐based evidence provision related to agri‐environmental measures (e.g. flower strips, field margins). However, images from surveys or farmer declarations do not live up to the standards of current applications. In order to integrate these automated methods into biodiversity monitoring, more generalized models are needed. We create a dataset using 500 manually delineated images of vegetation patches in European grasslands taken during the Land Use/cover Area Survey (LUCAS) grassland module. We train the Faster R‐CNN model to detect and extract individual flower objects. Using this model, we extract the abundance of flowers in an image, analyse their colour distribution, and use the Pl@ntNet application to identify the species of the individual flowers detected. The best model reaches precision and recall of 0.89/0.61 and predicts 1377 flowers on the 100 test images distributed between 10 colours. Using Pl@ntNet, only 52 flowers were identified with a certainty score above 0.5 due to the limitations in image size and quality. Of these flowers, 30% were correctly automatically identified at the species level and 42% at the genus level. The results show that we can automatically extract valuable information on floral abundances, colours, and sizes from images of vegetation patches, though in most cases better images are needed for species identification. Despite limitations with image quality, integrating this workflow into large‐scale monitoring could speed up the sampling process and allow for better spatial and temporal data on floral diversity and abundance.

Effects of linear landscape elements on multiple ecosystem services in contrasting agricultural landscapes

Linear landscape elements, such as field margins, are agricultural practices whose adoption is supported by agri-environmental climate measures (AECMs). AECMs are meant to improve ecological conditions on farms and surrounding areas. The effectiveness of AECMs to enhance the supply of multiple ecosystem services (ESs) is still debated and knowledge on the resulting ESs bundles under different practices stemming from AECMs is still lacking. We aimed at assessing the potential of AECMs that promote the implementation of linear landscape elements to provide high levels of multiple ESs and at analyzing bundles at landscape level in different geographical contexts. We assessed the potential effects of linear landscape elements (woody, grassy, flower and a mix) on six ESs (food and feed provision, pollination, pest control, climate regulation, aesthetics, and habitat maintenance), combining scenarios and spatially explicit modelling approaches. Our results showed the positive effects of linear landscape elements on all regulating and cultural ESs. The more abundant the linear elements, the higher the overall ESs supply. However, the effect of linear landscape elements on multiple ESs depended on the types of linear elements and the geographical context of their implementation. When the supply of the ES was already high in the baseline situation, the changes induced by the implementation of the linear elements were much lower than when the baseline situation showed a lower initial supply of one or several of the ESs. Our analyses give insights on the efficiency of AECMs on multiple environmental targets. Our approach is a first step towards a general framework for an ex-ante integrated analysis of AECMs that can be used to design agri-environmental policies. From a more practical perspective, our results can form a basis for additional payments for AECMs. Our study also confirms the relevance of the EU biodiversity strategy that commits to ensure at least 10% of agricultural area as high-biodiversity landscape features such as linear landscape elements, and the relevance of the enhanced conditionality and eco-schemes in the reformed Common agricultural Policy targeting non-productive elements and biodiversity.

The nurturing of Criminologists: An exercise in futility

The Nurture Assumption by Judith Rich Harris was a revolutionary book that called into question the family socialization literature and the conventional ways in which parenting is typically studied by social scientists. In the 25 years since it was first published, the key arguments set forth in The Nurture Assumption still remain on the margins of most fields of study and not fully integrated into individual research agendas. In this paper, I focus on how Judith Rich Harris has impacted my scholarly thinking and my academic career as a criminologist. In doing so, I discuss the ways in which Judith Rich Harris’ views can guide criminological thinking and the reasons why the field of criminology has been and continues to be resistant to her and The Nurture Assumption.

Community composition of the entomopathogenic fungal genus Metarhizium in soils of tropical and temperate conventional and organic strawberry fields

Studies on community composition and population structure of entomopathogenic fungi are imperative to link ecosystem functions to conservation biological control. We studied the diversity and abundance of Metarhizium spp. from soil of conventionally and organically farmed strawberry crops and from the adjacent field margins in two different climatic zones: Brazil (tropical) and Denmark (temperate), using the same isolating methods. In Brazilian strawberry soil, Metarhizium robertsii (n = 129 isolates) was the most abundant species, followed by M. humberi (n = 16); M. anisopliae (n = 6); one new taxonomically unassigned lineage Metarhizium sp. indet. 5 (n = 4); M. pingshaense (n = 1) and M. brunneum (n = 1). In Denmark, species composition was very different, with M. brunneum (n = 33) being isolated most commonly, followed by M. flavoviride (n = 6) and M. pemphigi (n = 5), described for the first time in Denmark. In total, 17 haplotypes were determined based on MzFG543igs sequences, four representing Danish isolates and 13 representing Brazilian isolates. No overall difference between the two climatic regimes was detected regarding the abundance of Metarhizium spp. in the soil in strawberry fields and the field margins. However, we found a higher Shannon's diversity index in organically managed soils, confirming a more diverse Metarhizium community than in soils of conventionally managed agroecosystems in both countries. These findings contribute to the knowledge of the indigenous diversity of Metarhizium in agricultural field margins with the potential to contribute to pest regulation in strawberry cropping systems.

The effectiveness of intercropping and agri-environmental schemes on ecosystem service of biological pest control: a meta-analysis

Plant diversification contributes to the ecological intensification of agroecosystems through pest biocontrol services provision. However, the existing evidence for the effectiveness of plant diversification in enhancing pest biocontrol services is highly uncertain across features of plant diversity and biodiversity characteristics. We undertook a comparative meta-analysis focusing on three essential crops (wheat, maize, and soybean) to investigate how diversification schemes in-field (intercropping) and Agri-environmental scheme (AES) around the field (flower strip, hedgerow and field margin) affect arthropod abundance. A random effects analysis was used to determine the role of 10 key factors underlying the effectiveness of plant diversification including biodiversity level and habitat, main and companion plant species, intercropping arrangement, the growth stage of the main crops, type of AES planting scheme, AES planting width, distance from AES plantings and geographical latitude. The overall results revealed that intercropping reduced herbivore and boosted predators and parasitoids abundance significantly, while AES successfully increased predators but not herbivores. Maize intercropping with legume and non-legume plants and row intercropping allowed for effective pest management. The abundance of predators increased in wheat fields immediately adjacent to planting around the field (AES), but this effect declined beyond 5 m from the flower strips. Our results suggest that the response of arthropod abundance to plant diversification is a compromise between spatial management scale, ecological characteristics of arthropod and plant diversification features. These results offer promising pathways for optimizing plant diversification schemes that include functional farm biodiversity across spatial and temporal scales and designing multi-functional landscapes.

High pesticide exposure and risk to bees in pollinator plantings adjacent to conventionally managed blueberry fields

Wildflower plantings adjacent to agricultural fields provide diverse floral resources and nesting sites for wild bees. However, their proximity to pest control activities in the crop may result in pesticide exposure if pesticides drift into pollinator plantings. To quantify pesticide residues in pollinator plantings, we sampled flowers and soil from pollinator plantings and compared them to samples from unenhanced field margins and crop row middles. At conventionally managed farms, flowers from pollinator plantings had similar exposure profiles to those from unenhanced field margins or crop row middles, with multiple pesticides and high and similar risk quotient (RQ) values (with pollinator planting RQ: 3.9; without pollinator planting RQ: 4.0). Whereas samples from unsprayed sites had significantly lower risk (RQ: 0.005). Soil samples had overall low risk to bees. Additionally, we placed bumble bee colonies (Bombus impatiens) in field margins of crop fields with and without pollinator plantings and measured residues in bee-collected pollen. Pesticide exposure was similar in pollen from sites with or without pollinator plantings, and risk was generally high (with pollinator planting RQ: 0.5; without pollinator planting RQ: 1.1) and not significant between the two field types. Risk was lower at sites where there was no pesticide activity (RQ: 0.3), but again there was no significant difference between management types. The insecticide phosmet, which is used on blueberry farms for control of Drosophila suzukii, accounted for the majority of elevated risk. Additionally, analysis of pollen collected by bumble bees found no significant difference in floral species richness between sites with or without pollinator plantings. Our results suggest that pollinator plantings do not reduce pesticide risk and do not increase pollen diversity collected by B. impatiens, further highlighting the need to reduce exposure through enhanced IPM adoption, drift mitigation, and removal of attractive flowering weeds prior to insecticide applications.

A 3D-printed phantom for stereotactic body radiation therapy simulation.

In modern radiation therapy for lung cancer, examining the uncertainty between tumor motion and beam delivery is vitally important. To lower the radiation dose delivery to the patient's normal tissue, narrowing the irradiation field margin to hit the tumor accurately is critical. Thus we proposed a phantom that simulates the thorax and lung tumor's motions by employing a 3D printing technique. The lung tumor is controlled by a linear miniature Delta robot arm, with a maximum displacement of 20 mm in each direction. When we simulated the thoracic breathing movements at 12 mm in A-P (Anterior-Posterior), the control errors were within 10%. The average tracking errors of the prosthetic tumor were within 1.1 mm. Therefore, the 3D-printed phantom with a robot arm can provide a reliable simulation for training and dosimetry measurement before lung radiotherapy, especially SBRT.

La Red Natura 2000 y las rapaces agroesteparias: el cernícalo primilla en la ZEPA ES435 Área esteparia de la margen derecha del río Guadarrama

Conservation biologists have questioned the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network in conserving farmland birds. The Lesser Kestrel population in the SPA ES435 Área esteparia de la margen derecha del río Guadarrama and surrounding areas increased by 11.8% between 1997–1999 and 2019. However, the loss of nesting sites due to building collapse or restoration, the loss of foraging habitat, such as fallow land and field margins, due to agricultural intensification, and the spread of woody crops and solar photovoltaic power stations threaten this Lesser Kestrel population. Furthermore, SPA ES435 protects less than half of this Lesser Kestrel breeding population. It is necessary to enlarge SPAs to cover IBAs and encourage low-intensity farming (habitat quality compensates for habitat loss) within the Natura 2000 network in order to conserve the lesser kestrel and other farmland birds listed in Annex I of the Directive 2009/147/EC.

The selected agrotechnical factors affecting the occurrence of black grass Alopecurus myosuroides in winter wheat crops in north-western Poland

Alopecurus myosuroides of the family Poaceae is a highly competitive species for winter cereal crops, particularly for barley and wheat, less frequently for root vegetables or rapeseed. This study aimed to determine the predominant factor or group of factors affecting the cover of A. myosuroides in winter wheat field depending on the tillage systems, time, and amounts of herbicides used. The following variables differentiating the quantitative contribution of A. myosuroides in the analyzed fields were assumed: plough or no-plough tillage, date of biocidal application, and the total amount of herbicides (active substances) used. When spring-only herbicide was applied, the lowest A. myosuroides cover, not exceeding 25%, was observed in the margins of winter wheat fields. The coverage of A. myosuroides, reaching 25–100% of the winter wheat area, regardless of the tillage system, was found when the herbicides from the group of sulfonylurea derivatives (acetolactate synthase ALS inhibitors) were frequently used. Winter wheat infestation with A. myosuroides was significantly lower when ploughing was applied. The highest cover of A. myosuroides, reaching 50–100% of the area, was observed only in the central part of the analyzed winter wheat fields, following the application of herbicides in autumn and spring or in autumn only.

Awake Surgery for Tumors of the Parietal Lobe: A Preliminary Experience with a New Protocol of Intraoperative Neuropsychological Test for the Monitoring of the Sensory Area Function

Background. Nowadays, there is a lack of studies reporting techniques for the selective monitoring of the primary somatosensory cortex and the adjacent areas of the superior and inferior parietal lobules. We hypothesized a more specific and targeted test for awake surgery for monitoring the sensory area during resection of tumors involving it. Materials and Methods. We collected patients suffering from tumors involving the parietal areas and undergoing awake surgery for the resection. Intraoperative standard neurophysiological monitoring was performed, and we added a new intraoperative test. It consisted of a series of different objects with standard 3D conformations. The patient was asked to recognize the object shape using only the tactile sensibility, without seeing the object itself; in some cases, he was also asked to put the object in the corresponding hole, according to the shape. Results. We collected 6 patients. One patient with a right parieto-occipital lesion, at the stimulation of the anterior cortical margin of the surgical field, showed problems in naming the objects and collocating them in the corresponding spaces, while he was touching them with the left hand. Therefore, the areas of proprioception and perception of the objects were mapped and numbered. This deficit got better in the postoperative days with a total remission of the ideomotor apraxia and the psychomotor slowdown. The other 5 patients did not show an impairment with the new test. Conclusions. This is a preliminary study with the aim of enhancing the specificity of the neuropsychological test performed during awake surgery to allow the surgeon to monitor the neurological functions of the parietal cortex. More cases are needed to validate it.

Lablab (Lablab purpureus L.) genotypes and field margin vegetation influence bean aphids and their natural enemies.

Lablab (Lablab purpureus L.) is an important food and livestock feed legume that can also enhance soil fertility. However, its production is limited by insect pests, notably the black bean aphid (Aphis fabae). The present field study was conducted to determine the difference in the contribution of lablab genotypes and natural field margin vegetation (FMV) to the abundance and diversity of natural enemies and the damage, incidence, and abundance of bean aphids. Eighteen lablab genotypes were planted in the presence or absence of FMV in a randomized complete block design experiment replicated four times. Data on aphid abundance, incidence, and severity of damage were collected at four growth stages of the crop. Lablab genotypes significantly influenced aphid incidence, suggesting some level of tolerance to aphid colonization. Findings showed that lablab genotypes were a significant influence on natural enemy species richness with no statistical difference for abundance and natural enemy species diversity. However, the genotypes did not vary significantly in their influence on the number of aphid natural enemies. FMV was associated with low bean aphid damage. Overall, the presence or absence of FMV did not influence the number of natural enemies caught on the crop. This concurs with recent work that shows a similar number of natural enemies with field margin plants but may reflect the reduced number of pest insects. Cropping seasons influenced aphid abundance and damage severity, with the populations developing at the early stages of lablab development and decreasing as the crop advanced. This pattern was similar both in the presence or absence of FMV. The findings of this study highlight the important contribution of crop genotype together with the presence of field margin species in the regulation of aphids and their natural enemies in lablab.

Looking into 16th-century botanical history to understand the complex taxonomy of Tulipa sylvestris in Europe

Tulipa sylvestris is a small yellow tulip that was introduced to northern Europe in the 16th century. Unlike the tulips that came from the Ottoman empire and gave birth to modern cultivars, T. sylvestris came from the Mediterranean and became a garden escapee that successfully naturalized across Europe. Its taxonomy is complex due to morphological diversity, polyploidy and naturalization of cultivated plants. Two subspecies are provisionally accepted in Europe: subsp. australis, a diploid native in the Mediterranean (up to Central Asia) that grows on mountainous rocky grasslands, on poor soils; and subsp. sylvestris a tetraploid that is naturalized across Europe and grows in rich soils at low altitudes, mainly at field margins, vineyards and gardens. Sometimes these two subspecies are regarded as distinct species, but their taxonomic delimitation is unclear.

Culture(s) on the Margins: An Introduction

Sociologists and those working in related disciplines have often found more of interest on the margins than in the centre. It is where innovation takes place, where the new replaces the outmoded, where ‘outsider’ or heterodox voices challenge the orthodoxy, and where culture creators are most able to follow the laws inherent to their specific region of the cultural field. The margins are where you will find ‘underground’ or ‘cutting edge’ scenes. Moreover, ethnographic traditions in sociological research have produced fine-grained accounts of cultures of subaltern, subcultural, diasporic groups, and the ways in which these groups and individuals engage in counter-hegemonic practices. At the same time, sociologists have also drawn attention to how those occupying the margins of societal fields are characterised in terms of lack: dominated individuals and groups lack the requisite cultural capital or social connections to get on in life. This special issue, which derives from discussions held at the Culture(s) on the Margins mid-term Sociology of Culture Research Network (European Sociological Association) conference at University of Portsmouth in the summer of 2022, contributes to debates on the relatively underexplored topic of culture(s) on the margins through several conceptual and empirical interventions. In doing so, it focuses on three interrelated aspects of marginality: first, marginality as a site of domination; second, marginality as opening up spaces of resistance; and third, marginality as enabling different ways of seeing and thinking.

Landscape complexity effects on Brassicogethes aeneus abundance and larval parasitism rate: a two-year field study

Global biodiversity has suffered a decline primarily attributed to landscape simplification and intensified agricultural practices. Agricultural environments, characterized by homogeneity and frequent disturbances, are often suboptimal habitats for various insect species. While agricultural fields do favour pests, they generally fail to provide suitable habitats for natural enemies. The inclusion of diverse supporting habitats, such as semi-natural habitats, grassy and woody field margins etc. surrounding agricultural fields, play a crucial role in fostering effective biodiversity conservation. Moreover, determining the influence of different adjacent habitat types is essential in elucidating their influence on pest abundance and parasitism rates. Our two-year field study focused on assessing the abundance of Brassicogethes aeneus and its parasitism rate. The findings revealed that the adjacent habitat type did not significantly increase pest abundance and the parasitism rate of B. aeneus larvae consistently stayed over the threshold for effective biological control throughout the fields. This was attributed to the high proportion (35 and 38% in the 2 study years) of semi-natural habitats within most of the 1 km radius study areas. While our study did not identify any specific adjacent habitat type or habitat within a 1 km radius that directly impacted B. aeneus abundance, it emphasises the intricate interplay between the pests, parasitism and the surrounding environment because the interactive effect of distance from the crop edge and habitat type had a significant influence on B. aeneus infestation levels but not on parasitism. Decision tree analysis suggests that > 18% semi-natural habitat is needed to ensure sufficient levels of parasitism for effective biological control. A comprehensive understanding of habitats that influence not only B. aeneus but also other pests is critical for the successful implementation of IPM strategies and conservation initiatives within the agricultural sector.