Land Management Types Research Articles

Impact of climate, land management and harvesting patterns on the ecological traits and the population structure of Pterocarpus lucens in West African semi-arid areas

Multipurpose woody plant species experience severe pressure owing to human overexploitation, land management and climate change. In response to their inability to cope with environmental disturbances in their natural range, some species such as Pterocarpus lucens migrate to more suitable areas. To better conserve P. lucens, this study examined the impacts of climate, land management and harvesting practices on its natural populations.This study was conducted in Burkina Faso using a combined gradient approach involving two climatic zones and two land management types. Data on the biological age classes, structural traits and intensities of harvesting were collected on each individual of the species. Linear models were used to assess the effects of the investigated gradients on structural traits of the species. The diameter and height class size distributions were evaluated using the least squares method.The results showed that the species’ pre-reproductive individuals increased significantly (p < 0.05) with climatic and the protection gradient, resulting in an invasive trend of P. lucens in the Sudano-Sahelian protected areas. The species is overexploited in unprotected areas, with the majority of individuals undergoing all pruning intensities. However, while in the Sahelian climatic zone, decreasing pruning rates were observed according to the severity gradient (low intensity 36.02 %, moderate intensity 27.47 %, and severe intensity 19.73 %), an increasing pruning rate was observed in the Sudan-Sahelian climatic zone (low intensity 16.49 %, moderate intensity 17.38 %, severe intensity 24.48 %, and very severe intensity 35.79 %). Linear regression analysis showed a significant effect (p < 0.05) of climate, land management, pruning, and debarking on the structural traits of the species. The diameter class structure revealed unstable populations of the adult stratum in the Sahelian climatic zone, regardless of the land management types. The juvenile stratum of this species exhibited an unstable structure in unprotected areas, regardless of climatic zone.This study highlights the urgent need to implement effective management strategies to mitigate the decline of P. lucens populations in the Sahelian climatic zone and in unprotected areas through its integration in reforestation programmes.

Carbon and Nitrogen Stocks in Soil under Native Pastures in the Pantanal Wetland Biome, Brazil

The Pantanal has a high diversity of native pastures that provide food for many wild and domestic animals. Pantanal cattle raising is practiced in an extensive grazing-based system that varies according to the flood levels in the area. This study aimed to evaluate the fractions of soil organic matter in areas of native pastures under different uses and to quantify C and N stocks in sandy soils of the Pantanal. Soil samples from three native pastures differentiated by the predominance of Hymenachne amplexicaulis, Axonopus purpusii, and Mesosetum chaseae under different land use systems (continuous grazing and no grazing for five years) were collected and used to quantify the contents of carbon, nitrogen, and humic fractions. The dynamics of SOM are modified in grazed areas of the Pantanal, with influence on C and N, including their stocks. Native pastures of Axonopus purpusii and Hymenachne amplexicaulis showed an increase in organic matter after five years without grazing, while Mesosetum chaseae showed lower soil density and nitrogen levels. The highest C stock was observed in ungrazed areas of H. amplexicaulis (127.41 Mg ha−1 in the 0–40 cm layer). The dynamics of nitrogen in Pantanal pastures are influenced by the type of vegetation and land management, with higher nitrogen content in the surface layer (0–10 cm) and an increasing C/N ratio with soil depth, indicating lower nitrogen availability.

Woody plant communities in different land management types and implications on mountain biodiversity conservation in central Ethiopia

The prominence of mountains as social-ecological systems and the need for sustainable mountain development have increasingly been recognized in global agendas and international conventions. This study aims to investigate woody plant diversity, composition, and population structure in two different land management types: lands managed by the Wanchi Ecotourism Association (WETA) and non-WETA members at the slopes of Wanchi Mountain. Trees and shrubs with diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 5 cm were recorded from 20 m by 20 m plots and those with DBH<5 cm were counted within sub-plots of 10 m by 10 m. Tree seedlings were recorded from five 3 m by 3 m sub-sub-plots. The quasi-Poisson generalized linear model with a log-link function was used to analyze the richness of woody species and their association with environmental variables. Non-metric multidimensional scaling with Bray-Curtis distance in two-dimensional space was employed for the woody species composition. Tree species population structure was analyzed using tree diameter distribution classes. The study identified 104 woody plants belonging to 82 genera and 52 families. Woody species richness in WETA-managed lands is significantly (P=0.009) greater than that of non-WETA-managed lands. The study found that woody species richness significantly declined with increasing anthropogenic disturbance (P<0.001) and slope (P<0.001) in both WETA and non-WETA-managed land. Woody species richness also showed negative associations with aspect. The tree species in both the land management types revealed nearly similar population structures. The study highlighted the importance of sustainable land management practices such as ecotourism in areas of significant natural endowments like that of the Wanchi Mountain. Such practices can guide more sustainable mountain biodiversity conservation while realizing appropriate local livelihood improvement strategies.

Levels of Land Cover Density on Carbon Reserves and Income in Dongo Baru Community Forest (HKm)

Community Forest (HKm) in Dongo Baru, Mount Rinjani forest area, in land management applies a mixed agroforestry pattern. The application of this pattern is the result of forest rehabilitation activities covering 138 ha in 2019. This HKm has a variety of different types of land management in one management area. This study aims to describe the condition of HKm using an environmental approach by estimating carbon stock data and economic value by looking at the value of arrive efficiency. The strategy utilized in this inquire about is graphic method by means of observation, Center Gather Discourse, and interviews, to 27 respondents / owners of land economic aspects by taking carbon stock data to 27 farmer-owned land. The environmental assessment to measure carbon stocks used a sample of 27 plots, measuring 50m x 20m for trees, 10m x 10m for poles, and 5m x 5m for saplings. The plots represent the density level of the forest area, i.e. dense, medium, not dense. Determination of forest density classification using Landsat-7 satellite image analysis in 2022. Based on the comes about within the ponder, it can be concluded that there are 3 density classifications that exist in the Dongo Baru HKm forest area, namely Meeting density, Moderately Meeting density and Not Meeting density. their respective incomes are meeting land density (Rp. 21,273,889), Moderately Meeting land density (Rp. 19,210,333) and Not Meeting land density (Rp. 22,431,556). Meeting land has carbon stock (256.86 tonnes/ha), Moderately Meeting land has carbon stock (95.34), and Not Meeting land has carbon stock (52.90 tonnes/ha). Land management with the density of Rapat land is considered to have fulfilled the principles of forest management from the economic and environmental aspects.

When it comes to research on land management behavior, how are we doing? A systematic review on theory, measurement, and suggestions for improvement

AbstractWith increasing attention to climate change and biodiversity loss, conservation social science research on land management practices is burgeoning. Researchers have broadened their focus from protected areas to diverse types of land management to support conservation and climate mitigation. But, developing effective strategies for these issues requires an in‐depth understanding of both the socio‐psychological factors that guide landholders' decision‐making and global trends in land management practices and literature. To assess the trends and status of land management behavior research, we systematically reviewed research published between 2010 and 2020 in five seminal conservation journals. Of 11,607 articles reviewed, we identified 100 articles about land management behavior. We assessed theoretical groundings, measurement methodology, land‐use terminology and practices, ecosystem type, and geographic distribution. We identified strengths and significant gaps and weaknesses across land management research. For example, 52% of articles made no meaningful connection to theory, only 14% of papers used observed behavioral data, 86% of studies uses non‐experimental methods and researchers disproportionately measured land management behavior in developed nations (66%). We also find that language used to describe land management behavior is very heterogeneous, making it difficult to summarize land management research using traditional systematic review methods. Conducting a limited systematic review can help summarize research and also identify trends across disciplines that might otherwise missed. Results from our limited systematic review can guide future research and support the development of evidence‐based policies to mitigate climate change and biodiversity loss.

Sustainable land management enhances ecological and economic multifunctionality under ambient and future climate

The currently dominant types of land management are threatening the multifunctionality of ecosystems, which is vital for human well-being. Here, we present a novel ecological-economic assessment of how multifunctionality of agroecosystems in Central Germany depends on land-use type and climate. Our analysis includes 14 ecosystem variables in a large-scale field experiment with five different land-use types under two different climate scenarios (ambient and future climate). We consider ecological multifunctionality measures using averaging approaches with different weights, reflecting preferences of four relevant stakeholders based on adapted survey data. Additionally, we propose an economic multifunctionality measure based on the aggregate economic value of ecosystem services. Results show that intensive management and future climate decrease ecological multifunctionality for most scenarios in both grassland and cropland. Only under a weighting based on farmers’ preferences, intensively-managed grassland shows higher multifunctionality than sustainably-managed grassland. The economic multifunctionality measure is about ~1.7 to 1.9 times higher for sustainable, compared to intensive, management for both grassland and cropland. Soil biodiversity correlates positively with ecological multifunctionality and is expected to be one of its drivers. As the currently prevailing land management provides high multifunctionality for farmers, but not for society at large, we suggest to promote and economically incentivise sustainable land management that enhances both ecological and economic multifunctionality, also under future climatic conditions.

Crop cover and nutrient levels mediate the effects of land management type on aquatic invertebrate richness in prairie potholes.

Aquatic invertebrates provide important ecosystem services, including decomposition and nutrient cycling, and provide nutrition for birds, fish, amphibians, and bats. Thus, the effects of agricultural land management practices on aquatic invertebrates are relevant to farmers, wildlife biologists, and policymakers. Here, we used data on aquatic invertebrates (159 taxa, 73 to species, 75 to genus/family) collected in 40 wetlands in the Canadian prairies to test for direct and indirect relationships among land management types (perennial cover, organic, minimum tillage, conventional), landscape structure (cropland and wetland cover within the surrounding landscape), and water quality (total nutrient levels, turbidity) on species richness of invertebrates using structural equation modelling. Additionally, we assessed variation in community composition within and among wetlands in different land use management types using a direct gradient analysis and variance partitioning. The direct effects of land management type were not supported but we found strong supportive evidence that effects of land management on richness were significantly mediated through cropland cover, nutrient levels, and turbidity. After controlling for these indirect effects, aquatic invertebrate richness decreased along a gradient from the lowest to the highest farming intensity, i.e., richness decreased from perennial cover sites to organic to minimum tillage to conventional sites. Support was also found for negative effects of nutrient levels and turbidity on richness. We did not find significant support for differences in gamma diversity or a simple test (homogeneity of multivariate dispersions) of differences in turnover among land management types; however, land management had a significant effect in distance-based redundancy analysis. Taken together, these results suggest that focusing conservation efforts on reducing cropland erosion and nutrient inputs to wetlands and creating more permanent cover may be effective strategies for conserving richness of aquatic invertebrates in agricultural landscapes in this region.

Sahelian woody communities are endangered by regeneration impoverishment in three land management types

Sahelian woody communities are endangered by regeneration impoverishment in three land management types

Social-ecological predictors of spotted hyena navigation through a shared landscape.

Human-wildlife interactions are increasing in severity due to climate change and proliferating urbanization. Regions where human infrastructure and activity are rapidly densifying or newly appearing constitute novel environments in which wildlife must learn to coexist with people, thereby serving as ideal case studies with which to infer future human-wildlife interactions in shared landscapes. As a widely reviled and behaviorally plastic apex predator, the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) is a model species for understanding how large carnivores navigate these human-caused 'landscapes of fear' in a changing world. Using high-resolution GPS collar data, we applied resource selection functions and step selection functions to assess spotted hyena landscape navigation and fine-scale movement decisions in relation to social-ecological features in a rapidly developing region comprising two protected areas: Lake Nakuru National Park and Soysambu Conservancy, Kenya. We then used camera trap imagery and Barrier Behavior Analysis (BaBA) to further examine hyena interactions with barriers. Our results show that environmental factors, linear infrastructure, human-carnivore conflict hotspots, and human tolerance were all important predictors for landscape-scale resource selection by hyenas, while human experience elements were less important for fine-scale hyena movement decisions. Hyena selection for these characteristics also changed seasonally and across land management types. Camera traps documented an exceptionally high number of individual spotted hyenas (234) approaching the national park fence at 16 sites during the study period, and BaBA results suggested that hyenas perceive protected area boundaries' semi-permeable electric fences as risky but may cross them out of necessity. Our findings highlight that the ability of carnivores to flexibly respond within human-caused landscapes of fear may be expressed differently depending on context, scale, and climatic factors. These results also point to the need to incorporate societal factors into multiscale analyses of wildlife movement to effectively plan for human-wildlife coexistence.

Farm management and landscape context shape plant diversity at wetland edges in the Prairie Pothole Region of Canada.

Evaluating the impacts of farming systems on biodiversity is increasingly important given the need to stem biodiversity loss, decrease fossil fuel dependency, and maintain ecosystem services benefiting farmers. We recorded woody and herbaceous plant species diversity, composition, and abundance in 43 wetland-adjacent prairie remnants beside crop fields managed using conventional, minimum tillage, organic, or perennial cover (wildlife-friendly) land management in the Prairie Pothole Region. We used a hierarchical framework to estimate diversity at regional and local scales (gamma, alpha), and how these are related through species turnover (beta diversity). We tested the expectation that gamma richness/evenness and beta diversity of all plants would be higher in remnants adjacent to perennial cover and organic fields than in conventional and minimum tillage fields. We expected the same findings for plants providing ecosystem services (bee-pollinated species) and disservices (introduced species). We predicted similar relative effects of land management on alpha diversity, but with the expectation that the benefits of organic farming would decrease with increasing grassland in surrounding landscapes. Gamma richness and evenness of all plants were highest for perennial cover, followed by minimum tillage, organic, and conventional sites. Bee-pollinated species followed a similar pattern for richness, but for evenness organic farming came second, after perennial cover sites, followed by minimum tillage and conventional. For introduced species, organic sites had the highest gamma richness and evenness. Grassland amount moderated the effect of land management type on all plants and bee-pollinated plant richness, but not as expected. The richness of organic sites increased with the amount of grassland in the surrounding landscape. Conversely, for conventional sites, richness increased as the amount of grassland in the landscape declined. Our results are consistent with the expectation that adopting wildlife-friendly land management practices can benefit biodiversity at regional and local scales, in particular the use of perennial cover to benefit plant diversity at regional scales. At more local extents, organic farming increased plant richness, but only when sufficient grassland was available in the surrounding landscape; organic farms also had the highest beta diversity for all plants and bee-pollinated plants. Maintaining native cover in agroecosystems, in addition to low-intensity farming practices, could sustain plant biodiversity and facilitate important ecosystem services.

Evaluate the effectiveness of soil and water conservation interventions in the upper Awash Basin, Ethiopia

AbstractThe central highland of Ethiopia is facing significant challenges due to land degradation, which resulted in changes to the soil's physicochemical properties. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of different conservation methods in enhancing soil physicochemical properties, reducing soil loss and erosion, and maximizing land productivity in Ankober District of Kenseta watershed. For this study, two land uses (conserved and non‐conserved land), three slope positions, and three replication with the soil depth of 0–30 cm were used for undisturbed and disturbed soil samples data collection and analysis. The survey data were collected and evaluated from 106 randomly selecting respondents' households. The results showed significant variation in the mean value of soil physical properties (bulk density, soil moisture content, soil texture) within and between conserved and non‐conserved land. The chemical properties, including pH, EC, exK, CEC, OC, OM, and available P, also changed significant across land management types and along slope position (p &lt; 0.05). Soil managed with stone face soil bund demonstrated significant improvement in soil physicochemical properties. The results were statistically significant difference at (p &lt; 0.05) level of significance. Majority of the respondents' households explained the soil loss and rate of soil erosion were declined and land productivity status increased after the adoption of soil and water conservation practices in the study area. Therefore, proper conservation practices are vital in minimizing the rate of soil loss, ameliorating physical and chemical properties of the soils, and enhancing land productivity.

ESTIMASI TINGKAT BAHAYA EROSI (TBE) PADA EMPAT TIPE PENGELOLAAN LAHAN DI DESA KARANG SIDEMEN, LOMBOK (Erosion Hazard Level Estimation of Four Land Use Management Types in Karang Sidemen Village, Lombok)

Soil erosion is a significant threat to land sustainability and productivity in mountainous areas. Erosion can affect food security and land vulnerability to climate change. This study was conducted to assess the potential erosion and Erosion Hazard Level (TBE) in four types of land management involving the community in Karang Sidemen Village using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) method. The results showed that for each slope class, the Botanical Forest Park (Tahura) Nuraksa Utilization Zone had the lowest potential erosion value, followed by Community Forest (HKm) and Hortipark Tastura. Forest Areas with Special Purpose (KHDTK) Rarung has the highest potential erosion value in all slope classes. For all slope classes, TBE in the Tahura Nuraksa is considered low-level. Erosion Hazard Levels in Hortipark Tastura, KHDTK Rarung, and HKm are dominated by the moderate category. There were significant high and very high TBE in KHDTK Rarung. Soil erodibility values for all types are low. Potential erosion and TBE in the four management types are strongly influenced by slope and vegetation factors.

Factors Affecting Long-Term Soil Organic Carbon Storage in Greek Forests

The recent Glasgow Climate Pact has recognized the contribution of ecosystems as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases and their importance to achieve the objective of a maximum temperature increase of 1.5 °C. Thus, the knowledge of the long-term storage capacity of the soil organic carbon (C) in forest soils, and the driving factors, are considered of great importance for the mitigation of global climate changes. A database of published data in a ‘grey’ Greek bibliography, concerning the long-term storage of soil organic C in soil profiles for Greek forests, was compiled, including 307 full soil profiles, distributed between 21 types of forest ecosystem throughout the country (Greece). The data collected concerned the amount of long-term stored carbon in the full soil profile, per soil horizon, up to the uncracked bedrock. These also contained information on the sampling location, the type of forest ecosystem, the soil depth, the type of land management, the forest origin, the floristic zone, the altitude, and the climate type. According to the results analysis, the average soil organic C stored was 108.19 Mg ha−1, and ranged greatly between 11.49 and 409.26 Mg ha−1. The type of forest ecosystem, soil depth, land management practices, forest origin, floristic zone, and climate type played an important role in the carbon sequestration process, greatly influencing the long-term amount of stored carbon. Under the demands for mitigating climate change and reducing the rates of global warming, data evaluation indicates the directions to be followed for increasing the long-term storage of carbon, named systematic forest management, and the exclusion of the drivers responsible for the low carbon storage of soil, such as human pressure and overgrazing. Restoration actions such as reforestation and rehabilitation of the degraded forest ecosystems, which were found to store low carbon amounts, can be also considered as effective tools for increasing the long-term carbon storage in forest ecosystems.

Influence of soil properties and land use on organic carbon storage in agricultural soils near hedges

AbstractIn this context of climate change, agroforestry systems are acknowledged to have a good potential to increase carbon storage in agricultural areas. However, the carbon storage potential of agroforestry systems still needs to be quantified accurately, especially for hedges. The objectives of this study were to (1) add references to the existing literature on the potential for soil organic carbon (SOC) storage near hedges and (2) identify the main factors that influence the variability in this potential. To this end, we sampled soil in the adjacent fields of 25 hedges in France with mixed crop‐livestock agriculture, with sampling on both sides for 20 hedges and sampling on only one side for five hedges, giving a total of 45 study sites. We measured SOC stocks to a depth of 90 cm at distances of 1, 2, 3 and 10 m from the hedge. The results showed that hedges have a strong potential to store carbon in soils, with a mean increase of 15% in SOC stock within 3 m of the hedge. This increase in SOC stock had high variability because of site characteristics. Additional SOC stocks were the largest in rotations of annual crops and grasslands with a permanent grass strip 1 m wide near the hedge, followed by rotations of annual crops, permanent grasslands and rotations of annual crops and grasslands. Large additional SOC stocks because of the hedge were also associated with soils that had a high C:N ratio. The contribution of this type of land management to soil carbon storage thus depends on the local context in which it is implemented.

Tracking Land Use and Deforestation in the Amazon

A new study mapped 2 decades of deforestation in the Amazon and concluded that some types of land management are more effective than others.

Evaluation of C Stocks in Afforested High Quality Agricultural Land

Afforestation of marginal land has been recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as a means of enhancing the capacity of soil to act as a carbon (C) sink. However, the success of this practice is variable and depends on many factors, including the type of land management used. In this study, we quantified and compared the C stocks in two highly productive agricultural soils afforested with poplar 10 years before the study and in adjacent soils still used for agricultural purposes. One of the agricultural soils was sown with grass and maize in a crop rotation system and the other was alternately sown with maize (6 months) and left fallow (6 months). In all soils, we estimated the C pools associated with the live biomass (including the C extracted by harvesting in the cropped soils in the 10 years since afforestation), dead biomass, amount of fertiliser added (quantifying all inputs of C added as fertiliser in the cropped soils since the start of afforestation) and the soil organic matter (0–100 cm), to enable estimation of the total C stocks in the ecosystem. Afforestation had different effects on the various C pools. Thus, although afforestation enhanced the C sink capacity of the ecosystem when carried out on agricultural land, the degree to which this occurred varied according to previous land use. The increase in C stocks that occurred from afforestation was lower in the plots employing maize-grass rotation, compared to those with maize-fallow rotation. The ecosystem C balance was quite similar in both afforested plots (247.4 and 233.0 Mg C ha−1), while it was quite different in the cultivated plots (182.3 Mg C ha−1 in Laraño; 73.9 Mg C ha−1 in A Barca). Although at both sites the C balance was higher in the afforested plot than in the cultivated plot, the differences were much smaller in Laraño (65.1 Mg C ha−1 higher in the forested plot than in the cultivated plot) than in A Barca (159.1 Mg C ha−1 higher in the forested plot than in the cultivated plot). Our results from highly productive agricultural land are similar to previous findings on marginal land.

Global effects of different types of land use and land cover changes on near-surface air temperature

Understanding the climate effect of land use and land cover change (LULCC) is critical for guiding human activities towards environmental sustainability. Previous studies have reported the climate effects of global deforestation, vegetation greening and crop cultivation changes. However, the contribution of each type of land state, land transition and land management to LULCC's climate effects remain underexamined. In this study, we estimated global biophysical temperature effects of LULCC using CMIP6 climate models, with special attention on the relative contribution (RC) of 12 land state changes, 113 land transitions and 10 land managements. The results show a large difference in the simulated LULCC's temperature effect between CESM2 and UKESM1–0-LL, and the two models even disagree in the sign of LULCC's effects in most of northern hemisphere except for autumn. Based on the weighted mean of two models, we found that historical LULCC has exerted a global warming effect at a rate of 0.0025 °C/century, with the largest warming effect in autumn. Spatially, a significant (p < 0.05) cooling effect is found from 60°N to 40°N, while the warming trend dominates the areas from 40°N to 30°S. Based on regression modelling, historical changes in forested/non-forested secondary land, urban land and cropland have contributed over 70% to LULCC's temperature effect, with land transitions from secondary land to cropland and from cropland to urban land dominating the climate effect at global scale. For land management, the climate effect of irrigation is larger than that of nitrogen fertilizer application. Furthermore, the application of nitrogen fertilizer for C3 plant has larger impacts compared to C4 plants, while similar effects of irrigation are observed for different types of croplands. Besides, the large difference in temperature effect between CESM2 and UKESM1–0-LL may be the difference in the forestland and cropland changes. Our study calls for explicit examination of the climate effect induced by different types of land state-change, land transition and land management for developing targeted land use policies in the future.

Karakteristik Sifat Fisika dan Kimia Tanah Berdasarkan Tipe Pengelolaan Lahan pada Hutan Produksi Di Desa Banyu Urip Lombok Tengah

This study aimed to investigate the physical and chemical characteristics of the soil based on the type of land management in the production forest in Banyu Urip Village, Central Lombok. Determination of the sampling point is done by employing stratified random sampling. The sampling points were 22, divided into two types of land: forest land (dominated by MPTS plants and woody plants) and agricultural land (dominated by seasonal plants). Soil samples were taken with two depths, namely 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm. Soil samples taken were disturbed and undisturbed soil with variables of physical properties (texture, bulk density, porosity, and color) and soil chemistry (C-organic). The research results on the physical properties of the soil showed that the soil texture in both types of land was dominated by dusty clay. The average porosity value in agricultural land is 49.33%, and forest land is 49.48% (unfavorable category). The average bulk density value in forest land is 1.39 g/cm3 and in agricultural land is 1.35 g/cm^3 (high category). The soil color of the two land types is dominated by dark brown. The average value of C-organic soil is 1.80% in forest land and 1.72% in agricultural land (low category).

The biodeposition process in native mammals: spatial distribution and influence of waste products on soil fertility in restored and grazed woodland

Mammals have been widely recognized as mobile link species that can vectorize resources across the landscape. In this study, we analyze the biodeposition of waste products egested by native herbivorous mammals of the Monte Desert to document for the first time the implications of the restoration of a native forest on this process. We compared a restored native woodland an adjacent grazing field in terms of the spatial distribution of waste products, the biodiversity of trophic items stored in fecal pellets, and the C:N ratio as a predictor of nutrients supplied to the soil. We found that fecal pellets of mammal species were intermingled and spatially distributed throughout the entire landscape, but they were more abundant in the restoration area, indicating the influence of land management types on the distribution process. The two mammal species presented different feeding strategies; however, the plant species consumed in the grazing field indicate decreased food options for native mammals, meaning a smaller amplitude of their trophic niches under this land management. The low C:N ratio and the high nitrogen pool provided by the pellets in the restoration area suggest a potential benefit to plant communities. However, the higher organic C jointly with the lower C:N ratio observed in fecal pellets of grazing field indicate a low decomposability which could promote the conservation of C in the soil.

Silvopastoral and peasant management effects on vegetation and soil quality in the arid chaco of central Argentina

Nowadays the arid Chaco in central Argentina presents gradients of woody vegetation cover with a variety of management regimes with different environmental impacts. Here, we compare the relative effects of the two most widespread management systems in the region: silvopastoral and peasant managements. Soil properties, plant species richness, composition and vegetation structure were used as ecological indicators as they are crucial for long term-sustainability of production systems. Vegetation cover and plant composition responded differently to land management systems. While plant species richness and composition remained similar in both land management types, tree cover showed a strong reduction in silvopastoral systems. We also observed differences in soil properties, with increases in nitrates, sulfates and electrical conductivity in silvopastoral systems as compared to peasant land management. Tree cover reduction and higher soil salinity may impact negatively the productive capacity of soils, which may compromise the delivery of ecosystem services in silvopastoral systems of central Argentina in the long-term. Peasant land use management showed comparable less environmental impact on soils, allowing the preservation of not only provision services but also of regulating and supporting services in these highly vulnerable areas.