Land sparing outperforms land sharing for Amazonian bird communities regardless of surrounding landscape context

Benjamin Birch discusses the role of wildlife-friendly habitat in the wider surrounding landscape in promoting farmland diversity. Alongside colleagues, Birch modelled strategies of land sparing and land sharing under different levels of production. Background The conversion of natural habitats to agriculture is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity globally. Currently, 40% of the Earth’s land is dedicated to farming, and projections show a further … Continue reading Land sparing outperforms land sharing for Amazonian bird communities regardless of surrounding landscape context

Questioning the Evidence: Re-analyzing studies on the impact of mechanical dredging on invertebrate communities and associated bird life in the Dutch Wadden Sea

Eelke Folmer and Jaap van der Meer talk about their recent Forum paper which comments on an earlier research article, and discuss the importance of evidence based decisions in policy. Background In the coming decades, the growth of the global human population will lead to an increase in food demands. This, in turn, is likely to result in a rise in the extraction of marine … Continue reading Questioning the Evidence: Re-analyzing studies on the impact of mechanical dredging on invertebrate communities and associated bird life in the Dutch Wadden Sea

Land use change and the interplay between functional and phylogenetic diversity in tropical forest birds

Philip Chapman comments on recent article, Contrasting impacts of land-use change on phylogenetic and functional diversity of tropical forest birds. It is increasingly recognised that biodiversity conservation needs to look beyond the goal of preserving species richness, to maintaining healthy functioning ecosystems and their evolutionary resilience in the face of environmental change. Species vary in evolutionary distinctness and the uniqueness of traits contributing to key ecological … Continue reading Land use change and the interplay between functional and phylogenetic diversity in tropical forest birds