Tag: ecosystem services

Research summaries

Avian pest control in vineyards

In this post Michelle Harrison and Cristina Banks-Leite discuss a recent paper by Luc Barbaro and colleagues ‘Avian pest control in vineyards is driven by interactions between bird functional diversity and landscape heterogeneity‘. The global wine industry currently contributes roughly US$303 billion to the world’s economy (Plant and Food Research, 2013). Wine is a key export for many European countries such as Italy, France and … Continue reading Avian pest control in vineyards

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Getting people working on ecosystem functions connected

There’s news for people working on ecosystem functions and their monitoring: the Ecosystem Function Working Group has been recently launched by the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON), and the group is looking for its members. You may wonder what GEO BON is: GEO BON is an international networking platform part of GEO, the Group on Earth Observations. Within the GEO family, … Continue reading Getting people working on ecosystem functions connected

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Research summaries

Landscape structure influences urban vegetation vertical structure

In this post Matthew Mitchell discusses his recent paper ‘Landscape structure influences urban vegetation vertical structure‘. The importance of urban vegetation Odds are that you’re reading this in a city. More than half of humanity today lives in cities, and this is expected to increase to two-thirds by 2050. Living in a city, you almost certainly rely on urban vegetation for key ecosystem services like … Continue reading Landscape structure influences urban vegetation vertical structure

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Research summaries

Evolution of plant materials for ecological restoration: insights from the applied and basic literature

In this post Erin Espeland discusses the recent paper ‘Evolution of plant materials for ecological restoration: insights from the applied and basic literature‘ by herself and co-authors Nancy Emery, Kristin Mercer, Scott Woolbright, Karin Kettenring, Paul Gepts and Julie Etterson. Native plant materials can evolve during seed collection, increase, and planting. We survey the evolutionary and agricultural literature and apply it to the problem of restoration, … Continue reading Evolution of plant materials for ecological restoration: insights from the applied and basic literature

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Research summaries

Taxonomic and functional diversity in Mediterranean pastures: Insights on the biodiversity – productivity trade-off

In this post Victor Rolo discusses his recent paper ‘Taxonomic and functional diversity in Mediterranean pastures: Insights on the biodiversity – productivity trade-off ‘ There is a shepherds’ saying in Spain that goes: “below a shrub, you can raise a lamb”. But, if that were true, why is the presence of semi-natural features perceived as a negative element for herbage productivity in grasslands? The answer … Continue reading Taxonomic and functional diversity in Mediterranean pastures: Insights on the biodiversity – productivity trade-off

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Research summaries, Video

Hunting and hiking are not so bad for wildlife populations

In this post Roland Kays discusses his paper ‘Does recreation or hunting affect wildlife communities in protected areas?‘ published today in Journal of Applied Ecology. Public wild lands have dual mandates to protect animals and provide recreational opportunities for people. These goals could be at odds if recreation, ranging from quiet hiking to legal hunting and trapping, hurts the wildlife community.  Past studies have clearly … Continue reading Hunting and hiking are not so bad for wildlife populations

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Research summaries

More accurate mapping of coastal wetlands is vital for their management and conservation

In this post, Associate Editor Nathalie Butt discusses a recent paper ‘Habitat mapping of coastal wetlands using expert knowledge and Earth Observation data’ by Maria Adamo, Cristina Tarantino, Valeria Tomaselli, Guiseppe Veronico, Harini Nagendra and Palma Blonda. Habitats at risk What do we usually think of when we hear ‘wetland’ or ‘coastal wetland’? A flat marshy area by the sea somewhere, perhaps with a bird … Continue reading More accurate mapping of coastal wetlands is vital for their management and conservation

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Research summaries

Restoration of the tallgrass prairie in the face of global changes

In this post Nick Smith and Mike Schuster discuss their recent paper with Jeffrey Dukes ‘Rainfall variability and nitrogen addition synergistically reduce plant diversity in a restored tallgrass prairie‘ Prairies once covered great swathes of North America, from Texas to Canada and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains to the hardwood forests of the Eastern United States. These grasslands were home to a diverse array … Continue reading Restoration of the tallgrass prairie in the face of global changes

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Research summaries

Pastures new for pollinators?

In this post Associate Editor Peter Manning discusses the paper he recently handled from Katherine Orford and colleagues ‘Modest enhancements to conventional grassland diversity improve the provision of pollination services‘ You can also read a blog post from Katherine here: Managing ecosystem services: a grassland experiment Pollinator insects have undergone a global decline, and there is evidence that this may be placing both crop production … Continue reading Pastures new for pollinators?

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Research summaries

Managing ecosystem services: a grassland experiment

In this post Katherine Orford discusses her recent paper ‘Modest enhancements to conventional grassland diversity improve the provision of pollination services‘ You can also read a blog post from the Associate Editor who handled this paper, Peter Manning here: Pastures new for pollinators? Grassland diversity Species-rich grasslands were once widespread across Western Europe. However, post-war agricultural intensification has resulted in wide-scale conversion of these diverse grasslands … Continue reading Managing ecosystem services: a grassland experiment

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