Effects of the proportion and spatial arrangement of un-cropped land on breeding bird abundance in arable rotations

Ian G. Henderson, John M. Holland, Jonathan Storkey, Peter Lutman, Jim Orson, John Simper

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

28 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

1. The response of bird abundance to the proportional availability of un-cropped land (i.e. land that could be cultivated, such as fallows, grassflower or wild bird areas) is under-studied but of considerable significance for managing declining populations on farmland in western Europe. 2. In this study, bird abundance was examined at a scale consistent with many national monitoring schemes. Birds were counted on 28 farm sites of c. 100 ha, representing cereal-based and organic rotations. Sites were surveyed in summer, from 2007 to 2010, to assess the effect of the percentage cover and spatial arrangement of un-cropped land on bird abundance, with data analysed at the whole-farm (not patch) scale. 3. Un-cropped land area had significant effects on the abundance of key species (those with a high dependency on farmland) when controlling for effects of semi-natural habitats and management. On farms with 10% area of un-cropped land. 4. Positive, significant effects of the percentage area of un-cropped land were detected for lapwing, skylark, linnet and yellowhammer and for all highly farmland-dependent species combined. The relationship between un-cropped land and bird abundance was stronger on conventional compared with organic farms, suggesting a greater importance of un-cropped land on conventional farms. 5. Un-cropped land patch arrangement was significant for skylark and linnet abundance but generally weak amongst species compared with the availability of un-cropped land. Skylarks were positively associated with a larger relative edge effect amongst patches, whereas linnets were more associated with larger blocks of contiguous habitat. 6. Synthesis and applications. This study provides important evidence for a proportionate effect of habitat provision on farmland bird abundance. The relative area of un-cropped land had the strongest effect on bird abundance. Sites with

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)883-891
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Applied Ecology
Volume49
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2012

Keywords

  • agri-environment scheme
  • farmland
  • linnet
  • organic farming
  • population monitoring
  • set-aside
  • skylark
  • yellowhammer
  • AGRI-ENVIRONMENT SCHEMES
  • FARMLAND BIRDS
  • AGRICULTURAL INTENSIFICATION
  • POPULATION TRENDS
  • PROMOTING BIODIVERSITY
  • GRANIVOROUS BIRDS
  • ENGLAND
  • DECLINE
  • MANAGEMENT
  • DELIVERY

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