Abstract
Most current research on land-use intensification addresses its potential to either threaten biodiversity or to boost agricultural production. However, little is known about the simultaneous effects of intensification on biodiversity and yield. To determine the responses of species richness and yield to conventional intensification, we conducted a global meta-analysis synthesizing 115 studies which collected data for both variables at the same locations. We extracted 449 cases that cover a variety of areas used for agricultural (crops, fodder) and silvicultural (wood) production. We found that, across all production systems and species groups, conventional intensification is successful in increasing yield (grand mean + 20.3%), but it also results in a loss of species richness (−8.9%). However, analysis of sub-groups revealed inconsistent results. For example, small intensification steps within low intensity systems did not affect yield or species richness. Within high-intensity systems species losses were non-significant but yield gains were substantial (+15.2%). Conventional intensification within medium intensity systems revealed the highest yield increase (+84.9%) and showed the largest loss in species richness (−22.9%). Production systems differed in their magnitude of richness response, with insignificant changes in silvicultural systems and substantial losses in crop systems (−21.2%). In addition, this meta-analysis identifies a lack of studies that collect robust biodiversity (i.e. beyond species richness) and yield data at the same sites and that provide quantitative information on land-use intensity. Our findings suggest that, in many cases, conventional land-use intensification drives a trade-off between species richness and production. However, species richness losses were often not significantly different from zero, suggesting even conventional intensification can result in yield increases without coming at the expense of biodiversity loss. These results should guide future research to close existing research gaps and to understand the circumstances required to achieve such win-win or win-no-harm situations in conventional agriculture.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1941-1956 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | Global Change Biology |
| Volume | 25 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| Early online date | 9 Apr 2019 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jun 2019 |
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Keywords
- arable fields
- biodiversity
- conservation
- crop production
- forests
- grasslands
- green fodder
- land management
- wood production
Cite this
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Conventional land-use intensification reduces species richness and increases production : A global meta-analysis. / Beckmann, Michael; Gerstner, Katharina; Akin-Fajiye, Morodoluwa; Ceaușu, Silvia; Kambach, Stephan; Kinlock, Nicole L.; Phillips, Helen R.P.; Verhagen, Willem; Gurevitch, Jessica; Klotz, Stefan; Newbold, Tim; Verburg, Peter H.; Winter, Marten; Seppelt, Ralf.
In: Global Change Biology, Vol. 25, No. 6, 06.2019, p. 1941-1956.Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
TY - JOUR
T1 - Conventional land-use intensification reduces species richness and increases production
T2 - A global meta-analysis
AU - Beckmann, Michael
AU - Gerstner, Katharina
AU - Akin-Fajiye, Morodoluwa
AU - Ceaușu, Silvia
AU - Kambach, Stephan
AU - Kinlock, Nicole L.
AU - Phillips, Helen R.P.
AU - Verhagen, Willem
AU - Gurevitch, Jessica
AU - Klotz, Stefan
AU - Newbold, Tim
AU - Verburg, Peter H.
AU - Winter, Marten
AU - Seppelt, Ralf
PY - 2019/6
Y1 - 2019/6
N2 - Most current research on land-use intensification addresses its potential to either threaten biodiversity or to boost agricultural production. However, little is known about the simultaneous effects of intensification on biodiversity and yield. To determine the responses of species richness and yield to conventional intensification, we conducted a global meta-analysis synthesizing 115 studies which collected data for both variables at the same locations. We extracted 449 cases that cover a variety of areas used for agricultural (crops, fodder) and silvicultural (wood) production. We found that, across all production systems and species groups, conventional intensification is successful in increasing yield (grand mean + 20.3%), but it also results in a loss of species richness (−8.9%). However, analysis of sub-groups revealed inconsistent results. For example, small intensification steps within low intensity systems did not affect yield or species richness. Within high-intensity systems species losses were non-significant but yield gains were substantial (+15.2%). Conventional intensification within medium intensity systems revealed the highest yield increase (+84.9%) and showed the largest loss in species richness (−22.9%). Production systems differed in their magnitude of richness response, with insignificant changes in silvicultural systems and substantial losses in crop systems (−21.2%). In addition, this meta-analysis identifies a lack of studies that collect robust biodiversity (i.e. beyond species richness) and yield data at the same sites and that provide quantitative information on land-use intensity. Our findings suggest that, in many cases, conventional land-use intensification drives a trade-off between species richness and production. However, species richness losses were often not significantly different from zero, suggesting even conventional intensification can result in yield increases without coming at the expense of biodiversity loss. These results should guide future research to close existing research gaps and to understand the circumstances required to achieve such win-win or win-no-harm situations in conventional agriculture.
AB - Most current research on land-use intensification addresses its potential to either threaten biodiversity or to boost agricultural production. However, little is known about the simultaneous effects of intensification on biodiversity and yield. To determine the responses of species richness and yield to conventional intensification, we conducted a global meta-analysis synthesizing 115 studies which collected data for both variables at the same locations. We extracted 449 cases that cover a variety of areas used for agricultural (crops, fodder) and silvicultural (wood) production. We found that, across all production systems and species groups, conventional intensification is successful in increasing yield (grand mean + 20.3%), but it also results in a loss of species richness (−8.9%). However, analysis of sub-groups revealed inconsistent results. For example, small intensification steps within low intensity systems did not affect yield or species richness. Within high-intensity systems species losses were non-significant but yield gains were substantial (+15.2%). Conventional intensification within medium intensity systems revealed the highest yield increase (+84.9%) and showed the largest loss in species richness (−22.9%). Production systems differed in their magnitude of richness response, with insignificant changes in silvicultural systems and substantial losses in crop systems (−21.2%). In addition, this meta-analysis identifies a lack of studies that collect robust biodiversity (i.e. beyond species richness) and yield data at the same sites and that provide quantitative information on land-use intensity. Our findings suggest that, in many cases, conventional land-use intensification drives a trade-off between species richness and production. However, species richness losses were often not significantly different from zero, suggesting even conventional intensification can result in yield increases without coming at the expense of biodiversity loss. These results should guide future research to close existing research gaps and to understand the circumstances required to achieve such win-win or win-no-harm situations in conventional agriculture.
KW - arable fields
KW - biodiversity
KW - conservation
KW - crop production
KW - forests
KW - grasslands
KW - green fodder
KW - land management
KW - wood production
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064046340&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85064046340&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/gcb.14606
DO - 10.1111/gcb.14606
M3 - Article
VL - 25
SP - 1941
EP - 1956
JO - Global Change Biology
JF - Global Change Biology
SN - 1354-1013
IS - 6
ER -