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Cattle Bos taurus can perform valuable ecological functions in the maintenance of high nature value (HNV) pastoral systems. They have also attracted attention as potentially filling the ecological niches of megaherbivores, notably the extinct aurochs Bos primigenius, in rewilding initiatives. Native cattle breeds are recognized under the 1992 Rio Convention as components of biodiversity. They are used in HNV settings, but their conservation as breeds has rarely been an important consideration for their management in these contexts.The Chillingham herd has been kept under minimal management in Chillingham Park (northern England) for several centuries. Chillingham Park is not a rewilding scenario, but the long‐term study of the cattle can be informative for the design of rewilding schemes that involve cattle as megaherbivores. The pastures of the park are species‐rich seminatural grasslands.To 2004, pasture management was influenced by the need to provide herbage for a flock of sheep that was under separate ownership, as well as for the cattle. Surveys of the vegetation conducted in 1979 and 2006–2008 showed a decline of plant species richness (species per 100 m2 quadrat) from 33.8 in 1979 to 22.6 in 2006–2008. This was acceptable as the conservation priority has always been the cattle herd. With removal of the sheep from 2004, it became possible to include recovery of plant diversity as a management goal.In 2017, the cattle numbered 111 (64 in 1979). Plant species richness in 2017 had increased to 26.3 species per quadrat. It has therefore been possible at Chillingham both to conserve the cattle herd and to improve plant diversity. While providing basic information of relevance to the management of cattle in free‐ranging situations, this study also suggests a general principle, that the management of pastoral landscapes by native breeds of cattle, can deliver multiple conservation benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Countryside Survey (CS) of Great Britain (GB) provides a unique and statistically robust series of datasets, consisting of an extensive set of repeated ecological measurements at a national scale, covering a time span of 29 years. CS was first undertaken in 1978 to provide a baseline for ecological and land use change monitoring in the rural environment of GB, following a stratified random design, based on 1 km squares. Originally, eight random 1 km squares were drawn from each of 32 environmental classes, thus comprising 256 sample squares in the 1978 survey. The number of these sites increased to 382 in 1984, 506 in 1990, 569 in 1998 and 591 in 2007. Detailed information regarding vegetation types and land use was mapped in all five surveys, allowing reporting by defined standard habitat classifications. Additionally, point and linear landscape features (such as trees and hedgerows) are available from all surveys after 1978. From these stratified, randomly located sample squares, information can be converted into national estimates, with associated error terms. Other data, relating to soils, freshwater and vegetation, were also sampled on analogous dates. However, the present paper describes only the surveys of landscape features and habitats. The resulting datasets provide a unique, comprehensive, quantitative ecological coverage of extent and change in these features in GB. Basic results are presented and their implications discussed. However, much opportunity for further analyses remains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 1978, a series of national surveys (Countryside Surveys) have been carried out by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (formerly the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology) to gather data on the natural environment in Great Britain. As the sampling framework for these surveys is not optimised to yield data on rarer or more specialised habitats, a survey was commissioned by the then Department of the Environment (DOE, now the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs, DEFRA), in the 1990s to carry out additional survey work in English landscapes which contained semi-natural habitats that were perceived to be under threat, or which represented areas of concern to the Ministry. The landscapes were: lowland heath, chalk and limestone grasslands, coasts and uplands. These landscapes were chosen from a list identified as 'key habitats' in the Countryside Stewardship Scheme, an agri-environment scheme initiated in 1991. The survey design was a series of gridded, stratified, randomly selected 1 km squares taken as representative of classes derived from environmental classifications (or spatial masks) for each of the four landscape types in England determined from a statistical land classification. This resulted in a total of 213 of these squares being surveyed in the summers of 1992 and 1993, with information being collected regarding vegetation species, land cover, landscape features and land use. Data from the survey were collected using standardised, repeatable methods, with the database now providing a valuable baseline against which future ecological changes, resulting from a range of different drivers, may be compared. Following the surveys, the data were analysed and described in a series of contract reports showing that valuable habitats were restricted in all landscapes and that the majority were within designated land. The data set provides major potential for analyses, beyond those published in the reports published in 1996, for example in relation to climate change, agri-environment policies and land management. Precise locations of the plots are restricted, largely for reasons of landowner confidentiality. However, the representative nature of the data set makes it highly valuable for evaluating the status of the associated landscapes and vegetation covered. Both land cover data and vegetation plot data were collected during the surveys in 1992 and 1993, and are available via the following DOI: https://doi.org/10.5285/7aefe6aa-0760-4b6d-9473-fad8b960abd4. The spatial masks are also available from: https://doi.org/10.5285/dc583be3-3649-4df6-b67e-b0f40b4ec895. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Countryside Survey (CS) of Great Britain (GB) provides a unique and statistically robust series of datasets, consisting of an extensive set of repeated ecological measurements at a national scale, covering a time span of 29 years. CS was first undertaken in 1978 to provide a baseline for ecological and land use change monitoring in the rural environment of GB, following a stratified random design, based on 1 km squares. Originally, eight random 1 km squares were drawn from each of 32 environmental classes, thus comprising 256 sample squares in the 1978 survey. The number of these sites increased to 382 in 1984, 506 in 1990, 569 in 1998 and 591 in 2007. Detailed information regarding vegetation types and land use was mapped in all five surveys, allowing reporting by defined standard habitat classifications. Additionally, point and linear landscape features (such as trees and hedgerows) are available from all surveys after 1978. From these stratified, randomly located sample squares, information can be converted into national estimates, with associated error terms. Other data, relating to soils, freshwater and vegetation, were also sampled on analogous dates. However, the present paper describes only the surveys of landscape features and habitats. The resulting datasets provide a unique, comprehensive, quantitative ecological coverage of extent and change in these features in GB. Basic results are presented and their implications discussed. However, much opportunity for further analyses remains. Data from each of the survey years are available via the following DOIs: Landscape area data 1978: http://doi.org/10.5285/86c017ba-dc62-46f0-ad13-c862bf31740e, 1984: http://doi.org/10.5285/b656bb43-448d-4b2c-aade-7993aa243ea3, 1990: http://doi.org/10.5285/94f664e5-10f2-4655-bfe6-44d745f5dca7, 1998: http://doi.org/10.5285/1e050028-5c55-42f4-a0ea-c895d827b824, and 2007: http://doi.org/10.5285/bf189c57-61eb-4339-a7b3-d2e81fdde28d; Landscape linear feature data 1984: http://doi.org/10.5285/a3f5665c-94b2-4c46-909e-a98be97857e5, 1990: http://doi.org/10.5285/311daad4-bc8c-485a-bc8a-e0d054889219, 1998: http://doi.org/10.5285/8aaf6f8c-c245-46bb-8a2a-f0db012b2643, and 2007: http://doi.org/10.5285/e1d31245-4c0a-4dee-b36c-b23f1a697f88; Landscape point feature data 1984: http://doi.org/10.5285/124b872e-036e-4dd3-8316-476b5f42c16e, 1990: http://doi.org/10.5285/1481bc63-80d7-4d18-bcba-8804aa0a9e1b, 1998: http://doi.org/10.5285/ed10944f-40c8-4913-b3f5-13c8e844e153, and 2007: http://doi.org/10.5285/55dc5fd7-d3f7-4440-b8a7-7187f8b0550b. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1971, a comprehensive ecological survey of the native pinewoods of Scotland was carried out by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. The survey was initiated as a consequence of growing concern about the status of the pinewood resource. Since the twentieth century, this unique habitat is widely recognised, not only by ecologists for its inherent biodiversity but also by the general public for its cultural and amenity value. The survey, utilising demonstrably repeatable methods, collected information on ground flora, soils, forest structure and also general site information from the major 27 sites of the 35 sites identified as truly native pinewoods in Scotland. The results from the survey prompted the organisation of an international symposium in 1975, which set the conservation agenda for the old Caledonian pinewoods. The data collected during the 1971 survey are now publicly available via the following DOI: doi:10/7xb ("Habitat, vegetation, tree and soil data from Native Pinewoods in Scotland, 1971"). Although the data are now 44 years old, the repeatable methods will allow for a resurvey to take place, in order to assess changes in the vegetation, habitats and tree composition in a statistically robust manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey of the natural environment was undertaken in Shetland in 1974, after concern was expressed that large-scale development from the new oil industry could threaten the natural features of the islands. A framework was constructed by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology on which to select samples for the survey. The vegetation and habitat data that were collected, along with the sampling framework, have recently been made public via the following doi:10.5285/06fc0b8c-cc4a-4ea8-b4be-f8bd7ee25342 (Terrestrial habitat, vegetation and soil data from Shetland, 1974) and doi:10.5285/f1b3179e-b446-473d-a5fb-4166668da146 (Land Classification of Shetland 1974). In addition to providing valuable information about the state of the natural environment of Shetland, the repeatable and statistically robust methods developed in the survey were used to underpin the Countryside Survey, Great Britain's national long-term integrated environmental monitoring programme. The demonstration of the effectiveness of the methodology indicates that a repeat of the Shetland survey would yield statistics about ecological changes in the islands, such as those arising from the impacts of the oil industry, a range of socio-economic impacts, and perhaps climate change. Currently no such figures are available, although there is much information on the sociological impacts, as well as changes in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Factors influencing grazing behavior in species‐rich grasslands have been little studied. Methodologies have mostly had a primary focus on grasslands with lower floristic diversity.We test the hypothesis that grazing behavior is influenced by both animal and plant factors and investigate the relative importance of these factors, using a novel combination of video technology and vegetation classification to analyze bite and step rates.In a semi‐natural, partially wooded grassland in northern Estonia, images of the vegetation being grazed and records of steps and bites were obtained from four video cameras, each mounted on the sternum of a sheep, during 41 animal‐hours of observation over five days. Plant species lists for the immediate field of view were compiled. Images were partnered by direct observation of the nearest‐neighbor relationships of the sheep. TWINSPAN, a standard vegetation classification technique allocating species lists to objectively defined classes by a principal components procedure, was applied to the species lists and 25 vegetation classes (15 open pasture and 10 woodland) were identified from the images.Taking bite and step rates as dependent variables, relative importance of animal factors (sheep identity), relative importance of day, and relative importance of plant factors (vegetation class) were investigated. The strongest effect on bite rates was of vegetation class. Sheep identity was less influential. When the data from woodland were excluded, sheep identity was more important than vegetation class as a source of variability in bite rate on open pasture.The original hypothesis is therefore supported, and we further propose that, at least with sheep in species‐rich open pastures, animal factors will be more important in determining grazing behavior than plant factors. We predict quantifiable within‐breed and between‐breed differences, which could be exploited to optimize conservation grazing practices and contribute to the sustainability of extensive grazing systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Countryside Survey (CS) of Great Britain provides a globally unique series of datasets, consisting of an extensive set of repeated ecological measurements at a national scale, covering a time span of 29 years. CS was first undertaken in 1978 to monitor ecological and land use change in Britain using standardised procedures for recording ecological data from representative 1 km squares throughout the country. The same sites, with some additional squares, were used for subsequent surveys of vegetation undertaken in 1990, 1998 and 2007, with the intention of future surveys. Other data records include soils, freshwater habitats and invertebrates, and land cover and landscape feature diversity and extents. These data have been recorded in the same locations on analogous dates. However, the present paper describes only the details of the vegetation surveys. The survey design is a series of gridded, stratified, randomly selected 1 km squares taken as representative of classes derived from a statistical environmental classification of Britain. In the 1978 survey, 256 one-kilometre sample squares were recorded, increasing to 506 in 1990, 569 in 1998 and 591 in 2007. Initially each square contained up to 11 dispersed vegetation plots but additional plots were later placed in different features so that eventually up to 36 additional sampling plots were recorded, all of which can be relocated where possible (unless the plot has been lost, for example as a consequence of building work), providing a total of 16 992 plots by 2007. Plots are estimated to have a precise relocation accuracy of 85 %. A range of plots located in different land cover types and landscape features (for example, field boundaries) are included. Although a range of analyses have already been carried out, with changes in the vegetation being related to a range of drivers at local and national scales, there is major potential for further analyses, for example in relation to climate change. Although the precise locations of the plots are restricted, largely for reasons of landowner confidentiality, sample sites are intended to be representative of larger areas, and many potential opportunities for further analyses remain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the impact of an extreme weather event, the October 1987 severe storm, on fragmented woodlands in southern Britain. We analysed ecological changes between 1971 and 2002 in 143 200-m2 plots in 10 woodland sites exposed to the storm with an ecologically equivalent sample of 150 plots in 16 non-exposed sites. Comparing both years, understorey plant species-richness, species composition, soil pH and woody basal area of the tree and shrub canopy were measured., We tested the hypothesis that the storm had deflected sites from the wider national trajectory of an increase in woody basal area and reduced understorey species-richness associated with ageing canopies and declining woodland management. We also expected storm disturbance to amplify the background trend of increasing soil p H, a UK-wide response to reduced atmospheric sulphur deposition. Path analysis was used to quantify indirect effects of storm exposure on understorey species richness via changes in woody basal area and soil p H., By 2002, storm exposure was estimated to have increased mean species richness per 200 m2 by 32%. Woody basal area changes were highly variable and did not significantly differ with storm exposure., Increasing soil p H was associated with a 7% increase in richness. There was no evidence that soil p H increased more as a function of storm exposure. Changes in species richness and basal area were negatively correlated: a 3.4% decrease in richness occurred for every 0.1-m2 increase in woody basal area per plot., Despite all sites substantially exceeding the empirical critical load for nitrogen deposition, there was no evidence that in the 15 years since the storm, disturbance had triggered a eutrophication effect associated with dominance of gaps by nitrophilous species., Synthesis. Although the impacts of the 1987 storm were spatially variable in terms of impacts on woody basal area, the storm had a positive effect on understorey species richness. There was no evidence that disturbance had increased dominance of gaps by invasive species. This could change if recovery from acidification results in a soil p H regime associated with greater macronutrient availability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate progress on political biodiversity objectives, biodiversity monitoring provides information on whether intended results are being achieved. Despite scientific proof that monitoring and evaluation increase the (cost) efficiency of policy measures, cost estimates for monitoring schemes are seldom available, hampering their inclusion in policy programme budgets., Empirical data collected from 12 case studies across Europe were used in a power analysis to estimate the number of farms that would need to be sampled per major farm type to detect changes in species richness over time for four taxa (vascular plants, earthworms, spiders and bees). A sampling design was developed to allocate spatially, across Europe, the farms that should be sampled., Cost estimates are provided for nine monitoring scenarios with differing robustness for detecting temporal changes in species numbers. These cost estimates are compared with the Common Agricultural Policy ( CAP) budget (2014-2020) to determine the budget allocation required for the proposed farmland biodiversity monitoring., Results show that the bee indicator requires the highest number of farms to be sampled and the vascular plant indicator the lowest. The costs for the nine farmland biodiversity monitoring scenarios corresponded to 0·01%-0·74% of the total CAP budget and to 0·04%-2·48% of the CAP budget specifically allocated to environmental targets., Synthesis and applications. The results of the cost scenarios demonstrate that, based on the taxa and methods used in this study, a Europe-wide farmland biodiversity monitoring scheme would require a modest share of the Common Agricultural Policy budget. The monitoring scenarios are flexible and can be adapted or complemented with alternate data collection options (e.g. at national scale or voluntary efforts), data mobilization, data integration or modelling efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmland is a major land cover type in Europe and Africa and provides habitat for numerous species. The severe decline in farmland biodiversity of the last decades has been attributed to changes in farming practices, and organic and low-input farming are assumed to mitigate detrimental effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity. Since the farm enterprise is the primary unit of agricultural decision making, management-related effects at the field scale need to be assessed at the farm level. Therefore, in this study, data were collected on habitat characteristics, vascular plant, earthworm, spider, and bee communities and on the corresponding agricultural management in 237 farms in 13 European and two African regions. In 15 environmental and agricultural homogeneous regions, 6-20 farms with the same farm type (e.g., arable crops, grassland, or specific permanent crops) were selected. If available, an equal number of organic and non-organic farms were randomly selected. Alternatively, farms were sampled along a gradient of management intensity. For all selected farms, the entire farmed area was mapped, which resulted in total in the mapping of 11 338 units attributed to 194 standardized habitat types, provided together with additional descriptors. On each farm, one site per available habitat type was randomly selected for species diversity investigations. Species were sampled on 2115 sites and identified to the species level by expert taxonomists. Species lists and abundance estimates are provided for each site and sampling date (one date for plants and earthworms, three dates for spiders and bees). In addition, farmers provided information about their management practices in face-to-face interviews following a standardized questionnaire. Farm management indicators for each farm are available (e.g., nitrogen input, pesticide applications, or energy input). Analyses revealed a positive effect of unproductive areas and a negative effect of intensive management on biodiversity. Communities of the four taxonomic groups strongly differed in their response to habitat characteristics, agricultural management, and regional circumstances. The data has potential for further insights into interactions of farmland biodiversity and agricultural management at site, farm, and regional scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]