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Trade-offs between soil functions hamper maximizing soil multifunctionality in agroecosystems. Taking soil microbial functional trade-offs into consideration in agricultural management is crucial for optimizing the impacts of changes in soil microbial communities on soil health in agroecosystems. Interactions within soil microbial communities influence functional trade-offs. Manipulating soil microbial diversity and interactions through soil health-improving management can alleviate functional trade-offs and improve soil health and agricultural sustainability. Better mechanistic understanding of the interdependencies between soil-induced functions is essential to improve soil health and agricultural sustainability. Soil microbial communities play pivotal roles in maintaining soil health in agroecosystems. However, how the delivery of multiple microbial functions in agroecosystems is maintained remains poorly understood. This may put us at risk of incurring unexpected trade-offs between soil functions. We elucidate how interactions between soil microbes can lead to trade-offs in the functioning of agricultural soils. Interactions within soil microbial communities can result in not only positive but also neutral and negative relationships among soil functions. Altering soil conditions through soil health-improving agricultural management can alleviate these functional trade-offs by promoting the diversity and interrelationships of soil microbes, which can help to achieve more productive and sustainable agroecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To successfully conserve and restore agrobiodiversity, it is essential to understand the impact of multiple drivers and interlinkages across multiple taxa that occur above, across, and below the soil interface. Based on data from six agricultural landscapes in Central Germany, with 16 sampling plots per landscape, we used structural equation models to disentangle the impacts of climate, land-use, and soil factors on the diversity of multiple taxonomic groups. We expected belowground communities (soil bacteria and fungi) to be more driven by soil variables, mobile aboveground groups (wild bees, ground beetles) to be more driven by climate and land use, and vascular plants, that have an above- and belowground component, to respond to a combination of all factors. According to our expectations, climate and land-use variables had an important role in shaping aboveground and plant communities. In contrast to our expectations, soil characteristics were of lesser importance for belowground organisms. Moreover, climatic factors had a strong impact on the soil microbiome, but this effect was indirect, modulated by soil pH. We also found indications for cascading effects of environmental factors via interlinkages within and among the above- and belowground communities. Our results highlight the importance of direct and indirect effects of multiple drivers on the diversity of multiple taxonomic groups and support recent calls for a multifunctional approach for sustainable landscape management and nature restoration, suggesting to focus on the promotion of semi-natural habitats but also considering the climatic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although most prey are attacked by multiple predators, much of the ecological theory on prey suppression focuses on the effects of a single predator. The presence of multiple predators can lead to complex interactions such as trait-mediated interactions (TMIIs) and intraguild predation which can influence the suppression of pest populations. Here we explore the effect of two predators, a native anole lizard species Anolis cristatellus (Squamata: Dactyloidae) and a non-native ant species Wasmannia auropunctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), on the coffee leaf miner, Leucoptera coffeella (Lepidoptera: Lyonetiidae) (CLM). In a laboratory experiment we examined the effects of these two predators in isolation and when co-occurring. Our results show that when each predator is alone, they are able to consume the CLM in a comparable way. However, when they are together, their effect is not greater than when alone. This indicates that there is a negative effect when both predators co-occur. The results from this experiment have practical implications since both predators are present in coffee agroecosystems in Puerto Rico, where the CLM is considered the main insect pest. Furthermore, these results demonstrate the potential dynamics among several predators in agroecosystems and the potential implications for herbivore regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the main drivers of biodiversity loss in Europe's agricultural landscapes has been a research priority in the last decades. One of the most important factors promoting biodiversity in farmed landscapes is habitat heterogeneity, which has often proved crucial for avian species and communities. Birds are highly sensitive to environmental changes and make use of a broad range of ecological niches, thus being exceptionally sensitive to the loss of habitat heterogeneity. Remote sensing data are particularly suited to quantify habitat heterogeneity at fine scales over relatively large extents, allowing to consider how different measures of heterogeneity may affect biotic communities at a regional scale. Here, we used airborne LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) and satellite multispectral data to derive vegetation canopy height and primary productivity for 118 sites in complex agricultural landscapes in a region in the Central Alps. We computed different bird diversity indices and classified bird species into guilds according to specific traits to analyse the relationship between avian communities and different facets of habitat heterogeneity. Results confirmed that habitat heterogeneity is essential in shaping rich and diverse bird communities, and it is particularly important for several farmland birds. By comparing the effects of canopy height, primary productivity, and specific vegetation features (e.g., cover of grassland, shrub, and tree layers), we showed how different habitat characteristics as well as landscape heterogeneity affected bird richness, diversity, functional entropy, and trait patterns. Landscape and height heterogeneity, estimated by NDVI and LiDAR Rao's Q indices, strongly influenced all response variables, for example, high NDVI values promoted species diversity and ground-understory nesters, and shrub layer was important for ground-understory nesters and forest specialists. Finally, we provide recommendations for conservation practices and mitigation measures to improve bird diversity in agricultural landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Microplastics (MPs) properties in biosolid and biosolid-amended soils were assessed. • Higher MPs fibres than fragments observed in biosolids and biosolid-amended soils. • PET and PE were major MPs in biosolids and biosolid-amended soils, respectively. • Biosolid amendment had higher impact on fitness of Eisenia than Amynthas species. • Earthworms had no preference for ingestion of different MPs sizes from biosolid. Microplastics (MPs) are a major emerging contaminant in agroecosystems, due to their significant resistance to degradation in terrestrial environments. Although previous investigations have reported the harmful effects of MPs contamination on soil biological properties, still little is known about the characteristics and fate of MPs in biosolid-amended soils and their risks to soil biota, particularly earthworms. We determined microplastics' concentration, size distribution, and chemical composition in 3 sewage sludge biosolids and 6 biosolid-amended agricultural soils. In addition, we assessed the potential short-term risks of MPs to earthworms' (Amynthas Gracilis and Eisenia Fetida) survival rate and fitness in an environmentally relevant exposure study (28 days). Biosolid-amended soils (1000–3100 MPs kg−1 dry mass) showed ≈30 times lower MPs content than investigated biosolids (55400–73800 MPs kg−1 dry mass), with microplastic fragment to fibre ratios between 0.2 and 0.6 and 0.3–0.4 in soils and biosolids, respectively. Total MPs dry mass was also ≈19 times lower in assessed soils (12–26 mg kg−1) than biosolids (328–440 mg kg−1). On average 77% and 80% of plastic fragments had a lower dimension than 500 µm, while 50% and 67% of plastic fibres had a length of less than 1000 µm in soil and biosolid samples, respectively. Polyethylene (23.6%) was the major source of microplastic contamination in biosolid-amended soils, while polyethylene terephthalate (41.6%) showed the highest concentration in biosolid samples. Spiked polyethylene MPs did not show any significant effect on earthworms' survival rate (93–99%). However, biosolid application significantly (P < 0.05) decreased survival rate of Eisenia Fetida (81%) but showed no significant effect on Amynthas Gracilis (93%). Biosolid amendment significantly (P < 0.05) decreased earthworms' growth rate, with higher impact on Eisenia Fetida than Amynthas Gracilis , while there were no significant differences between control and microplastic spiked treatments. The overall decrease in MPs concentration of earthworm casts, compared with initial MPs concentrations in soil, indicated that the investigated species did not bioaccumulate MPs during the exposure experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Drought and conventional agriculture reduced invertebrate feeding activity. • Contrary to our expectations, feeding activity decreased with soil depth. • Vertical migration of mesofauna was associated with feeding activity depth. • Some nematodes, water and nitrogen contents were related to soil detritivory. • Decomposition-related processes may be impaired by drought and land management. Soil invertebrates are key to decomposition, a central ecosystem process related to soil health. In many temperate areas climate change will decrease soil water content, which strongly modulates biological activity. However, data are lacking on how shifts in rainfall patterns affect soil biota and the ecosystem processes they provide. Here, we used the bait-lamina test to experimentally assess how a severe drought event influenced detritivore feeding activity, during a wheat growing season, in soils under long-term organic or conventional farming. Additionally, biotic and abiotic soil parameters were measured. Feeding activity was reduced under extreme drought and conventional management, although no climate-management synergies were found. Vertical migrations of Collembola and Oribatida partially explained the unexpectedly higher bait consumption at shallower depths in response to drought. Exploratory mixed-effects longitudinal random forests (a novel machine learning technique) were used to explore whether the relative abundances of meso‑, microfauna and microbes of the decomposer food web, or abiotic soil parameters, affected the feeding activity of detritivores. The model including meso‑ and microfauna selected four Nematoda taxa and explained higher variance than the model with only microbiota, indicating that detritivore feeding is closely associated with nematodes but not with microbes. Additionally, the model combining fauna and microbiota explained less variance than the faunal model, suggesting that microbe-fauna synergies barely affected detritivore feeding. Moreover, soil water and mineral nitrogen contents were found to strongly determine detritivore feeding, in a positive and negative way, respectively. Hence, our results suggest that severe drought and conventional farming impair the feeding activity of soil detritivores and thus, probably, decomposition and nutrient mineralization in soils. Furthermore, machine learning algorithms arise as a powerful technique to explore the identity of potential key drivers relating biodiversity to ecosystem functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use intensification can influence soil microbial communities and their functional potential. However, the impacts of different aspects of land use intensification on functional groups of soil microbes remain insufficiently elucidated in agroecosystems. This study investigated soil microbial groups and their functional potential in arable fields embedded in a gradient of land use intensity (LUI), integrating multiple agricultural practices in the Netherlands. The results reveal changes in soil bacterial and fungal functional groups along the LUI gradient, with a strong negative relationship between LUI and the diversity of many fungal functional groups. Changes in LUI also led to significant changes in the composition of both bacterial and fungal functional communities. Specifically, irrigation and pest control were identified as the primary practices influencing the community assembly of soil microbial functional groups. We further show that the connectivity between soil fungal functional groups decreased under higher LUI. In summary, our findings demonstrate that reducing land use intensity may have positive impacts on the functional potential of soil microbial communities, particularly for soil fungi. Sustainable management practices particularly related to irrigation and pest control may alleviate some of the observed adverse effects. • Land use intensification reduces the diversity of soil fungal functional groups. • Irrigation and pest control are two main practices influencing soil functional groups. • Adjusting practices for drought alleviation and pest control benefits soil functional diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crops are key players in agroecological nutrient dynamics. While the environmental impact of introduced agronomic nutrients has been widely studied, crop traits as modulators of environmental stoichiometry in agroecosystems have not been systematically considered. To observe crop-driven stoichiometric variation, we assessed nutrient variability of greenhouse substrate culture effluents on a nationwide scale in South Korea using 150 effluent samples collected from 10 different geographical locations over two consecutive pepper, tomato and cucumber growing seasons. We found that nutrient concentrations varied widely among crops, with cucumber effluents showing significantly lower quartile ranges (e.g., NO 3 − : 12.4–18.0 mM) compared to tomato and pepper (NO 3 − : 21.2–30.4 mM). However, when converted to molar fractions, the distributions between crops overlapped (NO 3 − molar fraction quartile ranges: 0.42–0.54 for all crops) and the coefficient of variation (%CV) decreased from 30%–98% in concentration units to 12%–65% in molar fractions, with an average reduction of 18.5%p. This reduction in variability suggests that plant absorption kinetics contribute to the low variability in molar fractions. Further stochastic simulation analysis using a simple box model for root zone nutrient fluxes supported this finding. Our results demonstrate the robustness of plants as ambient stoichiometric modulators in agronomic systems. Such information on reduced plant parametric uncertainty may support future efforts to quantify agricultural nutrient budgets and design optimized agroecosystem stoichiometry for improved sustainability. • Greenhouse substrate culture effluents were collected on a nationwide level. • Crop-driven nutrient variability was assessed by stochastic simple box simulation. • Molar fraction conversion yielded a lower coefficient of variation of nutrients. • Limited stoichiometric variability was found in the greenhouse effluents. • Uncertainty of the effluent stoichiometry in the agroecosystem could be reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil detritivores play key roles in decomposition processes closely related to ecosystem services. Drought and soil organic carbon depletion due to agricultural management are detrimental to soil biodiversity, but their interactive effects on soil biota and associated processes have not been thoroughly investigated. In 2018, we used rain-out shelters to experimentally induce drought in wheat fields of contrasting levels of organic carbon in Sweden, Germany and Spain. That year Europe experienced a climatic dipole, with exceptionally severe droughts in northern latitudes. We assessed the feeding activity of soil detritivores by bait-lamina tests, and measured several abiotic and biotic soil parameters. In the peak of the dipole drought (summer) southern fields had the driest soils. Nonetheless, detritivore feeding activity responded to the experimental drought by shifting to deeper soil layers there. Low soil organic carbon (SOC) levels exacerbated the latter effect. However, in this same period, feeding activity in northern and central Europe was two orders of magnitude lower than in the south, and failed to respond to either the experimental treatment and/or SOC levels. Using mixed-effects longitudinal random forests, we detected various candidate drivers of detritivore feeding activity: soil moisture, phosphorus content, bacteria and nematodes. Different bacterial taxa were associated to detritivory in each country, but their potential influence was pervasive. Thus, our results suggest that drought had adverse effects on detritivore feeding, which were exacerbated northwards due to the climatic dipole. Increased SOC levels mitigated drought effects only in southern soils. Regional adaptation of soil biota to aridity could explain the response of detritivores in southern Europe to drought. Machine learning algorithms arise as useful tools for exploring potential drivers relating biodiversity to soil processes. Overall, future research on the effects of drought on soil biodiversity and processes will be key for tackling climate change impacts in terrestrial ecosystems. • The effects of simulated drought on detritivore feeding varied widely with latitude. • An extreme unusual drought in northern latitudes impaired detritivore feeding. • Regional adaptation of biota to aridity might mitigate drought effects in the south. • Higher levels of soil organic carbon buffered drought effects in the south. • Soil detritivory was associated with different bacteria and nematodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mulch is widely used for improving soil quality and maintaining crop productivity. The effects of mulch use in agroecosystems can be assessed by the state of the soil biota. Springtails (Collembola) are a representative group of soil animals in agroecosystems that survive well under agricultural field conditions. We assessed the effect of adding a detrital subsidy with different carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N) on springtails in a 4-year series of field experiments in winter wheat agroecosystems located in two agroecological zones (broad-leaved forest and steppe). The mulch effect depended on weather conditions. In dry years, the addition of mulch led to an increase in the proportion of epedaphic (upper-litter dwellers) springtails in the broad-leaved forest zone and to an increase in the proportion of atmobiotic forms (mostly inhabiting macrophytes) in the steppe zone. These changes begin to manifest approximately 1.5 months after the detrital subsidy addition. In general, mulch application had a positive and stabilizing effect on the springtail community structure in winter wheat agroecosystems, regardless of the agroecological zone. Our study showed that the addition of detrital subsidy helps to increase the abundance and stabilize the diversity of the springtail community. Changes observed in the structure of the Collembola community can be an indicator of improved soil health, and springtails can be used in assessing the effectiveness of agricultural practices. • Mulching effect on springtails in agroecosystems was more pronounced in dry years. • Mulching promoted springtails after 42–54 days. • Mulch addition increased the proportion of epedaphic forms in broadleaf forest zone. • Mulch addition increased the proportion of atmobiotic forms in steppe zone. • Mulch application stabilized the diversity of the springtail community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The land use change in the Hyrcanian agro-ecosystems is mostly the encroachment of rural orchards to forest edges. • Remote sensing, landscape ecology and statistical analysis were integrated to assess landscape changes on avian communities. • The encroachment of orchards on the Hyrcanian forests edge has enhanced bird communities. • Continuing land use can lead to a decrease in the diversity of specialist forest species. Land use change is a critical factor affecting the structure and functioning of biological communities, particularly forest birds. The Hyrcanian forests in northern Iran are undergoing significant transformations due to increasing agricultural expansion and the growth of orchards encroaching upon forest edges. While research often suggests that the edge effect can enhance species diversity in heterogeneous agricultural-forest landscapes, the effects of different agricultural practices have received less attention. In this study, we integrated remote sensing, landscape ecology, and statistical analysis, and served bird communities as ecological indicators aiming to identify the impact of various land use modification on biological communities of an agricultural-forest landscape. We used Sentinel-2 images to generate a land use map of the region based on the random forest classification method. Explanatory variables extracted from the derived land use were measured in 75 cell grids (1200 × 1200 m) and bird information in 400 × 400-meter units. We calculated 15 landscape metrics for each 1200-meter landscape unit cell and combined them with residential area and road length data for statistical analysis. The Redundancy Analysis (RDA) method was employed to examine the effects of environmental variables on bird community composition. We identified a total of 38 breeding bird species belonging to 21 families in the region. The RDA variance partitioning accounted for 0.554 as the constrained fraction, indicating that 54 % of the bird community variance was explained by the explanatory variables. Generalist and urban-dwelling birds were mainly dispersed across negative values of canonical axis 1 (RDA1). Conversely, forest specialist birds were scattered along positive values of RDA1. Less specialized understory birds, depending on more open woods with higher species diversity, were mostly illustrated with shorter projections across RDA2 extremes, correlated with orchards. Our findings demonstrate that the marginal habitats of Hyrcanian forests, predominantly consisting of orchard plantations, exhibit greater bird community diversity compared to dense forests or croplands. Although species diversity has been observed to increase initially, the ongoing trend of orchard encroachment on forest patches may result in heightened edge effects, an increased presence of generalist species, and a decline in specialized forest species. These results can help guide land use planning to achieve biodiversity goals in heterogeneous agricultural-forest landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) by N-fixing microorganisms (NFMs) is one of the critical nitrogen input pathways in terrestrial ecosystems and is primarily affected by human activity during fertilization. However, the responses and underlying mechanisms of symbiotic and free-living BNFs to fertilization remain unclear. This study conducted a global meta-analysis to reveal the responses and mechanisms of symbiotic and free-living BNFs to inorganic N, phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and organic (O) fertilizers in agroecosystems. The results showed that symbiotic and free-living BNFs responded similarly to different fertilizers. Specifically, N fertilization significantly decreased the symbiotic BNF (absolute N fixation rate: −43.32%) and free-living BNF (absolute N fixation rate: −53.10%), and P, K, and O fertilizers had opposite effects. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying similar responses were different. The negative effect of N fertilization on symbiotic BNF was due to the decrease in weight and number of nodules, whereas the negative effect of N fertilization on free-living BNF was due to the free-living NFMs preference for soil N, decreased soil pH and C/N ratio, and increased NH 4 + concentration. The P, K, and O fertilizers promoted symbiotic BNF by directly or indirectly stimulating root nodule growth, whereas P, K, and O fertilizers increased free-living BNF by promoting the abundance of free-living NFMs and mitigating the decrease in soil pH and C/N ratio caused by N fertilization. These results indicate that inappropriate fertilization can lead to soil inactivation by suppressing NFMs. Optimizing fertilization strategies is critical to achieving high yields by exploiting BNFs and maintaining sustainable soil health. [Display omitted] • This meta-analysis compared fertilization effects on symbiotic and free-living BNFs • Both BNFs were repressed by N fertilization and promoted by other fertilization types • Symbiotic BNF was regulated by the nutrient exchange between nodule and host plant • Free-living BNF was regulated by the N-preference of NFMs and the soil properties [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Life in soil is a key driver of important ecosystem processes, such as the recycling of carbon and nutrients. In current intensive agricultural soils, however, richness and abundance of many groups of soil organisms are often reduced, which may threaten soil health and sustainable agriculture in the long run. Therefore, a switch to alternative agricultural practices (e.g., minimal tillage) that are less detrimental or even stimulate soil life has been suggested as a way to increase sustainable food production. Although we understand how some of these practices impact specific species or functional groups in soils, it is necessary to get a more complete overview to understand which practices can be used in agriculture to improve soil biodiversity. Here, we present a systematic literature review identifying which practices are studied as alternatives to current, intensive practices for four soil taxonomic groups encompassing a range of trophic groups and functions in the soil ecosystem: nematodes, earthworms, bacteria and fungi. Further, we review how these alternative practices impact the abundance and diversity of these four taxonomic groups, as well as for the 14 functional groups identified and retrieved from the review. We found that a total of 23 alternative agricultural practices, grouped into 10 groups of practices, were studied for the four target taxonomic groups. Three groups of practices, 'fertilization', 'soil cover' and 'tillage' were studied for all taxa. In general, alternative agricultural practices had positive impacts on the species richness in the four taxonomic groups and on the abundance of organisms in the functional groups. However, there were some exceptions. For example, organic fertilizers reduced the abundance of epigeic earthworms, while enhancing the abundance of endogeic and anecic earthworms. There was only one alternative practice, i.e., the use of cover crops, that was neutral to positive for the abundance of all functional groups across all taxa. Our review revealed that there are gaps in the literature, as practices that are commonly studied for aboveground biodiversity, such as field margins or flower strips, are not studied well across taxonomic and functional groups and need to be further studied to improve our understanding of the impact of alternative practices on soil life. We conclude that alternative agricultural practices are promising to enhance soil biodiversity. However, as some practices have specific impacts on taxonomic groups in the soil, we may require careful application and combinations of alternative agricultural practices to stimulate multiple groups. • Alternative, less intensive, agricultural practices generally enhanced/were neutral to taxa and their functional groups. • Our literature review reveals gaps in the literature, with most practices retrieved not studied across all groups. • Effects are heterogeneous across both beneficial (e.g. AMF fungi) and adverse (e.g. herbivore nematodes) functional groups. • Enhancing soil biodiversity in agroecosystems is potentially achievable with the use of alternative practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carabid beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) are beneficial predators and bioindicators of ground-dwelling arthropod diversity in agricultural landscapes. We studied changes in community composition, activity density, and diversity of carabids in a long-term agroecosystem study spanning 30 years in the US Midwest. We contrasted carabid community metrics measured by pitfall trap sampling in two conservation-oriented treatments in a corn-soybean-wheat rotation. One treatment uses conventional practices but with reduced agrochemical inputs (Reduced Input), while the other has no synthetic inputs (Biologically Based). Since a 1994–95 study on the same site, in 2019 overall carabid activity density had declined a minimum of 58–76 % with the four previously dominant species (all predators) declining 94–98 % and becoming uncommon to rare. In addition, carabid species richness, activity density, and community structure have diverged significantly under the two management regimes. In 2019 sampling, activity density decline in the Biologically Based treatment was mitigated by large increases in the abundance of two granivorous species (Harpalus compar (LeConte) and Harpalus pensylvanicus (DeGeer)). In contrast, carabid activity density in the Reduced Input treatment remained low. After decades of management, the Biologically Based treatment supported greater diversity and activity density of carabids compared to Reduced Input, and community structure shifted from predatory toward granivorous species. This long-term study contributes to the growing literature on insect decline in agricultural landscapes and demonstrates that changes in abundance and species turnover of the carabid communities can occur even under conservation-oriented management regimes. • Overall carabid activity-density declined 58–76 % over 25 y, some species up to 94–98 % • Granivorous species activity-density increased with reduced synthetic inputs • Carabid community turnover likely due to changes in prey availability and management [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) provide dual ecosystem services, as the adults act as pollinators and the larvae can be predators of crop pests. Because bloom time is limited in mass-flowering crops, resources within crops for hoverfly adults can also be limited and change temporally. Therefore, hoverflies need to move between crops and their borders. It may be that some field border vegetation types support the provision of hoverflies to crops better than other vegetation types. We sought to determine how field border type (herbaceous vs. treed), canola bloom, and border vegetation structure and composition (border width, canopy cover, grass height, grass cover, plant cover, flower availability, and density of trees, shrubs, snags, stumps, and downed woody debris) affect hoverfly movement into and out of crop fields from field borders. We placed bi-directional Malaise traps in herbaceous and treed field borders at 10 fields seeded with canola, and sampled continuously from May 17 to August 20, 2021 in central Alberta, Canada. We found that field border type affected hoverfly movement such that, across the whole summer, net-export of hoverflies into crops was over 33-times higher from treed field borders (an estimated 84,699 hoverflies per km per week) than from herbaceous field borders (an estimated 2515 hoverflies per km per week). We did not find any single component of the vegetation within treed field borders that explained the difference in movement. We found more hoverfly activity in herbaceous field borders than in treed field borders during and after canola bloom, but that overall activity was equal between field border types prior to canola bloom. Treed borders had greater Hill-Shannon and Hill-Simpson diversity and evenness than herbaceous borders. Throughout the growing season, the community became dominated by Toxomerus marginatus , which drove all temporal trends. We conclude that treed field borders act as net exporters of hoverflies to canola fields and are therefore important features for optimizing the magnitude of the ecosystem services provided by hoverflies in agricultural systems. [Display omitted] • Treed borders net-export 33-times more hoverflies km−1 week−1 than herbaceous ones. • Mass-flowering crop bloom did not affect the export of hoverflies to crops. • Treed field borders support greater hoverfly diversity than herbaceous borders. • Toxomerus marginatus was highly abundant, and may provide dual ecosystem services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earthworms support and mediate the provision of many processes in the soil. They are therefore important in maintaining soil functioning and contribute towards the sustainability of soil management systems. Assessment of earthworm communities can provide answers regarding the land management conservation efforts and insight on soil quality. The main aim of this study was to assess the impact of farming (organic vs conventional) and tillage (no-tillage vs minimum tillage vs conventional tillage) systems on earthworm communities under varying soil conditions in arable fields across Estonia. To achieve this, we compiled data from studies carried out over a period of 21 years on Estonian arable fields. While organic farming and conventional farming showed a similar earthworm abundance, earthworm diversity was significantly higher (p < 0.05) under the organic system. Higher abundance, species richness, and the proportion of anecic species suggest that a no-tillage system creates the most favourable habitat conditions for earthworms. Soil texture further influenced the effect of management system on earthworm abundance and diversity indexes. For example, the differences in earthworm abundance and diversity between the management systems increased from lighter textured to heavier textured soils. Our results suggest that soil texture is a major factor influencing earthworm communities in Estonian agricultural fields and emphasizes the importance of including different soil texture classes when assessing the effects of agricultural management practices in field-scale studies. [Display omitted] • Earthworm species diversity was higher in organic farming compared with conventional farming. • No-till management favoured a higher abundance of earthworms compared with minimum and conventional tillage. • Soil texture was a major factor influencing earthworm communities in arable fields. • The impact of management systems depended on soil texture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial entropy play a crucial role in the carbon cycle of terrestrial ecosystems, while their responses to soil properties in typical sloping croplands under the impact of soil erosion remain poorly understood due to the complexity of the soil erosion process. In this study, we selected typical sloping croplands with different erosion levels for the four severely eroded soil types (black, loess, purple, and red soil) in China to assess the key controls of MBC and microbial entropy under the influence of soil erosion. The results showed that soil erosion significantly reduced the MBC content but increased the microbial entropy of sloping croplands in black soil region (BS) (22 %, 43.6 %), purple soil region (PS) (25.5 %, 26.2 %) and red soil region (RS) (28.9 %, 21.9 %), but not in loess soil region (LS). The soil physicochemical properties had significantly positive and negative correlations on the MBC and microbial entropy, respectively. The MBC and microbial entropy of these sloping croplands had different dominant drivers under soil erosion. Overall, our results revealed that changes in MBC and microbial entropy directly depended on the fundamental properties of the soil and soil erosion could indirectly affect the MBC and microbial entropy by directly affecting the physicochemical properties of soil. Thus, the impact of soil erosion on sloping croplands and the associated responses following changes in MBC and microbial entropy provide fresh insights into predicting the effects of soil erosion on carbon stability. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decline in soil microbial diversity induced by fungicides presents a significant global environmental challenge, as highlighted by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), which emphasizes the serious threat posed to food production and human health by soil degradation. Despite this, there is a shortage of studies investigating the effects of fungicides on soil microbial functional diversity, assembly mechanisms, and network complexity in the proximal root zone of different wheat varieties. To bridge these knowledge gaps, we investigated the effects of a fungicide (tebuconazole) applied at a defined dose on wheat yield with different disease resistance and its proximal root zone soil bacterial and fungal communities using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The results revealed that the application of fungicides increased the number of bacteria, decreased the number of fungi, and significantly reduced the diversity of fungi and bacteria (P < 0.05). Bacteria that function with the carbon and nitrogen cycles were also affected by fungicides, with a significant increase in abundance (P < 0.05). The complexity and stability of bacterial and fungal networks were significantly reduced, negative correlation increased, and microbial connectivity weakened under fungicide stress. The Mantel test analysis further indicated that changes in soil microbial structure were associated with changes in pH after fungicide application. In addition, fungicide application promoted deterministic processes in fungal and bacterial community assembly (null deviation value closer to 1), suggesting that enhanced soil selection and filtration processes altered soil microbial interactions. Overall, our study provides valuable insights into sustainable breeding strategies for disease-resistant wheat and sheds light on the potential adverse effects of fungicides on soil microbes and the environment. [Display omitted] • Negative structure due to fungicides reduces community stability. • Soil microbial N metabolic functions are affected by fungicides. • Loss of microbial diversity has not limited soil function. • Fungicides reduce microbial network complexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Agricultural intensification causes a generalized land use pattern. • The new (2023–2027) CAP and the EU Green Deal support biodiversity preservation. • Small woody landscape feature (SWLF) restoration can improve biodiversity. • Suitable SWLF preservation/restoration areas were detected with GIS-based modelling. • A SDSS can help bypass existing gaps in SWLF-targeted CAP measure implementation. Years of agricultural intensification across Europe's plains, valleys and hills had left behind a more or less generalized land use pattern dominated by profitable land cover types. Small landscape features with no direct (financial) benefit to the farmer, have been, in many cases, removed and converted to arable land. This study investigates the possibilities to integrate small woody landscape features (SWLF) into the new (2023–2027) CAP measures, which are in conjunction with the EU Green Deal ambitions and support biodiversity preservation in agroecosystems. A spatial SWLF preservation/restoration algorithm, based on the most recent European (SWF2018) and improved national level (SWLF2015) status databases, was developed and then applied to identify priority SWLF management regions and areas in Slovenia. In addition, a self-standing (LPIS independent) information, monitoring and decision support system has been designed for a target priority area (Goričko) in different spatial scales (from regional, 1 km, 300 m, AH to parcel level) to bypass existing gaps in SWLF-targeted CAP measure implementation strategies in Slovenia. Such results are urgently needed across all European countries to easier, faster and better realize CAP national strategic plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is compelling evidence for positive effects of plant diversity on the functioning of forests and agroecosystems. This information is increasingly used to optimize production systems that provide a wide range of ecosystem services. While agroforestry is actively promoted for the sustainable intensification of agriculture and restoration of degraded landscapes, there is a paucity of knowledge on Biodiversity Ecosystem Functioning (BEF) relationships in agroforestry systems. Since BEF-relationships in agroforestry might be shaped by combinations of different life-forms (e.g. trees, shrubs, herbs) and their interactions, experiences from grassland and forest experiments cannot be readily transferred to agroforestry. This highlights the need for a new type of experiments in agroforestry to advance our understanding of the role of biodiversity for the functioning of these systems. Therefore, our aim was to develop a conceptual framework for analysing BEF-relationships in agroforestry systems and to present an exemplary design for this purpose, which we placed in a (sub)tropical context. Based on designs used in tree diversity experiments, we suggest four major design principles: 1) a trait-based approach for selecting tree and crop species, 2) the integration of trees and crops along a gradient of functional diversity, 3) maintaining constant density across different combinations of life-forms in agroforests through the concept of "growing-patch-density", and 4) disentangling a priori the effects of species diversity on ecosystem functioning from those of structural and functional diversity, defined here as the variation in structural attributes such as plant dimensions and in plant functional traits, respectively. Our conceptual design and the embedded principles offer a promising avenue to identify important drivers of specific BEF-relationships and to quantify management influences on these. This design can support new research projects that aim at improving ecosystem functioning of agroforestry with the view of optimizing the provision of ecosystem services and facilitation of ecosystem restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristic features of some of the methodological strategies adopted in scientific research in agroecology are discussed. They reflect that agroecology, as an approach to scientific research, is inextricably entangled with the other strands of agroecology (farming practice, social movement, political project); and that adopting agroecological strategies, and upholding the values of environmental sustainability, food sovereignty, social justice and democratic participation, mutually reinforce each other. After outlining the kinds of questions that agroecological research addresses so that it can produce knowledge that informs agroecological farming practices and the long term aspiration of agroecological movements to create an alternative agricultural/food system, and then making summary remarks about methodological strategies in general, three characteristic features of some agroecological strategies are introduced and discussed. The paper concludes with comments on the value of agroecological research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Substantial effluxes of C and Se occur in the cold-region cultivated Mollisols. • Organic-bound Se acts as a direct source of volatile Se species. • Anaerobic respiration contributes greatly to CO 2 , CH 4 and methyl selenide fluxes. • The findings inform scientific management of C and Se resources in agriculture. Mollisols rich in natural organic matter are a significant sink of carbon (C) and selenium (Se). Climate warming and agricultural expansion to the cold Mollisol regions may enhance soil respiration and biogeochemical cycles, posing a growing risk of soil C and Se loss. Through field-mimicking incubation experiments with uncultivated and cultivated soils from the Mollisol regions of northeastern China, this research shows that soil respiration remained significant even during cold seasons and caused co-emission of greenhouse gases (CO 2 and CH 4) and methylated Se. Such stimulus effects were generally stronger in the cultivated soils, with maximum emission rates of 7.45 g/m2/d C and 1.42 μg/m2/d Se. For all soil types, the greatest co-emission of CO 2 and dimethyl selenide occurred at 25 % soil moisture, whereas measurable CH 4 emission was observed at 40 % soil moisture with higher percentages of dimethyl diselenide volatilization. Molecular characterization with three-dimensional fluorescence and ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry suggests that CO 2 emission is sensitive to the availability of microbial protein-like substances and free energy from organic carbon biodegradation under variable moisture conditions. Predominant Se binding to biodegradable organic matter resulted in high dependence of Se volatilization on rates of greenhouse gas emissions. These findings together highlight the importance of dynamic organic carbon quality for soil respiration and consequent Mollisol Se loss risk, with implications for science-based management of C and Se resources in agricultural lands to combat with Se deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We present a framework for identifying the optimal landscape configuration for multifunctionality. • The optimal configuration can be predicted from the response of individual services to local and landscape factors. • We show that services sharing the same optimal landscape configuration strategy form management bundles. Increased pressure on land resources to provide multiple benefits calls for landscape strategies that optimize the supply of multiple ecosystem services (ES). Previous research into the drivers of landscape multifunctionality have focused on land use composition changes, but the spatial configuration of different land use types also drives ES supply. While the impact of landscape configuration on individual ES is well understood, the net outcome of these influences when considering many ES is not. Here we present the net-balance spatial interactions hypothesis, which posits that the strength and direction of local and surrounding landscape influences on the local supply of an individual ES will drive its optimal landscape configuration. Accordingly, the net balance of these influences across multiple prioritized ES will determine the optimal configuration for landscape multifunctionality. Further, ES that share the same optimal configuration strategy form a bundle that can be managed together. Using data from German grasslands we demonstrate that the net-balance spatial interactions hypothesis is applicable to land-use planning scenarios that aim to maximize multiple ES. It allows general rules to be applied when local, detailed ES data is not available, and can help identify the best option to minimize trade-offs in the face of multiple competing land-use objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although agricultural activities can strongly affect soil biodiversity and health, with consequences on the provisioning of soil biota-mediated functions, their specific impact on soil invertebrate communities is far from being fully elucidated. In this study, the invertebrate communities associated with the soils of six habitat types, including both semi-natural and cropping systems, of one of the most intensively farmed areas in Europe, the Po Valley (North Italy), were characterized using the eDNA metabarcoding approach. The aims were to examine the variation in the taxonomic and functional diversity among the habitats and evaluate the relation between the disturbance caused by the main agronomic practices adopted in the area and the community diversity. Overall, the invertebrate communities were found to substantially differ in terms of taxonomic and functional diversity between the six habitats considered. For example, cornfield and rice paddy showed the highest diversity of annelids and the lowest one of nematodes. Woodland was found to host the most unique soil fauna, while grassland shared the majority of its soil taxa with almost all the other habitat types. The trophic groups had significantly lower diversity in specific habitats (e.g., carnivores, herbivores, microbivores in cornfield) suggesting that biological soil quality and ecosystem services provision may vary among them. Concerning agronomic practices, it was not observed an inverse relation between diversity and the disturbance they cause. In detail, while tillage and insecticide use negatively affected invertebrate diversity as a whole, specific soil taxa and trophic groups were idiosyncratically affected by the different agronomic practices (e.g., pesticide and fertilizer use was related to an increase of annelid and bacterivore diversity). In this regard, the peak of diversity observed for specific taxonomic and functional groups might be attributed to an impaired community balance. Altogether, the results obtained contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the intricate interplay between agricultural practices and soil invertebrate communities, with implications for the awareness of soil health, ecosystem services provision and biodiversity conservation in agroecosystems. • COI and 18S rRNA markers provide different pictures of soil invertebrate community. • Grassland has the highest soil invertebrates taxonomical and functional diversity. • Agronomic practices disturbance idiosyncratically affects invertebrate diversity. • Soil community trophic network equilibrium is impaired by agronomic practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Using Sentinel-2 imagery and deep learning, rapeseed fields' spatial distribution can be detected during initial flowering. • PSPNet accurately identified rapeseed fields with high effectiveness (F1 = 88.17 %). • The detection of initial flowering provides valuable data for the management of pollinators. • The PSPNet rapeseed field detection model in the initial flowering period has been validated. In high-intensity farming, swiftly and accurately adjusting the proportion of artificially reared pollinators according to the flowering phenology of crops is vital. This adjustment is essential for sustaining crop yields without disrupting the ecological niche of native pollinators. Although advancements in remote sensing provide practical means to gather data on crop coverage and extent, identifying insect-pollinated crops during their initial flowering to guide the deployment of managed pollinators is an underexamined research area. Here, we tested the capability of utilizing Sentinel-2 satellite images combined with a deep learning model to map crop fields during the initial flowering stage of insect-pollinated crops in Zhaosu County, Xinjiang, China. Specifically, we examined rapeseed fields by employing 12 neural network designs to identify images of the initial flowering stage. Different network combinations of three convolutional neural network (CNN) models (U-Net, PSPNet, and DeepLab V3) and four different backbone networks (ResNet-18, ResNet-34, ResNet-50, and ResNet-101) were explored to determine the most effective model for detecting rapeseed fields at the initial flowering stage. A comparison was conducted with Sentinel-2 images obtained at the peak stage of rapeseed flowering. Our results suggest that the use of a deep learning model in combination with Sentinel-2 image data can successfully identify rapeseed fields at the initial flowering stage, thereby offering preliminary insights for the strategic introduction of managed pollinators. The PSPNet model emerged as the superior choice for the identification of rapeseed fields, exhibiting high accuracy in both detection and boundary recognition, with F1 scores of 88.17 % and an intersection over union (IoU) of 53.11 % during initial flowering and F1 scores of 93.33 % with an IoU of 53.49 % during peak flowering. The planting area of rapeseed fields detected by the model in Zhaosu County was 122.16 km2, distributed within an area of 1068 km2. These findings can provide foundational data for informed decisions regarding artificial pollinator supplementation, helping to sustain the health and stability of agricultural ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmland ecosystem services frequently result from different ecological functions simultaneous provided by specific biodiversity groups such as birds. These bundles of ecosystem services may be approached from inter-specific interaction networks, which inform about the structure of interactions while identifying the species more relevant for combining ecosystem services. Here, we studied how birds provide pest control in apple orchards, and seed dispersal in orchard-adjacent hedgerows and forests. For this, we used field data and DNA-metabarcoding of bird fecal samples, obtained across a whole year from three orchards in northern Spain, to build interaction networks between birds and arthropod apple pests, and between birds and non-crop fleshy-fruited plants. We addressed the structure of the different networks underpinning pest control and seed dispersal. We also combined both ecosystem services through a hybrid network to assess, by means of centrality measures, the topological roles of individual bird species and their ecological determinants. Interaction networks differed in structure, with pest-control network showing higher modularity and specialization than seed-dispersal network, otherwise characterized by high nestedness. These differences emerged from the different typologies, i.e. antagonistic vs. mutualistic, of the bird-pest and bird-plant interactions. The hybrid network integrating pest control and seed dispersal evidenced strong variability across birds in their role to connect ecosystem services, depending on their central or peripheral positions. Bird centrality was positively related with species abundance and independent of body size or diet diversity. This finding suggests the relevance of neutral processes (i.e. the random encounters of organisms) for driving inter-specific interactions, and it highlights the relevance of common birds for sustaining ecosystem service bundles in agroecosystems. The preservation of fruit-rich hedgerows and forest patches around apple orchards is an action recommended to maintain the populations of common bird species, responsible of both agricultural pest control and the natural regeneration of these habitats. • Interactions networks inform about pest control and seed dispersal in apple orchards. • Bird-pest network was highly modular whereas bird-plant network was highly nested. • Pest control and seed dispersal connected through bird species in a hybrid network. • Role of bird species for combining ecosystem services depends on relative abundance.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid socioeconomic development and urbanization, global agroecosystems (AESs) have undergone varying degrees of transformation, and conducting an in-depth study on how AESs are transforming in karst mountainous areas (KMAs) is essential. To further reveal the transformation process of AESs in KMAs, we proposed a theoretical framework for the transformation of AESs in KMAs. Following a "theory construction–empirical analysis–pattern evolution–mechanism revelation" research methodology, we studied the trend of AES evolution in "typical study area—typical landforms of the study area," summarized the transformation patterns of AESs in different karst landforms, and analyzed the influencing factors of their transformation. The study found that (1) a large amount of productive land (PL) was abandoned as ecological land (EL) on steep slopes at high altitudes in KMAs, while river valleys are dominated by the transformation of PL into ecological and economic land (EEL), and the spatial distribution structure has evolved into a coordinated distribution of EL–EEL–PL, with the dominance of the production function transformed into the dominance of ecological and eco-economic functions and the living function strengthened. (2) The transformation of AESs in different karst landscapes can be summarized into four types: eco-economic development, food supply, ecological conservation, and living service. (3) The transformation of AESs is influenced by various factors, including the region's particular natural environment and socioeconomics. This study also shows that traditional extensive agriculture is moving toward modern intensive agriculture with remarkable ecological and economic win–win benefits. Our study provides theoretical guidance for land remediation, ecological environment restoration, and agricultural transformation in KMAs and similar mountainous areas to alleviate regional human–land conflicts and promote sustainable agricultural development in KMAs. • We constructed a theoretical framework for agroecosystem transformation. • We analyzed trends in agroecosystem transition in karst mountainous areas. • The factors that influence agroecosystem transformation are revealed. • The agroecosystem transformation of different karst landforms is classified into four models. • Agroecosystem transformation promoted ecological restoration in karst mountainous areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• GHG impacts of agronomic adaptation strategies to climate change using LandscapeDNDC. • Early sowing and its combination with increased fertilization reduced crop yield. • Early sowing combined with increased irrigation and fertilization increased yield. • Soil GHG emissions increased under future climate scenarios. • All agronomic adaptation strategies increased GHG emission and yield-scaled GHG. Climate change poses a significant threat to agriculture, highlighting the need for adaptation strategies to reduce its impacts. Agronomic adaptation strategies, such as changes in planting dates, fertilization, and irrigation, might sustain crop yield. However, their impact on soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emission is unknown under future climate scenarios. Using the LandscapeDNDC model, we assessed the effect of agronomic adaptation strategies (early sowing, increased fertilization dose, and increased irrigation amount) on soil GHG emission, yield, and yield-scaled GHG emission. A diversified crop rotation (potato – winter wheat – spring barley – faba bean) of a long-term experiment in Denmark was used for model validation. The adaptation practices to climate change were implemented for two representative concentration pathways (RCPs; 4.5 and 8.5) and five coupled global circulation and regional climate models. The adaptation scenarios were contrasted against a baseline scenario under current management practices. Soil-related variables showed better model fit (refined index of agreement ≥ 0.38) and lower errors (mean absolute error ≤ 8.18) than crop-based outputs for model validation. A total yield of ∼29 (± 3) t DW ha−1, and soil GHG emission of ∼3.02 (± 1.39) t CO 2 e ha−1 (RCP8.5) were obtained for the crop rotation system under the baseline for 2071–2100. Early sowing and its combination with increased fertilization decreased the yield compared to the baseline by 6.1 and 4.8 %, respectively (RCP8.5). Conversely, early sowing with increased irrigation, and early sowing with increased fertilization and irrigation, produced higher yields by 2.3 and 4.0 %, respectively (RCP8.5). All the agronomic adaptation strategies increased soil GHG emissions (ranging from 4.1 to 17.8 %) as well as yield-scaled GHG emissions (varying from 3.0 to 12.9 %) (RCP8.5). The highest soil GHG emission was simulated for early sowing in combination with increased fertilization and irrigation. Our study indicates that soil GHG emission will increase in the coming decades and that the agronomic adaptation strategies needed to sustain food production may further exacerbate this emission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epichloid fungal endophytes (Epichloë spp., Ascomycota: Clavicipitaceae) inhabit aerial tissues of several cool-season grasses, and enhance host growth and defence against herbivores. The presence of these symbionts can also affect interactions between the host and other non-epichloid plants. The role of an epichloid endophyte on interspecific competition has been tested using perennial grasses with contrasting results, but it has been scarcely tested using annual species in agroecosystems. We evaluated the impact of Epichloë -grass symbiosis on the competitive interaction between a non-host cereal crop (Triticum aestivum, wheat) and a host weed (Lolium multiflorum, ryegrass), growing in the presence of invertebrate herbivores (aphids) under no resource limitation. We conducted an outdoor mesocosm experiment with wheat plants growing in monoculture or in mixture with low or high proportions of ryegrass plants. Ryegrass plants presented either low (E-) or high (E+) incidence of Epichloë occultans (i.e. frequency of epichloid endophytic plants). We measured wheat vegetative and reproductive yield and its natural aphid infestation. Although epichloid endophyte incidence did not affect ryegrass biomass, wheat reproductive yield in mixtures (relative to wheat monocultures) was 45% higher when grown with E+ ryegrass plants than E- conspecific plants. Aphids preferred wheat plants grown with E- plants rather than wheat plants grown with E+ plants, but only in mixtures with high proportion of ryegrass. Our results demonstrate that epichloid endophyte incidence can decrease host competitive ability and confers associational protection to the non-endophytic neighbouring plants. Thus, ryegrass-endophyte symbiosis can increase crop yield by positive neighbourhood effects through different mechanisms probably related to the density of the weed. The benefits of this endosymbiont cannot be considered host-exclusive since they can be disseminated to non-endophytic plants. Furthermore, our results suggest that the epichloid endophyte incidence on annual weeds can contribute to agroecosystem sustainability by influencing pest management and increasing crop yield. Image, graphical abstract • Weeds of winter crops can harbour symbiotic fungal endophytes. • High endophyte-incidence decreases ryegrass competitive ability against wheat crop. • High density of endophyte-associated ryegrass plants protects wheat crop from aphids. • Ryegrass-endophyte symbiosis can increase crop yield through density-dependent mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arthropod predators and parasitoids attack crop pests, providing a valuable ecosystem service. The amount of noncrop habitat surrounding crop fields influences pest suppression, but synthesis of new studies suggests that the spatial configuration of crops and other habitats is similarly important. Natural enemies are often more abundant in fine-grained agricultural landscapes comprising smaller patches and can increase or decrease with the connectivity of crop fields to other habitats. Partitioning organisms by traits has emerged as a promising way to predict the strength and direction of these effects. Furthermore, our ability to predict configurational effects will depend on understanding the potential for indirect effects among trophic levels and the relationship between arthropod dispersal capability and the spatial scale of underlying landscape structure. Understanding how landscape structure influences pest suppression in crop fields is critical for the design of sustainable agricultural landscapes. New research shows that landscape configuration (spatial arrangement), in addition to composition, strongly affects natural enemy and pest populations, ultimately affecting crop yield. Natural enemies tend to be more abundant in fine-grained landscapes (comprising smaller fields and habitat patches) and are influenced by the connectivity of crop fields to other habitat types. Configuration effects on pest suppression depend on organismal traits and the relationships between spatial scales at which arthropods disperse and those of underlying landscape structure. Landscape configuration can affect pest suppression through multiple indirect effect pathways, which need more investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil nematode diversity is a widely-used indicator for assessing the impact of agricultural practices, such as fertilization, on soil ecosystems. Organic fertilization is generally considered beneficial for nematode diversity. However, comparisons of diversity indices are sensitive to sample completeness, and unequal completeness can result in unfair comparisons among assemblages. In this study, we applied the statistical framework of Hill diversity, which accounts for equally complete samples, to estimate nematode diversity under different fertilization conditions in a paddy rice-upland wheat rotation system over three years. Our findings revealed that crop phase had a more pronounced influence on nematode community composition compared to fertilization or sampling year, although all three factors significantly affected nematode community composition. The sampling was incomplete, and coverage varied among samples for diversity comparison; for instance, sample coverage values were generally higher in the rice phase than in the wheat phase. After standardizing samples by completeness, we observed substantial variation in nematode diversity among years, regardless of whether more emphasis was placed on rare taxa (richness), abundant taxa (Shannon diversity), or dominant taxa (Simpson diversity). Moreover, the influence of crop phase on nematode diversity became particularly evident when examining diversity metrics that highlight rare and abundant taxa (e.g., richness and Shannon diversity). However, the effects of fertilization on nematode diversity were overshadowed by pronounced yearly variations. This study emphasizes the pivotal role of crop phase in shaping nematode community composition and diversity, while raising questions about the impacts of fertilization on nematode diversity when yearly variation is not considered. Additionally, we validated the suitability of Hill diversity for equally complete samples as an approach for a fair comparison of nematode diversity in soil ecosystems. • Fertilization effects on nematode diversity were assessed using Hill numbers. • Crop phase differentiated nematode community composition considerably. • Yearly variation overshadowed fertilization effects on diversities. • Differences in diversity shaped by sensitivity to abundance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earthworms play a key role as soil bioengineers, but livestock farming and croplands can impact on the composition, structure, and functioning of earthworm communities. This study aimed to quantify the effects of replacing natural grasslands with crop rotations on the seasonal dynamics of key attributes of earthworm communities and explore soil physicochemical properties as mechanisms behind these effects. We conducted paired samplings on seven sites across Uruguay, comparing earthworm communities in soils under grazed natural grasslands and adjacent croplands, considering earthworm species composition, richness, diversity, and evenness, biomass, density, and mean body weight, over five consecutive seasons. Results revealed a clear negative impact of croplands on earthworm communities, showing substantial reductions in all considered attributes. Observed changes were attributed to environmental filters limiting the occurrence of larger exotic earthworm species in croplands, and variations in soil physicochemical properties were identified as potentially mediating some of these effects, including soil water regime (particularly affecting juvenile individuals) and soil organic matter content. These impacts resulted in a shift to dominance of r strategists (smaller, surface-feeding species such as Microscolex spp. in croplands compared to larger deeper-burrowing species in grasslands) and reduced functional composition of earthworm communities. Furthermore, seasonal dynamics revealed that differences between land uses were more pronounced during wetter periods, underscoring the relevance of seasonal variations when evaluating land use impacts on earthworm communities. Earthworms mean body weight resulted a useful attribute to be included in earthworm's assessments, allowing to identify impacts in community functional composition and suggesting size dependent mechanisms. Additional research is required to comprehensively understand the mechanisms behind these patterns and to develop more sustainable agricultural practices by considering soil fauna. • Croplands strongly reduced earthworm biomass, density, and mean body weight. • Richness, diversity, evenness, and functional trait composition were also reduced. • Impacts were attributed to filters limiting larger exotic species in croplands. • Soil water regime and organic matter content potentially mediate these effects. • Croplands effects were larger during winter and autumn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recognition of the impacts of climate change and air pollution, a special issue was prepared to address the response and adaptation of agricultural ecosystems to global changes. A total of thirteen papers were published, delving into the mechanisms underlying the effects on crops and agroecosystems and adding important insights into the modeling and adaptation of agroecosystems to global change through optimized management practices. This collection of papers has a broad relevance to numerous areas in agriculture, ecology, and environmental and earth sciences. • A special issue dedicated to 'agricultural ecosystems response and adaptation to global changes'. • A total of thirteen papers were published. • Studies concerned ozone, precipitation, warming, management, and modelling. • This Editorial discusses the content of the publications included in the special issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Virome analysis of irrigation waters reveals high richness of plant viruses. • Surface waters contain more diverse plant virome than underground ones. • During outbreaks in plants, viruses can be detected in surrounding waters. • Water testing is a useful tool for virus surveillance, and new virus discovery. • Water virome analysis informs on the distribution of plant viruses in ecosystems. Plant viruses pose a significant threat to agriculture. Several are stable outside their hosts, can enter water bodies and remain infective for prolonged periods of time. Even though the quality of irrigation water is of increasing importance in the context of plant health, the presence of plant viruses in irrigation waters is understudied. In this study, we conducted a large-scale high-throughput sequencing (HTS)-based virome analysis of irrigation and surface water sources to obtain complete information about the abundance and diversity of plant viruses in such waters. We detected nucleic acids of plant viruses from 20 families, discovered several novel plant viruses from economically important taxa, like Tobamovirus and observed the influence of the water source on the present virome. By comparing viromes of water and surrounding plants, we observed presence of plant viruses in both compartments, especially in cases of large-scale outbreaks, such as that of tomato mosaic virus. Moreover, we demonstrated that water virome data can extensively inform us about the distribution and diversity of plant viruses for which only limited information is available from plants. Overall, the results of the study provided extensive insights into the virome of irrigation waters from the perspective of plant health. It also suggested that an HTS-based water virome surveillance system could be used to detect potential plant disease outbreaks and to survey the distribution and diversity of plant viruses in the ecosystem. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing number of anthropogenic pressures can have negative effects on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. However, our understanding of how soil microbial communities and functions in response to multiple global change factors (GCFs) is still incomplete, particularly in less frequently disturbed subsoils. In this study, we examined the impact of different levels of GCFs (0–9) on soil functions and bacterial communities in both topsoils (0–20 cm) and subsoils (20–40 cm) of an agricultural ecosystem, and characterized the intrinsic factors influencing community resistance based on microbial life history strategy. Our experimental results showed a decline in soil multifunctionality, bacterial diversity, and community resistance as the number of GCFs increased, with a more drastic reduction in community resistance of subsoils. Specifically, we observed a significantly positive relationship between the oligotroph/copiotroph ratio and community resistance in subsoils, which was also verified by the negative correlation between 16S rRNA operon (rrn) copy number and community resistance. Structural equation modeling further revealed the direct effects of community resistance in promoting the ecosystem functioning, regardless of top- and subsoils. Therefore, these results suggested that subsoils may recruit more oligotrophic microbes to enhance their originally weaker community resistance under multiple GCFs, which was essential for maintaining sustainable agroecological functions and services. Overall, our study represents a significant advance in linking microbial life history strategy to the resistance of belowground microbial community and functionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing pesticide use is a challenging issue in the construction of sustainable agrifood systems. It requires innovations of various kinds at different scales. Reaching the objective of reduced pesticide use means that the different stakeholders which compose agrifood systems have to coordinate their actions in order to innovate. Dealing with the transformation process in agrifood systems therefore focuses attention on the context of the interactions between stakeholders. This article sheds light on the dynamics and modes of interaction between stakeholders in order to help us to understand how agrifood systems may evolve in the context of agroecological transitions. Agrifood systems connect human and non-human dynamics from which production, processing, distribution and regulation activities emerge. Agrifood systems are therefore networks of stakeholders linked to agroecosystems and embedded in complex ecological, economic and social processes. We argue that the territorial scale is particularly relevant in describing the relational and spatial dynamics in agrifood systems and for understanding the diverse initiatives that emerge from stakeholders. This article therefore aims to provide a deeper understanding of the inter-relationship between the dynamics of stakeholders and the dynamics of ecosystems in agroecological transitions, and more specifically in the perspective of reduced pesticide use. Surveying the literature, we identified and compared three key frameworks that handle ecological and social issues, and help formalise the capacity for action to promote sustainable systems. The three approaches refer to (i) ecosystem services, (ii) socio-ecological systems and (iii) socio-technical systems. Each approach offers a partial analysis for unravelling specific scales of actions and fails to fully scrutinise the spatiality and temporality of stakeholder interventions. From these three approaches, we developed an integrative conceptual framework that relies on systemic, multi-stakeholder and multi-scale reasoning. The suggested approach grasps agrotechnical and socioeconomic concerns, links micro, macro and mesoeconomic levels, and enables a relational and spatial analysis of the dynamics of the ecologisation of agroecosystems to reduce pesticide use. By identifying stakeholders and their roles in conceiving and implementing innovations, the suggested framework helps to understand the current sociotechnical lock-ins in agrifood systems and how such systems could be unlocked by coupling innovations implemented at different levels of agrifood systems. This means our approach should be useful in reinforcing capacity building and providing the support needed to improve transition processes. [Display omitted] • Pesticide use reduction in agriculture requires tailored innovations at stakeholders' scales and at the scope of actions. • Sustainable management of resources requires reconnecting ecosystems and stakeholders at a territorial scale. • Our conceptual framework combines ecosystem services, socio-ecological systems and socio-technical systems approaches. • The multi-stakeholder and multi-scale reasoning of our framework is illustrated in the pursuit of pesticide reduction. • Our approach is useful to support the systemic and multi-stakeholder innovation required for agroecological transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meeting global food demand while reducing biodiversity loss will require strategies that quantify and minimize conservation and production tradeoffs in agroecosystems. Ecological refugia (non-crop habitat patches) were identified in three dryland grain production systems in the Northern Great Plains and assessed for their capacity to enhance biodiversity, crop yield, and crop quality. A radial design of six 100–200 meter transects originating from the refugia and extending into crop fields was used to assess trends in plant and arthropod diversity with increasing distance from the refuge center. Plant species diversity significantly declined with distance from established refugia into crop fields in all years sampled and from a newly established refuge by the third year of data collection. Arthropod taxon diversity declined significantly with distance from refugia on two organic farms but not on a conventional farm. Fields with a refuge hosted a higher abundance of arthropods belonging to Coleoptera than fields without a refuge. Distance from refuge was the most important variable explaining grain yield and grain quality in a random forest model. Yield significantly declined with distance from refugia while grain nutritional quality, based on protein content, iron concentration, and polyphenol concentration, significantly increased with distance from refugia. Overall, ecological refugia enhanced farmland biodiversity and provided tradeoffs for marketable crop production. Moving forward, ecological refugia could serve as a multi-objective conservation practice to integrate food production and conservation goals in agroecosystems. • Ecological refugia harbored native biodiversity in annually disturbed crop fields. • Plant and arthropod diversity declined with distance from refugia into crop fields. • Fields with refugia had a higher abundance of Coleoptera than fields without. • Grain yield decreased with distance from refugia while grain quality increased. • Precision agriculture data provided a novel way to assess non-crop habitat impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of foraging currencies and costs is important for understanding honeybee food collection economics and to parameterize their foraging behaviors as indicators of habitat quality, which is important in the identification of management targets in human-altered landscapes. Previous research has yielded inconsistent results regarding the relationship between honey bees and important agroecosystems, such as agricultural grasslands. Waggle dance decoding provides a method for resolving these inconsistencies by mapping and quantifying bee recruitment to agricultural grasslands using statistical methods that appropriately account for foraging distance, or cost. Here we decoded 3881 dances across two foraging years to investigate when and where honey bees forage in a mixed-use landscape in Virginia, with a particular interest in honey bee use of agricultural grasslands (pastures and haylands). We initially observe that bees recruited heavily to agricultural grasslands compared to croplands, developed lands and forests, where the percent foraging to that land type was at 30.7% (CI: 29.4–31.8%), and thus significantly higher than its representation in the landscape (c. 23%). Honey bees also recruited heavily to agricultural grasslands across months, with percent foraging ranging from 26.9% (23.5–30.1%) in August to 38.8% (31.3–46.9%) in October. However, when we examined distance-corrected foraging rates, which allowed us to compare land type attractiveness when flight cost is removed, we found that the agricultural grasslands were not more attractive than the broader landscape and were significantly less attractive than, for example, croplands. We additionally identify potential forage gaps in agricultural grasslands during June and August, while also distinguishing them as a possible source of forage in October before colony overwintering in this landscape. Furthermore, we qualitatively observe a hot spot, demonstrating high foraging interest that is composed of agricultural grasslands, developed lands, and croplands and is itself a mixed-use area. Together, these results demonstrate that honey bees utilize heterogeneous land areas and underscore the importance of statistical analyses that incorporate biological knowledge. Lastly, these data will be important in informing future management aimed at pollinators in agricultural grasslands. • We decoded waggle dances to investigate honey bee foraging in a mixed-use landscape in Virginia. • We report that honey bees recruited to agricultural grasslands throughout the foraging season across two years. • After correcting for flight distance, a relevant foraging cost, honey bees did not recruit preferentially to this land type. • Together, these results provide useful insights for agricultural grassland management aimed at honey bees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen (N) fertilization has been repeatedly reported to strongly influence soil properties and crop growth. However, there is little information about the combined effects of soils and crops on soil CO 2 fluxes under N fertilization. In this study, in situ soil respiration, soil physicochemical properties, microbial communities and crop properties were measured for eight years (2008 to 2016) on the Loess Plateau. Five rates of N fertilization were applied to different plots to compare the soil respiration rate and its temperature sensitivity (Q 10). Nitrogen fertilization significantly increased mean annual cumulative soil respiration (R cum) by 25%–44%. R cum had a positive correlation with grain yield, and the carbon emission efficiency (grain yield produced per unit of carbon emission) under N-fertilized plots was 1.62–2.52 times that of unfertilized plots. R cum also had a positive correlation with root biomass and the root N concentration but showed a negative correlation with the root C/N ratio. The Q 10 values under N-fertilized plots decreased by half at a diurnal scale, but had a smaller reduction (i.e. , 0.04–0.09) at an annual scale compared to unfertilized plots. The decreased Q 10 values under N-fertilized plots also resulted from the lower aromaticity of dissolved carbon (SUVA 254) (7.40 vs. 10.53 L mg C−1 m−1). In addition, the altered R cum and Q 10 values were affected by the varied bacteria community derived from N fertilization, which was related to Acidobacteria , Chloroflexi , Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes. Therefore, N fertilizer applications regulate the combined effects of soil and crop parameters on soil respiration and the Q 10 value. This study suggests that, due to the lower carbon emission efficiency and higher SOC concentration under N-fertilized plots, N fertilizer applications may be used to sustain crop yields and increasing SOC storage while minimizing carbon emission impacts to the environment on the Loess Plateau. • Nitrogen fertilizer application increased soil respiration rate (SR) but decreased Q 10. • Variation in SR and Q 10 was resulted from altered photosynthetic rate, C/N, SUVA 254 , and bacteria community. • Nitrogen fertilizer application increased carbon emission efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A gap was found on adaptive sustainability assessment tools for the local context. • Conventional (CS) and alternative (AS) maize management systems were assessed. • AS (soil conservation, −50% chemical inputs) scored higher in 15 of 18 indicators. • Positive results are not sufficient to ensure replication mainly due to uncertainty. • The SALT proved to be suitable for local contexts with limited resources. Agriculture is a key sector in going towards sustainability. It works as a hub between social, institutional, economic and environmental dimensions. An international recognition has risen on how efforts must be directed to sustainable agriculture if current challenges of soil degradation, climate change and population growth are to be overcome. This is translated in the need for means to assess and evaluate progress (or the lack of) towards sustainable agriculture. Although literature on assessment methods for the matter is abundant, a research gap is found on tools suitable to the local context in developing countries like Mexico, where data and skills availability greatly contrast between regions and municipalities. Aiming to bridge this gap, the Sustainability assessment Adaptive and Low-input Tool (SALT) is presented. Conducted analysis focused on contrasting two crop management systems in western Mexico: conventional, the most common in the region; and alternative, relative to farmers transitioning towards sustainable agriculture. A four-step process was followed: 1) substitute indicators were derived on field through participatory workshops, interviews and field trips; 2) analyzing the impact of maize management systems in the region and determining factors that can trigger tangible changes on the behavior of the system; 3) integrating this analysis and a sustainability framework to build up the SALT; 4) application of the tool and interpretation of the results. Sustainability is constantly evolving as an approach, but must keep strengthening practical aspects. Therefore, assessment tools should be tailored to allow an adaptive application and interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rare earth elements (REY) are the lanthanide elements (Z = 57–71), which have an ever-growing occurrence in present-day industries, agriculture, and modern life. Consequently, environmental concentrations are expected to increase accordingly as a result of intensified utilization. Soils are an important sink for REY, yet little research has been conducted concerning activity, inputs, and lability in soil systems. This study evaluated the REY (lanthanides + yttrium) sorption and partition coefficients (K d) in two broadly representative natural soils (A horizon), with contrasting mineralogy and organic character, formed under distinct environmental conditions: an Oxisol from Brazil and a Mollisol from the USA. Batch reactions of soils suspended in a background electrolyte solution of 5 μmoles kg−1 of Ca(NO 3) 2 at 1:100 solid to solution were reacted with 80 μmoles kg−1 REY added individually and in multi-REY competitive systems to evaluated adsorption after 3 h and 72 h over a wide pH range (from ca. 2 to 8). Results showed sorption was similar for all REY within each soil type when examined at the natural measured soil pH; Mollisol pH 6.85, Oxisol pH 4.35. However, REY sorption (by K d) was nearly two-fold greater in the Mollisol compared to the Oxisol for the single REY experiments. Multi-REY competitive sorption reactions showed a decrease in K d for both soils at 3 and 72 h, and to a greater extent for the Mollisol, indicating soil type had a strong effect on the sorption affinity of each REY. It was also observed that REY sorption increased from low to high pH (pH 2–8) in the Oxisol, and increased with pH from 2 up to the point zero charge (PZC) in the Mollisol, then stabilized. The varying REY K d values from these two distinct and abundant soils, with and without REY competition, and over a range of pH are explained in terms of soil mineralogy (i.e., 2:1 clays in the Mollisol; oxides in the Oxisol) and organic matter content. Our findings show that soil characteristic controls sorption, precipitation, and cation exchange capacity, which are the key mechanisms for predicting REY fate and transport in the environment. Unlabelled Image • Clay mineralogy has a major role in REY sorption in soil. • REY sorption trends are similar, regardless of time, concentration or competition. • Europium is the most sorbed element among REY. • REY sorption is extremely influenced by pH, especially in tropical soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The conservation potential of cactus crops for bee diversity was investigated. • Bee diversity did not differ between cactus crops and natural cactus scrub. • Opuntia fruit production was related to bee diversity in crops and natural scrub. • Prickly pear cactus crops are reservoirs of part of native bee biodiversity. • Bees appear to have a positive influence on food production in the region. Certain agroecosystems can contribute to regional biodiversity conservation and to the maintenance of ecosystem services. Prickly pear cactus (Opuntia albicarpa) crops on the Mexican Plateau could fulfill these roles, but little is known about their potential. The objective of this study was to analyze the diversity of bee communities in prickly pear cactus crops and natural cactus xerophilous scrub dominated by Opuntia spp., and to identify the possible influence of bee diversity in prickly pear production. Using colored pan traps, we collected 4012 bees, 2405 in crops and 1607 in natural scrub. There were no significant differences between habitats in any of the bee community parameters (richness, average abundance, diversity, and species composition). There was a negative relationship between bee abundance and the proportion of area covered by other types of crops in landscape units measuring 1 km radius around the sampling sites. In the prickly pear crops, there was a positive relationship between the number of fruits and bee diversity, although the number of fruits was also strongly dependent on the number of flowers. In the natural scrub, the number of fruits was positively related to both bee abundance and the number of flowers. Future studies should be carried out to study O. albicarpa pollination in depth. The results support the idea that prickly pear crops have a high conservation potential for local bee diversity, and that they provide habitat and food resources just like the natural scrub does. Moreover, the results suggest that bee diversity may have a positive influence on food production (Opuntia fruit) and may contribute to socio-economic well-being in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract We present a Sustainable Agroecological Farm Reproduction Analysis that links two methodologies kept separated so far: Optimization Modelling, and Social Metabolism accounting of the biophysical turnover from a fund-flow approach. This socio-agro-ecological model combines two scales, at farm-gate and municipal levels, and formalizes all relevant flows interlinking three living funds that have to be reproduced over time: the domestic unit, livestock and soil fertility. From the requirements and capacities of each fund (constraints), we run the model under different scenarios (objective functions) to see the different configurations that the landscape structure and the flow patterns can take (variables), ensuring the reproducibility of funds. By changing the objectives we obtain an intensive optimum that minimizes the land required; an extensive optimum that minimizes labour; and a monetary optimum that maximizes a prevailing cash crop. The model is applied to a past advanced organic farming of a Catalan village c.1860 to generate a set of counterfactual scenarios that, confronted with historical data, help to reveal how institutional settings and landownership inequality played a role in maintaining the real socio-agro-ecological structure away from these optima, and the existing potential of possible eco-functional intensification practices aimed at reducing the land cost of agrarian sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Australian agro-ecosystems rely on exotic honeybees for pollination. • Elsewhere crops act as 'magnets' for greater numbers of more diverse pollinators. • Crops could impact native plants via depletion of pollinators or spillover effects. • In contrast we found that in Australia honeybees do not cause spillover effects. • Co-flowering species are visited by a broader suite of native pollinators. Abstract Australian agricultural landscapes are dominated by northern-hemisphere mass flowering species, with the potential to disrupt pollination of adjacent co-flowering plants. In northern-hemisphere systems, mass flowering plants can act as 'pollinator magnets'. Magnets can reduce the pollination success of adjacent co-flowering neighbours by drawing pollinators from these plants. However, magnets can also produce pollination 'spillover-effects' through increased pollinator movements to adjacent co-flowering taxa, potentially either increasing pollination or impacting it through transfer of mixed-species pollen. The impact of agricultural species on co-flowering plants in Australia is unknown. Native Australian plants evolved with unique pollinators and yet agricultural pollination is dominated by the exotic honeybee Apis mellifera. We tested how distance (to 250 m) from each of two populations of Lavender (Lavandula spp.) (2 years), Nectarines (Prunus persica var. nucipersica or var. nectarina) (1 year) and the pasture weed Paterson's Curse (Echium plantagineum) (2 years) affected pollinator diversity and abundance within experimental arrays of native and northern-hemisphere plants. For Paterson's Curse, we tested whether visitation varied when honeybee abundance was experimentally increased. As expected, we found magnets attracted significantly more honeybee visits in all possible comparisons across combinations of species, sites and years. However, contrary to expectation, in 10 of 18 comparisons, co-flowering species supported a slightly higher diversity of pollinators than magnets, with honeybees comprising a significantly lower proportion of flower visitors in 14 comparisons. The exceptions, which included populations of all three magnet species, were cases where honeybees were the only visitor (6 comparisons) or the magnet and co-flowering species were each visited by a single but different pollinator (2 compariosns). Most strikingly, our data provided no evidence of pollinator spillover. More than 95% of all pollinators on co-flowering species carried only their pollen and overall pollinator abundance didn't vary significantly with distance from magnets at any site or time. Honeybee abundance did not vary significantly with distance from magnets. For Paterson's Curse, the addition of managed hives increased honeybee abundance on co-flowering species in two of eight cases, but pollinator abundance didn't vary with distance from the magnet. Overall, we found few direct effects of mass flowering agricultural species on the pollination of either Australian native or exotic neighbours. The lack of spillover-effects may largely reflect the unusually high species fidelity of foraging A. mellifera. However, the numerical dominance of honeybees within Australian agricultural systems may impact pollination at the regional level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Remote sensing data is widely used in numerous ecological applications. The Sentinel-2 satellites (S2 A and B), recently launched by the European Spatial Agency's (ESA), provide at present the best revisit time, spatial and spectral resolution among the freely available remote sensing optical data. In this study, we explored the potential of S2 enhanced spectral and spatial resolution to explain and predict mice abundances and distribution in border habitats of agroecosystems. We compared the predictive ability of different vegetation and water indices derived from S2 and Landsat 8 (L8) imagery. Our analyses revealed that the best predictor of mice abundance was L8-derived Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI). S2-based indices, however, outperformed those computed from L8 bands for indices estimated simultaneously to mice trappings and for mice distribution models. Furthermore, indices including S2 red-edge bands were the best predictors of the distribution of the two most common rodent species in the ensemble. The findings of this study can be used as guidelines when selecting the sensors and vegetation variables to be included in more complex models aimed at predicting the distribution and risk of various vector-borne diseases, and especially rodents in other agricultural landscapes. Highlights • Mice abundance in border habitats was better explained by a Landsat 8 index. • Mice distribution and abundance in t0 was better explained by Sentinel 2. • Vegetation indices including red-edge bands were among the best predictors. • These findings are guidelines to select sensors and vegetation indices to use in monitoring systems for early warning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Agrichemical contamination is a major threat to aquatic ecosystems in farmland. There is a need to better understand the influence of the surrounding landscape on farm wetlands to recommend land management options that minimize water quality impacts from agricultural practices. We tested hypothesized relationships between landscape structure and multiple water quality measures in farm drainage ditches in a multi-landscape study in Eastern Ontario, Canada. We measured physicochemical water quality (levels of atrazine, glyphosate, neonicotinoid insecticides, inorganic nitrogen, and dissolved oxygen), and biological water quality indicators (aquatic macroinvertebrate richness, leaf litter decomposition, and Ceriodaphnia dubia population responses) in 27 farm ditches, and measured the amounts of forest cover and high-intensity crop cover (landscape composition), and field edge cover (landscape configuration) in 1-km radius landscapes surrounding each ditch sampling site. We used confirmatory path analysis to simultaneously model the direct and indirect relationships between the landscape predictors and water quality variables. Landscape composition measures were the strongest predictors of water quality: pesticides decreased as surrounding forest cover increased, and nitrogen increased with increasing amounts of high-intensity crop cover. Crop cover was also indirectly negatively related to macroinvertebrate richness via its effects on nitrogen and dissolved oxygen. We found no effects of landscape configuration on agrichemical levels, but there was some support for a positive relationship between macroinvertebrate richness and field edge cover. Our results indicate that aquatic macroinvertebrate richness is strongly impacted by fertilizer use in our region, and that macroinvertebrate richness is a more sensitive biotic indicator of farmland water quality than leaf litter decomposition or C. dubia responses. We conclude that, in our region, landscape management to improve farmland water quality should focus primarily on landscape composition. Such management should aim to increase amounts of non-crop cover such as forest, and reduce amounts of crop cover with high agrichemical inputs. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • Ditch pesticide levels decrease as forest increases in the surrounding landscape. • Ditch nitrogen levels increase with increasing amounts of high-intensity crop cover. • Increasing surrounding crop cover indirectly reduces aquatic invertebrate richness. • Aquatic invertebrate richness is positively related to configurational heterogeneity. • Management to improve farmland water quality should focus on landscape composition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract To be fully operational for facilitating decisions made at any spatial level, models and indicators of soil ecosystem functions require the use of precise spatially referenced soil information as inputs. This study aimed at exploring the capacity for Sentinel-2A (S2A) multispectral satellite images to predict several topsoil properties in two contrasted pedoclimatic environments: a temperate region marked by intensive annual crop cultivation patterns and soils derived from loess or colluvium and/or marine limestone or chalk (Versailles Plain, 221 km2); and a Mediterranean region marked by vineyard cultivation and soils derived from lacustrine limestone, calcareous sandstones, colluvium, or alluvial deposits (Peyne catchment, 48 km2). Prediction models of soil properties based on partial least squares regressions (PLSR) were built from S2A spectra of 72 and 143 sampling locations across the Versailles Plain and Peyne catchment, respectively. Eight soil surface properties were investigated in both regions: pH, cation exchange capacity (CEC), texture fractions (Clay, Silt, Sand), Iron, Calcium Carbonate (CaCO 3) and Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) content. Predictive abilities were studied according to the root mean square error of cross-validation (RMSECV) tests, cross-validated coefficient of determination (R2 cv) and ratio of performance to deviation (RPD). Intermediate prediction performance outcomes (R2 cv and RPD greater than or equal to 0.5 and 1.4, respectively) were obtained for 4 topsoil properties found across the Versailles Plain (SOC, pH, CaCO 3 and CEC), and near-intermediate performance outcomes (0.5 > R2 cv > 0.39, 1.4 > RPD > 1.3) were yielded for 3 topsoil properties (Clay, Iron, and CEC) found across the Peyne catchment and for 1 property (Clay) found across the Versailles Plain. The study results show what can be expected from Sentinel-2 images in terms of predictive capacities at the regional scale. The spatial structure of the estimated soil properties for bare soils pixels is highlighted, promising further improvements made to spatial prediction models for these properties based on the use of Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) techniques. Highlights • The aim was to assess the capacity for S2A to predict topsoil properties regionally. • SOC, pH, CaCO 3 , CEC prediction models yielded R2cv ≥ 0.5 RPD ≥ 1.4 for Temperate area. • Iron, CEC outcomes were 0.5 > R2cv > 0.39, 1.4 > RPD > 1.3 for the Mediterranean area. • Clay prediction models yielded 0.5 > R2cv > 0.39, 1.4 > RPD > 1.3 for both areas. • Best predictions did well approximate the spatial patterns of soil properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Impact of a variety of agricultural cropping systems on the soil microbial gene abundance of key denitrification genes (nirK, nirS and nosZ). • The agroecosystems studied are a long term cropping systems project under chisel-till, no-till or organic management for over twenty years. • nirK copy number in soil was affected primarily by the phase of the crop rotation and secondarily by time of year, regardless of cropping system. • In contrast, nosZ gene copy number was primarily driven by cropping system. • Gene quantities did not correspond to N 2 O emissions patterns. Abstract While nitrogen fertilizers have helped increase crop yields substantially, they have also contributed to several environmental problems, including an increasing atmospheric concentration of nitrous oxide (N 2 O), a greenhouse gas (GHG) and catalyst of stratospheric ozone decay. The dominant source of atmospheric N 2 O in many agricultural soils is denitrification, a process carried out by soil microbes containing the genes for nitrate reductase (Nar), nitrite reductase (Nir), nitric oxide reductase (Nor) and/or nitrous oxide reductase (Nos). We monitored the abundance of soil nirK, nirS, and nosZ genes during the summer growing season. We sampled replicated field plots from a long-term agricultural research site that includes agroecosystems with corn/soybean/wheat/legume rotations: two tilled-organic systems (Org3 and Org6), and two conventional systems, one using a chisel plow for primary tillage (CT) and one using no-tillage (NT). We demonstrate that nirK copy number in soil was affected primarily by the phase of the crop rotation and secondarily by time of year, regardless of cropping system. In contrast, nosZ gene copy number was primarily driven by cropping system. Soil N 2 O emissions during the sampling period were highest in Org3 and lowest in NT. However, gene quantities did not correspond to N 2 O emissions patterns, indicating that quantitative PCR of key denitrification genes measured at the temporal resolution reported here is not a good predictor of soil N 2 O emissions. These results, nonetheless, show that cropping system management can affect microbial community composition, gene quantity of nir and nos genes and N 2 O emissions. We found cropping system and time of year captured variation in gene abundance among microbial denitrifier populations in these agricultural soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Major knowledge gaps exist regarding effects of landscape-level agroecosystem composition on the presence of natural enemies of agricultural pests. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of landscape mosaic characteristics on the diversity of predators and parasitoids of a viticultural landscape in La Rioja, Spain. Five habitats were evaluated: Mediterranean forest, Mediterranean scrub, olive groves, natural grassland, and vineyards. In all, we collected 28,640 arthropods, representing 10 orders: Araneae, Coleoptera, Dermaptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Mantodea, Neuroptera, Solifugae, and Thysanoptera. The grassland habitat presented the highest arthropod abundances. Carabid beetles showed preferences for Mediterranean forest and scrub, whereas reduviid bugs showed preferences for natural grassland. Landscape heterogeneity and connectivity with natural elements in the study area turn out to be effective in conservation of diversity of natural enemies of viticulture. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • We determinate influences of landscape mosaic on diversity of predators and parasitoids in vineyards agroecosystems. • We evaluated habitat preferences of natural enemies inside vineyards agroecosystems. • We make an assessed to landscape importance to increase natural enemies' diversity in conventional agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]