4.6 Article

Recommendations for effective insect conservation in nature protected areas based on a transdisciplinary project in Germany

Related references

Note: Only part of the references are listed.
Article Biodiversity Conservation

Negative spill-over effects of agricultural practices on plant species conservation in nature reserves

S. Koethe et al.

Summary: Nature reserves are crucial for biodiversity protection, but their effectiveness can be compromised by environmental influences from surrounding areas, such as agrochemical inputs. A study in Germany analyzed vegetation data from protected areas to assess the impact of these stressors. The results showed negative effects on plant communities near agricultural fields, indicating the need for effective buffer zones and reduced use of fertilizer and herbicides through organic farming and targeted subsidies.

ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS (2023)

Article Green & Sustainable Science & Technology

Hesitations and Aspirations of Farmers in Nature-Protected Areas

Angela Turck et al.

Summary: Based on SDG 15 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, this paper analyzes why German farmers hesitate to implement prescribed measures under the European CAP and explores their aspirations for biodiversity incentives. A mixed methods approach is used to examine individual farmers' experiences and perceptions of indirect influencing factors. The results emphasize the complexity of the issue and the need to consider farmers' heterogeneity and different views on indirect drivers. Financial support alone may not be sufficient to meet farmers' expectations.

SUSTAINABILITY (2023)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Improving insect conservation management through insect monitoring and stakeholder involvement

Sebastian Koethe et al.

Summary: In recent years, there has been increasing public attention and demand for political action regarding the decline of insect biodiversity and its consequences on ecosystem functions and services. To address the complex causes of insect decline, the DINA project in Germany assesses insect communities in nature reserves and investigates their interactions with various factors such as plant diversity, pesticide exposure, and climate. The project involves obtaining scientific data and engaging stakeholders to identify opportunities and challenges in insect conservation. Results show a positive association between insect richness and biomass, while also highlighting the negative impacts of pesticides and agricultural production on insect diversity. Stakeholders expressed support for insect conservation but emphasized the need for more information, data, and flexible policy options.

BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION (2023)

Article Environmental Studies

Weed Seed Banks in Intensive Farmland and the Influence of Tillage, Field Position, and Sown Flower Strips

Liesa Schnee et al.

Summary: Intensification of agriculture has led to a decline in species diversity and depletion of seed banks in arable fields. Understanding the dynamics of seed banks in relation to aboveground vegetation is important for advising farmers on agri-environmental measures and reducing weed control costs. Our study found that low-tillage systems have higher plant species diversity and seed densities in the seed bank compared to regularly ploughed fields.
Article Environmental Sciences

A new sample preparation approach for the analysis of 98 current-use pesticides in soil and herbaceous vegetation using HPLC-MS/MS in combination with an acetonitrile-based extraction

Nikita Bakanov et al.

Summary: A simple acetonitrile-based extraction method using HPLC-ESI-MS/MS was developed for the determination of 98 current-use pesticides in soil and herbaceous vegetation. The method exhibited good accuracy and precision, with percentage recoveries ranging from 71-125% (soil) and 70-117% (vegetation), and relative standard deviations of 1-14% (soil) and 1-13% (vegetation). Matrix-matched calibration curves showed excellent linearity (R-2 > 0.99). The method was successfully applied to agricultural sites in Germany, where 44 of the 98 pesticides were detected, indicating a high qualitative load compared to EU arable soils.

CHEMOSPHERE (2023)

Article Ecology

Multispecies crop mixtures increase insect biodiversity in an intercropping experiment

Jana Brandmeier et al.

Summary: Recent biodiversity declines require action in various sectors, including agriculture. Arthropods, a species-rich group, play important roles in providing ecosystem services. Growing crop mixtures can create a less hostile agricultural 'matrix' and reduce harm for arthropods without yield losses.

ECOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS AND EVIDENCE (2023)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Temperature drives variation in flying insect biomass across a German malaise trap network

Ellen A. R. Welti et al.

Summary: In a study conducted in Germany, it was found that temperature had a linearly increasing effect on flying insect biomass across the country, but this effect turned negative in the hot months of June and July when local temperatures exceeded long-term averages. Land cover had little influence on insect biomass, with grasslands, pastures, and orchards containing the highest insect biomass.

INSECT CONSERVATION AND DIVERSITY (2022)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Light and Malaise traps tell different stories about the spatial variations in arthropod biomass and method-specific insect abundance

Annika Busse et al.

Summary: The conclusions drawn from meta-analyses of changes in insect communities may be affected by sampling biases specific to the methods used, leading to inappropriate conservation measures. This study found contradictory patterns of insect biomass, abundance, and richness when comparing results obtained from different trapping methods, suggesting taxon-specific responses to environmental changes. Therefore, future meta-analyses should consider the sampling methods and taxon-specific responses to accurately assess insect decline.

INSECT CONSERVATION AND DIVERSITY (2022)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Complex agricultural landscapes host more biodiversity than simple ones: A global meta-analysis

Natalia Estrada-Carmona et al.

Summary: Managing agricultural landscapes to support biodiversity conservation requires profound structural changes worldwide. Increasing landscape complexity through changes in composition, configuration, or heterogeneity significantly and positively affects biodiversity. More complex landscapes host more biodiversity with potential benefits to sustainable agricultural production and conservation, and effects are likely underestimated. The combined contribution of linear and areal elements, as well as long-term and robustly designed monitoring efforts, can enhance the positive effects on biodiversity.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2022)

Review Entomology

A Review of Terrestrial and Canopy Malaise Traps

Michael J. Skvarla et al.

Summary: Malaise traps are important tools for collecting arthropods on a large scale, and their design and placement can significantly impact trap catch. This review compares terrestrial and canopy-style Malaise traps, as well as other types of arthropod traps.

ANNALS OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA (2021)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Insect biomass decline scaled to species diversity: General patterns derived from a hoverfly community

Caspar A. Hallmann et al.

Summary: The study reveals a correlation between declines in flying insect biomass, hoverfly abundance, and species richness, with rare species showing expected decline rates. This suggests that large declines in insect biomass may predict declines in insect diversity.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2021)

Editorial Material Multidisciplinary Sciences

Insect decline in the Anthropocene: Death by a thousand cuts

David L. Wagner et al.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2021)

Review Entomology

Further evidence for a global decline of the entomofauna

Francisco Sanchez-Bayo et al.

Summary: The study confirms a significant decrease in insect populations in recent decades, with 37% of species declining in numbers and 18% increasing, mainly involving agricultural herbivores and nuisance pests. Among aquatic insect communities, 42% of species are declining and 29% increasing.

AUSTRAL ENTOMOLOGY (2021)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

A multitaxa assessment of the effectiveness of agri-environmental schemes for biodiversity management

Fabian A. Boetzl et al.

Summary: The study found that species richness of most taxonomic groups, as well as multidiversity and richness of pollinators, increased with temporal continuity of AES types. AES flowering fields supported different species assemblages than calcareous grasslands, but became more similar to seminatural grasslands with increasing temporal continuity.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2021)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Direct pesticide exposure of insects in nature conservation areas in Germany

Carsten A. Bruehl et al.

Summary: In Germany, a decline in insect biomass in nature conservation areas within agricultural landscapes has been observed, with synthetic pesticides in conventional agriculture being one of the main causal factors. Pesticide residues were detected in insect samples collected in a Germany-wide field study, with an average contamination of 16.7 pesticides per sample. A reduction in pesticide use in large buffers around nature conservation areas is necessary to prevent contamination of their insect fauna.

SCIENTIFIC REPORTS (2021)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Diversity of Insects in Nature protected Areas (DINA): an interdisciplinary German research project

Gerlind U. C. Lehmann et al.

Summary: The DINA project investigates insect communities in 21 nature reserves in Germany using methods such as DNA metabarcoding to unravel factors causing insect decline. Through stakeholder engagement and scientific results, the project aims to support the development of policy recommendations to improve conservation strategies.

BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION (2021)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Scientists' warning to humanity on insect extinctions

Pedro Cardoso et al.

BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION (2020)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Interpreting insect declines: seven challenges and a way forward

Raphael K. Didham et al.

INSECT CONSERVATION AND DIVERSITY (2020)

Article Environmental Sciences

The State of the World's Insects

Paul Eggleton

Annual Review of Environment and Resources (2020)

Article Ecology

No net insect abundance and diversity declines across US Long Term Ecological Research sites

Michael S. Crossley et al.

NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION (2020)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

A field-based quantitative analysis of sublethal effects of air pollution on pollinators

Geetha G. Thimmegowda et al.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2020)

Editorial Material Multidisciplinary Sciences

Nuanced changes in insect abundance

Maria Dornelas et al.

SCIENCE (2020)

Review Biodiversity Conservation

Worldwide decline of the entomofauna: A review of its drivers

Francisco Sanchez-Bayo et al.

BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION (2019)

Editorial Material Ecology

Worldwide insect declines: An important message, but interpret with caution

Benno I. Simmons et al.

ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION (2019)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Predicting a global insect apocalypse

Pedro Cardoso et al.

INSECT CONSERVATION AND DIVERSITY (2019)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Increasing crop heterogeneity enhances multitrophic diversity across agricultural regions

Clelia Sirami et al.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (2019)

Review Environmental Sciences

The Impact of Pesticides on Flower-Visiting Insects: A Review with Regard to European Risk Assessment

Philipp Uhl et al.

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY (2019)

Article Entomology

Insect Declines in the Anthropocene

David L. Wagner

Annual Review of Entomology (2019)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Arthropod decline in grasslands and forests is associated with landscape-level drivers

Sebastian Seibold et al.

NATURE (2019)

Article Agricultural Economics & Policy

Organic Agriculture, Food Security, and the Environment

Eva-Marie Meemken et al.

ANNUAL REVIEW OF RESOURCE ECONOMICS, VOL 10 (2018)

Article Environmental Sciences

Quantifying exposure of wild bumblebees to mixtures of agrochemicals in agricultural and urban landscapes

Cristina Botias et al.

ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (2017)

Review Multidisciplinary Sciences

Many shades of gray-The context-dependent performance of organic agriculture

Verena Seufert et al.

SCIENCE ADVANCES (2017)

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

More than 75 percent decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas

Caspar A. Hallmann et al.

PLOS ONE (2017)

Article Agriculture, Multidisciplinary

Farmlands with smaller crop fields have higher within-field biodiversity

Lenore Fahrig et al.

AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT (2015)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

The role of agri-environment schemes in conservation and environmental management

Peter Batary et al.

CONSERVATION BIOLOGY (2015)

Article Biology

Effects of sublethal doses of glyphosate on honeybee navigation

Maria Sol Balbuena et al.

JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY (2015)

Article Environmental Sciences

Risks of neonicotinoid insecticides to honeybees

Anne Fairbrother et al.

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY (2014)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

Dramatic losses of specialist arable plants in Central Germany since the 1950s/60s-a cross-regional analysis

Stefan Meyer et al.

DIVERSITY AND DISTRIBUTIONS (2013)

Article Biodiversity Conservation

The seven impediments in invertebrate conservation and how to overcome them

Pedro Cardoso et al.

BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION (2011)

Article Biology

On the relationship between farmland biodiversity and land-use intensity in Europe

D. Kleijn et al.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES (2009)

Review Entomology

The sublethal effects of pesticides on beneficial arthropods

Nicolas Desneux et al.

ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY (2007)