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Biodiversity-friendly landscapes: A paradox for conservation?

Eliane Seraina Meier¹, Alexander Indermaur¹, Eva Knop^1,2

¹Agroecology and Environment, Agroscope, Reckenholzstrasse 191, CH-8046 Zürich, Switzerland.

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Summary

Biodiversity-friendly landscapes can help native species resist global change impacts. While these areas may aid invasive species, research shows they ultimately inhibit their spread, supporting landscape-wide conservation strategies.

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Conservation Biology
Environmental Science

Background:

Human-induced global change is driving the sixth mass extinction.
Patch-scale conservation efforts have shown moderate success, leading to biodiversity-friendly landscape concepts.
These landscapes present a paradox: potentially increasing local biodiversity while also facilitating invasive species spread.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the paradox of biodiversity-friendly landscapes regarding global change winners.
To quantify the facilitating and inhibitory effects of these landscapes on species thriving under global change.
To inform conservation strategies by evaluating the net impact on farmland biodiversity.

Main Methods:

Analysis of 2050 repeated, systematic vegetation surveys.
Study conducted across Swiss farmland.
Evaluation of effects on species tolerant to global change, including invasive alien species.

Main Results:

Hypothesized facilitating effects of landscapes on global change winners were observed.
Hypothesized inhibitory effects of landscapes on global change winners were also observed.
Overall, inhibitory effects were stronger than facilitating effects, indicating a net benefit.

Conclusions:

Biodiversity-friendly landscapes can strengthen biotic resistance against global change winners.
Landscape-scale habitat improvements, while potentially aiding dispersal, were outweighed by inhibitory effects.
A shift from patch-scale to landscape-wide conservation is recommended to halt farmland biodiversity decline.