Ecosystem service provision by establishing temporal habitats in agricultural environments

Summary

Short-term rotational fallows, new set-asides and seed mixtures containing
specific seed-bearing crops are best alternative to provide seed food for farmland
birds (Hyvönen & Huusela-Veistola 2011). The age of set-aside and vegetation
structure are more important than seed mixture or plant species richness in
supporting insect food for birds, and therefore set asides of various ages are
needed (Hyvönen & Huusela-Veistola 2011).
Even a short-term fallow sown with a simple seed mixture can encourage
populations of generalist predators (Huusela-Veistola & Hyvönen 2006), but longterm
set-asides may be even better for natural enemies (Huusela-Veistola 2008).
Because of the various species requirements numerous habitats are needed if
biodiversity is to be increased or maintained. At the landscape level, the
proportion and location of non-crop temporal habitats may be important factors
for key ecosystem services. Therefore, temporal habitats, e.g. set-asides, of
various ages and different vegetation structures should be included in the
agricultural landscape to encourage optimum functional biodiversity.