dc.contributor |
Háskóli Íslands (HÍ) |
dc.contributor |
University of Iceland (UI) |
dc.contributor.author |
Johannesdottir, Lilja |
dc.contributor.author |
Alves, Jose |
dc.contributor.author |
Gill, J. A. |
dc.contributor.author |
Gunnarsson, Tomas Gretar |
dc.date.accessioned |
2020-01-27T11:35:15Z |
dc.date.available |
2020-01-27T11:35:15Z |
dc.date.issued |
2017-12-21 |
dc.identifier.citation |
Jóhannesdóttir et al., 2018. Use of agricultural land by breeding waders in low‐intensity farming landscapes. Animal Conservation, 21(4), pp.291–301. |
dc.identifier.issn |
1367-9430 |
dc.identifier.uri |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11815/1472 |
dc.description |
Publisher's version (útgefin grein) |
dc.description.abstract |
Agriculture is one of the primary threats to biodiversity but agricultural land can also provide key resources for many species and, in some parts of the world, agricultural land supports important populations of species of conservation concern. In these cases, it is important to understand species’ use of agricultural land before further expansion or intensification of agricultural activities occurs. Agriculture in Iceland is still relatively low in intensity and extent, and internationally important populations of several breeding bird species are abundant in farmed regions. In these high latitude landscapes, agricultural land could provide resources that help to support these species, and the consequences of future agricultural expansion will depend on the nature of these relationships. To address these issues, we conducted surveys of bird abundance at 64 farms in areas of Iceland that vary in underlying soil productivity, and quantified (a) levels of breeding bird use of farmed land managed at three differing intensities, ranging from cultivated fields to semi-natural land and (b) changes in patterns of use throughout the breeding season, for an assemblage of species. Breeding birds use all three land management types in large numbers but, overall, bird abundance is lower in more intensively managed farmland. However, more intensively managed agricultural land supports higher densities of birds than semi-natural habitats in areas with lower underlying productivity. This suggests that in landscapes in which agricultural land does not yet dominate, conservation and commercial production can co-exist, especially in areas of low productivity. Areas like Iceland, in which agricultural land still supports large populations of internationally important species, are rare and this study highlights the need to protect these systems from the agricultural development that has led to widespread biodiversity loss throughout most of the world. |
dc.description.sponsorship |
We thank the numerous farmers who were willing to participate in this research; without them this would not have been possible. We thank two reviewers, Jeremy Wilson and Rosemarie Kentie, and editor, Elina Rantanen for comments and advice that greatly improved the paper. For financial support we thank the Icelandic Centre for Research (grant number 130412-051), Foundation for Science and Technology (SFRH/BPD/91527/2012) and the University of Iceland Research Fund. |
dc.format.extent |
291-301 |
dc.language.iso |
en |
dc.publisher |
Wiley |
dc.relation.ispartofseries |
Animal Conservation;21(4) |
dc.rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
dc.subject |
Agricultural land |
dc.subject |
Iceland |
dc.subject |
Land management |
dc.subject |
Shorebirds |
dc.subject |
Sub-Arctic |
dc.subject |
Waders |
dc.subject |
Bird surveys |
dc.subject |
Landbúnaður |
dc.subject |
Vaðfuglar |
dc.subject |
Vistfræði |
dc.title |
Use of agricultural land by breeding waders in low-intensity farming landscapes |
dc.type |
info:eu-repo/semantics/article |
dcterms.license |
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
dc.description.version |
Peer Reviewed |
dc.identifier.journal |
Animal Conservation |
dc.identifier.doi |
10.1111/acv.12390 |
dc.contributor.department |
Rannsóknasetur Suðurlandi (HÍ) |
dc.contributor.department |
Research Centre in South Iceland (UI) |