Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands
Landscape-scale land use is important in driving species communities and interactions. However, despite increasing concerns regarding the ecological consequences of insect declines, our understanding of how the relative proportions of different land cover types influence insect herbivory in species-...
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| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Basic and Applied Ecology |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000271 |
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| author | Yuanyuan Quan Veronica Hederström Johan Ekroos Pablo Menubarbe Theresia Krausl Yann Clough |
| author_facet | Yuanyuan Quan Veronica Hederström Johan Ekroos Pablo Menubarbe Theresia Krausl Yann Clough |
| author_sort | Yuanyuan Quan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Landscape-scale land use is important in driving species communities and interactions. However, despite increasing concerns regarding the ecological consequences of insect declines, our understanding of how the relative proportions of different land cover types influence insect herbivory in species-rich semi-natural habitats remains limited. This study assessed leaf, stem, and flower herbivory across 47 flowering forb species in 18 semi-natural grassland sites in southern Sweden, where the surrounding landscape composition was quantified by the proportions of arable crops, forests, leys, and permanent grasslands. In addition to landscape effects, we examined the mediating roles of plant traits, plant diversity, and community composition to better understand how land use affects herbivory. Proportion of permanent grasslands and arable crops had the strongest influence on herbivory. The occurrence probabilities of leaf and stem herbivory increased as the proportion of permanent grasslands increased and the proportion of arable crops decreased. For herbivory intensity, leaf chewing damage exhibited the most significant response, following a trend similar to herbivory occurrence, while flower damage intensity increased with proportion of permanent grasslands but decreased with proportion of forest. These effects were less consistent at the species level, with varying magnitudes and directions of response. Plant community composition and traits, such as plant height and Specific Leaf Area (SLA), mediated landscape composition effects on leaf chewing herbivory, such that the proportion of arable crops were linked to higher SLA and taller plants, which in turn promoted leaf chewing herbivory. Our findings highlight the importance of preserving permanent grasslands at the landscape scale for maintaining insect herbivory levels on flowering forbs in local semi-natural grasslands, and call for the need to better understand the ecosystem consequences of reduced herbivory in agricultural landscapes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a9acd99b44884a318bb3e06cf67a7c0c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1439-1791 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Basic and Applied Ecology |
| spelling | doaj-art-a9acd99b44884a318bb3e06cf67a7c0c2025-08-20T03:52:43ZengElsevierBasic and Applied Ecology1439-17912025-06-0185233510.1016/j.baae.2025.03.006Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslandsYuanyuan Quan0Veronica Hederström1Johan Ekroos2Pablo Menubarbe3Theresia Krausl4Yann Clough5Centre for Environmental and Climate Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Corresponding author.Centre for Environmental and Climate Science, Lund University, Lund, SwedenCentre for Environmental and Climate Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Department of Agricultural Sciences, Plant Production Science, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science, HELSUS, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, FinlandL'Institut Agro Dijon, Dijon, FranceCentre for Environmental and Climate Science, Lund University, Lund, SwedenCentre for Environmental and Climate Science, Lund University, Lund, SwedenLandscape-scale land use is important in driving species communities and interactions. However, despite increasing concerns regarding the ecological consequences of insect declines, our understanding of how the relative proportions of different land cover types influence insect herbivory in species-rich semi-natural habitats remains limited. This study assessed leaf, stem, and flower herbivory across 47 flowering forb species in 18 semi-natural grassland sites in southern Sweden, where the surrounding landscape composition was quantified by the proportions of arable crops, forests, leys, and permanent grasslands. In addition to landscape effects, we examined the mediating roles of plant traits, plant diversity, and community composition to better understand how land use affects herbivory. Proportion of permanent grasslands and arable crops had the strongest influence on herbivory. The occurrence probabilities of leaf and stem herbivory increased as the proportion of permanent grasslands increased and the proportion of arable crops decreased. For herbivory intensity, leaf chewing damage exhibited the most significant response, following a trend similar to herbivory occurrence, while flower damage intensity increased with proportion of permanent grasslands but decreased with proportion of forest. These effects were less consistent at the species level, with varying magnitudes and directions of response. Plant community composition and traits, such as plant height and Specific Leaf Area (SLA), mediated landscape composition effects on leaf chewing herbivory, such that the proportion of arable crops were linked to higher SLA and taller plants, which in turn promoted leaf chewing herbivory. Our findings highlight the importance of preserving permanent grasslands at the landscape scale for maintaining insect herbivory levels on flowering forbs in local semi-natural grasslands, and call for the need to better understand the ecosystem consequences of reduced herbivory in agricultural landscapes.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000271Landscape compositionHerbivoresPlant communityInvertebrate herbivorySemi-natural grassland |
| spellingShingle | Yuanyuan Quan Veronica Hederström Johan Ekroos Pablo Menubarbe Theresia Krausl Yann Clough Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands Basic and Applied Ecology Landscape composition Herbivores Plant community Invertebrate herbivory Semi-natural grassland |
| title | Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands |
| title_full | Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands |
| title_fullStr | Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands |
| title_full_unstemmed | Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands |
| title_short | Landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi-natural grasslands |
| title_sort | landscape composition influences invertebrate herbivory on flowering forbs in semi natural grasslands |
| topic | Landscape composition Herbivores Plant community Invertebrate herbivory Semi-natural grassland |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1439179125000271 |
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