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Mass-flowering crops lead to spatial redistributions of pollinators and to transient shortages within nearby semi-natural grasslands, but the impacts on plant-pollinator interactions remain largely unexplored. Here, we characterised which pollinator species are attracted by oilseed rape and how this affected the structure of plant-pollinator networks in nearby grasslands. We surveyed 177 networks
Agricultural intensification is a leading cause of global biodiversity loss, which can reduce the provisioning of ecosystem services in managed ecosystems. Organic farming and plant diversification are farm management schemes that may mitigate potential ecological harm by increasing species richness and boosting related ecosystem services to agroecosystems. What remains unclear is the extent to wh
Hunting in tropical forests decimates large mammals, and this may have direct and indirect effects on other trophic levels and lead to trophic cascades. We compared replicated sites of hunted and protected forests in southeastern Nigeria, with respect to community composition of primates, other mammals, birds, plant seedlings, and mature trees. We make predictions regarding the community compositi
We outline a conceptual strategy for implementing conservation interventionsin a multiscale, multiactor, and multilevel governance world. Using farmlandas an example, we argue that conservation interventions should be implementedwithin a multiscale framework of guiding ecological principles. Inthis context, findings from multilevel governance research can inform a nuancedunderstanding of the role
Popular Abstract in Swedish Jordens klimat har ändrats många gånger genom dess historia. Under de senaste 2,6 miljoner åren har de kontinentala landmassorna varit geografiskt fördelade på så sätt att relativt små skillnader i Jordens omloppsbana kring solen, s.k. orbitala förändringar, har givit upphov till övergångar mellan långvariga, kalla perioder (istider) och kortvariga, varma perioder (mellThis thesis aimed to examine the relationship between climate and atmospheric CO2 concentrations through rapid climate changes during the Holocene. Climate was reconstructed using high-resolution, radiocarbon dated, lake sediment geochemical proxies (magnetic susceptibility, loss-on-ignition, total carbon/nitrogen/sulphur determinations and biogenic silica), vegetational reconstruction (pollen ana
I denna avhandling används samtalsanalys (”conversation analysis”) för att studera ”riskstrategier” i samtal mellan lärare, elever och föräldrar i grundskolan. Materialet består av 80 samtal som insamlats vid två olika tidpunkter: 45 st. inspelade 1992–93 (kvartssamtal, eller den mer formella benämningen enskilda samtal) och ytterligare 35 st. inspelade 2004 (utvecklingssamtal, den benämning som gIn this thesis, conversation analysis (CA) is applied to study “risk strategies” in parent-teacher-student conferences in the Swedish nine-year compulsory school. The material consists of 80 conferences collected at two different points in time: 45 from the period 1992–93 (at that time called kvartssamtal, lit. “quarter of an hour conference”) and another 35 collected in 2004 (at the present time,
Soil organic matter (SOM) stores the largest quantity of C in terrestrial ecosystems. Most SOM can be decomposed by microorganisms and released as CO2 into the atmosphere. The remaining fraction of SOM can be resistant against microbial decomposition over centuries to millennia. Changes in the magnitude of this stable SOM pool can have a substantial effect on the atmospheric CO2 concentration and
Nature-based solutions (NBS) is the latest contribution to the green concept family. NBS is defined as actions based in nature addressing societal challenges. In this study, we lean on the concept boundary object, broken down into three analytical categories: use, core ideas and granularities, to explore the cohesive and fragmenting powers of the NBS concept, and discuss its future role in green s
The idea that noncrop habitat enhances pest control and represents a win–win opportunity to conserve biodiversity and bolster yields has emerged as an agroecological paradigm. However, while noncrop habitat in landscapes surrounding farms sometimes benefits pest predators, natural enemy responses remain heterogeneous across studies and effects on pests are inconclusive. The observed heterogeneity
There is widespread concern regarding declines in bee populations given their importance for the functioning of both natural and managed ecosystems. An increasing number of studies find negative relations between bee species richness and simplification of agricultural landscapes, but the role of land-use intensity and its relative importance compared to landscape simplification remain less clear.
Insect-mediated pollination increases yields of many crop species and some evidence suggests that it also influences crop quality. However, the mechanistic linkages between insect-mediated pollination and crop quality are poorly known. In this study, we explored how different pollination treatments affected fruit set, dry matter content (DMC), mineral content and storability of apples. Apple flowe
Plastics are widely used in todays society leading to an accelerating amount of plastic waste entering natural ecosystems. Over time these waste products degrade to micro- and, eventually, nanoplastic particles. Therefore, the break-down of plastics may become a critical threat to aquatic ecosystems and several short term studies have demonstrated acute toxicity of nanoplastics on aquatic organism
Increasing cultivation of oilseed rape may have consequences for pollinators and wild plant pollination. By providing pollinating insects with pollen and nectar, oilseed rape benefits short-tongued, generalist insect species. Long-tongued bumble bee species, specialized to other flower types, may instead be negatively affected by increased competition from the generalists (e.g. due to nectar-robbi
The tremendous increases in production of plastic materials has led to an accumulation of plastic pollution worldwide. Many studies have addressed the physical effects of large-sized plastics on organisms, whereas few have focused on plastic nanoparticles, despite their distinct chemical, physical and mechanical properties. Hence our understanding of their effects on ecosystem function, behaviour
Ecological intensification of agriculture implies managing ecological processes to improve performance of agricultural systems. However, impacts on relevant ecological functions such as insect pollination from other crop management factors are poorly explored. Pest insects and crop resources such as water availability can directly affect crop yields, but it is unknown if there are indirect effects
Strawberry and oilseed rape are economically important and co-flowering insect-pollinated crops that may affect each other via shared pollinators. One potential negative effect of pollinator sharing is stigma clogging, i.e. that pollen from one plant species covers the stigma and prevents pollination in the other. We tested if application of oilseed rape pollen on strawberry receptacles reduces po
Lake restoration practices based on reducing fish predation and promoting the dominance of large-bodied Daphnia grazers (i.e., biomanipulation) have been the focus of much debate due to inconsistent success in suppressing harmful cyanobacterial blooms. While most studies have explored effects of large-bodied Daphnia on cyanobacterial growth at the community level and/or on few dominant species, pr
Uncultivated field boundaries constitute a significant part of the remaining semi-natural habitat in simplified agricultural landscapes, providing habitats for many grassland species. In Europe, agri-environment schemes (AES) offer incentives to farmers to manage farmland more environmentally friendly. In Sweden, one AES has specifically targeted management of incidental habitats on farmland by pr
Making decisions between alternatives are challenging when there is weak or unreliable knowledge about the risks and benefits of the alternatives. This requires a trade-off between risks (and benefits). Here, we comment on a recent paper on risk–risk trade-offs and highlight the difficulties of making such trade-offs when the available evidence is of different strength. One current example of a ri
