Valentin Klaus

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Klaus

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Valentin

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0000-0002-7469-6800

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Publications1 - 10 of 83

Organic farming is more related to topography than to soil characteristics in extensively and intensively managed grasslands in Switzerland
Klaus, Valentin; Richter, Franziska Julia; Lüscher, Andreas; et al. (2024)
Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment
Organic farming and other agri-environmental schemes (AES) are important policy tools to support environmental-friendly agriculture. Often, AES require a direct reduction of actual management intensity to sustain biodiversity and non-marketable ecosystem services. In addition to lower management intensity, differences in topography and soils between AES and non-AES land can occur, driven by the targeted placement of AES in the landscape. Many of the latter effects of an AES are, however, widely unknown and frequently ignored, limiting a comprehensive understanding of how organic farming and other AES deliver environmental outcomes. We analysed pedological, topographical and other spatial characteristics of parcels under two grassland AES, i.e., organic farming (vs. conventional) and extensive management (vs. intensive). Thus, this study assessed whether organic farming is related to differences in topography and soil conditions in both extensively and intensively managed grasslands in the study region in the north of Switzerland. Therefore, we combined a regional-scale spatial analysis of permanent grassland parcels and a soil survey. Both AES were tested not only in interaction with each other but also within the two main harvest types, i.e., meadows (mainly mown) and pastures (mainly grazed), resulting in eight distinct grassland types that were studied. Results show both AES to be linked to differences in soil nutrients as well as topographical and other spatial characteristics. We found interactions of the two AES with the harvest type, i.e., meadow versus pasture. This was particularly pronounced for extensively managed conventional meadows, which were frequent at low elevation and on land potentially suitable for arable farming. Extensively managed pastures and all organic grasslands exhibited reduced production conditions (i.e., higher elevation, steeper slope, lower soil phosphorus concentrations). Yet, differences between organic and conventional grasslands were by tendency more pronounced in intensively than extensively managed grasslands. Our results show that farmers preferentially adopted both AES on land not ideal for intensive production, with the exception of many extensively managed meadows in low elevations. Our study therefore demonstrated that an assessment of the ecological outcomes of an AES must not only account for direct effects via management restrictions but also for indirect effects via spatial targeting by farmers. More research is still needed to assess and compare direct and indirect effects of AES to support evidence-based policymaking and improve spatial targeting of different land-use types.
Assessing the impact of grassland management on landscape multifunctionality
Neyret, Margot; Fischer, Markus; Allan, Eric; et al. (2021)
Ecosystem Services
Land-use intensification has contrasting effects on different ecosystem services, often leading to land-use conflicts. While multiple studies have demonstrated how landscape-scale strategies can minimise the trade-off between agricultural production and biodiversity conservation, little is known about which land-use strategies maximise the landscape-level supply of multiple ecosystem services (landscape multifunctionality), a common goal of stakeholder communities. We combine comprehensive data collected from 150 German grassland sites with a simulation approach to identify landscape compositions, with differing proportions of low-, medium-, and high-intensity grasslands, that minimise trade-offs between the six main grassland ecosystem services prioritised by local stakeholders: biodiversity conservation, aesthetic value, productivity, carbon storage, foraging, and regional identity. Results are made accessible through an online tool that provides information on which compositions best meet any combination of user-defined priorities (https://neyret.shinyapps.io/landscape_composition_for_multifunctionality/). Results show that an optimal landscape composition can be identified for any pattern of ecosystem service priorities. However, multifunctionality was similar and low for all landscape compositions in cases where there are strong trade-offs between services (e.g. aesthetic value and fodder production), where many services were prioritised, and where drivers other than land use played an important role. We also found that if moderate service levels are deemed acceptable, then strategies in which both high and low intensity grasslands are present can deliver landscape multifunctionality. The tool presented can aid informed decision-making by predicting the impact of future changes in landscape composition, and by allowing for the relative roles of stakeholder priorities and biophysical trade-offs to be understood by scientists and practitioners alike.
Hemiparasite-density effects on grassland plant diversity, composition and biomass
Heer, Nico; Klimmek, Fabian; Zwahlen, Christoph; et al. (2018)
Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics
The supply of multiple ecosystem services requires biodiversity across spatial scales
Le Provost, Gaëtane; Schenk, Noëlle V.; Penone, Caterina; et al. (2023)
Nature Ecology & Evolution
The impact of local biodiversity loss on ecosystem functioning is well established, but the role of larger-scale biodiversity dynamics in the delivery of ecosystem services remains poorly understood. Here we address this gap using a comprehensive dataset describing the supply of 16 cultural, regulating and provisioning ecosystem services in 150 European agricultural grassland plots, and detailed multi-scale data on land use and plant diversity. After controlling for land-use and abiotic factors, we show that both plot-level and surrounding plant diversity play an important role in the supply of cultural and aboveground regulating ecosystem services. In contrast, provisioning and belowground regulating ecosystem services are more strongly driven by field-level management and abiotic factors. Structural equation models revealed that surrounding plant diversity promotes ecosystem services both directly, probably by fostering the spill-over of ecosystem service providers from surrounding areas, and indirectly, by maintaining plot-level diversity. By influencing the ecosystem services that local stakeholders prioritized, biodiversity at different scales was also shown to positively influence a wide range of stakeholder groups. These results provide a comprehensive picture of which ecosystem services rely most strongly on biodiversity, and the respective scales of biodiversity that drive these services. This key information is required for the upscaling of biodiversity–ecosystem service relationships, and the informed management of biodiversity within agricultural landscapes.
The Biodiversity Exploratories: a large-scale framework project for functional biodiversity research
Klaus, Valentin; Fischer, Erich; Hamer, Ute; et al. (2018)
Grassland Science in Europe ~ Sustainable Meat and Milk Production from Grasslands: Proceedings of the 27th General Meeting of the European Grassland Federation
Changes in plant-herbivore network structure and robustness along land-use intensity gradients in grasslands and forests
Neff, Felix; Brändle, Martin; Ambarlı, Didem; et al. (2021)
Science Advances
Land-use intensification poses major threats to biodiversity, such as to insect herbivore communities. The stability of these communities depends on interactions linking herbivores and host plants. How interaction network structure begets robustness, and thus stability, in different ecosystems and how network structure and robustness are altered along land-use intensity gradients are unclear. We analyzed plant-herbivore networks based on literature-derived interactions and long-term sampling from 289 grasslands and forests in three regions of Germany. Network size and nestedness were the most important determinants of network robustness in both ecosystems. Along land-use intensity gradients, networks in moderately grazed grasslands were more robust than in those managed by frequent mowing or fertilization. In forests, changes of network robustness along land-use intensity gradients relied on changes in plant species richness. Our results expand our knowledge of the stability of plant-herbivore networks and indicate options for management aimed at stabilizing herbivore communities.
Variability of European farming systems relying on permanent grasslands across biogeographic regions
Ravetto Enri, Simone; Bausson, Caterine; Ten Berge, Hein; et al. (2022)
Grassland Science in Europe ~ Grassland at the Heart of Circular and Sustainable Food Systems
The relevance of permanent grasslands (PG) for a large share of European farms is high, and yet understudied. We used single-farm records from the FADN (Farm Accountancy Data Network) database 2017, which included 41,926 farms-with-PG to characterize PG-based farming systems. Each farm was assigned to one class in terms of: (1) main livestock species/category; (2) stocking rate on total farmland; (3) PG share; (4) biogeographic region (BGR). We carried out a Multi Correspondence Analysis (MCA) on the resulting classification, which explained 20% of the variance. The five BGR separated well in the first two MCA dimensions. Alpine farms were predominantly related to beef cattle, with relatively low stocking rates, and intermediate to high PG shares. Atlantic farms also revealed high PG shares, but were linked to higher stocking rates and ‘Mixed bovine’ and ‘Dairy cow’ farming. The dominance of farms without livestock in the Boreal BGR resulted in generally very low stocking rates and showed a limited importance of PG. Continental farms were not clearly related to one specific livestock category or a stocking rate, but consistently showed a share of 10-30% PG per farm. Finally, the Mediterranean BGR separated from the others, being dominated by sheep and goat farming.
Pitfalls in global grassland restoration challenge restoration programs and the science-policy dialogue
Klaus, Valentin (2023)
Ecological Indicators
Restoring degraded ecosystems is crucial for human wellbeing and biodiversity conservation. Nowadays, ecological restoration goes far beyond recovering a degraded ecosystem according to a historic reference. Instead, more specific restoration goals are set, following global environmental strategies that are individually highly important, but often conflicting. Furthermore, various pitfalls exist regarding the evaluation of ecosystem degradation and, directly related to this, the question what is the most desirable ecological state of an ecosystem. Ignoring such issues can lead to a failure of restoration projects and do more ecological (and social) harm than good. A crucial aspect in tackling conflicting goals and circumnavigating restoration pitfalls is the considerate choice of the indicators to assess ecosystem degradation and restoration capacity. In this Perspective, grasslands and rangelands are used exemplarily for ecosystems with globally high restoration demand. I discuss potential restoration pitfalls related to enhancing carbon sequestration, soil fertility, and ecosystem service multifunctionality. For all three goals, strong trade-offs and unwanted side effects exist. For example, while increasing carbon storage and restoring soil fertility are widely acknowledged environmental goals, both can compromise other restoration targets such as grassland biodiversity and further ecosystem services, depending on the specific context. Thus, there are no universally applicable indicators for ecosystem degradation and restoration. Instead, indicator systems have to account not only for strong trade-offs among restoration goals but also for a number of environmental and socio-ecological misconceptions, such as presented for the case of grassland ecosystems. I argue that one-sided goal setting and an imprudent choice of indicators can misguide the science-policy dialogue and related restoration efforts. To avoid this, restoration programs must integrate holistic assessments of their objectives across spatial scales and with all stakeholders concerned. The associated ecological indicator system for restoration success and program performance must therefore also be based on multidisciplinary and participatory approaches. Restoration and degradation indicators have to further ensure the target ecosystem is correctly and comprehensively identified, and the manifold conflicting land management objectives associated with heterogeneous human societies are taken into account. Researchers can assist this process by by-default considering the socio-ecological context of a restoration target and by identifying trade-offs arising from potential solutions, before these are suggested to the public. Only when all these aspects are considered, restoration projects at the local to global scale will result in long-term sustainable outcomes.
Ökosystemleistungen und Multifunktionalität in der Landwirtschaft messen und bewerten
Wittwer, Raphaël A.; Klaus, Valentin; Richter, Franziska Julia; et al. (2024)
Agroscope Science
Ecological restoration and biodiversity-friendly management of urban grasslands – A global review on the current state of knowledge
Fekete, Réka; Valkó, Orsolya; Fischer, Leonie K.; et al. (2024)
Journal of Environmental Management
In the face of the global biodiversity decline, ecological restoration measures to actively enhance urban biodiversity and options for biodiversity-friendly greenspace management are high on the agenda of many governments and city administrations. This review aims to summarize and advance the current knowledge on urban grassland restoration by synthesizing research findings on restoration approaches and biodiversity-friendly management measures globally. Indeed, we found restoration approaches to be generally effective in increasing biodiversity; yet, there were variations in the outcomes due to the difference in soil disturbance methods, management regimes, the set of species introduced to a site, and the specific local setting. Based on the reviewed studies, we formulated recommendations for maximizing restoration success of urban grasslands through: i) creating a network of heterogeneous urban greenspaces and enhancing connectivity between them; ii) maintaining the spontaneous vegetation in vacant lots and wasteland sites that can provide habitats for various invertebrate species; iii) evaluating actual soil conditions, soil seed bank, and seed rain before restoration efforts take place since these seed sources could considerably affect the restoration outcomes, iv) preserving nutrient-poor conditions in urban greenspaces instead of introducing nutrient-rich topsoil; v) shifting to less intensive, biodiversity-friendly management in urban greenspaces by reducing mowing frequency and avoiding the use of chemicals; and vi) utilizing native dry grassland species for climate adaptation without irrigation. We further identified knowledge gaps regarding i) city-scale and regional-scale effects of restoration, ii) effects of interventions on multiple taxa and multiple ecosystem services, iii) restoration in small versus mega-cities, and iv) in the global south. These gaps should be addressed in future studies for making general guidelines for urban grassland restoration broadly applicable.

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Valentin Klaus

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