Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Research Briefing
  • Published:

Avoiding lose–lose situations in agricultural landscapes

We evaluate the drivers of intensification traps — the combined loss of biodiversity and crop production that results from too-intensive agriculture. Our results reveal the conditions under which these lose–lose situations emerge and highlight the strong ramifications of disregarding biodiversity in agricultural management.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Emergence of intensification traps in agricultural landscapes.

References

  1. Kremen, C. & Merenlender, A. M. Landscapes that work for biodiversity and people. Science 362, eaau6020 (2018). A review that summarizes how biodiversity-based techniques can be used as alternatives to conventional intensification.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Dainese, M. et al. A global synthesis reveals biodiversity-mediated benefits for crop production. Sci. Adv. 5, eaax0121 (2019). A meta-analysis that quantifies the effect of different biodiversity measures on agricultural production.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Seppelt, R., Arndt, C., Beckmann, M., Martin, E. A. & Hertel, T. W. Deciphering the biodiversity–production mutualism in the global food security debate. Trends Ecol. Evol. 35, 1011–1020 (2020). A synthesis of the biodiversity feedbacks on yields and the resulting negative consequences for agricultural production.

  4. Hagan, J. G., Vanschoenwinkel, B. & Gamfeldt, L. We should not necessarily expect positive relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in observational field data. Ecol. Lett. 24, 2537–2548 (2021). A perspective that summarizes practical difficulties in assessing biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationships in real landscapes.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Isbell, F., Tilman, D., Reich, P. B. & Clark, A. T. Deficits of biodiversity and productivity linger a century after agricultural abandonment. Nat. Ecol. Evol. 3, 1533–1538 (2019). A decadal time-series analysis highlighting the long-lasting effects of land-use history on ecosystem functioning.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Additional information

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This is a summary of: Burian, A. et al. Biodiversity–production feedback effects lead to intensification traps in agricultural landscapes. Nat. Ecol. Evol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02349-0 (2024).

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Avoiding lose–lose situations in agricultural landscapes. Nat Ecol Evol 8, 610–611 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02360-5

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02360-5

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing