Short-Term Grasslands in Agriculture Support Both Natural Enemy and Phytophagous Arthropod Populations

Abstract

Simplified agricultural land with high chemical input is increasingly replacing natural habitats in many parts of the world. This loss and fragmentation of natural areas may have profound impacts on an array of wildlife, including predatory arthropods that provide natural biocontrol of agricultural pests. There is increasing interest in utilising short-term seminatural habitat restoration in agricultural systems to support populations of beneficial organisms. We assessed the impact of two types of short-term set-asides on the diversity and abundance/activity density of phytophagous and predatory arthropods. We found that flower-enhanced set-asides supported higher abundances of both phytophagous and predatory arthropods compared to control crop fields. In addition, we found that both set-aside types (flower enhanced and traditional) supported a more active and diverse community of beneficial predatory carabid beetles, with particularly strong trends in set-asides supplemented with flowering plants. These results suggest that small-scale, temporary, seminatural habitats in agricultural systems provide support for a diverse and abundant community of both beneficial and phytophagous arthropods.