Experts narrow dozens of biodiversity metrics down to nine for farmers
Arguile L, Smith J, Kipling RP, Burton VJ, Clark K
Soil Health
The hedgerow, wildflower strip, or crop variety mix on a nearby farm could be measured against a clear nine-point checklist instead of vanishing into a fog of competing biodiversity jargon.
There are so many ways to measure biodiversity on farmland that most farmers have no idea where to even start. So a group of 39 experts spent four rounds of structured voting whittling dozens of options down to nine practical indicators, things like habitat area, how connected those habitats are, crop and livestock diversity, and the presence of indicator species. The goal is a short, usable checklist that actually tells a farmer whether their land management is helping or hurting wildlife, instead of drowning them in data.
Key Findings
39 experts scored 58 candidate biodiversity indicators across four Delphi rounds using two different scoring methods to reduce fatigue and bias.
Nine indicators were ultimately selected: habitat area, a connectivity index, a landscape diversity index, crop diversity index, livestock diversity index, in-field crop temporal heterogeneity, indicator species, species richness, and species rarity.
Researchers note that adding a step to assess each indicator's ability to guide on-farm decisions could further improve their usefulness for driving real practice change.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Agricultural scientists surveyed 39 biodiversity experts over four rounds to cut through dozens of competing metrics and land on nine practical indicators farmers can actually track to see if their land management is helping or hurting wildlife.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Developing biodiversity indicators for monitoring agricultural sustainability: Insights from a Delphi expert process.
With agricultural activities widely cited as drivers of biodiversity loss globally, it is important to distinguish between agricultural practices that have negative impacts and those with positive ...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
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