Terrestrial land-cover type richness is positively linked to landscape-level functioning

Jacqueline Oehri (), Bernhard Schmid, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub and Pascal A. Niklaus ()
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Jacqueline Oehri: University of Zurich
Bernhard Schmid: University of Zurich
Gabriela Schaepman-Strub: University of Zurich
Pascal A. Niklaus: University of Zurich

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) experiments have shown that local species richness promotes ecosystem functioning and stability. Whether this also applies under real-world conditions is still debated. Here, we focus on larger scales of space, time and ecological organization. We develop a quasi-experimental design in which we relate land-cover type richness as measure of landscape richness to 17-year time series of satellite-sensed functioning in 4974 landscape plots 6.25 or 25 ha in size. We choose plots so that landscape richness is orthogonal to land cover-type composition and environmental conditions across climatic gradients. Landscape-scale productivity and temporal stability increase with landscape richness, irrespective of landscape plot size. Peak season near-infrared surface albedo, which is relevant for surface energy budgets, is higher in mixed than in single land-cover type landscapes. Effect sizes are as large as those reported from BEF-experiments, suggesting that landscape richness promotes landscape functioning at spatial scales relevant for management.

Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:11:y:2020:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-019-14002-7

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-14002-7

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