Effects of Agricultural Use on Endangered Plant Taxa in Spain

José Luis Molina-Pardo, Emilio Rodríguez-Caballero, Miguel Cueto, Pablo Barranco, Manuel Sánchez-Robles, Azucena Laguía-Allué and Esther Giménez-Luque
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José Luis Molina-Pardo: CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Emilio Rodríguez-Caballero: Departamento de Agronomía, CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Miguel Cueto: Departamento de Biología y Geología, CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Pablo Barranco: Departamento de Biología y Geología, CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Manuel Sánchez-Robles: CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Azucena Laguía-Allué: CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Esther Giménez-Luque: Departamento de Biología y Geología, CECOUAL, Universidad de Almería, Carretera de Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 11, 1-25

Abstract: Agriculture is one of the most widespread human activities and has the greatest impact on terrestrial ecosystems, as it transforms natural ecosystems into artificial landscapes using, in many cases, large amounts of pesticides as well as overexploiting natural resources. Therefore, for effective biodiversity conservation, it is necessary to include agricultural systems in conservation programs. In this work, the 50 plant taxa described for Spain as threatened by agricultural use were selected. These were divided according to the type of threat into those affected by crop extension, intensification, or abandonment. In addition, information was obtained concerning their conservation status, level of protection and functional traits (life form, pollination, and dispersal). Finally, the evolution of land use, in the areas near the populations of the selected species, was identified. The selected taxa belong to 21 families and present different life forms and modes of dispersal or pollination. Forty-six percent are endangered (EN) and most are included in legal protection lists. Nearly three-quarters are threatened by crop expansion and land use dynamics, reflecting an expansion of cultivated areas, which adds further pressure to these species. In addition to agricultural expansion, taxa are also at risk, due to important rates of agricultural land abandonment, and mention agricultural intensification. Nevertheless, conservation measures do exist to promote biodiversity in agricultural landscapes that may help to reverse the negative effect of land use dynamics on selected species, but few are specific to threatened flora. Therefore, if threatened plants are to be conserved in agricultural areas, it is necessary to promote a profound transformation of our socioecological systems. One of these transformative changes could come from the human-nature reconnection.

Keywords: threatened plant; agriculture; Spain; land use; conservation; human-nature reconnection (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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