Semi-natural vegetation in agricultural land: European map and links to ecosystem service supply
Semi-natural vegetation in agricultural land includes extensively
managed grassland, agro-forestry and vegetated features not used for crop production, such as hedgerows and woodlots. Semi-natural vegetation plays a major role
in the supply of ecosystem services such as pollination, pest control,
water quality control and erosion prevention. In spite of such a
relevance, semi-natural vegetation in agricultural land has never been
mapped at the European scale. This article presents the first 1- km
resolution map of semi-natural vegetation in agricultural land in the EU. Results show that semi-natural
vegetation is usually beneficial for regulating services, whereas the
relation to provisioning services is context-dependent. The study supports greening measures in the Common
Agricultural Policy. Results also will help to identify
green infrastructure elements and priority areas for ecological
restoration.
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