Validation of a quick assessment method of agro-ecological structures density on farms
Résumé
This paper presents a methodological framework for the quantification of ordinary biodiversity (OB) observed on farms. OB is considered as common species, biotopes and landscapes, because they are neither rare nor threatened species. OB is primarily affected by agronomic factors, such as agricultural practices and landscape factors, such as the organization of agro-ecological structures (AES) on a farm. AES are fixed elements of the landscape, both useful and unproductive, and they provide many ecosystem services. The AES have a role in creating greenveining within agricultural landscapes. Their density, and the network they form, maintain and enhance biodiversity in agricultural landscapes, but there is yet no simple method to assess the density of AES on a farm. The target of our work is to validate a simple method of assessment of the density of AES by a more accurate method that uses a software georeferencing. Validation is done by comparing two sets of results obtained using the two methods. Both methods were tested in 20 farms, milk and cattle systems in three contrasting regions of France.