Biology subjects

Dubovyk, O.

Publications and source records attributed to Dubovyk, O..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Land-use intensity effects on the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationship in semi-natural grasslands at management-relevant spatial scales

ContextThere is a limited understanding of how land-use intensity influences the relationship between plant diversity and the ecosystem function of aboveground biomass production in semi-natural grasslands at the field and farm scale. However, these spatial scales are critical to be addressed since management practices are applied at larger spatial scales than biophysical characteristics are measured. ObjectivesWe aim to (1) examine the direct and indirect effects of land-use intensity on the spatial variability of biomass production, focusing on the role of plant species richness and its spatial variability at the field scale. We further aim to (2) compare the strength of the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationship across spatial scales under different land-use intensities. MethodsGoing beyond the plot scale, we investigate the field and farm scale in two German regions for the years 2020 and 2021. Statistical analyses are based on prediction maps for species richness, biomass and land-use intensity, upscaled using Sentinel-2 satellite imagery, as well as on spectral dissimilarity (Raos Q) to account for environmental heterogeneity. ResultsHigh land-use intensity directly reduced species richness and its spatial variability, which acted as mediators, however, not as buffers for the spatial variability of biomass production at the field scale. The BEF relationship strengthened slightly with spatial scale at low land-use intensity, but is weakened under medium or even reversed under high intensity. ConclusionsOur study provides new insights into how land-use intensity shapes the BEF relationship at spatial scales relevant for management, addressing spatial mismatches in complex social-ecological systems.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2025

Accounting for spatial interactions in the upscaling of ecosystem services

O_LIMaps of ecosystem service (ES) supply are frequently used to guide spatial planning, policy making, and ecosystem management. However, these are typically based upon coarse land-cover proxies. This approach lacks a strong mechanistic basis, and neglects spatial biodiversity dynamics and interactions among landscape properties that can modify ES provision. C_LIO_LIWe present an analytical framework for ES upscaling that incorporates spatial interactions between landscape properties to determine ES supply. The resulting models can be viewed as a spatially informed ES production function. The approach comprises seven steps that include several elements absent from most existing approaches, notably a procedure for identifying geodata variables that represent the true mechanistic drivers, the inclusion of spatial interactions in the upscaling model, and modification following expert feedback on the selected model. C_LIO_LIWe demonstrate the approach using two example ES from German grasslands: biodiversity conservation and water supply. We show that the inclusion of spatial interactions in the upscaling model improved model predictions from 15% to 33% depending on the ES evaluated. In addition, inclusion of spatial interactions led to reduced error associated with the upscaled estimates. C_LIO_LIBy overcoming several shortcomings of existing, upscaling approaches we generate resulting maps of ES supply that can more reliably inform spatial planning Further, the underlying models allow for simulation of changes in the drivers of ES supply and estimation of respective outcomes. These advantages have the potential to better link detailed local-scale ecological understanding and land management with large-scale ES supply mapping, and thus better inform decision making and spatial planning. C_LI

ecology↗