A global assessment of how biodiversity enhances agroecosystem function

Abstract

1. Agriculture is the most significant driver of global land-use change, placing increasing pressure on biodiversity. Balancing rising food demand with the need to conserve biodiversity is therefore an urgent challenge, especially as biodiversity can underpin key ecosystem functions that support agricultural systems. A greater general understanding of how biodiversity influences agroecosystem function is critical for developing agricultural practices that benefit both agricultural production and wider ecosystem processes. 2. Using a global dataset of 184 biodiversity-agroecosystem function relationships covering agricultural and silvicultural systems, we developed a classification system for different biodiversity-enhancing approaches, ranging from the planting of multiple crop species to creating tree islands or flower strips, providing the first comprehensive assessment of how these approaches affect agroecosystem function. 3. We found biodiversity enhancement generally had a positive, or at least neutral, association with multiple agroecosystem functions, indicating that it contributes to agricultural sustainability. Crop diversification had the greatest impact on key agroecosystem functions compared to other practices, likely due to the low heterogeneity already present in agricultural systems and the scale at which crop diversification is applied and measured. Overall, biodiversity's largest effect was on multifunctionality, highlighting its role in supporting the simultaneous delivery of multiple agroecosystem functions. 4. Variability in relationships among systems and agroecosystem function categories suggests that no single biodiversity-enhancing approach will universally benefit all functions simultaneously. Instead, a combination of approaches, assessed through their contribution to overall multifunctionality, is likely to be most effective, ensuring that agricultural sustainability claims reflect benefits across systems. 5. Policies should incentivise biodiversity-enhancing management approaches as effective strategies to improve agroecosystem multifunctionality, benefiting both agricultural productivity and the wider ecosystem.