*Global CA-CoP* *CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE* *for sustainable agriculture and land management* Dear Susbscribers, Please see interesting communication from David Duthie from BIOPLAN on Biodiversity on the radar screen. Apologies for any cross-posting. *Amir Kassam * *Moderator* *Global CA-CoP* e-mail: [log in to unmask] URL: http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture *Conservation Agriculture is an ecosystem approach to regenerative sustainable agriculture and land management based on the practical application of context-specific and locally adapted three interlinked principles of: (i) Continuous no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance (no-till seeding/planting and weeding, and minimum soil disturbance with all other farm operations including harvesting); (ii) permanent maintenance of soil mulch cover (crop biomass, stubble and cover crops); and (iii) diversification of cropping system (economically, environmentally and socially adapted rotations and/or sequences and/or associations involving annuals and/or perennials, including legumes and cover crops), along with other complementary good agricultural production and land management practices. Conservation Agriculture systems are present in all continents, involving rainfed and irrigated systems including annual cropland systems, perennial systems, orchards and plantation systems, agroforestry systems, crop-livestock systems, pasture and rangeland systems, organic production systems and rice-based systems. Conservation Tillage, Reduced Tillage and Minimum Tillage are not Conservation Agriculture, and nor is No-Till on its own* (more at: http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture). ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: David Duthie <[log in to unmask]> Date: Fri, 21 Feb 2020 at 15:26 Subject: Biodiversity on the radar screen To: bioplan <[log in to unmask]> Dear BIOPLANNERS, As locust swarms of biblical proportions sweep their way across East Africa (see video here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPG-3pr1s304&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854884741&sdata=qt6r0dT90u4DpMpZvSqJjfsV%2B4Z%2FYR1lk2lrGzxDsX8%3D&reserved=0>), insect biodiversity seems to have been catching my attention a lot this week – but more on that below. First, a some recent “big picture” calls for better protection of biodiversity – one from a rather unusual source that might help in the build-up to CoP15. Twenty-three Former Foreign Ministers, now part of the Aspen Institute <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aspeninstitute.org%2Fabout%2F%23history&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854894699&sdata=CeuOGBFTnNYLwXTejVdq4nLYoYPpvH%2BXlo0IoD9oGLA%3D&reserved=0>, have issued a “*Call on World Leaders to Protect Biodiversity*” – read it in English here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aspeninstitute.org%2Fof-interest%2Ftwenty-three-former-foreign-ministers-call-on-world-leaders-to-protect-biodiversity%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854894699&sdata=T7EtfmkSWEPli9LseqT5LvWFZTNOHIesSOEMHDkU1iE%3D&reserved=0>, or Spanish <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aspeninstitute.org%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F02%2FAspen-Ministers-Forum-30x30-Statement-with-Signatories-EMBARGOED-until-18-February-2020_SPANISH.pdf%3F_ga%3D2.9226677.1842300122.1582058068-1987433654.1582058068&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854904657&sdata=ZEPCkYslkdgb%2Fr8QEwMGajM3%2Fo963OzO%2BKF%2FFUyu6M0%3D&reserved=0>, or French <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aspeninstitute.org%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F02%2FAspen-Ministers-Forum-30x30-Statement-with-Signatories-EMBARGOED-until-18-February-2020_FRENCH.pdf%3F_ga%3D2.225764762.1842300122.1582058068-1987433654.1582058068&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854904657&sdata=vYcsRn3Qmlln9kJilley4ura%2BLmIxsHTviQz9%2BBQVJg%3D&reserved=0> . The lead editorial, and a couple of supporting, of the science journal Nature shine a spotlight on the negotiations taking place under the Convention on Biological Diversity next week, and leading up to CoP15 in Kunming, China at the end of the year. Here are links to the three short pieces……… Editorial, ‘*The United Nations Must Get Its New Biodiversity Targets Right’*, Nature, 578 (2020), 337–38; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00450-5 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00450-5&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854914612&sdata=qu8U4a3OUq7XvMelmYQgPwxQZVoyMczUJlPYf9%2B7REg%3D&reserved=0> Mallapaty, Smriti, ‘*China Takes Centre Stage in Global Biodiversity Push’*, Nature, 578 (2020), 345–46; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00362-4 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00362-4&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854914612&sdata=Y2oHTk17pr5W9CImSCU2r1saTDy5lmB7lHzcx3glYnI%3D&reserved=0> Watson, James E. M., et al. (2020) ‘*Set a Global Target for Ecosystems*’, Nature, 578: 360–62; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00446-1 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00446-1&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854924565&sdata=3Kvp%2Fplmn81DEswZuR%2Bwcwej4Pj7z9r8Rv8gT%2F7wPNE%3D&reserved=0> . Now, back to those insects. Following the recent “World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscientistswarning.forestry.oregonstate.edu%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854924565&sdata=dgwLTG4PfpXf%2FAL5mUyODEv3p7aS4JwZbph1rRdDd50%3D&reserved=0>” (posted previously) which built on the original “World scientists’ warning to humanity <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ucsusa.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fattach%2F2017%2F11%2FWorld%2520Scientists%2527%2520Warning%2520to%2520Humanity%25201992.pdf&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854924565&sdata=q14KJnlDV7Jw6BQurir6E6rZ0pgC8WEMdwPTlVpl6nc%3D&reserved=0>” and the “World scientists’ warning to humanity: A second notice <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Facademic.oup.com%2Fbioscience%2Farticle%2F67%2F12%2F1026%2F4605229&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854934521&sdata=xSjM%2Bo7hEBkxUFH%2BbDHYeWfuwgyRyJ%2B%2BjTxKkjMOqNQ%3D&reserved=0>”, there have been a plethora of additional taxon-specific “warnings” – see here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscientistswarning.forestry.oregonstate.edu%2Fjournal-articles-related-scientists-warning&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854934521&sdata=9Qm22hAwwnAMtDsEVuYBJHKTVnTs65Xnq57fVDfyRK8%3D&reserved=0>. Now, entomologists have got in on the act, with their own warning to humanity and a set of proposed counter-measures. Below are the metadata of the two articles……..and a cover story from The UK Guardian newspaper can be accessed here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fenvironment%2F2020%2Ffeb%2F20%2Ffates-humans-insects-intertwined-scientists-population-collapse&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854944479&sdata=9emfII4aOCduuMg9HoqFIdIOJOm3soKCnns0ZBISn%2B0%3D&reserved=0> . Cardoso, Pedro et al. (2020) ‘*Scientists' Warning to Humanity on Insect Extinctions*’, Biological Conservation, 2020, 108426; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108426 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1016%2Fj.biocon.2020.108426&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854944479&sdata=cWsXTIGixcbLIArVEBqz81WTnjMWIpgxJpxbIo00Xt8%3D&reserved=0> (open access) *Here we build on the manifesto ‘World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity, issued by the Alliance of World Scientists. As a group of conservation biologists deeply concerned about the decline of insect populations, we here review what we know about the drivers of insect extinctions, their consequences, and how extinctions can negatively impact humanity. We are causing insect extinctions by driving habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation, use of polluting and harmful substances, the spread of invasive species, global climate change, direct overexploitation, and co-ex- tinction of species dependent on other species. With insect extinctions, we lose much more than species. We lose abundance and biomass of insects, diversity across space and time with consequent homogenization, large parts of the tree of life, unique ecological functions and traits, and fundamental parts of extensive networks of biotic interactions. Such losses lead to the decline of key ecosystem services on which humanity depends. From pollination and decomposition, to being resources for new medicines, habitat quality indication and many others, insects provide essential and irreplaceable services. We appeal for urgent action to close key knowledge gaps and curb insect extinctions. An investment in research programs that generate local, regional and global strategies that counter this trend is essential. Solutions are available and implementable, but urgent action is needed now to match our intentions.* Samways, Michael J. et al. (2020) ‘*Solutions for Humanity on How to Conserve Insects*’, Biological Conservation, 2020, 108427; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108427 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1016%2Fj.biocon.2020.108427&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854954434&sdata=GDys77wPg3jhtqw9yU5xmB1kPamwQN%2B8gDnCtkkgyOI%3D&reserved=0> (open access) *The fate of humans and insects intertwine, especially through the medium of plants. Global environmental change, including land transformation and contamination, is causing concerning insect diversity loss, articulated in the companion review Scientists' warning to humanity on insect extinctions. Yet, despite a sound philosophical foundation, recognized ethical values, and scientific evidence, globally we are performing poorly at instigating effective insect conservation. As insects are a major component of the tapestry of life, insect conservation would do well to integrate better with overall biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. This also involves popularizing insects, especially through use of iconic species, through more media coverage, and more inclusive education. Insect conservationists need to liaise better with decision makers, stakeholders, and land managers, especially at the conceptually familiar scale of the landscape. Enough evidence is now available, and synthesized here, which illustrates that multiple strategies work at local levels towards saving insects. We now need to expand these locally-crafted strategies globally. Tangible actions include ensuring maintenance of biotic complexity, especially through improving temporal and spatial heterogeneity, functional connectivity, and metapopulation dynamics, while maintaining unique habitats, across landscape mosaics, as well as instigating better communication. Key is to have more expansive sustainable agriculture and forestry, improved regulation and prevention of environmental risks, and greater recognition of protected areas alongside agro-ecology in novel landscapes. Future-proofing insect diversity is now critical, with the benefits far reaching, including continued provision of valuable ecosystem services and the conservation of a rich and impressive component of Earth's biodiversity.* Whilst the can be no doubt that insect populations are in decline in most places, we still know very little about insect diversity and population density for many places. Below are three examples of the extraordinary lengths that entomologists, aided and abetted by other specialists, will go to in order improve our knowledge……….. The first is an empirical test of the often-quoted lack of insects “splatted” on cars compared with the past, one in Denmark <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fonlinelibrary.wiley.com%2Fdoi%2Ffull%2F10.1002%2Fece3.5236&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854954434&sdata=4u9bP2Af9BahM%2Bd0JBMDcLKke3q9MqlqORUBFo7YYGE%3D&reserved=0> and one in Kent, England <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2020-02%2FBugs%2520Matter%2520report%2520website%2520version_0.pdf&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854954434&sdata=jU1WRWgeesKzf3KfcsJmT%2B9nkTDFfkkkCTgDF3qX5g8%3D&reserved=0>. Both found significant declines in "splats". Both studies are free to access, and are described in a Guardian cover story here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fenvironment%2F2020%2Ffeb%2F12%2Fcar-splatometer-tests-reveal-huge-decline-number-insects&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854964390&sdata=8pft5sDMaiRxKeuQE2GGsaj8d2z8FavGFHiUgI96ZV8%3D&reserved=0> . The second, the Swedish Malaise Trap Project (SMTP), a 15 year collection exercise gathering 20 million specimens is summarised here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fphys.org%2Fnews%2F2020-02-fifteen-years-million-insects-sweden.html&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854964390&sdata=9o8wzNp0JzhA9CosQ4l6aFHpe2PtP8fLvImF4gMMECw%3D&reserved=0> and the metadata are below…….. Karlsson, Dave, Emily Hartop, Mattias Forshage, Mathias Jaschhof, and Fredrik Ronquist, ‘*The Swedish Malaise Trap Project: a 15 Year Retrospective on a Countrywide Insect Inventory*’, Biodiversity Data Journal, 8 (2020), e47255 http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.8.e47255 <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.3897%2FBDJ.8.e47255&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854974344&sdata=7BA7uR%2FwxvlXiHbCpLQKAMRN7FworL21YRkevBeUj5w%3D&reserved=0> (OA) *The Swedish Malaise Trap Project (SMTP) is one of the most ambitious insect inventories ever attempted. The project was designed to target poorly known insect groups across a diverse range of habitats in Sweden. The field campaign involved the deployment of 73 Malaise traps at 55 localities across the country for three years (2003-2006). Over the past 15 years, the collected material has been hand sorted by trained technicians into over 300 taxonomic fractions suitable for expert attention. The resulting collection is a tremendous asset for entomologists around the world, especially as we now face a desperate need for baseline data to evaluate phenomena like insect decline and climate change. Here, we describe the history, organisation, methodology and logistics of the SMTP, focusing on the rationale for the decisions taken and the lessons learned along the way. The SMTP represents one of the early instances of community science applied to large-scale inventory work, with a heavy reliance on volunteers in both the field and the laboratory. We give estimates of both staff effort and volunteer effort involved. The project has been funded by the Swedish Taxonomy Initiative; in total, the inventory has cost less than 30 million SEK (approximately 3.1 million USD). Based on a subset of the samples, we characterise the size and taxonomic composition of the SMTP material. Several different extrapolation methods suggest that the material comprises around 20 million specimens in total. The material is dominated by Diptera (75% of the specimens) and Hymenoptera (15% of specimens). Amongst the Diptera, the dominant groups are Chironomidae (37% of specimens), Sciaridae (15%), Phoridae (13%), Cecidomyiidae (9.5%) and Mycetophilidae (9.4%). Within Hymenoptera, the major groups are Ichneumonidae (44% of specimens), Diaprioidea (19%), Braconidae (9.6%), Platygastroidea (8.5%) and Chalcidoidea (7.9%). The taxonomic composition varies with latitude and season. Several Diptera and Hymenoptera groups are more common in non-summer samples (collected from September to April) and in the North, while others show the opposite pattern. About 1% of the total material has been processed and identified by experts so far. This material represents over 4,000 species. One third of these had not been recorded from Sweden before and almost 700 of them are new to science. These results reveal the large amounts of taxonomic work still needed on Palaearctic insect faunas. Based on the SMTP experiences, we discuss aspects of planning and conducting future large-scale insect inventory projects using mainly traditional approaches in relation to more recent approaches that rely on molecular techniques.* Finally, and close to my heart because my Ph.D. was on migration of moths, is a remarkable collaboration, the BioDAR project, which is using weather radar, balloons and blenders to try and measure the density of flying insects at higher altitudes. The evolution of the project is described in WIRED magazine’s long read here <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wired.co.uk%2Farticle%2Finsect-populations-biodar-weather-radar&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854974344&sdata=wyD4mE6mf2TVn33zdWz%2B%2F3el1N0AIbhuGbz1yprTXpk%3D&reserved=0> . Best wishes David Duthie **************** *Bioplan is a list server run jointly by UNDP and UNEP. To join / leave bioplan, email: **[log in to unmask]* <[log in to unmask]>* with "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" in the subject line. Please note: If you wish to reply to the sender only you must create a new message addressed only to that individual, or forward the message to that individual. 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