Soil conservation techniques in vineyards increase passerine diversity and crop use by insectivorous birds

Published source details Duarte J., Farfán M.A., Fa J.E. & Vargas J.M. (2014) Soil conservation techniques in vineyards increase passerine diversity and crop use by insectivorous birds. Bird Study, 61, 193-203.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

	Action	Category
	Other biodiversity: Plant or maintain ground cover in orchards or vineyards Action Link

Other biodiversity: Plant or maintain ground cover in orchards or vineyards

A site comparison in 2012–2013 in three irrigated vineyards in the Ronda Mountains, southern Spain found more birds and higher bird diversity in a vineyard with mown resident vegetation (without tillage), compared to bare soil (with conventional tillage), between the vine rows. Birds: The most birds and bird species, and highest diversity, were found in a vineyard with resident vegetation, and the fewest birds and bird species, and lowest diversity, were found in a vineyard with bare soil (59 vs 33 birds/hour, 6.5 vs 3 species, diversity reported as the Shannon index). Implementation options: More birds and bird species, and higher bird diversity, were found in a vineyard with mown resident vegetation, compared to a vineyard with herbicide-treated resident vegetation (59 vs 36 birds/hour, 6.5 vs 3.9 species). Methods: Resident vegetation between the vine rows was mown in one vineyard (January–February and May), treated with herbicide in a second vineyard (January–April; tillage in November), and treated conventionally in a third vineyard (herbicide in January–April; tillage in January–February, May–August, and November). Larger habitat patches with different configurations (mean shape index), were found in the landscape surrounding the mown vineyard, compared to the other two. Birds were sampled on 34 days in May–July 2012–2013 (ten-minute counts of birds within 50 m, at three random points/vineyard/day, at dawn and dusk). It was not clear whether these results were a direct effect of resident vegetation, herbicide, tillage, or habitat patches in the landscape.