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Farming and the fate of wild nature

journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-08, 13:42 authored by Rhys E Green, Stephen J Cornell, Jörn P W Scharlemann, Andrew Balmford
World food demand is expected to more than double by 2050. Decisions about how to meet this challenge will have profound effects on wild species and habitats. We show that farming is already the greatest extinction threat to birds (the best known taxon), and its adverse impacts took set to increase, especially in developing countries. Two competing solutions have been proposed: wildlife-friendly farming (which boosts densities of wild populations on farmland but may decrease agricultural yields) and land sparing (which minimizes demand for farmland by increasing yield). We present a model that identifies how to resolve the trade-off between these approaches. This shows that the best type of farming for species persistence depends on the demand for agricultural products and on how the population densities of different species on farmland change with agricultural yield. Empirical data on such density-yield functions are sparse, but evidence from a range of taxa in developing countries suggests that high-yield farming may allow more species to persist

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Science

ISSN

0036-8075

Issue

5709

Volume

307

Page range

550-555

Department affiliated with

  • Evolution, Behaviour and Environment Publications

Full text available

  • No

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2012-11-15

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2012-11-14

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