Conservation Evidence: Evidence Data

Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Leave part of the crop or pasture unharvested or uncutNatural enemies: We found eight studies from Australia, Germany, Hungary, New Zealand, Switzerland and the USA that tested leaving part of the crop or pasture unharvested or unmown. Three (including one replicated, controlled trial) found an increase in abundance of predatory insects or spiders in the crop field or pasture that was partly uncut, while four (including three replicated, controlled trials) found more predators in the unharvested or unmown area itself. Two studies (one replicated and controlled) found that the ratio of predators to pests was higher in partially cut plots and one replicated, controlled study found the same result in the uncut area. Two replicated, controlled studies found differing effects between species or groups of natural enemies. Predation and parasitism: One replicated, controlled study from Australia found an increase in predation and parasitism rates of pest eggs in unharvested strips. Pests: Two studies (including one replicated, controlled study) found a decrease in pest numbers in partially cut plots, one of them only for one species out of two. Two studies (one replicated, the other controlled) found an increase in pest numbers in partially cut plots, and two studies (including one replicated, controlled study) found more pests in uncut areas. Crops studied were alfalfa and meadow pasture.Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F725https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F725Thu, 30 May 2013 13:16:14 +0100