Record ID No. |
1957 |
Author(s) |
Shennan C , 2008 |
Affiliation |
Univ Calif Santa Cruz, Ctr Agroecol & Sustainable Agr, 1156 High St, Santa Cruz,CA 95064 USA |
Title |
Biotic interactions, ecological knowledge and agriculture |
Source. Vol.(no):Page |
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B - Biological Sciences.363(1492):717-739p. |
Categories |
Arbuscular Mycorrhiza |
Subjects |
Biochemistry |
Sub-subjects |
Miscellaneous |
Organism |
n.a. |
Country |
United States |
Abstracts |
This paper discusses biotic interactions in agroecosystems and how they may be
manipulated to support crop productivity and environmental health by provision of ecosystem
services such as weed, pest and disease management, nutrient cycling and biodiversity
conservation. Important elements for understanding biotic interactions include consideration of
the effects of diversity, species composition and food web structure on ecosystem processes; the
impacts of timing, frequency and intensity of disturbance; and the importance of multitrophic
interactions. All of these elements need to be considered at multiple scales that depend in part
on the range of the movement of the organisms involved. These issues are first discussed in
general, followed by an examination of the application of these concepts in agricultural
management. The potential for a greater use of ecological management approaches is high; however,
owing to the nature of complex interactions in ecosystems, there is some inherent
unpredictability about responses to management interventions under different conditions. Such
uncertainty needs to be accommodated in the development of recommendations for farm management.
This requires an increased emphasis on the effective synthesis of complex and often apparently
contradictory information and on field-based adaptive research, monitoring and social learning by
farmer/researcher collaborations. |