In: Écoscience, 2014, vol. 21, no. 1, p. 79–95
We studied ballooning spiders captured weekly over an 11-y period using a 12.2-m- high suction trap in an agricultural landscape of western Switzerland. We analyzed population trends, changes in phenology, and species composition. Yearly trends in population size of the most abundant species were studied with nonparametric correlations. We found that these trends were markedly different for...
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In: Ecosphere, 2014, vol. 5, no. 2, p. art18
Declining plant species richness in agro-ecosystems and thus reduced habitat quality can have cascading effects on ecosystem functioning, leading to reduced pollination and biological control. Here we test if plant diversity can affect arthropod diversity and abundance on a very small scale, manipulating plant species richness (2, 6, 12 and 20 sown species) in small adjacent subplots (6 × 9 m)...
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In: Journal of Animal Ecology, 2013, vol. 82, no. 6, p. 1203–1214
Understanding the environmental factors that structure biodiversity and food webs among communities is central to assess and mitigate the impact of landscape changes. Wildflower strips are ecological compensation areas established in farmland to increase pollination services and biological control of crop pests and to conserve insect diversity. They are arranged in networks in order to favour...
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In: Journal of Insect Conservation, 2011, vol. 15, no. 1-2, p. 301-309
The objective of this study was to compare butterfly abundances and diversity between wildflower strips and extensively used meadows to identify which butterfly species can be supported by establishing wildflower strips. Butterflies were recorded along transects during one season in twenty-five sown wildflower strips and eleven extensively used meadows in a Swiss lowland agricultural landscape...
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In: Animal Behaviour, 2007, vol. 74, no. 4, p. 1099-1106
Nestling begging behaviour may be an honest signal of need used by parents to adjust optimally both feeding rate and within-brood food allocation. Although several studies showed that mothers and fathers can be differentially responsive to nestling begging behaviour with one parent showing a stronger tendency to feed the offspring that beg the most, little information is yet available on whether...
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