habitat impacts

• • large areas of land have been cleared to produce farmland
  • in general, these are areas where the climate is favourable and the soil is fertile
  • these are often areas where the natural biomes are forest or grassland
• drainage

  • farmland is often drained to produce more aerobic soils, for example, the drainage of waterlogged grassland to increase grass growth
  • wetland plant species and the animals they support may not be able to survive the changes
• nutrient enrichment

  • using fertilisers increases nutrient availability and plant growth rates
  • species that respond by growing taller such as grasses may out-compete smaller plants such as many wildflower species
• reduced biodiversity

  • natural ecosystems often have small-scale local variations in abiotic factors producing differences in the composition of the community of species found there
  • agroecosystems often replace diverse communities of indigenous species with a community of species that has fewer species, many of which may not be indigenous
  • many indigenous species will not be able to survive the new conditions or may be removed because they are predators or competitors
• reduced biodiversity

  • agriculture does not just destroy habitats, it can also create new habitats which may be gradually colonised by wildlife species
  • some areas that have been farmed in the same way for long periods of time have become plagioclimax habitats that are valuable to wildlife
  • examples of habitats created by farming that support important wildlife communities

  1. hedgerows
  2. hay meadows
  3. grazed moorland and heathland
  4. chalk grassland