We have systematically collated and assessed ecological evidence on the effects of interventions to benefit wildlife on farmland. We illustrate how this process can inform policy using the proposed restructuring of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. We demonstrate that the greening proposals are not very well supported by empirical ecological evidence.

We investigate the ecological and economic costs of simulated climate change on a farmland ecosystem. With a focus on wheat yields, we use a fully-replicated experiment to increase temperature by 2 °C and precipitation by 20%. We use a molecular approach to determine the impact of the treatments on the ecological network of plants, aphids, leaf-miners and associated parasitoids.

Point count surveys were conducted in winter and spring in grass pasture, short rotation coppice willow, forest, and interface habitats such as hedgerows, on 10 farms. Species richness and diversity indices indicate that this new woody habitat provides useful cover for birds during both seasons. Multivariate community analysis indicates that the SRCW bird community is a relatively unique assemblage.

Biomass crops are becoming a significant feature of our landscape.  Short rotation willow plantations have local benefits for biodiversity and global benefits in reducing fossil carbon emissions.  We report the impact of willow planted in a predominantly pastoral landscape on four bat species.  Retention of hedges on field boundaries helps increase bat foraging along willow edge.

Coffee certification aims to channel economic incentives from consumers to farms that meet social and environmental standards. Nearly 300 coffee farms were surveyed in Nicaragua from 5 different certifications plus conventional. Economic (net income) and environmental (shade tree diversity, soil and water conservation) performance differed between farms under distinct certifications, but was also influenced by farm size.

Population trends were compared on 86 HLS and control farms between 2008 and 2011 for birds of conservation concern. Populations increased on HLS farms, but declined or remained stable on control farms, for grey partridge, tree sparrow, house sparrow, reed bunting and yellowhammer. This provides some of the strongest evidence to date of agri-environment benefits for widespread but declining species.

Western Europe’s farmland bird populations have severely declined as a result of agricultural management changes driven by the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy.  We examined changes in farmland bird abundance across Poland after EU accession in relation to changes in agricultural management to assess how joining the EU has affected Poland’s farmland and its internationally important populations of farmland birds.

Agri-environment schemes are used across Europe to address biodiversity declines in farmland. We assessed the efficacy of Environmental Stewardship in driving changes in farmland bird populations, finding evidence for positive effects of management that provides winter food resources, but the effects of management aimed at breeding season resources were mixed.

Benefits from pesticides are poorly understood by the public. Pesticides have become demonised by the legacy of organochlorine insecticides.  Herbicide use in wheat doubles yield. Pest control on apples with chemicals is mainstay to high quality affordable fruit which society expects.  The pesticides debate should be holistic, considering risks and benefits, in context of habitat management such as creation of field margins.                

Biofuel crops are increasingly competing with food crops for space in our agricultural landscape. Quantitative surveys of birds, bats, small mammals, and insects were conducted in grass pasture, three ages of willow, hedge rows and forest, as well as along a range of linear interfaces. Results from multivariate community analysis for each group are compared and discussed.

With increasing pressure on arable land for food production, it is important to optimise management for biodiversity and delivery of ecosystem services to minimise the amount of land that needs to be taken out of production. Statistical models quantifying the relationships between plant functional traits and ecosystem services can allow multiple services to be traded-off.

Declines in insect pollinators have been widely documented. We describe a mass participation initiative to assess numbers of insects visiting flowers in crop and non-crop habitats on farms involved in Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) Open Farm Sunday (OFS) - an annual event attended by over 150000 people. OFS Pollinator Survey increases participation in biological recording and produces valuable data.