Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture
Conflicts between waterfowl and agriculture are common in many nations around the world. However, these birds can also provide a variety of benefits that humanity can obtain from nature. There are three migratory and endemic sheldgeese (Ruddy-headed Goose Chloephaga rubidiceps, Ashy-headed Goose Chl...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Formato: | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
Elsevier
2019
|
| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167880919300891#! http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/5083 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.04.002 |
| _version_ | 1855035435704647680 |
|---|---|
| author | Gorosabel, Antonella Pedrana, Julieta Bernad, Lucía Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina Muñoz, Sebastián Darío Maceira, Nestor Oscar |
| author_browse | Bernad, Lucía Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina Gorosabel, Antonella Maceira, Nestor Oscar Muñoz, Sebastián Darío Pedrana, Julieta |
| author_facet | Gorosabel, Antonella Pedrana, Julieta Bernad, Lucía Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina Muñoz, Sebastián Darío Maceira, Nestor Oscar |
| author_sort | Gorosabel, Antonella |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | Conflicts between waterfowl and agriculture are common in many nations around the world. However, these birds can also provide a variety of benefits that humanity can obtain from nature. There are three migratory and endemic sheldgeese (Ruddy-headed Goose Chloephaga rubidiceps, Ashy-headed Goose Chloephaga poliocephala and Upland Goose Chloephaga picta) which are species of conservation concern in Argentina. Sheldgeese are in constant conflict with the agricultural practices in the Pampas region of Argentina. The objective was to measure possible damages and benefits due to geese grazing on winter wheat crops during different growth stages, in the southeast of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. We established a stratified random plot design in nine fields, where we placed geese exclosure plots and plots without exclosure, allowing sheldgeese to graze. From May to September, we visited each field every two weeks. We performed transects where we counted and collected feces in order to estimate the grazing intensity. We analyzed the total concentration of Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P) in the feces in the period before and after the wheat emergence. We also performed microhistogical analysis to evaluate sheldgeese diet in these two periods. During the crop growth and at harvest, we evaluated possible damages (wheat cover, percentage of eaten plants, percentage of eaten tillers, chlorophyll content, grain yield per plot, harvest index, weight of 1000 grains) and benefits (number of tillers per plant, percentage of weed cover, protein content) of geese grazing. We found that sheldgeese grazing varied along the different visits and among the experimental fields. Geese grazing negatively affected the wheat cover but there was no effect on the final yield. The input of nutrients provided by sheldgeese feces was higher in the period after the crop emergence, when they only ate wheat. Results on the birds’ diet showed that they fed on weeds before wheat emergence thus providing an ecosystem service. In this study, we found elements that could help to shed light on the real impact of sheldgeese in crops and discovered some benefits that these birds could be providing to crops in the Pampas ecoregion. |
| format | info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo |
| id | INTA5083 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| publisherStr | Elsevier |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA50832019-05-09T17:36:26Z Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture Gorosabel, Antonella Pedrana, Julieta Bernad, Lucía Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina Muñoz, Sebastián Darío Maceira, Nestor Oscar Aves Acuáticas Chloephaga Trigo Fenómenos Biológicos Servicios de los Ecosistemas Argentina Waterfowl Wheat Biological Phenomena Ecosystem Services Región Pampeana Conflicts between waterfowl and agriculture are common in many nations around the world. However, these birds can also provide a variety of benefits that humanity can obtain from nature. There are three migratory and endemic sheldgeese (Ruddy-headed Goose Chloephaga rubidiceps, Ashy-headed Goose Chloephaga poliocephala and Upland Goose Chloephaga picta) which are species of conservation concern in Argentina. Sheldgeese are in constant conflict with the agricultural practices in the Pampas region of Argentina. The objective was to measure possible damages and benefits due to geese grazing on winter wheat crops during different growth stages, in the southeast of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. We established a stratified random plot design in nine fields, where we placed geese exclosure plots and plots without exclosure, allowing sheldgeese to graze. From May to September, we visited each field every two weeks. We performed transects where we counted and collected feces in order to estimate the grazing intensity. We analyzed the total concentration of Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P) in the feces in the period before and after the wheat emergence. We also performed microhistogical analysis to evaluate sheldgeese diet in these two periods. During the crop growth and at harvest, we evaluated possible damages (wheat cover, percentage of eaten plants, percentage of eaten tillers, chlorophyll content, grain yield per plot, harvest index, weight of 1000 grains) and benefits (number of tillers per plant, percentage of weed cover, protein content) of geese grazing. We found that sheldgeese grazing varied along the different visits and among the experimental fields. Geese grazing negatively affected the wheat cover but there was no effect on the final yield. The input of nutrients provided by sheldgeese feces was higher in the period after the crop emergence, when they only ate wheat. Results on the birds’ diet showed that they fed on weeds before wheat emergence thus providing an ecosystem service. In this study, we found elements that could help to shed light on the real impact of sheldgeese in crops and discovered some benefits that these birds could be providing to crops in the Pampas ecoregion. EEA Balcarce Fil: Gorosabel, Antonella. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires; Argentina. Fil: Pedrana, Julieta. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires; Argentina. Fil: Bernad, Lucía. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce, Argentina. Fil: Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina. Experimental Agropecuaria Integrada Barrow; Argentina. Fil: Muñoz, Sebastián Darío. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina. Fil: Maceira, Nestor Oscar. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina. 2019-05-09T17:19:26Z 2019-05-09T17:19:26Z 2019-07-01 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167880919300891#! http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/5083 0167-8809 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.04.002 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess application/pdf Elsevier Agriculture, ecosystems & environment 279 : 33-42 .(July 2019) |
| spellingShingle | Aves Acuáticas Chloephaga Trigo Fenómenos Biológicos Servicios de los Ecosistemas Argentina Waterfowl Wheat Biological Phenomena Ecosystem Services Región Pampeana Gorosabel, Antonella Pedrana, Julieta Bernad, Lucía Caballero, Veronica Jorgelina Muñoz, Sebastián Darío Maceira, Nestor Oscar Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title | Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title_full | Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title_short | Evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the Pampas region of Argentina: a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| title_sort | evaluating the impacts and benefits of sheldgeese on crop yields in the pampas region of argentina a contribution for mitigating the conflicts with agriculture |
| topic | Aves Acuáticas Chloephaga Trigo Fenómenos Biológicos Servicios de los Ecosistemas Argentina Waterfowl Wheat Biological Phenomena Ecosystem Services Región Pampeana |
| url | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167880919300891#! http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/5083 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.04.002 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gorosabelantonella evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture AT pedranajulieta evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture AT bernadlucia evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture AT caballeroveronicajorgelina evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture AT munozsebastiandario evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture AT maceiranestoroscar evaluatingtheimpactsandbenefitsofsheldgeeseoncropyieldsinthepampasregionofargentinaacontributionformitigatingtheconflictswithagriculture |