Development of a new agri environmental measure dedicated to waders in agricultural plains
Many waders, such as northern lapwing, traditionally breed on the ground in arable land. This makes them particularly sensitive to agricultural intensification. The two main causes are, the destruction of nests and chicks during agricultural activities and the lack of food in intensively cultivated plains. The impact of these practices is such that the northern lapwing population has decreased by two-thirds in the first two decades of this century.
Agri-environmental and climatic measures (AECMs) are tools developed by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to help and fund farmers in developing a range of environmentally beneficial agricultural practices. Farmers can implement certain AECMs on their own and can also seek advice from VLM or Natagriwal advisors to implement AECMs addressing specific issues.
The Life B4B project, in partnership with Natagriwal, aims to address the issues of waders in agricultural plains by creating an AECM dedicated to waders. This AECM is inspired by lapwing plots developed in England, Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Lapwing plots involve setting aside fallow land in agricultural fields traditionally used by wader pairs for nesting. The absence of agricultural activities in the lapwing plot prevents the destruction of nests, and the spontaneous vegetation cover provides shelter and food for the chicks. In Germany, lapwing plot has been shown to triple or even quadruple the reproductive success of northern lapwings. The lapwing plot also benefits many other species, such as the little ringed plover, yellow wagtail, skylark, and corn bunting. Over the next two years, about ten farmers are going test this new AECM.
This year, two farmers are already testing the new AECM and have already fostered the breeding success of a brood of little ringed plovers and of several northern lapwing broods. After two years of tests, this AECM, supplemented by feedback from the farmers conducting the tests, will be proposed to farmers by Natagriwal advisors.