Functional diversity in agricultural landscapes: evidence of long-term clustering and multi-scale effects of land use on avian communities

Functional diversity (FD) is an essential community property connecting biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and conservation objectives. In agricultural landscapes, avian communities, which play key functional roles, are facing large-scale biodiversity erosion, largely due to land-use changes. However, the long-term spatiotemporal dynamics of FD and its responses to land use remain poorly understood. This study addressed this gap by analysing bird community data collected from lowland agricultural landscapes at a regional scale between 2007 and 2021. We analysed temporal trends in FD metrics (richness, divergence, evenness), their relationships with species richness, changes in functional composition, patterns of clustering/overdispersion, and examined the multi-scale effects of land use across a local-to-landscape gradient. FD metrics were computed using a probabilistic hypervolume approach and standardised against null expectations. Cause-effect relationships were explored using Gene..., , # Functional diversity in agricultural landscapes: evidence of long-term clustering and multi-scale effects of land use on avian communities

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.bzkh189r4](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.bzkh189r4)

## Description of the data and file structure

Bird data included in these datasets were derived from the Long-term Monitoring Program of Breeding Birds of Lombardy using data collected between 2007 and 2021 (for details, see Bani et al., 2009, [https://doi.org/10.1080/08927014.2009.9522509](https://doi.org/10.1080/08927014.2009.9522509); Tirozzi et al., 2021, [https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11123426](https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11123426)). Species traits were compiled using information from Pearman et al. 2014, [https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12127](https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12127); Wilman et al. 2014, [https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1](https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1); Storchová & Hořák 2018, [https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12709](https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12709); Tobia...,