Data from: Forest fragments modulate the provision of multiple ecosystem services

1. Agricultural landscapes provide the essential ecosystem service of food to growing human populations; at the same time, agricultural expansion to increase crop production results in forest fragmentation, degrading many other forest-dependent ecosystem services. However, surprisingly little is known about the role that forest fragments play in the provision of ecosystem services and how fragmentation affects landscape multi-functionality at scales relevant to land management decisions. 2. We measured the provision of six ecosystem services (crop production, pest regulation, decomposition, carbon storage, soil fertility, and water quality regulation) in soybean fields at different distances from adjacent forest fragments that differed in isolation and size across an agricultural landscape in Quebec, Canada. 3. We observed significant effects of distance-from-forest, fragment isolation, and fragment size on crop production, insect pest regulation, and decomposition. 4. Distance-from-forest and fragment isolation had unique influences on service provision for each of the ecosystem services we measured. For example, pest regulation was maximized adjacent to forest fragments, while crop production was maximized at intermediate distances-from-forest. As a consequence, landscape multi-functionality depended on landscape heterogeneity: the range of field and forest fragment types present. 5. We also observed strong negative and positive relationships between ecosystem services that were more prevalent at greater distances-from-forest. 6. Synthesis and applications. Our study is one of the first to empirically measure and model the effects of forest fragments on the simultaneous provision of multiple ecosystem services in an agro-ecosystem at the landscape and field scales relevant to land owners and managers. Our results demonstrate that forest fragments, irrespective of their size, can affect the provision of multiple ecosystem services in surrounding fields, but that this effect is mediated by fragment isolation across the landscape. Our results also suggest that managing habitat fragmentation and landscape structure will improve our ability to optimize ecosystem service provision and create multi-functional agricultural landscapes.

1. 农业景观为不断增长的人类种群提供了粮食这一关键生态系统服务（ecosystem service）；与此同时，为提升作物产量而开展的农业扩张会导致森林破碎化（forest fragmentation），进而使诸多依赖森林的其他生态系统服务功能退化。然而令人意外的是，目前人们对森林斑块（forest fragments）在生态系统服务供给中所扮演的角色，以及森林破碎化如何在与土地管理决策相关的尺度上影响景观多功能性（landscape multi-functionality）的认知仍极为匮乏。
2. 我们在加拿大魁北克省的一处农业景观中，选取与周边森林斑块距离各异、且隔离程度与斑块大小各不相同的大豆田，对六项生态系统服务的供给情况进行了测定，这六项服务分别为作物生产、害虫调控、分解作用、碳储存、土壤肥力以及水质调控。
3. 我们观测到，距森林斑块的距离、斑块隔离程度以及斑块大小，对作物生产、害虫调控以及分解作用均存在显著影响。
4. 距森林斑块的距离与斑块隔离程度，对我们测定的每一项生态系统服务的供给均存在独特影响。例如，害虫调控服务在紧邻森林斑块的区域达到最优水平，而作物生产服务则在距森林斑块中等距离的区域达到峰值。由此可见，景观多功能性取决于景观异质性（landscape heterogeneity）：即研究区域内农田与森林斑块的类型分布范围。
5. 我们还观测到，生态系统服务之间存在显著的正负相关关系，这类关系在距森林斑块更远的区域更为常见。
6. 综合与应用。本研究是首批在与土地所有者及管理者相关的景观与农田尺度上，对农业生态系统中森林斑块对多项生态系统服务协同供给的影响进行实证测定与建模的研究之一。研究结果表明，无论斑块大小如何，森林斑块均可对周边农田的多项生态系统服务供给产生影响，但这一影响会受景观中斑块隔离程度的调控。此外，研究结果还显示，对生境破碎化与景观结构进行管理，可提升我们优化生态系统服务供给、构建多功能农业景观的能力。