is therefore a very strategic move
for conserving farmland insects and
other organisms. Luckily, this is one
of the main conservation activities
that wine farmers are already implementing in the CFR. A large
number of wine farms protect natural areas through voluntary stewardship agreements, and in this
way, much of the unique local biodiversity is being conserved.
Restoration of natural areas
Unfortunately, invasive alien plants
(IAPs) such as black wattle, eucalypts and pine trees can degrade
the habitat quality of these patches, because they change their surrounding conditions through e.g.
shading and competition with indigenous plants. Heavily invaded
areas can have impoverished insect
communities. The effect on river
edge communities is especially severe, because water-associated species such as dragonflies, damselflies, stoneflies and mayflies are
very sensitive to shading.
On the other hand, restoration
through IAP removal can have striking positive effects on insect assemblages. Hardy generalist insect species often recover quickly after restoration, but even sensitive species
such as the Conspicuous malachite
and Palmiet sprite, two South African endemic damselflies, can make
a comeback once its habitat has
recovered. Importantly, we have
found that whole communities recover once these devastating IAPs
are removed completely. This shows
that investment and effort into the
restoration of these areas has tangible biodiversity benefits.
Within the vineyard
Even though vineyards are relatively
disturbed areas, there are ways in
which they can be “softened” or
made more liveable for insects. Certain wildlife-friendly or organic
vineyard management practices,
such as reduced use of pesticides
and inorganic fertilizers can greatly
increase arthropod diversity. We’ve
also found that reduced tillage can
be especially important for soil surface-active organisms such as spiders, which are sensitive to soil disturbance. The type of cover crop
used also plays an important role.
Various groups such as pollinators
and parasitoids show a strong positive response to ground cover that