Aerial invertebrate functional groups respond to landscape composition with only detritivores and predators responding to agri-environment scheme management

Landscape-scale agricultural intensification is a major driver of biodiversity loss. Highly mobile species, such as aerial invertebrates may be disproportionately affected by land cover at large spatial scales due to their ability disperse. Assessing the efficacy environmentally friendly farming, Agri-Environment Schemes (AES), therefore, requires establishing influence beyond focal farms or fields, contextualising impact management. This study measured response invertebrate functional groups AES management in improved and semi-improved upland grasslands accounting for autocorrelation multi-scale effects within buffers varying from 100 m 5 km 88 paired fields. Total abundance diversity, including detritivores, herbivores, nectivores, predators parasitoids all responded different types indicative highly complex idiosyncratic group responses landscape.After landscape composition, total was unaffected but diversity (5%) higher than conventionally managed Detritivore (mostly Mycetophilidae fungus gnat) were conventional only on grasslands, while predator (adult Muscidae house fly, Scathophagidae dung fly Dolichopodidae long-legged fly) lower Aerial herbivores (Anthomyiidae root-maggot flies Cecidomyiidae gall midges gnats), nectivores (Syrphidae hoverflies Apoidea bees) (Ichneumonidae wasps) not Synthesis Applications: this suggests that composition drives multiple scales. Nevertheless, some (detritivores predators) local suggest contribute maintenance enhancement ecosystem service delivery (nutrient cycling pest biocontrol). Explicitly necessary when assessing taxa.