Multifunctional benefits of an agri-environment scheme option: Riparian buffer strip pools within 'Arable Reversion'.

Abstract

Riparian set-aside land at Loddington, Leicestershire, was developed to meet multiple environmental objectives through the 'Arable Reversion' option of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. Ditches were diverted and field drains broken into small pools within the buffer strip to reduce soil and nutrient transport to a stream and create wildlife habitat for birds and invertebrates. The concentration of phosphorus (the main contributor to eutrophication in freshwater) in pools was about half that in the supplying field drain or ditch. The pools supported amphibians and 24-52 species of aquatic macro-invertebrates, including six nationally scarce Coleoptera. Fifteen species of Odonata were recorded. Terrestrial invertebrates included five Orthoptera species previously absent from the site. Whitethroat and reed bunting numbers increased and the habitat was used by lapwing and yellow wagtail in summer and by mallard and snipe in winter. If adopted more widely, this approach would contribute to improved chemical and ecological status of watercourses and to government conservation targets.