IntroductionRegenerative pasture management seeks to maintain ranchers' economic viability by maximizing grassland biodiversity and ecosystem functionality to maintain production and reduce input costs through improved ecosystem services. Dung arthropod communities contribute to two important ecosystem services for ranchers: dung degradation and pest control.MethodsWe examined the effect of regenerative pasture management on key beneficial dung-dwelling arthropods (coprophages, predators, and parasitoids) and measured dung fouling of pastures and pest abundance in dung pats (fly pests and parasites). Bioinventories of the adult dung-dwelling arthropod communities were collected from regeneratively (n = 18) and conventionally managed pastures (n = 21) extending from northeastern South Dakota to central North Dakota.ResultsIn total, 51,283 arthropod specimens were collected from 596 dung pats. Pats were also sampled for insect pests and cattle parasites: 20% of the pats contained adult fly pests, and 95% were infested with parasites. Regenerative pasture management did not increase the overall dung arthropod abundance or diversity, nor were there consistent effects on key beneficial arthropod groups throughout the grazing season. However, pasture fouling was significantly reduced in regeneratively managed pastures. Regenerative pastures also had low levels of insect pests, comparable to their conventional counterparts.DiscussionNotably, the majority (76%) of conventional ranchers used parasiticides/insecticides as part of their pest control program, while only 11% of regenerative ranchers utilized these inputs, opting instead for management to achieve similar results. This work demonstrates that regenerative grassland management aimed at grassland functionality can foster ecosystem services that contribute to ranchers' economic viability.

Rangelands support managed and endemic pollinator communities, but the way that cattle are managed in these habitats affects floral resources and habitat suitability. We placed honey bee colonies on continuously and regeneratively grazed rangelands. Regenerative rangelands had relatively higher stocking rates, animals were moved into new paddocks more frequently, and the rangeland was allowed to rest after grazing for longer than continuously grazed areas. Rangeland plant community characteristics measured monthly during the growing season included forage biomass, flowering species richness, and abundance of flowers. Monthly measurements of colony weight gain, brood production, and Varroa mite abundance were recorded. Regeneratively managed rangelands had more flowering species and greater flower abundance, and floral species richness was correlated with colony weight gain. Specifically, minimum floral species richness (indicative of periods of resource scarcity) were more influential to hive weight gain than periods of greater floral richness. Plant biomass was positively associated with brood production, and negatively associated with Varroa incidence. Rangeland pasture management was associated with the abundance and composition of the flowering plant communities, which in turn were associated with the health and productivity of honey bee colonies stationed at these sites. Our results suggest that regeneratively managed rangelands offer a tool for conserving and promoting honey bees in this region.

Dietary-administered probiotics may address poor health and performance in honey bees (Apis mellifera L. [Hymenoptera: Apidae]). Human-grade probiotics are an affordable source of general probiotics. We examined the effects of human-grade probiotics by comparing colony and individual level health and performance between colonies administered a probiotic every other week, and those not given probiotic supplementation (control treatment group). We found that probiotics did not statistically increase individual honey bee health and performance as measured by body lipid level, tibial length, and weight of bees, nor colony performance as measured by monthly assessments of brood area, colony weight, and Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman (Mesostigmata: Varroidae) mite infestation rate.

In an increasingly unstable climate, it is critical to optimize water needed for crop irrigation to secure food production and livelihoods while reducing environmental impacts. Here, we focus on water use for almonds — a crop that occupies roughly 20% of the irrigated agricultural land in California and has long been the focus of scrutiny. Regenerative agriculture, a term used to describe system designs that increase soil health, biodiversity, resilience to climate, and profitability while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, water use, and pollution, offers a potential way forward. We used eddy covariance, micrometeorological, and soil moisture measurements from 2022 and 2023 to quantify the evapotranspiration of California almond orchards under different soil and plant management practices and produce comprehensive estimates of the water footprint of different management systems. In five almond orchards, we find that there is little difference between evapotranspiration at regenerative and conventional sites in winter months, and that regenerative sites have similar or slightly lower evapotranspiration during the growing season. Orchards with cover crops had higher infiltration rates of winter precipitation than those without; however, soil moisture did not differ between management types. This case study demonstrates that regenerative management in almond orchards leads to improvements in soil moisture retention without guaranteeing increased evapotranspiration.

Current narrow views of what constitutes evidence have left blind spots in food system decision-making. Yet, alternative ways of facilitating the production and exchange of transdisciplinary knowledge enable key lessons for more equitable and informed policy processes.

Grassland ecosystems of the Northern Plains have changed substantially since European settlement began in the latter half of the 19th century. This has led to significant changes to the dung-dwelling arthropod community in the region. As humans continue to modify large portions of the landscape, inventories of ecologically significant communities are important to collect in order to monitor the long-term effects of anthropogenic biomes. We conducted a survey of the arthropod community dwelling in cattle dung from 40 pastures extending from northeast South Dakota to central North Dakota during the 2019 and 2020 grazing seasons. In sum, 51,283 specimens were collected from 596 dung pats, comprising a community of 22 orders. Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera contributed to the majority (94.5%) of the community abundance. The mean pest abundance was low per pat (0.43 adult pests/pat), with 80% of the pats not containing any adult pest. Ecologically beneficial dung-feeding beetles, predators, and parasitoids were abundant in the region, but it was an inconsistent community, which may hinder ecosystem services. This highlights the need for future work to understand the mechanisms to increase the consistency of dung pat colonization for improved consistency of ecosystem services in the region.

Brassica carinata is a biofuel and animal feed crop with expanding global production. Although there is much research on common farming practices to improve yield, there is almost a complete absence of data on the dependency of yield through pollination services. Reciprocally, we lack information on whether B. carinata offers ecosystem services to pollinators. We observed almost 4000 pollinator visits, quantified different plant functional traits, including floral resources and examined the effect of supplementing fields with honey bee hives and the use of neonicotinoid seed treatment on seed yield and honey bee health. Data was collected from 35 0.404-ha sites with more than 800 focal B. carinata individuals across 2 years in the Prairie Coteau region of the Northern Great Plains. We found that pollinators (n = 28 species) are attracted to floral resources at different spatial scales. High visitation rates by pollinator species were associated with double the seed set in B. carinata relative to the lowest visitation rates. Brassica carinata adds floral resources to the agricultural ecosystem and therefore has the potential to increase pollinator health. However, species interactions are influenced by the use of insecticides and the presence of honey bees by managed beehives. In particular, insecticides alter the role of pollinators on crop pollination by reducing the positive impact of floral resources on pollinator-mediated yield and honey bee health. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.

Adaptive multipaddock (AMP) grazing is a form livestock management that uses high stock density, frequent herd rotation, and long adaptive plant recovery periods to produce punctuated disturbances within pastures. This form of livestock management may benefit pasture biodiversity and ecosystem function. Arthropods are key to ecosystem functionality through the fulfillment of many ecological niches in pasture ecosystems like dung burial, pest control, and pollination. However, the effect of AMP grazing on arthropod communities has not been well studied. We assessed the effect of AMP grazing on arthropod community composition. Foliar, soil, and dung arthropod communities were collected from AMP and conventionally grazed (CG) pastures located in the southeastern US. Arthropod abundance, species richness, diversity, and guild composition were compared between grazing treatments. The herbaceous standing plant diversity was recorded in the immediate vicinity of arthropod sampling. AMP grazed pastures exhibited higher foliar arthropod species richness, along with higher foliar and dung guild diversity. The effects of AMP grazing on the arthropod community were likely correlated to changes to the vegetative community resulting from AMP grazing. No differences in pest abundance or species diversity were found between the AMP and CG pastures. This study shows AMP pasture management has a positive effect of arthropod community composition, which is likely to be an important mechanism to facilitating ecosystem services in AMP pastures.

Global ecosystems and food supply depend on insect biodiversity for key functions such as pollination and decomposition. High-resolution, accurate data on invertebrate populations and communities across scales are critical for informing conservation efforts. However, conventional data collection methodologies for invertebrates are expensive, labor intensive, and require substantial taxonomic expertise, limiting researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. Novel optical techniques show promise for automating such data collection across scales as they operate unsupervised in remote areas. In this work, optical insect sensors were deployed in 20 agricultural fields in Kansas, USA. Measurements were compared to conventional assessments of insect diversity from sweep nets and Malaise traps. Species richness was estimated on optical insect data by applying a clustering algorithm to the optical insect sensor’s signal features of wing-beat frequency and body-to-wing ratio. Species richness correlated more strongly between the optical richness estimate and each of the conventional methods than between the two conventional methods, suggesting sensors can be a reliable indicator of invertebrate richness. Shannon- and Simpson indices were calculated for all three methods but were largely uncorrelated including between conventional methods. Although the technology is relatively new, optical sensors may provide next-generation insight into the spatiotemporal dynamics of invertebrate biodiversity and their conservation.

Reason for doing the work Plant biomass is a commonly used metric to assess agricultural health and productivity. Removing plant material is the most accurate method to estimate plant biomass, but this approach is time consuming, labor intensive, and destructive. Previous attempts to use indirect methods to estimate plant biomass have been limited in breadth and/or have added complexity in data collection and/or modeling. A cost-effective, quick, accurate, and easy to use and understand approach is desirable for use by scientists and growers. Objectives An indirect method for estimating plant biomass using a drop-plate meter was explored for use in broad array of crop systems. Methods Drop-plate data collected by more than 20 individuals from 16 crop types on 312 farms across 15 states were used to generate models to estimate plant biomass among and within crop types. Results A linear model using data from all crop types explained approximately 67% of the variation in plant biomass overall. This model performed differently among crop types and stand heights, which was owed to differences among sample sizes and farming between annual and perennial systems. Comparatively, the model using the combined dataset explained more variance in biomass than models generated with commodity specific data, with the exception of wheat. Conclusions The drop-plate approach described here was inexpensive, quick, simple, and easy to interpret, and the model generated was robust to error and accurate across multiple crop types. The methods met all expectations for a broad-use approach to estimating plant biomass and are recommended for use across all agroecosystems included in this study. While it may be useful in crops beyond those included, validation is suggested before application.

Invertebrate granivore communities can consume numerous weed seeds in cropland, but how this granivory influences weed recruitment over time in continuous no-till systems is unknown. Weed and surface-active granivore communities were determined in soybeans (Glycine max) over 3 years in eastern South Dakota. We examined seed removal rates of sentinel redroot pigweed, green foxtail, and lambsquarters (Chenopodium album) seeds and applied gut content analysis of granivores to determine which species consume immuno-marked seeds of green foxtail (Setaria viridis). Weed stands with low diversity and high biomass production were associated with granivore community complexity. In turn, granivore community complexity was associated with weed communities with low diversity and high biomass in the subsequent growing season. Fall seed consumption, as measured by seed removal rates and gut content analysis of foxtail seed markers, was positively correlated with weed recruitment in the subsequent growing season. Seed specialists behaved differently toward focal weed species than the granivore community at large. Gryllus pennsylvanicus abundance was correlated with higher green foxtail consumption and removal rates. None of the other dominant green foxtail consumers revealed a similar set of responses. We propose a feedback mechanism whereby granivore community complexity in cropland leads to larger but fewer weeds over multiple years. Weed communities with these characteristics then lead to more complex granivore communities. If these relationships persist over time with minimal disturbance in continuous no-till cropping systems without pesticides, this feedback loop could reduce weed cover.

Corn (Zea mays) monocultures provide few ecosystem functions compared to the diverse native prairies that they have replaced. Ecologically simplified corn fields lack the plant diversity-derived resources necessary for supporting robust beneficial insect populations capable of preventing pest outbreaks. Interseeding cover crops into established corn is a way that farmers can diversify cropland plant communities and restore ecosystem functions. Here we examine how foliar, epigeic and subterranean arthropod communities differ between corn monocultures and corn interseeded with cover crops. We also examine how predator activity and predation is affected by interseeded cover crops in corn fields. Predators, herbivores, numerous individual taxa and all combined arthropods were more abundant on the soil surface in interseeded corn fields. Adding cover crops also increased the number of epigeic species. Within the subterranean environment, community structure was similar in the bare soil and interseeded corn fields, and only four commonly collected species were more abundant in interseeded cornfields. Below-ground arthropod diversity increased when cover crops were interseeded in corn fields. Community characteristics in the corn foliage were not affected by the cover crops. Twice as many wax moth (Galleria mellonella) sentinel larvae were eaten by generalist predators in cover-cropped corn (45.5%) than in corn monocultures (22.6%). The effect of cover crops on corn stand density and yield varied significantly between study locations. Diversification of the corn agroecosystem by interseeding cover crops had a positive influence on the surface-dwelling invertebrate fauna and predator activity. Biodiversity conservation and predation services should be considered in addition to soil health and nutrient diversity of corn yields when valuing the systems benefits of interseeding covers into annual crops.

Abstract The red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta (Buren) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), is one of the most prolific invasive species in the southeastern US. These invaders preferentially colonize highly disturbed land and grassland habitat. Management of livestock in pasture systems can have a profound impact on the level of disturbance in grassland habitats, and we hypothesized that adaptive multi-paddock pasture management would significantly increase S. invicta abundance in southeastern US pastures where arthropod diversity would decrease as S. invicta abundance increases. We studied the effects that adaptive multi-paddock pasture management systems (based on stocking density, rotation frequency, and insecticide/anthelmintic [wormer] application rates) have on fire ant mound abundance and arthropod diversity for the soil, foliar, and dung communities. Solenopsis invicta mounds and mound areas were documented along transect lines in 6 pastures. Soil and foliar arthropod communities were collected along the same transect lines, and dung communities were sampled from pats within the pasture system. Pastures managed under adaptive multi-paddock practices had 3.4× more S. invicta mounds and 4.6× more mound area than their conventionally managed counterparts. However, arthropod diversity did not correlate with S. invicta abundance in any of the 3 arthropod communities sampled. This study shows adaptive multi-paddock pasture management can increase S. invicta mound abundance, but arthropod communities in adaptive multi-paddock pastures do not suffer decreased diversity from increased abundance of S. invicta.

Abstract To increase the resilience of our food system, we must better understand how ecosystem services such as pest control and pollination provided by a diverse insect community contribute to crop yield. We examined how landscape heterogeneity relates to insect and pollinator diversity, and how insect and pollinator diversity relates to yield of Brassica carinata, a new biofuel crop within common farming practices. Over two years, we planted 35 × 1 acre sites in a roughly 1000‐km2 area near Brookings, South Dakota, in the Prairie Coteau. We randomly assigned each site to a combination of three common farming practices: tilling (yes/no), added honey bee hives (yes/no), and treatment with systemic neonicotinoids (yes/no). Insect and pollinator diversity and the heterogeneity of the surrounding landscape at multiple spatial scales were calculated. We observed a significant positive relationship between insect (and pollinator) diversity and yield when fields were untreated, without hives, nor seed treatments. All farming practices within this study increase yield. However, farming practices alter the relationship between yield and insect (and pollinator) diversity. The addition of seed treatment or tillage negates the relationship between insect (and pollinator) diversity with yield. There was no relationship between seed treatment, diversity, and yield for all insects, and the application of seed treatment resulted in lower pollinator diversity. Increased landscape heterogeneity was correlated with more insect diversity at the 1000‐m scale and pollinator diversity at the 3000‐m scale. Our results show that increasing large‐scale landscape heterogeneity increases insect diversity, which serves as a substitute for common farming practices such as application of pesticides, tilling, or bee hives. Increased landscape heterogeneity could increase farmers' net profitability by replacing input costs associated with tillage and seed treatments.

Background:Ongoing efforts attempt to define farms as regenerative to aid marketers, policymakers, farmers, etc. The approach needs to balance precision with function, and must be transparent, simple, scalable, transferable, incorruptible, and replicable.Methods:We developed practice-based scoring systems to distinguish regenerative cropland and rangeland, and validate them based on whether these scores scaled with regenerative goals on actual farm operations. Study systems included cornfields of the Upper Midwest, almond orchards of California, and rangeland systems of the Northern Plains. Response variables included soil carbon and organic matter, soil micronutrients, water infiltration rates, soil microbial communities, plant community structure, invertebrate community structure, pest populations, yields, and profit.Results:Regenerative outcomes were strongly correlated with our approach to farm scoring. Soil organic matter, fine particulate organic matter, total soil carbon, total soil nitrogen, phosphorous, calcium and sulfur all increased alongside regenerative matrix scores in one or both of the cropping systems. Water infiltration rates were significantly faster in more regenerative almond orchards. Soil bacterial biomass and Haney soil health test scores were higher as cropland incorporated more regenerative practices. Plant species diversity and biomass increased significantly with the number of regenerative practices employed on almonds and rangelands. Invertebrate species diversity and richness were positively associated with regenerative practices in corn, almonds, and rangelands, whereas pest populations and almond yields were unaffected by the number of regenerative practices. Corn yields were negatively associated with more regenerative practices, while almond yields were unaffected by the number of regenerative practices. Profit was significantly higher on more regenerative corn and almond operations.Conclusions:Our scoring system scaled positively with desired regenerative outcomes, and provides the basis for predicting ecosystem responses with minimal information about the farming operation. Natural clusters in the number of regenerative practices used can be used to distinguish regenerative and conventional operations.

Regenerative agriculture aims to improve soil health and promote biodiversity while producing nutritious food profitably. Almonds are the dominant crop in California agriculture in terms of acreage and revenue generated. We examined the soil health, biodiversity, yield, and profit of regenerative and conventional almond production systems that represented farmer-derived best management practices. Regenerative practices included abandoning some or all synthetic agrichemicals, planting perennial ground covers, integrating livestock, maintaining non-crop habitat, and using composts and compost teas. Total soil carbon (TSC), soil organic matter (SOM), total soil nitrogen (TSN), total soil phosphorous, calcium, sulfur, and soil health test scores were all significantly greater in regenerative soils. Water infiltrated regenerative soils six-fold faster than conventional soils. Total microbial biomass, total bacterial biomass, Gram+ bacteria, and Actinobacteria were significantly greater in regenerative soils. There was more plant biomass, species diversity, and percent cover in regenerative orchards. Invertebrate richness and diversity, and earthworm abundance and biomass were significantly greater in regenerative orchards. Pest populations, yields, and nutrient density of the almonds were similar in the two systems. Profit was twice as high in the regenerative orchards relative to their conventional counterparts. No one practice was responsible for the success of regenerative farms; their success was the result of simultaneously combining multiple regenerative practices into a single, functional farm system. This style of farming may assist in combatting planetary scale problems (e.g., climate change, biodiversity loss, agricultural pollution, chronic human health problems, and declining rural communities) while making farms more profitable and resilient.

Abstract Grassland systems constitute a significant portion of the land area in the United States and as a result harbors significant arthropod biodiversity. During this time of biodiversity loss around the world, bioinventories of ecologically important habitats serve as important indicators for the effectiveness of conservation efforts. We conducted a bioinventory of the foliar, soil, and dung arthropod communities in 10 cattle pastures located in the southeastern United States during the 2018 grazing season. In sum, 126,251 arthropod specimens were collected. From the foliar community, 13 arthropod orders were observed, with the greatest species richness found in Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Hemiptera. The soil‐dwelling arthropod community contained 18 orders. The three orders comprising the highest species richness were Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera. Lastly, 12 arthropod orders were collected from cattle dung, with the greatest species richness found in Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera. Herbivores were the most abundant functional guild found in the foliar community, and predators were most abundant in the soil and dung communities. Arthropod pests constituted a small portion of the pasture arthropod communities, with 1.01%, 0.34%, and 0.46% pests found in the foliar, soil, and dung communities, respectively. While bioinventories demand considerable time, energy, and resources to accomplish, the information from these inventories has many uses for conservation efforts, land management recommendations, and the direction of climate change science.

We present a synthetic review and expert consultation that assesses the actual risks posed by arthropod pests in four major crops, identifies targets for integrated pest management (IPM) in terms of cultivated land needing pest control and gauges the implementation "readiness" of non-chemical alternatives. Our assessment focuses on the world's primary target pests for neonicotinoid-based management: western corn rootworm (WCR, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) in maize; wireworms (Agriotes spp.) in maize and winter wheat; bird cherry-oat aphid (Rhopalosiphum padi) in winter wheat; brown planthopper (BPH, Nilaparvata lugens) in rice; cotton aphid (Aphis gossypii) and silver-leaf whitefly (SLW, Bemisia tabaci) in cotton. First, we queried scientific literature databases and consulted experts from different countries in Europe, North America, and Asia about available IPM tools for each crop-pest system. Next, using an online survey, we quantitatively assessed the economic relevance of target pests by compiling country-level records of crop damage, yield impacts, extent of insecticide usage, and "readiness" status of various pest management alternatives (i.e., research, plot-scale validation, grower-uptake). Biological control received considerable scientific attention, while agronomic strategies (e.g., crop rotation), insurance schemes, decision support systems (DSS), and innovative pesticide application modes were listed as key alternatives. Our study identifies opportunities to advance applied research, IPM technology validation, and grower education to halt or drastically reduce our over-reliance on systemic insecticides globally.

Declining pollinator populations worldwide are attributed to multiple stressors, including the loss of quality forage. Habitat management in agricultural areas often targets honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) specifically, with the assumption that native bees will benefit from an ‘umbrella species’ strategy. We tested this theory using a conservation physiology approach to compare the effects of landscape composition and floral dietary composition on the physiological status of honey bees and Melissodes desponsa in eastern South Dakota, USA. The total glycogen, lipid and protein concentrations were quantified from field collected bees. Next-generation sequencing of the trnL chloroplast gene from bee guts was used to evaluate dietary composition. The effects of landscape and dietary composition on macronutrient concentrations were compared between bee species. As the mean land-use patch area increased, honey bee glycogen levels increased, though M. desponsa experienced a decrease in glycogen. Protein levels decreased in honey bees as the largest patch index, a measure of single patch dominance, increased versus M. desponsa. Lipids in both species were unaffected by the measured landscape variables. Dietary analysis revealed that honey bees foraged preferentially on weedy non-native plant species, while M. desponsa sought out native and rarer species, in addition to utilizing non-native plants. Both species foraged on Asteraceae, Oleaceae and Fabaceae, specifically Melilotus sp. and Medicago sp. Dietary composition was not predictive of the macronutrients measured for either species. Together, these data highlight the management importance of including patch area in conservation recommendations, as bee species may have divergent physiological responses to landscape characteristics. While solitary bees may forage on weedy introduced plants in agricultural areas, robust strategies should also reincorporate native plant species, though they may not be preferred by honey bees, to maximize overall health and diversity of pollinator communities.