More grazing, more damage? Assessed yield loss on agricultural grassland relates nonlinearly to goose grazing pressure

作者：Nelleke H. Buitendijk, Monique de Jager, Menno Hornman, Helmut Kruckenberg, Andrea Kölzsch, Sander Moonen, Bart A. Nolet · 发表于：Journal of Applied Ecology · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.1111/1365-2664.14306 · 被引用次数：16 · 研究领域：Avian ecology and behavior、Animal Behavior and Reproduction、Plant and animal studies

Abstract In recent decades, conflict between geese and agriculture has increased. Management practices to limit this conflict include concentrating geese in protected areas, derogation shooting or population reduction. To justify such management, we need to understand their effects on goose‐related damages, which requires an understanding of how yield loss is influenced by goose abundance and species interactions. We combined data from monthly goose counts and GPS‐tracked geese to estimate grazing pressures by barnacle, white‐fronted and greylag geese on agricultural grassland in Fryslân, the Netherlands. Using linear mixed models, we related this to damages assessed by professional inspectors. Our results show a positive nonlinear relationship between yield loss and barnacle goose grazing pressure, where assessed damage increases with a decelerating rate as grazing pressure increases. For white‐fronted geese, we find a negative relationship, while for greylag geese both positive and negative relationships occur. For each species, the relationship is influenced by the abundance of the other two. For barnacle geese, the relationship can be explained by selection of fields offering the best balance between food intake and energy expenditure, and by grass regrowth, with highest grazing pressures occurring over a longer time period. The results for the other species are likely due to spatial and temporal differences in foraging preferences compared to barnacle geese, where larger...