Relationship between landscape complexity and ecosystem services from the perspective of smallholder agroecosystems in China—A review

Summary

Ecosystem services such as pollination and natural pest control are crucial for sustainable agriculture and affected by landscape complexity. Landscape complexity is associated with field size; therefore, studies in regions with large field sizes and regions with small field sizes are required for a comprehensive understanding of the landscape complexity-ecosystem service relationship. We conduct a systematic review, which shows that a majority of the studies are conducted in the US and Europe. Among the top 10 countries with the highest number of publications, China is the only one with extensive agricultural areas with very small fields (<0.64 ha). Then, we review all studies in China. Scattered studies show that landscape complexity enhances biocontrol, but not necessarily pollination, whereas results are likely dependent on the measuring methods. Finally, we highlight a future research agenda and recommend that future studies use standardized and multiple matrices to measure landscape context and associated ecosystem services.