Restoring biodiversity and ecosystem services on managed grasslands

Grassland ecosystems provide multiple ecosystem services to society, but many are degrading due to the intensification of farming practices. This thesis describes prerequisites to restore managed grassland ecosystems in the Netherlands, in a region with widely varying management intensities. Intensive management was found to determine the productivity of grasslands and therefore the income of farmers, while ecosystem restoration safeguards diverse public goods. Therefore, ecosystem restoration requires financial support from society. Intensive land use affected 85% of species across multiple arthropod groups, while only a few species increased. However, the species richness of most arthropod groups increased with the flower richness of grasslands. This provides opportunities for rapid assessments of habitat quality and improved restoration strategies. For instance, flower richness can be enhanced by adjusting mowing regimes to local productivity and forb assemblages. However, restoring grassland ecosystems still requires drastic reductions of modern land use intensities. Biodiversity-friendly management, improved spatial planning and fair financial support can facilitate this.