Patterns and processes of transformations in agricultural landscapes

In Western Europe, landscapes are shaped and modified primarily by agriculture resulting in a close relationship between landscape pattern and agriculture. In recent decades, however, some major changes have substantially transformed agricultural landscapes. These farmland changes are driven by developments such as urbanization, global markets, economic technologies, demographic growth, the changing societal expectations towards the countryside and the European agricultural policy. As a consequence, the typical agricultural landscape features undergone many evolutions resulting in a multifunctional landscape with different land uses and environmental services where production of food or nature conservation are no longer the only objectives.

These dynamics causes next to a decrease in total area also the division of landscape elements into smaller pieces. This fragmentation trend presents a challenge to conservation management of our most fertile and productive area. To get insight into the consequences of fragmentation on the landscape, a framework is proposed based on three fundamental aspects in landscape research; structure, function and change.

In this study we focus on the agricultural land and make the distinction between land in agricultural use and non-agricultural area (e.g. settlement, nature, etc.). The term ‘fragmentation’ refers in our study to the processes of farmland loss, the changing farmland configuration and the increasing isolation of patches.