Landscape and agri-environmental scheme effects on ant communities in cereal croplands of central Spain

Agri-environmental schemes (AES) of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) aims at reversing negative effects agricultural intensification on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Landscape context may modulate, even constraint, AES effectiveness. We evaluate effectiveness ant abundance, diversity community composition. Ants are an ecologically dominant group whose response to conservation efforts in farmland has been rarely evaluated, despite its role weed control, particularly Mediterranean farmland. were sampled edge centre paired cereal fields, managed with without three study areas along a landscape complexity gradient. application had no significant species richness or Richness increased fields landscapes higher amounts complex edges decreased towards fields. Specialist granivorous ants (harvester ants, Messor spp.) most abundant. Abundance foraging amount around landscape. abundance close field but not centers. less specialist their centers than control Ant communities cropland mostly constrained by availability edges, needed for nest building. harvester potential service mainly. Measures promoting stable rather ephemeral headlands essential enhance increasing ant-mediated services control.