Spatial scale of benefits from adjacent woody vegetation on natural enemies within vineyards Linda J. Thomson ⇑ , Ary A. Hoffmann Department of Zoology, Bio21, University of Melbourne, 30 Flemington Road, Parkville 3010, Australia highlights " Adjacent woody vegetation enhances conservation biological control. " To provide useful guidelines, effective distances of adjacent vegetation need to be established. " We tested abundance of natural enemies and impact on an economically important vineyard pest. " Results indicate 50 m spacing increases abundance and predation/ parasitism. " These results provide guidelines for landscape changes to enhance pest control. graphical abstract Mean abundance of natural enemies declines as distance inceases into the vineyard, hence reduced control of Light Brown Apple Moth. 14 6 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 Mean predation or parasitism rate Light Brown Apple Moth egg masses 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60 Predation DB Predation LV Parasitism DB Distance from woody vegetation (m) article info Article history: Received 12 April 2012 Accepted 24 September 2012 Available online 16 October 2012 Keywords: Coleoptera Parasitoids Vineyard insect distributions Field margin Patch SADIE Spatial dynamics abstract Abundance of predators in crops can be increased by augmenting the adjacent non-crop vegetation, with associated environmental benefits from reduced chemical inputs and landscape conservation. Fine-scale spatial analysis is required to assess the extent to which non-crop benefits extend into farmed areas. We used explicit spatial mapping to investigate benefits of woody vegetation in two vineyards. The abun- dance of canopy-dwelling predators and predation/parasitism rates was measured at two vineyards with woody vegetation on one margin. Grids were sampled monthly across two summer growing seasons and stability of spatial patterns determined for consecutive months for each season and between seasons. At these two locations small parasitoids and several species of ladybird beetles from the vine canopy exhib- ited spatial patterning, with regions of high and low abundance and activity, aggregated in rows near to woody vegetation. Aggregations varied in temporal stability, with some persisting throughout the season. When predation and parasitism of sentinel eggs of a moth pest were non-randomly distributed, levels were higher in vine rows closer to the woody vegetation and significantly associated with a known egg parasitoid and ladybird beetles. This study demonstrated predators and parasitoids had non random and stable distributions at two vineyards. Increased abundance of both Coccinellidae and parasitoids was seen over similar distances: extending approximately 40 m from the vegetated edge. Increase in parasit- ism and predation extended a similar distance in from the vegetation. These results suggest management of vineyards where non-crop vegetation can be used to increase numbers and impact of beneficials, with recommendations for planting woody vegetation a minimum of 50 m from vineyard edges. Ó 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Ecosystem services such as natural pest control can reduce agrochemical use and associated environmental costs (Bianchi 1049-9644/$ - see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2012.09.019 ⇑ Corresponding author. Fax: +61 3 83442279. E-mail addresses: lthom@unimelb.edu.au (L.J. Thomson), ary@unimelb.edu.au (A.A. Hoffmann). Biological Control 64 (2013) 57–65 Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Biological Control journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ybcon