Abandonment: What happens to biodiversity when human land use ends?

Abandonment refers to the process when human activity or management ceases in an area, allowing nature to regain control. Following abandonment, an ecosystem undergoes natural changes in species composition and structure, often developing into a forest over time — a phenomenon called succession.

Over the last century, land abandonment has increased, particularly in parts of Europe. This is driven by factors like rural depopulation, as people move to cities, and modernization in agriculture and forestry, favoring high-intensity practices and making many traditional, low-intensity techniques obsolete.

This change is affecting our biodiversity. And while less human intervention might seem beneficial, this isn’t always the case.


Credits:
Manuscript: Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Pamadillo
Animation: Pamadillo - https://www.pamadillo.com/
Intro/ending music: Gregor Quendel https://www.gregorquendel.com/
Middle music: Andreas Raad    / @baltimus9000  
Project: ROTATE: Application of traditional knowledge to halt biodiversity loss in woodlands
Funding: Technology Agency of the Czech Republic and Norway Grants 2014–2021

Contact: NIBIO researcher Fride Høistad Schei, [email protected]

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#biodiversity #succession #ecology #forestmanagement