Regional Mountain Conference

Grasslands are valuable ecosystems, yet they are strongly shaped by management practices, particularly mowing. The impact of mowing on these systems is typically quantified based on the number of cuts per year. However, mowing involves many additional factors that significantly influence biodiversity and are often overlooked in such simplified assessments.

Here, I present a novel mowing intensity index that integrates multiple components beyond mowing frequency, including mower type, cutting height, and conditioner usage. This approach enables a more refined analysis and evaluation of mowing impacts on biodiversity, clearly demonstrating the negative effects of increased mowing intensity on both arthropod and plant diversity.

In contrast, an application-oriented tool—the so-called “Insect Calculator”—is introduced. This interactive web-based platform allows users to explore, in a communicative and engaging way, how changes in mowing practices and environmental parameters affect arthropods. By adjusting different mowing components and site conditions, users can directly visualize the ecological consequences of management decisions.

Both approaches are based on comprehensive datasets and aim to make the effects of mowing more transparent and accessible to researchers, practitioners, and the broader public.