| | | | | | | Advanced biodiversity monitoring for results-based and effective agricultural policy and transformationBioMonitor4CAP Newsletter #5 | July 2025 | |
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| | | | | | Dear Reader,
As we reach the midpoint of 2025, BioMonitor4CAP continues to break new ground in advancing biodiversity monitoring in agriculture. This summer edition brings you directly into the heart of our work.
Discover our newest devices and methods used for the 2025 field season, and listen in as researchers share their knowledge firsthand in Episode 2 of the BioMonitor4CAP Podcast. Explore the new Biodiveristy Database, where we are mapping institutions working in the field of (Agro)Biodiversity across Europe, and follow us on our recent field trip to Peru. We’re also proud to present our new agroforestry booklet, highlighting opportunities for sustainability in European agriculture, and to celebrate the achievements of women leading the way in science, agriculture, and sustainability.
We invite you to dive into the latest updates, learn more about our partners' contributions, and get a sneak peek at our upcoming activities. Follow us as we continue building a more resilient and biodiversity-friendly future for Europe’s agricultural landscapes. | |
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| | | | | BioMonitor4CAP Podcast Episode 2 – follow us into the lab | | | |
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| | | The BioMonitor4CAP project is at the forefront of innovative biodiversity monitoring in agricultural landscapes. By integrating traditional biodiversity indicator systems with cutting-edge technologies, the project aims to provide more accurate, efficient, and scalable tools for understanding ecological changes and supporting sustainable agriculture. From field sensors to AI-powered analysis, BioMonitor4CAP represents a new era in environmental monitoring.
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 | | | Check out the latest episode of the BioMonitor4CAP podcast | |
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| | | | | To bring this important work closer to the public, we’ve launched a podcast series that takes you behind the scenes. Each episode offers a unique perspective on the project – from firsthand experiences in the field to expert interviews and discussions on the role of biodiversity in modern agriculture. Whether you're curious about how data is collected, what technologies are involved, or the scientific insights gained, our podcast offers a window into this groundbreaking initiative.
In our first episode, titled “Follow Us into the Field”, we join researchers on-site to explore how data is gathered using audio recorders and camera traps. These devices help capture the sounds and movements of wildlife in agricultural environments, forming the raw data for biodiversity analysis. But collecting data is just the beginning.
So what happens after the recordings are made? How are thousands of hours of audio and video transformed into meaningful indicators of biodiversity?
In the second part of the episode, we follow Martina to Ilmenau, where she visits the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology (IDMT). There, she discovers how advanced algorithms and AI – what Fraunhofer calls Audio Intelligence – are used to analyze environmental sounds. These technologies enable researchers to detect species, assess habitat health, and ultimately provide valuable insights that feed into sustainable farming policies.
More Information:
🎧 All BioMonitor4CAP podcast are available HERE.
🔍 Learn more about BioMonitor4CAP, our project goals, and the international consortium behind the work at w w w. biomonitor4cap. eu.
🔍 More about Fraunhofer IDMT and its pioneering work in Environmental Sound Analysis, where AI means Audio Intelligence: Visit the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology. | |
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| | | | Spotlight: New Tools in the Field this Season
| | As the final field season of BioMonitor4CAP gets underway, we’re excited to share some of the cutting-edge technologies now in use across our research sites. These innovations are designed to boost data quality, reduce manual workload, and deepen our understanding of biodiversity across Europe. | |
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| | | | TL3000 Time-Lapse Cameras
Deployed at all major sites (200 units)
- Why the change? The previous camera model often failed in the field, compromising data collection.
- Why TL3000? With extended battery life and high-resolution imaging, TL3000 ensures reliable, low-maintenance monitoring.
- What it does: Captures insect activity on vegetation, providing consistent visual data across seasons.
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 | | | Time-Lapse Cameras on research sites in Spreewald (Picture: Paul Jarick, LfU) | |
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| | | | | Diopsis Scanners (by Faunabit)
Now operating at Spreewald, Oberrhein (Germany), and CUAS (Austria)
- Why we added them: Diopsis comes with a full-service package from Faunabit and Naturalis, delivering ready-to-use species lists and minimizing manual ID work.
- How it works: High-resolution imaging and AI automatically scan and classify invertebrates.
The benefit: Saves time, ensures taxonomic consistency, and improves data comparability across sites. | |
 | | | Diopsis Scanner set up on research sites in Spreewald (Picture: Paul Jarick, LfU) | |
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| | | | | Nematode Sampling with HAL24K
Running at DLG (Germany) and Bayer (Austria)
- Why it’s important: Complements existing soil eDNA and traditional sampling to evaluate biodiversity monitoring methods.
- How it works: Uses automated microscopy and AI to identify nematodes directly from soil samples.
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 | | | Nematode Sampling on research sites in Bernburg, Germany(Picture: Paul Jarick, LfU) | |
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| | | | The value: Delivers fast, scalable insights into soil biodiversity – especially valuable for below-ground ecosystem studies. A distinctive advantage of the method lies in its capacity to provide nuanced insights into the functional mechanisms of fauna.
These tools mark a significant step forward in our mission to modernize biodiversity monitoring. Stay tuned for more updates as the season progresses! | |
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| | | | Mapping the Landscape of (Agro)Biodiversity Monitoring in Europe
| Deliverable 5.1: Building the Foundation for Collaboration
As part of its mission to strengthen biodiversity monitoring in European agricultural landscapes, BioMonitor4CAP has published Deliverable 5.1 – a milestone in developing a coordinated and collaborative network of institutions working in the field of (Agro)Biodiversity.
This deliverable provides a searchable directory of more than 360 institutions, forming an evolving knowledge base that supports future collaboration, data sharing, and alignment with broader initiatives such as EuropaBON and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. The work lays the groundwork for enhanced coordination, helping to maximise complementarities and ensure consistency across biodiversity monitoring efforts in Europe.
A Structured, Searchable Directory
The team behind this task compiled an extensive and structured database that includes European and non-European institutions with relevant expertise or data in biodiversity and agrobiodiversity. One key challenge was the difficulty of identifying organizations specifically focused on Agrobiodiversity, as many institutions define themselves more broadly under environmental or biodiversity themes.
To address this, the team adopted a deliberately inclusive approach – carefully gathering and qualifying detailed information even for institutions not explicitly labeled as "Agrobiodiversity-focused", but whose work is highly relevant to the field. This thoughtful expansion ensures a more accurate representation of the current agrobiodiversity monitoring landscape. All gahtered data is organized into two comprehensive Excel files.
Interactive Access Through Looker Studio
To make this data more accessible and user-friendly, the team developed an interactive web interface using Looker Studio. The platform offers dynamic filtering, institutional profiles, and a searchable map to explore the institutions across Europe and beyond.
» Access the interface HERE.
Next Steps: Validating and Expanding the Network
Given the difficulty of accessing Agrobiodiversity-specific information, a further bottom-up investigation is planned. Each listed institution will be contacted through two customized forms: the first aims to explore the institution’s potential contributions to Agrobiodiversity in greater depth; the second will allow the institutions to validate the collected data themselves and encourage their direct engagement.
The results highlight the great diversity of stakeholders involved, as well as the limited visibility of structures explicitly focused on Agrobiodiversity. The broad and inclusive approach adopted by the team proved necessary to grasp the complexity of the Agrobiodiversity monitoring landscape and opened up prospects for improved coordination between science and policy.
Join the BioMonitor4CAP Network!
Do you represent – or know of – an institution working with agrobiodiversity data in Europe?
We would love to hear from you!
📨 Contact us at: biomonitor4cap(at)irwirpan.waw.pl
Let’s build a stronger, more connected biodiversity monitoring community – together. | |
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| | | | BioMonitor4CAP in Peru
| Tracking biodiversity through innovation
Peru, one of the world’s most biodiverse countries, plays a pivotal role in the BioMonitor4CAP project. This EU-funded initiative is testing and demonstrating cutting-edge optical, acoustic and molecular monitoring technologies to better understand and protect biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. Peru was selected as a key partner not only because of its unique biodiversity and diverse agroecosystems, which offer an ideal setting for exploring the extended functionality of these monitoring devices, but also due to its strong agricultural export ties to Europe. As the EU moves forward with regulations like the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), which may require companies to monitor and mitigate environmental impacts throughout their supply chains, biodiversity monitoring in countries like Peru becomes increasingly relevant. The project’s findings could therefore influence sustainability practices in Europe and beyond, ensuring that biodiversity is preserved not just locally, but across global food value chains.
Field sites across Peru
The project operates in three distinct regions: Ica, Ucayali, and Pampa Hermosa, offering a rich variety of ecosystems to study how different land use practices affect biodiversity.
In Peru, research is led by Sandra Duarte, Brenton Ladd, and Susan Medina from the Universidad Cientifica del Sur (UCSUR), who oversee both scientific activities and the implementation of new monitoring methods. In May, Martina Clausen from DLG Berlin joined the team on field visits to Neshuya, von Humboldt (Ucayali), and Pampa Hermosa to ensure alignment with the project’s methodological goals.
Martina’s visit also underscored a historical link: the von Humboldt region is named after Alexander von Humboldt, the Berlin-born naturalist whose studies in Peru helped shape the modern concept of biodiversity. His holistic view of ecosystems laid the foundation for ecological science, and his legacy lives on in Berlin’s Museum für Naturkunde, which still houses specimens from his travels.
From cocoa to cacao and palm oil: a changing agricultural landscape
In Ucayali, researchers are conducting soil, insect, and bird sampling across an intensity gradient on Cacao agroforestry systems.
Historically, the region has been known for cocoa cultivation, but in recent years, both palm oil and cacao plantations have expanded – partly supported by government and UN initiatives aimed at offering alternatives to illicit crops and reducing crime. Although the project’s biodiversity sampling focuses on cacao plantations, it also considers the broader landscape context, exploring whether both cacao and palm oil can be cultivated in more nature-friendly ways, particularly through agroforestry practices that integrate trees and crops.
From jungle to highlands: a broader perspective
After completing fieldwork in the Amazon, the team continued to the Andean highlands and the Pampa Hermosa Sanctuary, where researchers from UCSUR are conducting biodiversity sampling in both protected and unprotected grassland areas. This research is vital for understanding how different conservation statuses influence biodiversity. The site also illustrates the delicate balance – and at times, tension – between local communities and governmental environmental agencies. To address this, the project fosters collaboration among the Servicio Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas por el Estado (SERNANP), UCSUR, and local stakeholders, promoting open dialogue and cooperation to ensure that conservation efforts are both effective and inclusive.
On the ground: collaboration and capacity building
At the end of the visit, Nils Borchard from DLG joined the team in Lima for an extended meeting at UCSUR. The group exchanged early findings and discussed the Ica site, where native vegetation patches have been reintroduced into intensive avocado plantations to assess their impact on biodiversity. These forest patches are especially important during the dry season, when the contrast in resource availability becomes more pronounced. Conserving such patches not only supports biodiversity but also enhances landscape resilience, offering critical habitat and ecological functions when surrounding areas are under environmental stress. | |
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| | | | New Booklet:
Agroforestry: Opportunities in European Agriculture
| Agroforestry – the integration of trees with crops or livestock on the same land – is gaining renewed attention across Europe. Both traditional and modern agroforestry practices and systems can strengthen farm resilience while advancing biodiversity and climate objectives.
This booklet, authored by the Traci Birge at the University of Helsinki Ruralia Institute, highlights the role of agroforestry in sustainable farming.
The booklet introduces the reader to agroforestry as part of the agroecology transition, presents how agroforestry is reflected in EU policy and the future outlook from a policy perspective. The booklet shares insights from the farmer-advisor focus groups that BioMonitor4CAP carried out in six European countries and provides the reader with information on resources for practical implementation. | |
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| | | | The 20 page booklet is part of BioMonitor4CAP materials for agricultural advisors and is illustrated with photos of agroforestry from different countries and agroforestry systems in Europe.
Whether you're an advisor, policymaker, or simply interested in sustainable agriculture, this booklet provides a timely introduction to European agroforestry and its policy context.
👉 Download the pdf-file HERE. | |
 | | | AGROFORESTRY – Opportunities in European Agriculture | |
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| | | | | BioMonitor4CAP Celebrating Women in Science,
Agriculture & Sustainability
| On the occasion of International Women’s Day (March 8), we celebrated the vital contributions of women across the globe - to society, to science, and to nature. At BioMonitor4CAP, we are proud to work alongside inspiring women whose expertise and dedication are helping shape a more sustainable future for agriculture and biodiversity.
Cultivating diversity in the fields… and in our teams 🐝🌻👫
Just as healthy agroecosystems depend on biodiversity, thriving teams are built on diversity of perspectives, experiences, and skills. In nature, every species has a role to play – no part is redundant, and none stands alone. The same is true in our work: when we recognize and uplift each contribution, we become more resilient, innovative, and capable of tackling complex challenges.
While agriculture and science have historically faced gender imbalances, change is taking root. In the EU, only about 30% of farms are managed by women – but this is shifting. At BioMonitor4CAP, we’re proud to reflect that evolution: our team includes 42 women and 46 men, working across disciplines in a spirit of equality and collaboration.
But beyond the numbers, it’s the impact that matters most. Women in our project lead and contribute to key areas: from data science and tech innovation, to project coordination, fieldwork, and stakeholder engagement. Their leadership is central to addressing the urgent challenges of sustainable agriculture and biodiversity monitoring.
In February, we gathered at the annual BioMonitor4CAP event in Warsaw under the watchful gaze of Marie Curie – a scientific pioneer, a symbol of determination and a powerful reminder of the brilliance that women bring to research and discovery. | |
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| | | | | The women of BioMonitor4CAP at our annual project meeting in Warsaw(Picture: Christoph Scherber, LIB)
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| | | | To all the women in BioMonitor4CAP – and beyond – who innovate, inspire, and lead: thank you. Your work not only drives this project forward but also builds a more equitable and sustainable world. | |
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| | | | Coming up next (outlook)
| - First results of our field work
- How to use the BioMonitor4CAP WebGIS platform
- Focus group interviews and Co-creation workshops - Recommendations for the next GAP
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| | | | | | | Disclaimer: Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or [name of the granting authority]. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Copyright 2023 BioMonitor4CAP Project. All rights reserved. | |
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