Traditional landscape elements are key to the threatened Ortolan Bunting Emberiza hortulana in its Italian stronghold

Capsule: Cultural landscapes with Tamarisk Tamarix gallica rows, marginal habitats and crop heterogeneity promote the occurrence of Ortolan Buntings Emberiza hortulana in the Marche region, a key area for the species’ conservation in Italy. Aims: To evaluate the land-use determinants of the occurrence of the Ortolan Bunting, a species strikingly declining in recent decades. Methods: Within the Marche region, the Italian stronghold of the species, we surveyed 20 plots in the hilly belt of Pesaro-Urbino province, and recorded different potential land-cover drivers of the occurrence of Ortolan Buntings. We modelled habitat selection according to environmental variables measured in the field at an equal number of territory and control sites, using generalized linear models. Results: We found 104 territories of Ortolan Buntings. Different groups of predictors (crop cover, marginal habitats, other land-uses) were similarly important; positive drivers of the species’ occurrence were the covers of cereal, dead trees, pure and mixed Tamarisk rows, other crops, sunflower, and reeds; covers of broom had a quadratic effect, while negative effects were found with seminatural grassland, paved roads, and isolated shrubs. The disappearance of cultural landscapes, which is ongoing in many European areas, resulted in the loss of elements typically found in low-intensity farming systems and of particular importance for the species. Tamarisk rows may provide multiple benefits, offering song posts and potential nesting sites close to the ground, and their abundance in the Marche region could contribute to explain why Ortolan Buntings are locally more common there, compared to other Italian regions. Conclusions: The maintenance of Tamarisk rows, marginal habitats and crop heterogeneity are key measures needed to support Ortolan Bunting populations.