The potential contribution of common arable weeds in Germany to birds’ and arthropods’ biodiversity– an open-access reference collection

Abstract: Since 1950, the diversity of arable weeds, as well as arthropods and birds, has sunk
drastically in Germany and beyond. We investigate the role of arable weeds in supporting
biodiversity, particularly that of arthropods and birds. In this study, we reviewed 51 arable weed species and three genera common in Germany for their links to provide food and shelter for arthropods and birds. Direct and indirect linkages were counted based on data from published literature. In total, 5180 linkages were found. The data indicates that weeds support many ecosystem services.