Agricultural intensification is a major driver of biodiversity loss, but the majority of studies highlighting these threats come from industrialised agriculture in temperate countries of the global North. However, more than 30% of global food production is produced by smallholder farmers, particularly in Africa. We know very little about the impact of these farming practices on arthropod communities and associated ecosystems in dryland agroecosystems. We investigated the trophic group composition of arthropod communities (detritivorous, herbivorous, predatory & mixed feeders) and levels of associated ecosystem functions in replicated maize fields, paired adjacent natural bushveld habitats and the edge habitats between them in north-eastern Namibia and central-eastern Botswana during the dry and wet seasons. Predator activity densities differed significantly between habitats depending on the season, with higher numbers in natural habitats in the wet season but lower numbers in the dry season compared to maize fields. In general, edge habitats had higher numbers of predators than the other habitats. Predator attack rates on artificial caterpillars in both seasons and dung removal in the wet season were higher in habitats with natural vegetation (natural and edge). However, dung removal in the dry season and herbivory in the wet season were highest in the maize fields, the latter due to high level of fall armyworm infestation. Wet season multifunctionality was higher in natural habitats in Botswana, and to a lesser extent in Namibia, than in maize fields. Smallholder agriculture is not detrimental to decomposers, herbivores and mixed feeders compared to adjacent natural habitats, but may be detrimental to the provision of some ecosystem services. These results highlight the challenge of sustainably managing dryland agricultural land that is marginal for crop production, while providing smallholders with an optimal environment to benefit from the ecosystem services associated with arthropod communities. New conservation agriculture practices need to support the production of higher and more stable yields over time, while maintaining the limited impact of smallholder agriculture on biotic communities.

农业集约化是生物多样性丧失的主要驱动因素，但大多数强调这些威胁的研究来自北半球温带国家的工业化农业。然而，全球 30% 以上的粮食产量是由小农生产的，特别是在非洲。我们对这些耕作方式对旱地农业生态系统中节肢动物群落和相关生态系统的影响知之甚少。我们调查了纳米比亚东北部和中东部地区复制的玉米田、配对的相邻天然灌木丛生境以及它们之间的边缘生境中节肢动物群落（碎食性、草食性、捕食性和混合饲养性）的营养类群组成以及相关生态系统功能的水平。博茨瓦纳的旱季和雨季。根据季节的不同，不同栖息地的捕食者活动密度存在显着差异，与玉米田相比，雨季自然栖息地的捕食者活动密度较高，但旱季的捕食者活动密度较低。一般来说，边缘栖息地的捕食者数量高于其他栖息地。在有自然植被（自然植被和边缘植被）的栖息地，捕食者在两个季节对人造毛毛虫的攻击率以及雨季的粪便清除率都较高。然而，玉米田旱季的粪便清除量和雨季的草食性最高，后者是由于秋粘虫侵扰程度较高所致。与玉米田相比，博茨瓦纳自然栖息地的雨季多功能性较高，纳米比亚的湿季多功能性较低。与邻近的自然栖息地相比，小农农业不会对分解动物、食草动物和混合饲养动物产生不利影响，但可能不利于某些生态系统服务的提供。这些结果凸显了可持续管理对作物生产来说是边际的旱地农业用地的挑战，同时为小农户提供最佳环境，以从与节肢动物群落相关的生态系统服务中受益。新的保护性农业实践需要支持随着时间的推移获得更高、更稳定的产量，同时保持小农农业对生物群落的有限影响。