Data from: Widespread and major losses in multiple ecosystem services as a result of agricultural expansion in the Argentine Chaco

Where agriculture expands into tropical and subtropical forests, social-ecological impacts are typically strong. However, where and how frontier development impacts on ecosystem functioning and services is often unclear, including which services trade off against agricultural production. This constitutes a major barrier towards planning for more sustainable outcomes in deforestation frontiers. Here, we assessed spatiotemporal change in multiple ecosystem services in the Argentine Chaco, a global deforestation hotspot. We modelled and mapped five ecosystem functions (i.e., carbon storage in biomass, carbon storage in soil, erosion control, excess rainfall retention by vegetation, and soil fertility) which together provide three ecosystem services (i.e., agricultural suitability, climate regulation, and flood regulation) for 1985, 2000, and 2013. We then employed this information to identify and map: (i) main trade-offs between ecosystem services and agricultural production, and (ii) bundles of changes in ecosystem services through the use of Self-Organizing Maps. Our results highlight that land-use changes since 1985 have led to widespread and drastic declines in ecosystem functions and services across the Argentine Chaco. Mean losses of ecosystem services ranged between 6% and 10% for flood regulation, climate regulation and agricultural suitability. The largest losses occurred in the Dry Chaco sub-region between 2000 and 201 We find two main types of trade-offs between regulating ecosystem services and agricultural production. Increases in crop and pasture production occurred along with large and moderate losses, respectively, in flood regulation and climate regulation over 20% of the region. Our mapping of bundles identified five common patterns of change in ecosystem services, delineating areas of stable or degrading ecosystem service supply. This provides a powerful template for adaptive spatial planning. Synthesis and applications. Using the Argentinean Chaco as an example, we demonstrate how combining fine-scale land-use maps with biophysical models provides deep insights into the spatiotemporal patterns of changes in ecosystem services, and their trade-offs with agricultural production. The periodic updating of maps of trade-offs and bundles of change in ecosystem services provides key inputs for the adaptive management of highly dynamic and threatened landscapes, such as those in tropical and subtropical deforestation frontiers.当农业扩张进入热带与亚热带森林时，社会-生态影响通常较为显著。然而，毁林前沿的开发活动对生态系统功能与服务的具体影响范围及作用机制往往尚不明确，其中亦包含哪些生态系统服务会与农业生产产生权衡关系。这一现状已成为阻碍毁林前沿区域规划更可持续发展方案的主要障碍。 本研究以全球毁林热点区域——阿根廷查科（Argentine Chaco）为研究区，评估了其多种生态系统服务的时空变化特征。研究针对1985年、2000年与2013年三个时间节点，建模并绘制了五项生态系统功能指标，即生物量碳储量、土壤碳储量、侵蚀控制、植被持留过量降水能力以及土壤肥力；上述功能共同支撑了三项生态系统服务：农业适宜性、气候调节与洪水调节。 随后，本研究利用上述分析结果识别并绘制了两类对象：(i) 生态系统服务与农业生产之间的主要权衡关系；(ii) 借助自组织映射（Self-Organizing Maps）方法得到的生态系统服务变化集群。 研究结果表明，自1985年以来的土地利用变化已导致阿根廷查科地区的生态系统功能与服务出现大范围且剧烈的衰退。洪水调节、气候调节与农业适宜性三项服务的平均损失率介于6%至10%之间。其中损失最为严重的区域出现在2000年至2013年的干旱查科亚区。 我们发现调节型生态系统服务与农业生产之间存在两类主要权衡关系：在全区超过20%的区域内，作物与牧场生产的提升分别伴随着洪水调节服务的大幅损失（降幅超20%）与气候调节服务的中度损失。 本研究对变化集群的制图工作识别出五种常见的生态系统服务变化模式，划定了生态系统服务供给保持稳定或发生退化的区域。这为适应性空间规划提供了极具价值的参考框架。 综合与应用。以阿根廷查科地区为例，本研究证实了将精细尺度土地利用图与生物物理模型相结合，能够深入揭示生态系统服务变化的时空格局及其与农业生产的权衡关系。定期更新生态系统服务权衡与变化集群的相关地图，可为高度动态且受威胁的景观（如热带、亚热带毁林前沿区域）的适应性管理提供关键决策依据。