Authors: Revilla-Martín, Natalia; Giralt, David;Bota, Gerard;Sanz-Pérez, Ana;Sardà-Palomera, Francesc;

Fallow lands provide a crucial habitat for steppe birds, and their reduction has been related to steppe bird population declines. In north-eastern Spain, a regional conservation measure that promotes the management of 3000 ha of fallow land has been proven to favour steppe bird populations by increasing the abundance of target species and other farmland birds. Nevertheless, its positive effects are variable within the steppe bird community. This study explores which are the characteristics that make fallow fields successful. We used variance partitioning methods to separate the effects of management (e.g. fallow age) from intrinsic field characteristics (e.g. field size) and landscape composition (e.g. amount of farmland area) on the presence of target species. Fallow management and landscape composition played different roles depending on the studied species. For Tetrax tetrax and Melanocorypha calandra landscape had the biggest effects, while management was the most important for Burhinus oedicnemus. Our results point out the importance of both dimensions when managing fallow fields for steppe bird conservation and highlight the importance of objective driven management. Knowing the keys of successful management at field level and optimal planning at landscape level would help improve the design of targeted conservation plans and future Agri-environment-climate measures.