Land use change trajectories, conservation status and social importance of dry forests in Nicaragua

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
FEDERICA RAVERA ◽  
DAVID TARRASÓN ◽  
JOSEP MARÍA ESPELTA

SUMMARYInterdisciplinary studies have proved the interconnectedness of history and ecology relevant to forest conservation proposals and management policies. Engaging local views and concerns in the evaluation and monitoring process can lead to more robust knowledge in the pursuit of effective conservation. This study aimed to assess the degree to which land use change trajectories influence the state of tropical dry forest conservation, as evaluated by scientists and local people. Focusing on northern Nicaragua, the research identified three historical trajectories for types and magnitude of forest disturbance. The assessment process included inventorying sites under different trajectories and integrating ecological and social indicators (namely local perceptions of biodiversity value and concern over species threat). The different land use change trajectories had no influence on the present structure of the dry forest, but strongly affected species diversity, composition and their social importance. The study provided evidence of positive species selection by farmers, which suggested a feedback loop between ecological conditions, social value and awareness of conservation.

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 13
Author(s):  
David Josué Mejía Quintanilla ◽  
Bernal Rodríguez-Herrera ◽  
Manuel Spinola-Parallada ◽  
Juan Pablo Suazo-Euceda Suazo-Euceda ◽  
Leonel Marineros ◽  
...  

ResumenA lo largo de las últimas décadas, los bosques en Centroamérica han sufrido grandes cambios en los usos de la tierra, así como la reducción de los diferentes tipos de bosques. Los efectos de esta reducción, sumado a estos cambios, podrían ser una fuerte amenaza para la diversidad de murciélagos, puesto que estos animales se especializan en cazar o buscar alimento en ambientes específicos. Dado que hay conocimiento limitado sobre la situación actual de riesgo o estado de conservación de los murciélagos de Honduras y en especial, de los murciélagos insectívoros, se evaluaron las potenciales amenazas generadas por los cambios de uso de la tierra y la consecuente reducción en las áreas naturales, tomando en cuenta cinco especies de murciélagos de la Familia Emballonuridae. Además se cuantificó el área bajo protección en los que se localizaron los embalonúridos y se determinaron los vacíos de conservación para cada una de las especies. Para esto se utilizaron los mapas de distribución de las especies y las capas de uso de la tierra 2001 y 2009 con lo que se lograron visualizar las tendencias del cambio de uso de la tierra entre ambos periodos. Los vacíos de conservación se determinaron usando las capas de áreas protegidas y microcuencas declaradas hasta el 2015 y se traslaparon con la distribución de las cinco especies de murciélagos. Los resultados del análisis del cambio en el uso de la tierra muestran una predominancia de los sistemas productivos humanos en todas las distribuciones de las diferentes especies de murciélagos, por lo cual el efecto potencial del cambio de uso de la tierra es alto. Por otro lado, las especies registran una baja proporción dentro de áreas bajo protección. La mayoría de las especies enfrentan cambios de uso de la tierra bastante marcados y bajos niveles de protección, especialmente las que se distribuyen en bosque seco y bosque de pino.Palabras clave: Gremios, Chiroptera, forrajeo, Saccopteryx, Peropteryx, Balantiopteryx.AbstractForests in Central America have suffered land use changes in the past decades, as well as a decrease in its size. The effects of this reduction, added to these changes, could represent a threat for bat diversity since these animals specialize in hunting or foraging in specific environments. Since there is scarce knowledge of the current situation or conservation status of bats in Honduras, specially of insectivorous bats, we assessed potential threats of land use change and the consequent reduction of natural areas regarding five species of bats belonging to the Emballonuridae family. We also quantified protected areas where Emballonuridae bats were located and defined conservation gaps for each species. To do this, we used species distribution maps and land use layers of 2001 and 2009, where we could visualize land use change tendency between both periods. Conservation gaps were defined using protected areas and micro-watersheds layers declared until 2015, which were overlapped with the distribution of the five bats species. The results of the analysis of land use change show a predominance of productive systems in the distribution of the different bat species, therefore land use change effect is potentially high. Also, species occurrence is low under protected areas. Most of the species confront a high level of land use change and low levels of protection, especially those that inhabit dry forest and pine forest.Key words: Guild, Chiroptera, forage, Saccopteryx, Peropteryx, Balanptioteryx.


Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 306
Author(s):  
Vinicio Carrión-Paladines ◽  
Andreas Fries ◽  
Andrés Muñoz ◽  
Eddy Castillo ◽  
Roberto García-Ruiz ◽  
...  

This study evaluated the effects of land-use change (L-UCH) on dung beetle community structure (Scarabaeinae) in a disturbed dry ecosystem in southern Ecuador. Five different L-UCH classes were analyzed by capturing the dung beetle species at each site using 120 pitfall traps in total. To determine dung beetle abundance and diversity at each L-UCH, a general linear model (GLM) and a redundancy analysis (RDA) were applied, which correlated environmental and edaphic conditions to the community structure. Furthermore, changes in dung-producing vertebrate fauna were examined, which varied significantly between the different L-UCH classes due to the specific anthropogenic use or level of ecosystem disturbance. The results indicated that soil organic matter, pH, potassium, and phosphorus (RDA: component 1), as well as temperature and altitude (RDA: component 2) significantly affect the abundance of beetles (GLM: p value < 0.001), besides the food availability (dung). The highest abundance and diversity (Simpson’s index > 0.4, Shannon-Wiener index > 1.10) was found in highly disturbed sites, where soils were generally more compacted, but with a greater food supply due to the introduced farm animals. At highly disturbed sites, the species Canthon balteatus, Dichotomius problematicus, and Onthphagus confuses were found specifically, which makes them useful as bio-indicators for disturbed dry forest ecosystems in southern Ecuador.


Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 506
Author(s):  
Adeline M. Maciel ◽  
Michelle C. A. Picoli ◽  
Lubia Vinhas ◽  
Gilberto Camara

Many of the world’s agricultural frontiers are located in the tropics. Crop and cattle expansion in these regions has a strong environmental impact. This paper examines land use and land cover transformations in Brazil, where large swaths of natural vegetation are being removed to make way for agricultural production. In Brazil, the land use dynamics are of great interest regarding the country’s sustainable development and climate mitigation actions, leading to the formulation and implantation of public policies and supply chain interventions to reduce deforestation. This paper uses temporal trajectory analysis to discuss the patterns of agricultural practices change in the different biomes of Mato Grosso State, one of Brazil’s agricultural frontiers. Taking yearly land use and cover classified images from 2001 to 2017, we identified, quantified, and spatialized areas of stability, intensification, reduction, interchange, and expansion of single and double cropping. The LUC Calculus was used as a tool to extract information about trajectories and trajectories of change. Over two decades, the land use change trajectories uncover the interplay between forest removal, cattle raising, grain production, and secondary vegetation regrowth. We observed a direct relationship between the conversion of forest areas to pasture and of pasture to agriculture areas in the Amazon portion of the Mato Grosso State in different periods. Our results enable a better understanding of trends in agricultural practices.


Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 581
Author(s):  
Markandu Anputhas ◽  
Johannus Janmaat ◽  
Craig Nichol ◽  
Adam Wei

Research Highlights: Forest conservation policies can drive land-use change to other land-use types. In multifunctional landscapes, forest conservation policies will therefore impact on other functions delivered by the landscape. Finding the best pattern of land use requires considering these interactions. Background and Objectives: Population growth continues to drive the development of land for urban purposes. Consequently, there is a loss of other land uses, such as agriculture and forested lands. Efforts to conserve one type of land use will drive more change onto other land uses. Absent effective collaboration among affected communities and relevant institutional agents, unexpected and undesirable land-use change may occur. Materials and Methods: A CLUE-S (Conversion of Land Use and its Effects at Small Scales) model was developed for the Deep Creek watershed, a small sub-basin in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. The valley is experiencing among the most rapid population growth of any region in Canada. Land uses were aggregated into one forested land-use type, one urban land-use type, and three agricultural types. Land-use change was simulated for combinations of two forest conservation policies. Changes are categorized by location, land type, and an existing agricultural land policy. Results: Forest conservation policies drive land conversion onto agricultural land and may increase the loss of low elevation forested land. Model results show where the greatest pressure for removing land from agriculture is likely to occur for each scenario. As an important corridor for species movement, the loss of low elevation forest land may have serious impacts on habitat connectivity. Conclusions: Forest conservation policies that do not account for feedbacks can have unintended consequences, such as increasing conversion pressures on other valued land uses. To avoid surprises, land-use planners and policy makers need to consider these interactions. Models such as CLUE-S can help identify these spatial impacts.


Author(s):  
Rishiraj Das ◽  
Deborah Lawrence ◽  
Paolo D'Odorico ◽  
Marcia DeLonge

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 315-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bárbara Ayala-Orozco ◽  
Mayra E. Gavito ◽  
Francisco Mora ◽  
Ilyas Siddique ◽  
Patricia Balvanera ◽  
...  

Mammalia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julio Chacón-Pacheco ◽  
Camilo Ramos Madera ◽  
Mariella Superina

Abstract The northern naked-tailed armadillo (Cabassous centralis) is a small, poorly known armadillo species. We update the state of knowledge on this species, provide information on its current and potential distribution, and assess its conservation status and threats. We reviewed the existing literature and obtained georeferenced records from publications, online databases, and field researchers. A total of 174 documents mentioning C. centralis have been published between 1855 and 2019, about half of which (83) provided information on its distribution. The majority of publications came from Colombia. About 10% of publications included information about its ecology, concluding that it is a rare species that mainly occurs in areas with secondary vegetation. It seems to prefer complex habitats, as it is rarely found in fragmented or modified habitats. Consequently, it is possible that its ability to adapt to land use change is low. A total of 224 confirmed records allowed us to extend the species range to the northern Lacandona Forest in Mexico, the Andes of Colombia and southwards in Ecuador. Nevertheless, a distribution model suggests that the species could be even more widely distributed. C. centralis is listed in a threatened category in two countries, whereas more than half of the range countries have not assessed its conservation status. We consider its current global listing as Data Deficient to be appropriate, as many aspects of its ecology, reproduction, population size and trend, and the degree of impact of potential threats remain unknown.


2013 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph Schmitz ◽  
Hans van Meijl ◽  
Page Kyle ◽  
Gerald C. Nelson ◽  
Shinichiro Fujimori ◽  
...  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document