scholarly journals Habitat patches providing south–north connectivity are under-protected in a fragmented landscape

2021 ◽  
Vol 288 (1957) ◽  
pp. 20211010
Author(s):  
Thomas J. P. Travers ◽  
Jamie Alison ◽  
Sarah D. Taylor ◽  
Humphrey Q. P. Crick ◽  
Jenny A. Hodgson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Selection Procedure ◽  
Fragmented Landscape ◽  
Habitat Patches ◽  
As Species ◽  
Flow Through ◽  
Habitat Networks ◽  
Specialist Species ◽  
Priority Habitat ◽  
Habitat Specialist Species

As species’ ranges shift to track climate change, conservationists increasingly recognize the need to consider connectivity when designating protected areas (PAs). In fragmented landscapes, some habitat patches are more important than others in maintaining connectivity, and methods are needed for their identification. Here, using the Condatis methodology, we model range expansion through an adaptation of circuit theory. Specifically, we map ‘flow’ through 16 conservation priority habitat networks in England, quantifying how patches contribute to functional South–North connectivity. We also explore how much additional connectivity could be protected via a connectivity-led protection procedure. We find high-flow patches are often left out of existing PAs; across 12 of 16 habitat networks, connectivity protection falls short of area protection by 13.6% on average. We conclude that the legacy of past protection decisions has left habitat-specialist species vulnerable to climate change. This situation may be mirrored in many countries which have similar habitat protection principles. Addressing this requires specific planning tools that can account for the directions species may shift. Our connectivity-led reserve selection procedure efficiently identifies additional PAs that prioritize connectivity, protecting a median of 40.9% more connectivity in these landscapes with just a 10% increase in area.

scholarly journals Improving insect conservation across heterogeneous landscapes using species–habitat networks

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e10563
Author(s):  
Andree Cappellari ◽  
Lorenzo Marini
Keyword(s):  
Protected Area ◽  
Species Assemblages ◽  
Bipartite Network ◽  
Butterfly Species ◽  
Habitat Types ◽  
Habitat Network ◽  
Habitat Patches ◽  
Number Of Species ◽  
Habitat Networks ◽  
Specialist Species

Background One of the biggest challenges in conservation is to manage multiple habitats for the effective conservation of multiple species, especially when the focal species are mobile and use multiple resources across heterogeneous protected areas. The application of ecological network tools and the analysis of the resulting species–habitat networks can help to describe such complex spatial associations and improve the conservation of species at the landscape scale. Methods To exemplify the application of species–habitat networks, we present a case study on butterflies inhabiting multiple grassland types across a heterogeneous protected area in North-East Italy. We sampled adult butterflies in 44 sites, each belonging to one of the five major habitat types in the protected area, that is, disturbed grasslands, continuous grasslands, evolved grasslands, hay meadows and wet meadows. First, we applied traditional diversity analyses to explore butterfly species richness and evenness. Second, we built and analyzed both the unipartite network, linking habitat patches via shared species, and the bipartite network, linking species to individual habitat patches. Aims (i) To describe the emerging properties (connectance, modularity, nestedness, and robustness) of the species–habitat network at the scale of the whole protected area, and (ii) to identify the key habitats patches for butterfly conservation across the protected area, that is, those supporting the highest number of species and those with unique species assemblages (e.g., hosting specialist species). Results The species–habitat network appeared to have a weak modular structure, meaning that the main habitat types tended to host different species assemblages. However, the habitats also shared a large proportion of species that were able to visit multiple habitats and use resources across the whole study area. Even butterfly species typically considered as habitat specialists were actually observed across multiple habitat patches, suggesting that protecting them only within their focal habitat might be ineffective. Our species–habitat network approach helped identifying both central habitat patches that were able to support the highest number of species, and habitat patches that supported rare specialist species.

scholarly journals Seed dispersal by dispersing juvenile animals: a source of functional connectivity in fragmented landscapes

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 20190264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan P. González-Varo ◽  
Sarah Díaz-García ◽  
Juan M. Arroyo ◽  
Pedro Jordano
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Fragmented Landscape ◽  
Habitat Specialist ◽  
Fragmented Landscapes ◽  
Plant Dispersal ◽  
Link Functions ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
Specialist Species ◽  
Mobile Link ◽  
Habitat Specialist Species

Juvenile animals generally disperse from their birthplace to their future breeding territories. In fragmented landscapes, habitat-specialist species must disperse through the anthropogenic matrix where remnant habitats are embedded. Here, we test the hypothesis that dispersing juvenile frugivores leave a footprint in the form of seed deposition through the matrix of fragmented landscapes. We focused on the Sardinian warbler ( Sylvia melanocephala ), a resident frugivorous passerine. We used data from field sampling of bird-dispersed seeds in the forest and matrix of a fragmented landscape, subsequent disperser identification through DNA-barcoding analysis, and data from a national bird-ringing programme. Seed dispersal by Sardinian warblers was confined to the forest most of the year, but warblers contributed a peak of seed-dispersal events in the matrix between July and October, mainly attributable to dispersing juveniles. Our study uniquely connects animal and plant dispersal, demonstrating that juveniles of habitat-specialist frugivores can provide mobile-link functions transiently, but in a seasonally predictable way.

Effects of climate change and habitat loss on a forest-dependent bee species in a tropical fragmented landscape

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
André Nemésio ◽  
Daniel P. Silva ◽  
João Carlos Nabout ◽  
Sara Varela
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Fragmented Landscape

Madness of growth

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Hieronimus
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Technological Progress ◽  
Species Extinction ◽  
Scarce Resources ◽  
Relevant Today ◽  
As Species ◽  
Technological Growth ◽  
Military Conflicts

The progress of technology is considered by the majority as a reasonable endeavor. Nevertheless, the author tries to show that technological progress, in spite of its benefits, causes a variety of absurd dangers because of its uncontrolled growth. The author introduces the leading thinkers of a movement known as “Decroissance” which argues for a “philosophy of degrowth”. Degrowth means the undoing of technological growth and demands an end of its philosophy of “faster, wider, higher and more”. A destructive power can be seen in this, causing overexploitation in nature as well as the annihilation of humankind, not just by the machinery of war. Indeed, in view of the ecological and economical crises of our time, such as species extinction, the contaminations of the soil, the air and the sea, climate change and its impact on many societies, military conflicts due to scarce resources, then a return to more simplicity, frugality and reserve seems quite reasonable and absolutely essential in order to put an end to the madness. Hence the idea of “Decroissance” is quite relevant today and this article gives an instructive overview.

scholarly journals Forest-type specialization strongly predicts avian responses to tropical agriculture

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1913) ◽  
pp. 20191724
Author(s):  
Jacob B. Socolar ◽  
David S. Wilcove
Keyword(s):  
Forest Type ◽  
Soil Nutrient ◽  
Predictive Performance ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Habitat Associations ◽  
Habitat Specialization ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Specialist Species ◽  
Habitat Specialist Species ◽  
Poor Soil

Species’ traits influence how populations respond to land-use change. However, even in well-characterized groups such as birds, widely studied traits explain only a modest proportion of the variance in response across species. Here, we show that associations with particular forest types strongly predict the sensitivity of forest-dwelling Amazonian birds to agriculture. Incorporating these fine-scale habitat associations into models of population response dramatically improves predictive performance and markedly outperforms the functional traits that commonly appear in similar analyses. Moreover, by identifying habitat features that support assemblages of unusually sensitive habitat-specialist species, our model furnishes straightforward conservation recommendations. In Amazonia, species that specialize on forests along a soil–nutrient gradient (i.e. both rich-soil specialists and poor-soil specialists) are exceptionally sensitive to agriculture, whereas species that specialize on floodplain forests are unusually insensitive. Thus, habitat specialization per se does not predict disturbance sensitivity, but particular habitat associations do. A focus on conserving specific habitats that harbour highly sensitive avifaunas (e.g. poor-soil forest) would protect a critically threatened component of regional biodiversity. We present a conceptual model to explain the divergent responses of habitat specialists in the different habitats, and we suggest that similar patterns and conservation opportunities probably exist for other taxa and regions.

The age of island-like habitats impacts habitat specialist species richness

Ecology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 93 (5) ◽  
pp. 1106-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Horsák ◽  
Michal Hájek ◽  
Daniel Spitale ◽  
Petra Hájková ◽  
Daniel Dítě ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Habitat Specialist ◽  
Specialist Species ◽  
Habitat Specialist Species

The potential impacts of climate change on Australian subtropical rainforest

2011 ◽  
Vol 59 (5) ◽  
pp. 440 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Laidlaw ◽  
W. J. F. McDonald ◽  
R. John Hunter ◽  
D. A. Putland ◽  
R. L. Kitching
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Anthropogenic Climate Change ◽  
Cloud Base ◽  
Climate Change Scenarios ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
Vegetation Communities ◽  
Community Turnover ◽  
As Species ◽  
Break Points ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

The potential for anthropogenic climate change to impact upon native vegetation has emphasised the need for monitoring and for dynamic management regimes. Potential impacts are numerous, but will likely include the upslope movement of species’ ranges and increasing in situ turnover (compositional change) within plant assemblages. By assessing the potential impacts of climate change on subtropical rainforest communities in south-east Queensland through the establishment of an altitudinal transect, we aimed to establish the baseline composition of the vegetation and to develop two hypotheses against which climate change scenarios can be tested. The study identified existing high levels of turnover across tree assemblages from low to mid elevations absent at higher elevations and we predict: (1) subtropical rainforest communities which currently sit at the level of the cloud base (800–900 m) will experience increasing floristic turnover, and (2) novel vegetation communities will emerge as species move upslope in response to a changing climate. Monitoring floristic turnover as a surrogate for shifting climatic habitats may be confounded both by a lack of knowledge regarding the underlying turnover rates of rainforest communities and by the disparity in temporal scales of tree community turnover and accelerating anthropogenic climate change. The identification of ‘break points’ in the relationship between current vegetation communities and gradients of precipitation and temperature will allow better direction of monitoring efforts.

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