scholarly journals Cohabitation in Suburbia; Improving New Zealand's Biodiversity through Suburban Environments

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophie Whiddett
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Landscape Architecture ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Native Vegetation ◽  
Low Density

<p><b>THE PROBLEMOne of the major crises facing the world today is ever increasing biodiversity loss; the primary cause of which stems from land-use change (Sih et al., 2011). Land-use changes have a wider impact on biotic and abiotic life than what becomes evident in the immediate landscape surroundings. The five main impacts on landscape are habitat loss/fragmentation and isolation, the spread of exotic species, harvesting, pollution, and climate change (Sih et al., 2011).</b></p> <p>In Aotearoa New Zealand, land cover has changed significantly from 80% native forest to only 20% in the 800 years of human settlement (Ministry for the Environment, 2019), leading to a huge loss of habitat for native bird species. With a growing population the demand for land dedicated to new housing continues to transform the New Zealand landscape.</p> <p>This investigation considers how green-field housing expansion is changing land-use and land-cover, by examining the relationship between bird life and suburban landscapes. It seeks to identify and demonstrate ways landscape architecture can positively intervene in biodiversity loss and its associated environmental degradation, at the local scale. It speculates on how biodiverse communities are achieved or maintained in areas of human inhabitation.</p> <p>IS IT A QUESTION OF PRESERVATION?</p> <p>Habitat loss is a major reason for the loss of native bird species in New Zealand. As an attempt to mitigate this, New Zealand’s environmental legislation focuses primarily on preserving remnant patches of native vegetation. Around 32% of New Zealand’s land area is currently zoned as a protected area1. These areas are managed to protect biodiversity and typically allow low level of human activity (eg. walking, biking) but no permanent occupation.</p> <p>There are also several laws in place to protect native bush and prevent deforestation and between 80-90% of surviving native bush is under management of the Department of Conservation. The Resource Management Act is key to the governance of this protection along with the New Zealand Forest Accord (Ministry of the Environment, 1997). Additionally, individual trees may be identified as significant or heritage trees by individual councils that require consent to remove.</p> <p>It is evident in New Zealand that conservation methods are deployed to protect rare and vulnerable elements of biodiversity as a priority (Anderson, 1998, as cited in Midler, 2007). This approach creates pockets of native vegetation that can provide habitat for bird species, but such a focus does not address or guide a holistic approach to habitat protection within New Zealand. Whilst protected areas are vital habitat for many human sensitive native species, such as Kiwi, in most cases preservation is not enough to prevent overall species decline. As such, despite preservation efforts an estimated “eighty percent of our bird species are now threatened with extinction” (Forest & Bird, 2018).</p> <p>WHAT ABOUT COHABITATION?</p> <p>As preservation areas alone do not allow native bird species to thrive, opportunities to create habitats for wildlife within human-dominated landscapes become necessary (Rosenweig, 2003a).</p> <p>When considering human-dominated areas, low levels of biodiversity are seen in dense urban areas1 and rural areas2, but there is a peak in low residential/ suburban areas. This peak is often attributed the wide variety of plant species occurring within residential homes. Though the use of exotic plant species is generally high, these species are often flowering or fruiting species which can provide year-round food sources for wildlife. The low density and restrictions on site coverage make the areas more easily traversed, with many trees and bushes providing resting points. (Beninde et al, 2015; Donnelly & Marzuff, 2004).</p> <p>Settlements currently make up less than 10% of New Zealand’s land-use, but growing populations are leading to a rapid expansion of urban areas (Falconer, 2015). This expansion is in part vertical, with many city councils supporting increased densification in their central areas; but horizontal sprawl remains prevalent, with continued pursuit of low density residential development on land at urban margins.</p> <p>The legal protection of state-owned reserve land and native bush remnants means that most land converted to housing in New Zealand is privately owned farmland. Given that suburban density affords higher levels of biodiversity than farmland, this would indicate that within a New Zealand context, suburban expansion actually has the potential to improve national biodiversity. Current New Zealand suburban environments support only a limited number of native bird species and the prevailing suburban design would have to change to support a wider range of native birds.</p> <p>Additionally, surrounding land-use is shown to have an impact on the biodiversity value of reserve lands (Beninde et al, 2015). This research suggests a new suburban landscape could not only provide an expansion of habitable areas for native avian species, but also increase the success of existing local reserve lands, through improving the suburban environment, thus decreasing the negative impacts of habitat fragmentation.</p> <p>The practice of landscape architecture offers the capacity and responsibility to consider how human occupied areas can begin to accommodate non-human species and direct our urban landscapes towards becoming co-habitable spaces. This research will therefore aim to capitalise on the potential of suburbia as a habitat for native bird species through the method of a design-led research. Using the potential of cohabitation as a driver, it will explore an alternative approach to green-field housing development. Here ecological principles are placed at the forefront of design, using a ‘green-field’ case-study site in Plimmerton’s designated Northern Growth Area of Porirua.</p>

scholarly journals Cohabitation in Suburbia; Improving New Zealand's Biodiversity through Suburban Environments

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophie Whiddett
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Landscape Architecture ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Native Vegetation ◽  
Low Density

<p><b>THE PROBLEMOne of the major crises facing the world today is ever increasing biodiversity loss; the primary cause of which stems from land-use change (Sih et al., 2011). Land-use changes have a wider impact on biotic and abiotic life than what becomes evident in the immediate landscape surroundings. The five main impacts on landscape are habitat loss/fragmentation and isolation, the spread of exotic species, harvesting, pollution, and climate change (Sih et al., 2011).</b></p> <p>In Aotearoa New Zealand, land cover has changed significantly from 80% native forest to only 20% in the 800 years of human settlement (Ministry for the Environment, 2019), leading to a huge loss of habitat for native bird species. With a growing population the demand for land dedicated to new housing continues to transform the New Zealand landscape.</p> <p>This investigation considers how green-field housing expansion is changing land-use and land-cover, by examining the relationship between bird life and suburban landscapes. It seeks to identify and demonstrate ways landscape architecture can positively intervene in biodiversity loss and its associated environmental degradation, at the local scale. It speculates on how biodiverse communities are achieved or maintained in areas of human inhabitation.</p> <p>IS IT A QUESTION OF PRESERVATION?</p> <p>Habitat loss is a major reason for the loss of native bird species in New Zealand. As an attempt to mitigate this, New Zealand’s environmental legislation focuses primarily on preserving remnant patches of native vegetation. Around 32% of New Zealand’s land area is currently zoned as a protected area1. These areas are managed to protect biodiversity and typically allow low level of human activity (eg. walking, biking) but no permanent occupation.</p> <p>There are also several laws in place to protect native bush and prevent deforestation and between 80-90% of surviving native bush is under management of the Department of Conservation. The Resource Management Act is key to the governance of this protection along with the New Zealand Forest Accord (Ministry of the Environment, 1997). Additionally, individual trees may be identified as significant or heritage trees by individual councils that require consent to remove.</p> <p>It is evident in New Zealand that conservation methods are deployed to protect rare and vulnerable elements of biodiversity as a priority (Anderson, 1998, as cited in Midler, 2007). This approach creates pockets of native vegetation that can provide habitat for bird species, but such a focus does not address or guide a holistic approach to habitat protection within New Zealand. Whilst protected areas are vital habitat for many human sensitive native species, such as Kiwi, in most cases preservation is not enough to prevent overall species decline. As such, despite preservation efforts an estimated “eighty percent of our bird species are now threatened with extinction” (Forest & Bird, 2018).</p> <p>WHAT ABOUT COHABITATION?</p> <p>As preservation areas alone do not allow native bird species to thrive, opportunities to create habitats for wildlife within human-dominated landscapes become necessary (Rosenweig, 2003a).</p> <p>When considering human-dominated areas, low levels of biodiversity are seen in dense urban areas1 and rural areas2, but there is a peak in low residential/ suburban areas. This peak is often attributed the wide variety of plant species occurring within residential homes. Though the use of exotic plant species is generally high, these species are often flowering or fruiting species which can provide year-round food sources for wildlife. The low density and restrictions on site coverage make the areas more easily traversed, with many trees and bushes providing resting points. (Beninde et al, 2015; Donnelly & Marzuff, 2004).</p> <p>Settlements currently make up less than 10% of New Zealand’s land-use, but growing populations are leading to a rapid expansion of urban areas (Falconer, 2015). This expansion is in part vertical, with many city councils supporting increased densification in their central areas; but horizontal sprawl remains prevalent, with continued pursuit of low density residential development on land at urban margins.</p> <p>The legal protection of state-owned reserve land and native bush remnants means that most land converted to housing in New Zealand is privately owned farmland. Given that suburban density affords higher levels of biodiversity than farmland, this would indicate that within a New Zealand context, suburban expansion actually has the potential to improve national biodiversity. Current New Zealand suburban environments support only a limited number of native bird species and the prevailing suburban design would have to change to support a wider range of native birds.</p> <p>Additionally, surrounding land-use is shown to have an impact on the biodiversity value of reserve lands (Beninde et al, 2015). This research suggests a new suburban landscape could not only provide an expansion of habitable areas for native avian species, but also increase the success of existing local reserve lands, through improving the suburban environment, thus decreasing the negative impacts of habitat fragmentation.</p> <p>The practice of landscape architecture offers the capacity and responsibility to consider how human occupied areas can begin to accommodate non-human species and direct our urban landscapes towards becoming co-habitable spaces. This research will therefore aim to capitalise on the potential of suburbia as a habitat for native bird species through the method of a design-led research. Using the potential of cohabitation as a driver, it will explore an alternative approach to green-field housing development. Here ecological principles are placed at the forefront of design, using a ‘green-field’ case-study site in Plimmerton’s designated Northern Growth Area of Porirua.</p>

scholarly journals Changes of Land Use and Land Cover with the Diversity of Fishes, Aquatic Plants, and Bird’s Species at Wetland Ecosystem

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Mohammad Zahangeer Alam ◽  
Md. Abdullahil Baki Bhuiyan ◽  
Hasan Muhammad Abdullah ◽  
Suma Rani Ghosh ◽  
Mohammad Maksudul Hassan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Aquatic Plants ◽  
Aquatic Plant ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Wetland Biodiversity ◽  
Wallago Attu ◽  
The Government

Bangladesh is rich in wetland biodiversity with aquatic plants, fishes, and birds. Mohanganj Upazila is known as the capital of lower Bangladesh. The present study focuses on the changes of land use and land cover (LULC) with a diversity of species that are being least concerned (LC), vulnerable (VU), and endangered (EN). Over the last two decades, the wetland species of Mohanganj were gradually declined. Our results showed that 19 fish, 4 aquatic plants, and 7 bird species were LC in 2015. Among the fish and aquatic plant species, 6 fish species (Wallago attu, Ompok pabda, Channa punctate, Chitala chitala, Salmostoma phulo, and Corica soborna) and 2 aquatic plant species (Nymphaea nouchali and Nymphaea lotus) were VU during the dry and rainy season of 2017 and 2019, respectively. In the dry season of 2019, 4 fish species (W. attu, O. pabda, C. punctate, and Ch. chitala), 2 aquatic plant species (N. nouchali and N. lotus), and 7 bird species (Anas platyrhynchos, Ardeola grayii, Gyps bengalensis, Alcedo atthis, Phalacrocorax fuscicollis, Porphyrio porphyria, and Larus ridibundus) were EN. Among the species, W. attu, N. nouchaii, G. bengalensis, P. porphyria, and L. ridibundus were extremely endangered categories. Changes in LULC, the establishment of settlements for the increasing population, indiscriminate use of pesticides, environmental pollutions, and climate change are the potential reasons for declining trends of wetland biodiversity. Stern actions on land use policy, expansion of organic agriculture, bioremediation of industrial effluents, and adoption of sustainable environmental policies should be taken by the Government of Bangladesh for immediate conservation of wetland biodiversity.

scholarly journals Threats of future climate change and land use to vulnerable tree species native to Southern California

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
ERIN C. RIORDAN ◽  
THOMAS W. GILLESPIE ◽  
LINCOLN PITCHER ◽  
STEPHANIE S. PINCETL ◽  
G. DARREL JENERETTE ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Southern California ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Future Climate Change ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel

SUMMARYClimate and land-use changes are expected to drive high rates of environmental change and biodiversity loss in Mediterranean ecosystems this century. This paper compares the relative future impacts of land use and climate change on two vulnerable tree species native to Southern California (Juglans californica and Quercus engelmannii) using species distribution models. Under the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change's A1B future scenario, high levels of both projected land use and climate change could drive considerable habitat losses on these two already heavily-impacted tree species. Under scenarios of no dispersal, projected climate change poses a greater habitat loss threat relative to projected land use for both species. Assuming unlimited dispersal, climate-driven habitat gains could offset some of the losses due to both drivers, especially in J. californica which could experience net habitat gains under combined impacts of both climate change and land use. Quercus engelmannii, in contrast, could experience net habitat losses under combined impacts, even under best-case unlimited dispersal scenarios. Similarly, projected losses and gains in protected habitat are highly sensitive to dispersal scenario, with anywhere from > 60% loss in protected habitat (no dispersal) to > 170% gain in protected habitat (unlimited dispersal). The findings underscore the importance of dispersal in moderating future habitat loss for vulnerable species.

scholarly journals Ecological traits affect the response of tropical forest bird species to land-use intensity

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1750) ◽  
pp. 20122131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Newbold ◽  
Jörn P. W. Scharlemann ◽  
Stuart H. M. Butchart ◽  
Çağan H. Şekercioğlu ◽  
Rob Alkemade ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Land Use Intensity ◽  
Ecological Traits ◽  
Human Land Use ◽  
Average Probability ◽  
Land Use Intensity Gradient

Land-use change is one of the main drivers of current and likely future biodiversity loss. Therefore, understanding how species are affected by it is crucial to guide conservation decisions. Species respond differently to land-use change, possibly related to their traits. Using pan-tropical data on bird occurrence and abundance across a human land-use intensity gradient, we tested the effects of seven traits on observed responses. A likelihood-based approach allowed us to quantify uncertainty in modelled responses, essential for applying the model to project future change. Compared with undisturbed habitats, the average probability of occurrence of bird species was 7.8 per cent and 31.4 per cent lower, and abundance declined by 3.7 per cent and 19.2 per cent in habitats with low and high human land-use intensity, respectively. Five of the seven traits tested affected the observed responses significantly: long-lived, large, non-migratory, primarily frugivorous or insectivorous forest specialists were both less likely to occur and less abundant in more intensively used habitats than short-lived, small, migratory, non-frugivorous/insectivorous habitat generalists. The finding that species responses to land use depend on their traits is important for understanding ecosystem functioning, because species' traits determine their contribution to ecosystem processes. Furthermore, the loss of species with particular traits might have implications for the delivery of ecosystem services.

Long-term land use and land cover changes (1920–2015) in Eastern Ghats, India: Pattern of dynamics and challenges in plant species conservation

2018 ◽  
Vol 85 ◽  
pp. 21-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reshma M. Ramachandran ◽  
Parth Sarathi Roy ◽  
V. Chakravarthi ◽  
J. Sanjay ◽  
Pawan K. Joshi
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Eastern Ghats ◽  
Land Cover Changes

scholarly journals Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) Using Landsat Data Series (MSS, TM, ETM+ and OLI) in Azrou Forest, in the Central Middle Atlas of Morocco

Environments ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. 131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meriame Mohajane ◽  
Ali Essahlaoui ◽  
Fatiha Oudija ◽  
Mohammed El Hafyani ◽  
Abdellah El Hmaidi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Development ◽  
High Density ◽  
Thematic Mapper ◽  
Data Series ◽  
Landsat 8 ◽  
Low Density ◽  
Land Use Land Cover ◽  
Middle Atlas

The study of land use/land cover (LULC) has become an increasingly important stage in the development of forest ecosystems strategies. Hence, the main goal of this study was to describe the vegetation change of Azrou Forest in the Middle Atlas, Morocco, between 1987 and 2017. To achieve this, a set of Landsat images, including one Multispectral Scanner (MSS) scene from 1987; one Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) scene from 2000; two Thematic Mapper (TM) scenes from 1995 and 2011; and one Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) scene from 2017; were acquired and processed. Ground-based survey data and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) were used to identify and to improve the discrimination between LULC categories. Then, the maximum likelihood (ML) classification method was applied was applied, in order to produce land cover maps for each year. Three classes were considered by the classification of NDVI value: low-density vegetation; moderate-density vegetation, and high-density vegetation. Our study achieved classification accuracies of 66.8% (1987), 99.9% (1995), 99.8% (2000), 99.9% (2011), and 99.9% (2017). The results from the Landsat-based image analysis show that the area of low-density vegetation was decreased from 27.4% to 2.1% over the past 30 years. While, in 2017, the class of high-density vegetation was increased to 64.6% of the total area of study area. The results of this study show that the total forest cover remained stable. The present study highlights the importance of the image classification algorithms combined with NDVI index for better understanding the changes that have occurred in this forest. Therefore, the findings of this study could assist planners and decision-makers to guide, in a good manner, the sustainable land development of areas with similar backgrounds.

scholarly journals Analysis of land use change and its relation to land potential and elephant habitat at Besitang Watershed, North Sumatra, Indonesia

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 350-358
Author(s):  
WANDA KUSWANDA ◽  
AHMAD DANY SUNANDAR
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Secondary Forest ◽  
Stable State ◽  
Species Density ◽  
Vegetation Analysis ◽  
North Sumatra

Kuswanda W, Sunandar AD. 2019. Analysis of land use change and its relation to land potential and elephant habitat at Besitang Watershed, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 20: 350-358. Land use change from forest into plantation at a watershed could be detrimental both for humans and wildlife. This study was aimed to analyze land use change and its impact on the habitat potential of Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus Temminck, 1857) in the upstream of Besitang Watershed located at Gunung Leuser National Park (GLNP), North Sumatra, Indonesia. The study was conducted from April to November 2015. Data collection was made through land cover map analysis, ground check and vegetation analysis using strip transect method. Land use change was analyzed using ArcView 3.2 software, species diversity was calculated using Shannon-Weiner formula and community evenness indices. Based on map delineation, total extent of Besitang Watershed is about 95,428 hectares. The analysis results showed that, in the past 25 years, about 15,989 hectares of land was changed from forests and farms to monoculture plantations. These changes have caused conflicts and threatened elephant population. As many as 168 species of plants were identified during vegetation analysis in the three study locations, namely Bukit Mas primary forest (88 species), Sekundur mixed secondary forest (91 species) and Halaban secondary forest (68 species). Average Importance Value Index (IVI) was below 40% which indicates that there are no dominant plant species. Tree density was between 360 and 497,5 individual/ha, sapling density was between 2,640 and 4,680 individual/ha, and density of seedling and understory plants was between 27,750 and 38,500 individual/ha. Species diversity index for each plant growth stage was relatively high (H’>3) and the similarity of plant species across locations was generally low (IS = <50%). Analysis of the correlation between land cover differences and habitat features showed statistically significant effects on species density and frequency. The highest effect of land cover change is on species density with the correlation reaching 94.5%. Forests in GLNP will be able to regenerate naturally to reach a stable state if there is no more land clearing to raise plantations.

scholarly journals Europe’s Green Arteries—A Continental Dataset of Riparian Zones

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christof J. Weissteiner ◽  
Martin Ickerott ◽  
Hannes Ott ◽  
Markus Probeck ◽  
Gernot Ramminger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Vegetation Indices ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Riparian Zones ◽  
Observation Data ◽  
Riparian Areas ◽  
Earth Observation Data

Riparian zones represent ecotones between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and are of utmost importance to biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Modelling/mapping of these valuable and fragile areas is needed for an improved ecosystem management, based on an accounting of changes and on monitoring of their functioning in time. In Europe, the main legislative driver behind this goal is the European Commission&rsquo;s Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, on one hand aiming at reducing biodiversity loss, on the other hand enhancing ecosystem services by 2020, and restoring them as far as feasible. A model, based on Earth Observation data, including Digital Elevation Models, hydrological, soil, land cover/land use data, and vegetation indices is employed in a multi-modular and stratified approach, based on fuzzy logic and object based image analysis, to delineate potential, observed and actual riparian zones. The approach is designed in an open modular way, allowing future modifications and repeatability. The results represent a first step of a future monitoring and assessment campaign for European riparian zones and their implications on biodiversity and on ecosystem functions and services. Considering the complexity and the enormous extent of the area, covering 39 European countries, including Turkey, the level of detail is unprecedented. Depending on the accounting modus, 0.95%&ndash;1.19% of the study area can be attributed as actual riparian area (considering Strahler&rsquo;s stream orders 3-8, based on the Copernicus EU-Hydro dataset), corresponding to 55,558&ndash;69.128 km2. Similarly depending on the accounting approach, the potential riparian zones are accounted for about 3-5 times larger. Land cover/land use in detected riparian areas was mainly of semi-natural characteristics, while the potential riparian areas are predominately covered by agriculture, followed by semi-natural and urban areas.

scholarly journals Urban biodiversity in an era of climate change: Towards an optimised landscape pattern in support of indigenous wildlife species in urban New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Amin Rastandeh
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Landscape Architecture ◽  
Green Space ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Wildlife Species ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Urban Fauna

<p>Biodiversity is the basis of life on the planet Earth. Without biodiversity, ecosystems and the life within them will not thrive. Nevertheless, biodiversity currently grapples with unprecedented challenges attributed to climate change and anthropogenic development, mostly in urban landscapes. While less than 3% of the world’s land surface is covered by urban settlements, biodiversity conservation in urban landscapes is vital because historically most cities have been established at ecosystem junctions where a variety of wildlife species co-exist and interact with abiotic resources to support ecosystem health, and therefore ecosystem services which are essential to human wellbeing, and indeed survival.  To support biodiversity and ensure ecosystem services in these human-occupied ecosystem junctions, developing and advancing accurate and reliable knowledge to enable the informed arrangement of ecological patterns and processes in space and time should perhaps be one of the principal tenets of landscape architecture in the twenty-first century. One way this can be fulfilled is through the spatial design of land cover patterns based upon what wildlife require to survive in such a changing and unpredictable atmosphere. Thus, there is an urgent need for undertaking research to inform landscape architecture researchers and practitioners who engage in a wide range of planned interventions in urban landscapes, including decision making on site selection and the allocation of land for human activities or nature preservation, long-term land use planning in its broad sense, urban forestry, landscape restoration, geo-design practices, etc.  In this research, Wellington New Zealand is chosen as the study area. Ecologically fragmented and rapidly growing, the city has been established and continues to expand at one of the most valuable ecosystem junctions in the Southern Hemisphere. As one of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots, New Zealand is experiencing widespread biodiversity loss in its urban landscapes. Unique but fragile, New Zealand indigenous fauna face a wide range of impacts imposed by climate change including ecosystem degradation and habitat loss, biological invasions by some exotic plants, an increased rate of predation by introduced mammals that is exacerbated by rising temperatures, the spread of diseases by introduced species, phenological changes, and food scarcity particularly during winter.  In response to these threats, this research drills down into the role of spatial patterning of patches of vegetation in order to safeguard indigenous fauna against climate change in urban New Zealand where possible. The aim is to examine opportunities for biodiversity conservation through spatial planning and design based upon the habitat requirements of urban fauna as a determinant factor for shaping and characterising urban landscapes. This is conducted to contribute to an informed spatial design of land cover patterns in relation to ecological processes in order to enhance human-wildlife co-existence in urban landscapes and to support the continuation of a wide range of ecosystem services in a climate that continues to change.  A novel methodology employed in this research involves (1) a questionnaire-centred survey of international scholars, (2) semi-structured interviews with New Zealand subject-matter experts, and (3) a GIS-based spatial analysis of Wellington New Zealand using a rich collection of spatial datasets. Arc Map v. 10.4.1, FRAGSTATS v.4.2, and a core set of 15 landscape metrics have been used to quantify and measure the current composition and configuration of land cover classes distributed in Wellington with regards to the spatial ecology of six keystone species endemic to New Zealand.  Results provide an array of land-based information applicable in landscape architecture research and practice. According to this research, the study area has suffered from widespread land cover change and habitat loss over the last two centuries. Although a large proportion of the urban landscape is still covered by different types of green space, in most, if not all, cases, the spatial composition and configuration of patches of vegetation do not meet the minimum habitat requirements that will allow urban fauna to respond effectively to the current threats attributed to climate change.  To avoid further biodiversity loss and ensure the natural regeneration of indigenous ecosystems in the region over time, this research suggests that the allocation of land for human activities and/or biodiversity conservation in urban New Zealand should be informed by an in-depth knowledge of the spatial ecology of keystone species, such as kererū and tūī. Based upon this key concept, it is informed interventions in the composition and configuration of land cover classes that are likely to contribute most effectively to safeguarding wildlife species from the local impacts of climate change in urban New Zealand, not necessarily conventional development of green spaces or increasing the percentage of green space per capita without careful strategic consideration of the location and nature of that green space. The nature and level of these interventions should be determined with particular regard to the floristic nature of each land cover class as well as ecological interactions between the land cover classes and urban fauna in space and time. These findings are discussed, depicted, and illustrated in detail and reveal, for the first time, an integrated picture of current capacities and bottlenecks for biodiversity conservation through spatial planning in the context of climate change in urban New Zealand.  The research ends with ten spatially-explicit recommendations for landscape architecture and land use planning practitioners in urban New Zealand, proposing practical solutions for achieving optimised landscape pattern compositions and configurations for safeguarding urban fauna against the impacts of climate change where possible. The research also opens up six specific areas of inquiry for future research in New Zealand and other regions with similar issues and challenges, worldwide.  While the research places particular emphasis on urban New Zealand, lessons learned can contribute to the body of landscape architecture knowledge on a global scale, and show that landscape architects have a critical role in maintaining and increasing the well-being of people in cities through focusing on the health of urban biodiversity.</p>

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