Promoting Landscape-Level Forest Management in Fire-Prone Areas: Delegate Management to a Multi-Owner Collaborative, Rent the Land, or Just Sell It?

Forest management at the landscape level is a requirement for reducing wildfire hazard. In contexts where non-industrial private forest ownership prevails, the collaboration among multiple owners has been proposed as the way forward to reach consistent fuel management at that level. The current literature has been focused on identifying the factors that lead to collaboration among owners. In this study we explored other ways to reach landscape-level management in addition to the collaborative way, such as those that may be promoted through land renting or selling. Different contexts and owner types may require different solutions. Thus, we explicitly asked which alternative would be chosen by a given forest owner, from the following set: keeping individual management, entering a multi-owner collaborative arrangement where they delegate management, renting to a pulp company; or selling the land. In a context of small-scale ownership and high recurrence of wildfires in Portugal, a face-to-face survey was carried out to a sample of landowners. Our results suggest that there is not an a priori generalized unwillingness of owners to delegate management, rent or sell the land and thus they seem prone to align themselves with policy strategies to promote management at the landscape level. Multinomial logit regression modelling allowed us to explain and predict owners’ choices among the aforementioned set of alternative management options. We found that choosing multi-ownership collaboration, as opposed to keeping current individual management, is associated with passive management under harsher conditions, by non-residents without bonding capital. The identified factors of owners’ choices show the limited scope of tenancy and land-market mechanisms to promote landscape-level management. The best policy option was found to depend on the owner profiles prevailing in the target area. This suggests that studying the existing context and owner types is required to design effective policies.

Identifying Policy-relevant Indicators for Assessing Landscape Vegetation Patterns to Inform Planning and Management on Multiple-use Public Lands

Understanding the structure and composition of landscapes can empower agencies to effectively manage public lands for multiple uses while sustaining land health. Many landscape metrics exist, but they are not often used in public land decision-making. Our objectives were to (1) develop and (2) apply a process for identifying a core set of indicators that public land managers can use to understand landscape-level resource patterns on and around public lands. We first developed a process for identifying indicators that are grounded in policy, feasible to quantify using existing data and resources, and useful for managers. We surveyed landscape monitoring efforts by other agencies, gathered science and agency input on monitoring goals, and quantified the prevalence of potential indicators in agency land health standards to identify five landscape indicators: amount, distribution, patch size, structural connectivity, and diversity of vegetation types. We then conducted pilot applications in four bureau of land management (BLM) field offices in Arizona, California, and Colorado to refine procedures for quantifying the indicators and assess the utility of the indicators for managers. Results highlighted the dominance of upland and the limited extent of riparian/wetland vegetation communities, moderate connectivity of priority vegetation patches, and lower diversity of native vegetation types on BLM compared to non-BLM lands. Agency staff can use the indicators to inform the development of quantitative resource management objectives in land use plans, evaluate progress in meeting those objectives, quantify potential impacts of proposed actions, and as a foundation for an all-lands approach to landscape-level management across public lands.

Status of Sumatran Tiger in the Berbak-Sembilang landscape (2020)

Monitoring the status of the Critically Endangered Sumatran Tiger Panthera tigris sumatrae is a key component for assessing the effectiveness of conservation interventions, and thus informing and adapting strategic planning for the remaining 600 Sumatran Tigers on the island. The Berbak-Sembilang National Park is an integral part of the priority Berbak-Sembilang Tiger Conservation Landscape, in a unique habitat of mixed peat and freshwater swamp in eastern Sumatra. Our camera trap survey covered both the Berbak and Sembilang Tiger Core Areas (BTCA, STCA) over a period of 10 years, with surveys undertaken in 2010, 2015, 2018–2019. The most recent population density estimates (BTCA 1.33 adults/100 km2, 95% CI 0.82–1.91 with 19 adults; and STCA 0.56 adults/100 km2, 95% CI 0.45–0.89 with five adults) confirmed a small but stable population. A landscape level management approach is a priority for tiger population recovery, consolidating ground-based protection and establishing a well-maintained fire management system with reforestation of affected areas along with multi-stakeholder engagement and partnerships. The study also recommends extending the BTCA to include the primary swamp forest in the north of the national park, based on evidence from camera trap surveys.

Parcel Management and Perceived Ecosystem Services and Disservices in the Exurbs of a Midwestern County in the United States

Exurban development is a prominent land use in the United States of America, particularly in the Midwest, where much of it occurs on farmland and remnant woodlands. While exurbanization may affect ecosystem services, its impact could be modulated by management decisions made by residents. We aimed to uncover how exurban residents in a midwestern county perceived ecosystem services and disservices provided by their property based on 26 semi-structured interviews of landowners on parcels between 1 and 20 acres with a pond in unincorporated areas. We found the ecosystem services people associated most with their land are classified as cultural services (dominated by recreation services), while the most common mentioned disservices were classified as regulating disservices. Many ecosystem services that would be categorized as supporting or regulating services were not mentioned by interviewees, including microclimate stabilization, carbon sequestration, disease regulation, and maintenance of genetic diversity. Residents spent an average of 1.4 h/acre each week managing their properties. However, as parcel size and forest cover increased, the residents reported managing less surface area. Our study suggested that residents cultivate landscape features that directly benefit them and view many of the services that benefit regional biodiversity and ecosystem processes as disservices, which, to rectify, may require coordinated landscape-level management or local policies/incentives.

Landscape connectivity for two sympatric carnivores in central Iran

Central Iran supports a diversity of carnivores, most of which are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation. Carnivore conservation requires the identification and preservation of core habitats and ensuring connectivity between them. In the present study, we applied species distribution modeling to predict habitat suitability and used connectivity modeling to predict linkage (resistant kernel and factorial least-cost path analyses) for grey wolf and golden jackal in central Iran. For grey wolf, elevation, topographic roughness and distance from agriculture lands were the strongest predictors; however, for golden jackal, distance from agriculture lands, human settlements and topographic roughness were the most influential variables in predicting the occurrence of this species. Our results also indicated a high potential for large parts of the landscape to support the occurrence of these two canid species. The largest and the most crucial core habitats and corridor paths for the conservation of both species are located in the southern part of the study landscape. We found a small overlap between golden jackal corridor paths and core habitats with protected areas, which has important implications for conservation and future viability of the golden jackal populations. Some sections of core areas are bisected by roads, where most vehicle collisions with grey wolf and golden jackal occurred. We propose that effective conservation of both species would require integrated landscape-level management to reduce mortality risk, as well as protection of core areas and corridors and development of mitigation strategies to reduce vehicle collisions.

Invasion of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) into the United States: Developing a National Response to an Invasive Species Crisis Through Collaborative Research and Outreach Efforts

Halyomorpha halys (Stål), the brown marmorated stink bug, is a globally invasive stink bug species. Its first major outbreak was in the United States, where it has caused millions of dollars in damage, threatened livelihoods of specialty crop growers and impacted row crop growers, and become an extreme nuisance pest in and around dwellings. The BMSB IPM Working Group, funded by the Northeastern IPM Center, was central to providing a mechanism to form a multidisciplinary team and develop initial and subsequent research, Extension, regulatory and consumer priorities. Ultimately, a project team consisting of over 50 scientists from 11 institutions in 10 states obtained the largest ever USDA-NIFA Specialty Crop Research Initiative CAP grant, totaling over $10.7 million, to tackle this crisis over a 5-yr period (2011–2016). Researchers and Extension educators integrated stakeholder feedback throughout the course of the project, and priorities evolved according to needs of affected growers and public stakeholders. Initially, the team focused on identification of H. halys, its damage symptoms and crop-specific risks, and short-term mitigation strategies for crop protection. Subsequently, work focused on its biology, ecology, and behavior leading to the development of potential longer-term IPM tactics and landscape level management solutions, including biological control. This work continues under a second SCRI CAP grant (2016–2021). The information from the initial team reached an estimated 22,000 specialty crop stakeholder contacts via Extension efforts, and over 600 million people via mainstream media. We highlight the main lessons learned from coordinating a national response to the threat posed by H. halys to agriculture in the United States.

Using the scientific listing process to better understand climate change risk to threatened species and ecological communities in New South Wales

Anthropogenic climate change presents a major threat to all levels of biodiversity – from populations to ecosystems. Threatened species and ecological communities are particularly at risk because they generally possess characteristics that increase their vulnerability to extinction. Here we review the conservation assessments of 414 threatened species and 108 ecological communities in the state of New South Wales (NSW) Australia, to explore climate change extinction risk. We found only 13% of threatened species and 24% of threatened ecological communities have climate change identified as a threat. Amphibians had the highest proportion of species with a climate change threat identified (37%), followed by mammals (25%), birds (17%), reptiles (15%) and plants (10%). The sample sizes of freshwater algae and marine mammals were too small to be considered. Threatened species and ecological communities that had climate change listed as a threat were predominately associated with wet and montane habitats, highlighting the vulnerability of these environments. The estimates of the extinction threat from climate change to species and ecological communities in NSW are likely to be highly conservative. We suggest that climate change adaptation strategies be incorporated into all levels of biodiversity management, from threatened species management plans to landscape level management.

Development of a Dispersal Model for Balsam Woolly Adelgid,Adelges piceaeRatzeburg (Hemiptera: Adelgidae), to Facilitate Landscape-Level Management Planning

The balsam woolly adelgid (Adelges piceaeRatzeburg) attacks subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa(Hook.) Nutt.) in eastern Washington, Oregon, and northern Idaho. Historical balsam woolly adelgid distributions present an opportunity to understand climatic factors that influence the species’ distribution at a landscape scale. The distribution data allows for creation of predictive models that detail the likelihood of occurrence and associated geographic data allow modeling of species dispersal. Predictive variables linked to the distribution of the hosts and to abiotic environmental conditions were utilized to create a spatial probability model of occurrence. Balsam woolly adelgid predominantly disperses by wind, and hence, both wind speed and wind direction were used to create a dispersal probability model. Results from wind dispersal modeling suggested that two-thirds of the new infestations were due to July and August wind direction and speed. Average July winds ranged from 0.5 to 3.27 m/s, flowing south westerly, and August winds ranged from 0.43 to 1.55 m/s, flowing north easterly. Land managers can use the results of the predictive model to better understand where current infestations are likely to expand. Prediction of where the balsam woolly adelgid might move allows managers to adjust actions to respond to future insect movement and establishment.