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1.
We hypothesized that the spatial configuration and dynamics of periurban forest patches in Barcelona (NE of Spain) played
a minor role in determining plant species richness and assemblage compared to site conditions, and particularly to both direct
(measured at plot level) and potential (inferred from landscape metrics) human-associated site disturbance. The presence of
all understory vascular plants was recorded on 252 plots of 100 m2 randomly selected within forest patches ranging in size from 0.25 ha to 218 ha. Species were divided into 6 groups, according
to their ecology and conservation status. Site condition was assessed at plot level and included physical attributes, human-induced
disturbance and Quercus spp. tree cover. Landscape structure and dynamics were assessed from patch metrics and patch history. We also calculated
a set of landscape metrics related to potential human accessibility to forests. Results of multiple linear regressions indicated
that the variance explained for non-forest species groups was higher than for forest species richness. Most of the main correlates
corresponded to site disturbance variables related to direct human alteration, or to landscape variables associated to indirect
human effects on forests: Quercus tree cover (a proxy for successional status) was the most important correlate of non-forest species richness, which decreased
when Quercus tree cover increased. Human-induced disturbance was an important correlate of synanthropic and total species richness, which
were higher in recently managed and in highly frequented forests. Potential human accessibility also affected the richness
of most species groups. In contrast, patch size, patch shape and connectivity played a minor role, as did patch history. We
conclude that human influence on species richness in periurban forests takes place on a small scale, whereas large-scale effects
attributable to landscape structure and fragmentation are comparatively less important. Implications of these results for
the conservation of plant species in periurban forests are discussed. 相似文献
2.
Effects of interactive scale-dependent variables on beetle diversity patterns in a semi-arid agricultural landscape 总被引:3,自引:0,他引:3
Understanding species-diversity patterns in heterogeneous landscapes invites comprehensive research on how scale-dependent
processes interact across scales. We used two common beetle families (Tenebrionidae, detrivores; Carabidae, predators) to
conduct such a study in the heterogeneous semi-arid landscape of the Southern Judean Lowland (SJL) of Israel, currently undergoing
intensive fragmentation. Beetles were censused in 25 different-sized patches (500–40,000 m2). We used Fisher’s α and non-parametric extrapolators to estimate species diversity from 11,125 individuals belonging to
56 species. Patch characteristics (plant species diversity and cover, soil cover and degree of stoniness) were measured by
field transects. Spatial variables (patch size, shape, physiognomy and connectivity) and landscape characteristics were analyzed
by GIS and remote-sensing applications. Both patch-scale and landscape-scale variables affected beetle species diversity.
Path-analysis models showed that landscape-scale variables had the strongest effect on carabid diversity in all patches. The
tenebrionids responded differently: both patch-scale and landscape-scale variables affected species diversity in small patches,
while mainly patch-scale variables affected species diversity in large patches. Most of the paths affected species diversity
both directly and indirectly, combining the effects of both patch-scale and landscape-scale variables. These results match
the biology of the two beetle families: Tenebrionidae, the less mobile and more site-attached family, responded to the environment
in a fine-grained manner, while the highly dispersed Carabidae responded to the environment in a coarse-grained manner. We
suggest that understanding abiotic and biotic variable interactions across scales has important consequences for our knowledge
of community structure and species diversity patterns at large spatial scales. 相似文献
3.
Mira Kattwinkel Barbara Strauss Robert Biedermann Michael Kleyer 《Landscape Ecology》2009,24(7):929-941
The importance of the spatial as well as the temporal structure of habitat patches for urban biodiversity has been recognised,
but rarely quantified. In dynamic environments the rate of habitat destruction and recreation (i.e. the landscape turnover
rate), the minimum amount of potential habitat, its spatial configuration as well as the environmental conditions determining
habitat quality are crucial factors for species occurrence. We analysed species responses to environmental parameters and
to the spatio-temporal configuration of urban brownfield habitats in a multi-species approach (37 plant and 43 insect species).
Species presence/absence data and soil parameters, site age, vegetation structure and landscape context were recorded by random
stratified sampling at 133 study plots in industrial areas in the city of Bremen (Germany). Based on the field data, we predicted
species occurrences by species distribution models using a multi-model inference approach. Predicted species communities were
driven by successional age both at the scale of a single building lot and at the landscape scale. Minimum average succession
time of brownfield habitats required to support all and especially regionally rare species depended on the proportion of available
open space; the larger the potential habitat area the faster the acceptable turnover. Most plant, grasshopper, and leafhopper
species modelled could be maintained at an intermediate turnover rate (mean age of 10–15 years) and a proportion of open sites
of at least 40%. Our modelling approach provides the opportunity of inferring optimal spatio-temporal landscape configurations
for urban conservation management from patch scale species-environment relationships. The results indicate that urban planning
should incorporate land use dynamics into the management of urban biodiversity.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. 相似文献
4.
Carlos Ovalle Alejandro Del Pozo Miguel A. Casado Belén Acosta José M. de Miguel 《Landscape Ecology》2006,21(4):585-594
The current land use system in the anthropogenic savannas (Espinales) of the Mediterranean climate region of Chile, has resulted in considerable heterogeneity at the landscape level which is
associated with different covers of the legume tree, Acacia caven. The effects of landscape heterogeneity on the diversity and productivity of herbaceous plant communities were studied in
29 plots of 1000 m2, with a wide range of woody cover. A detrended correspondence analysis of the species × plots matrix explained 73% of the
total variation and revealed the existence of two trends of variation in floristic composition: one associated with physiographic
position (hillsides and flatlands) and the other related to the number of years since the last cutting, or coppicing, of A. caven. Despite the great majority of the original herbaceous species having disappeared as a result of the prevailing land use
system, some native species have been able to survive especially on hillside areas with low grazing intensity. Woody cover
was a good indicator of spatial heterogeneity and land use history. It was also correlated with stocking rate, above-ground
biomass of herbaceous vegetation, and soil fertility (organic matter, nitrogen and phosphorus concentration), both on hillsides
and flatlands. The relationship between woody cover and herbaceous plant species richness was significant and unimodal in
flat land areas, and linear, and marginally significant, on hillsides. The consequences of land use changes on the conservation
of the ecological and productive values of grasslands are analyzed. 相似文献
5.
Rune H. Økland Harald Bratli Wenche E. Dramstad Anette Edvardsen Gunnar Engan Wendy Fjellstad Einar Heegaard Oddvar Pedersen Heidi Solstad 《Landscape Ecology》2006,21(7):969-987
Knowledge of variation in vascular plant species richness and species composition in modern agricultural landscapes is important
for appropriate biodiversity management. From species lists for 2201 land-type patches in 16 1-km2 plots five data sets differing in sampling-unit size from patch to plot were prepared. Variation in each data set was partitioned
into seven sources: patch geometry, patch type, geographic location, plot affiliation, habitat diversity, ecological factors,
and land-use intensity. Patch species richness was highly predictable (75% of variance explained) by patch area, within-patch
heterogeneity and patch type. Plot species richness was, however, not predictable by any explanatory variable, most likely
because all studied landscapes contained all main patch types – ploughed land, woodland, grassland and other open land – and
hence had a large core of common species. Patch species composition was explained by variation along major environmental complex
gradients but appeared nested to lower degrees in modern than in traditional agricultural landscapes because species-poor
parts of the landscape do not contain well-defined subsets of the species pool of species-rich parts. Variation in species
composition was scale dependent because the relative importance of specific complex gradients changed with increasing sampling-unit
size, and because the amount of randomness in data sets decreased with increasing sampling-unit size. Our results indicate
that broad landscape structural changes will have consequences for landscape-scale species richness that are hard or impossible
to predict by simple surrogate variables. 相似文献
6.
Additive partitioning of plant species diversity in an agricultural mosaic landscape 总被引:14,自引:1,他引:13
In this paper, we quantify the effects of habitat variability and habitat heterogeneity based on the partitioning of landscape species diversity into additive components and link them to patch-specific diversity. The approach is illustrated with a case study from central Switzerland, where we recorded the presence of vascular plant species in a stratified random sample of 1'280 quadrats of 1 m2 within a total area of 0.23 km2. We derived components of within- and between-community diversity at four scale levels (quadrat, patch, habitat type, and landscape) for three diversity measures (species richness, Shannon index, and Simpson diversity). The model implies that what we measure as within-community diversity at a higher scale level is the combined effect of heterogeneity at various lower levels. The results suggest that the proportions of the individual diversity components depend on the habitat type and on the chosen diversity aspect. One habitat type may be more diverse than another at patch level, but less diverse at the level of habitat type. Landscape composition apparently is a key factor for explaining landscape species richness, but affects evenness only little. Before we can test the effect of landscape structure on landscape species richness, several problems will have to be solved. These include the incorporation of neighbourhood effects, the unbiased estimation of species richness components, and the quantification of the contribution of a landscape element to landscape species richness. 相似文献
7.
Assessing and predicting the species richness of a complex landscape remains a problem because there is no simple scaling function of species richness in a heterogeneous environment. Furthermore, the potential value of an area for biodiversity conservation may depend on which, rather than how many, species the area contains. This paper shows how we can objectively evaluate the contribution of an area, e.g., a habitat patch, to larger-scale plant species richness, e.g., a landscape composed of patches of several habitat types, and how we can test hypotheses that attempt to explain this contribution. We quantified the concept of habitat specificity to assess the proportion of each observed plant population that is concentrated within a given spatial element. A case study of a biodiversity-monitoring program in the Swiss Canton of Aargau showed that the relative contribution of the three main types of land use to the overall species richness differed strongly between higher taxa (vascular plants and molluscs). However, the type of data, i.e., presence-absence or abundance, was not important. Resampling of the plant data suggested that stratification provided an unbiased estimate of relative specificity, whereas unstratified sampling caused bias even for large samples. In a second case study of vascular plants in an agricultural landscape in central Switzerland, we tested whether the type, size or shape of a landscape element can predict its contribution to the species richness of the landscape. Habitat types that were less frequently disturbed contributed more per m2 to landscape species richness than more frequently disturbed ones. Contrary to expectation, patch size was negatively correlated to specificity per m2 for arable fields, whereas patch shape appeared to be unrelated to the specificity per m2 both for arable fields and for meadows. The specificity approach provides a solution to the problem of scaling species richness and is ideally suited for testing hypotheses on the effect of landscape structure on landscape species richness. Specificity scores can easily be combined with measures of other aspects of rarity to assess the contribution of a spatial element to conservation goals formulated at regional, national or global level. 相似文献
8.
Annual plant species have great potential on green roofs as many are highly attractive, fast and cheap to establish via sowing and can provide rapid cover and growth, which is important for ecosystem service provision. While irrigation is essential for survival and growth of annual plants in seasonally hot or dry climates, it is also important to minimize water use as availability is often limited. Therefore, we evaluated how irrigation frequency affects plant cover, species abundance, richness and diversity, plant traits and functional diversity of a 16 species mixture of Australian annual species (4 g m−2 ~ 2100 seeds m−2) sown onto thirty 0.25 m2 green roof modules. The experiment was carried out in Melbourne, Australia, from January (summer) to July (winter) 2020. After a 2-month irrigated establishment phase (to ensure germination and seedling establishment), three irrigation treatments (2, 4 and 6 days between irrigation) were applied to the modules for three months. Plant cover was reduced at lower irrigation frequency (6 days), but ≥ 80% plant cover was achieved in all irrigation treatments. There was no effect of irrigation frequency on species abundance and richness; however, abundance, richness and diversity reduced over time, likely due to competition effects. Plant height and leaf area were also reduced by lower irrigation frequency. At the community level, functional diversity was unaffected by irrigation frequency. Our results indicate that green roofs sown with a mixture of annual plants can achieve good plant coverage, as recommended by green roof guidelines, and maintain high diversity when minimally irrigated in their first growing season. 相似文献
9.
Marco Malavasi Marta Carboni Maurizio Cutini Maria L. Carranza Alicia T. R. Acosta 《Landscape Ecology》2014,29(9):1541-1550
Coastal dunes and sand areas are reported to be among the habitats most invaded by alien species in Europe. Landscape pattern could be a significant driver in invasion processes in parallel with land-use legacy. Fragmentation of natural habitats combined with the availability of propagules from the surrounding matrix may enhance the invisibility of ecological communities. Based on multitemporal land cover maps (1954–2008) and a floristic database, we analyzed how habitat fragmentation, propagule pressure and land-use legacy have affected alien plants’ presence and richness on natural dune patches along the Lazio Coast (Central Italy). Floristic data were derived from an existing geo-database of random vegetation plots (64 m2). A set of landscape patch-based metrics, considered to be adequate proxies of the main processes affecting alien invasion and richness, was calculated. First, we fit a generalized linear model (GLM) with binomial errors to assess which landscape metrics are influencing patch invasion. Second, we extracted invaded patches and, with GLMs, we investigated how landscape metrics affect average alien species richness. Alien invasion and alien richness seem to be affected by different processes: although alien invasion of each patch is strongly associated with its land-use legacy, the richness of aliens is more affected by landscape fragmentation and by the propagule pressure to which patch is exposed. By integrating spatial and temporal landscape metrics with floristic data, we were able to disentangle the relations of landscape fragmentation, propagule pressure and land-use legacy with the presence and richness of alien plants. The methodological approach here adopted could be easily extended to other alien species and ecosystems, offering scientifically sound support to prevent the high economic costs derived from both the control and the eradication of aliens. 相似文献
10.
Despite good theoretical knowledge about determinants of plant species richness in mosaic landscapes, validations based on
complete surveys are scarce. We conducted a case study in a highly fragmented, traditional agricultural landscape. In 199
patches of 20 representative multi-patch-plots (MPPs, 1 ha) we recorded a total of 371 plant species. In addition to an additive
partitioning of species diversity at the (a) patch- and (b) MPP-scale, we adopted the recently proposed ‘specificity’ measure
to quantify the contribution of a spatial subunit to landscape species richness (subunit-to-landscape-contribution, SLC).
SLC-values were calculated at both scales with respect to various spatial extents. General regression models were used to
quantify the relative importance of hypothesis-driven determinants for species richness and SLC-values.
At the patch scale, habitat type was the main determinant of species richness, followed by area and elongated shape. For SLC-values,
area was more important than habitat type, and its relevance increased with the extent of the considered landscape. Influences
of elongated shape and vegetation context were minor. Differences between habitat types were pronounced for species richness
and also partly scale-dependent for SLC-values.
Relevant predictors at the MPP-scale were nonlinear habitat richness, the gradient from anthropogenic to seminatural vegetation,
and the proportions of natural vegetation and rare habitats. Linear elements and habitat configuration did not contribute
to species richness and SLC. Results at the MPP-scale were in complete accordance with the predictions of the mosaic concept.
Hence, our study represents its first empirical validation for plant species diversity in mosaic landscapes. 相似文献
11.
The landscape matrix modifies the effect of habitat fragmentation in grassland butterflies 总被引:1,自引:0,他引:1
Erik ?ckinger Karl-Olof Bergman Markus Franzén Tomá? Kadlec Jochen Krauss Mikko Kuussaari Juha P?yry Henrik G. Smith Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter Riccardo Bommarco 《Landscape Ecology》2012,27(1):121-131
The landscape matrix is suggested to influence the effect of habitat fragmentation on species richness, but the generality
of this prediction has not been tested. Here, we used data from 10 independent studies on butterfly species richness, where
the matrix surrounding grassland patches was dominated by either forest or arable land to test if matrix land use influenced
the response of species richness to patch area and connectivity. To account for the possibility that some of the observed
species use the matrix as their main or complementary habitat, we analysed the effects on total species richness and on the
richness of grassland specialist and non-specialist (generalists and specialists on other habitat types) butterflies separately.
Specialists and non-specialists were defined separately for each dataset. Total species richness and the richness of grassland
specialist butterflies were positively related to patch area and forest cover in the matrix, and negatively to patch isolation.
The strength of the species-area relationship was modified by matrix land use and had a slope that decreased with increasing
forest cover in the matrix. Potential mechanisms for the weaker effect of grassland fragmentation in forest-dominated landscapes
are (1) that the forest matrix is more heterogeneous and contains more resources, (2) that small grassland patches in a matrix
dominated by arable land suffer more from negative edge effects or (3) that the arable matrix constitutes a stronger barrier
to dispersal between populations. Regardless of the mechanisms, our results show that there are general effects of matrix
land use across landscapes and regions, and that landscape management that increases matrix quality can be a complement to
habitat restoration and re-creation in fragmented landscapes. 相似文献
12.
Land-bridge islands formed by dam construction are considered to be “experimental” systems for studying the effects of habitat
loss and fragmentation, offering many distinct advantages over terrestrial fragments. The Thousand Island Lake in Southeast
China is one such land-bridge system with more than 1000 islands. Based on a field survey of vascular plant richness on 154
land-bridge islands during 2007–2008, we examined the effects of island and landscape attributes on plant species richness
and patterns of species nestedness. We also examined the different responses of plant functional groups (classified according
to growth form and shade tolerance) to fragmentation. We found that island area explained the greatest amount of variation
in plant species richness. Island area and shape index positively affected species diversity and the degree of nestedness
exhibited by plant communities while the perimeter to area ratio of the islands had a negative effect. Shade-tolerant plants
were the most sensitive species group to habitat fragmentation. Isolation negatively affected the degree of nestedness in
herb and shade-intolerant plants including species with various dispersal abilities in the fragmented landscape. Based on
these results, we concluded that the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on overall species richness depended mostly
on the degree of habitat loss, but patterns of nestedness were generated from different ecological mechanisms due to species-specific
responses to different characteristics of habitat patches. 相似文献
13.
Habitat fragmentation is considered a major cause of biodiversity loss, both on terrestrial and marine environments. Understanding the effects of habitat fragmentation on the structure and dynamics of natural communities is extremely important to support management actions for biodiversity conservation. However, the effects of habitat fragmentation on marine communities are still poorly understood. Here we evaluated whether habitat fragmentation affects the structure of epifaunal communities in the sublittoral zone, in the northern coast of São Paulo state, Brazil. Five experimental landscapes were constructed, each one forming a large continuous patch. After 4 weeks, each landscape was cut on three patches of different sizes. Epifaunal macroinvertebrate communities were sampled at the edge and interior of experimental landscapes before manipulation to evaluate edge effects. After four more weeks, communities from the three patch sizes were also sampled to evaluate patch size effects. We compared the diversity of communities at different levels of fragmentation by total abundance, rarefied taxon richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity index, Simpson’s dominance index, and abundance of dominant taxa. Higher taxon richness and gastropod abundance were recorded in the patch edges, but no significant differences were found among patch sizes. We found a significant effect of habitat fragmentation, with lower abundances of Gammaridea (the dominant taxon), Ophyuroidea, and Pycnogonida after the experimental fragmentation. Lower abundances of dominant taxa resulted in higher diversity and lower dominance in fragmented landscapes when compared to integral, pre-manipulation landscapes. Our results suggest that fragmentation of landscapes in the system studied can reduce dominance, and that even small patch sizes can be important for the conservation of macroinvertebrate diversity. 相似文献
14.
Classical metapopulation models do not account for temporal changes in the suitability of habitat patches. In reality, however,
the carrying capacity of most habitat types is not constant in time due to natural succession processes. In this study, we
modeled plant metapopulation persistence in a successional landscape with disappearing and emerging habitat patches, based
on a realistic dune slack landscape at the Belgian–French coast. We focused on the effects of the variation of different plant
traits on metapopulation persistence in this changing landscape. Therefore, we used a stage based stochastic metapopulation
model implemented in RAMAS/Metapop, simulating a large variation in plant traits but keeping landscape characteristics such
as patch turnover rate and patch lifespan constant. The results confirm the conclusions of earlier modeling work that seed
dispersal distance and seed emigration rate both have an important effect on metapopulation persistence. We also found that
high population growth rate or high recruitment considerably decreased the extinction risk of the metapopulation. Additionally,
a long plant life span had a strong positive effect on metapopulation persistence, irrespective of the plant's dispersal capacity
and population growth rate. Plant species that invest in life span require less investment in offspring and dispersal capacity
to avoid extinction, even in dynamic landscapes with deterministic changes in habitat quality. Moreover, metapopulations of
long-lived plant species were found to be much less sensitive to high levels of environmental stochasticity than short-lived
species. 相似文献
15.
Forest fragmentation is an increasingly common feature across the globe, but few studies examine its influence on biogeochemical
fluxes. We assessed the influence of differences in successional trajectory and stem density with forest patch size on biomass
quantity and quality and N transformations in the soil at an experimentally fragmented landscape in Kansas, USA. We measured
N-related fluxes in the laboratory, not the field, to separate effects of microclimate and fragment edges from the effects
of inherent biomass differences with patch size. We measured net N mineralization and N2O fluxes in soil incubations, gross rates of ammonification and nitrification, and microbial biomass in soils. We also measured
root and litterfall biomass, C:N ratios, and δ13C and δ15N signatures; litterfall [cellulose] and [lignin]; and [C], [N], and δ13C and δ15N of soil organic matter. Rates of net N mineralization and N2O fluxes were greater (by 113% and 156%, respectively) in small patches than in large, as were gross rates of nitrification.
These differences were associated with greater quantities of root biomass in small patch soil profiles (664.2 ± 233.3 vs 192.4 ± 66.2 g m−2 for the top 15 cm). These roots had greater N concentration than in large patches, likely generating greater root derived
organic N pools in small patches. These data suggest greater rates of N cycling in small forested patches compared to large
patches, and that gaseous N loss from the ecosystem may be related to forest patch size. The study indicates that the differences
in successional trajectory with forest patch size can impart significant influence on soil N transformations in fragmented,
aggrading woodlands. 相似文献
16.
Effects of area and isolation of woodland patches on herbaceous plant species richness across Great Britain 总被引:5,自引:2,他引:5
Petit Sandrine Griffiths Leila Smart Simon S. Smith Geoff M. Stuart Rick C. Wright Simon M. 《Landscape Ecology》2004,19(5):463-471
Richness of Ancient Woodland Indicator plant species was analysed in 308 woodland patches that were surveyed during the Countryside Survey of Great Britain carried out in 1998. The Countryside Survey recorded vegetation plots and landscape structure in 569 stratified 1 km sample squares and developed a remotely-sensed land cover map of the UK. Using these datasets, we tested the hypothesis that Ancient Woodland Indicator species richness in woodland fragments was limited by patch area, shape and spatial isolation and that woodland patches located in the lowland region of Great Britain would respond differently than those in the upland region. The variation in Ancient Woodland Indicator species richness in the British lowlands (n = 218) was mainly explained by patch area and two measures of connectivity, the length of hedgerows and lines of trees in the 1 km square and the area of woodland within 500 m of the vegetation plot. By contrast, variation in Ancient Woodland Indicator species richness in the British uplands (n = 90) was related to Ellenberg scores of the vegetation communities sampled – a surrogate for habitat quality – and no significant effect of spatial structure was detected. It therefore appears that the degree of fragmentation of woodland in the British lowlands limits the distribution of Ancient Woodland Indicator species, while in the uplands, failed colonisation is a matter of habitat quality rather than a result of landscape structure.This revised version was published online in May 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date. 相似文献
17.
Habitat specificity indices reflect richness (α) and/or distinctiveness (β) components of diversity. The latter may be defined by α and γ (landscape) diversity in two alternative ways: multiplicatively () and additively (). We demonstrate that the original habitat specificity concept of Wagner and Edwards (Landscape Ecol 16:121–131, 2001) consists of three independent components: core habitat specificity (uniqueness of the species composition), patch area and
patch species richness. We describe habitat specificity as a family of indices that may include either area or richness components,
or none or both, and open for use of different types of mean in calculation of core habitat specificity. Core habitat specificity
is a beta diversity measure: the effective number of completely distinct communities in the landscape. Habitat specificity
weighted by species number is a gamma diversity measure: the effective number of species that a patch contributes to landscape
richness. We compared 12 habitat specificity indices by theoretical reasoning and by use of field data (vascular plant species
in SE Norwegian agricultural landscapes). Habitat specificity indices are strongly influenced by weights for patch area and
patch species richness, and the relative contribution of rare vs. common species (type of mean). The relevance of properties
emphasized by each habitat specificity index for evaluation of patches in a biodiversity context is discussed. Core habitat
specificity is emphasized as an ecologically interpretable measure that specifically addresses patch uniqueness while habitat
specificity weighted by species number combines species richness and species composition in ways relevant for conservation
biological assessment.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. 相似文献
18.
Petra Janečková Štěpán Janeček Jitka Klimešová Lars Götzenberger Jan Horník Jan Lepš Francesco de Bello 《Landscape Ecology》2017,32(4):791-805
Context
Landscape fragmentation significantly affects species distributions by decreasing the number and connectivity of suitable patches. While researchers have hypothesized that species functional traits could help in predicting species distribution in a landscape, predictions should depend on the type of patches available and on the ability of species to disperse and grow there.Objectives
To explore whether different traits can explain the frequency of grassland species (number of occupied patches) and/or their occupancy (ratio of occupied to suitable patches) across a variety of patch types within a fragmented landscape.Methods
We sampled species distributions over 1300 grassland patches in a fragmented landscape of 385 km2 in the Czech Republic. Relationships between functional traits and species frequency and occupancy were tested across all patches in the landscape, as well as within patches that shared similar management, wetness, and isolation.Results
Although some traits predicting species frequency also predicted occupancy, others were markedly different, with competition- and dispersal-related traits becoming more important for occupancy. Which traits were important differed for frequency and occupancy and also differed depending on patch management, wetness, and isolation.Conclusions
Plant traits can provide insight into plant distribution in fragmented landscapes and can reveal specific abiotic, biotic, and dispersal processes affecting species occurrence in a patch type. However, the importance of individual traits depends on the type of suitable patches available within the landscape.19.
Hilda A. Sánchez-de-Jesús Víctor Arroyo-Rodríguez Ellen Andresen Federico Escobar 《Landscape Ecology》2016,31(4):843-854
Context
Identifying the drivers shaping biological assemblages in fragmented tropical landscapes is critical for designing effective conservation strategies. It is still unclear, however, whether tropical biodiversity is more strongly affected by forest loss, by its spatial configuration or by matrix composition across different spatial scales.Objectives
Assessing the relative influence of forest patch and landscape attributes on dung beetle assemblages in the fragmented Lacandona rainforest, Mexico.Methods
Using a multimodel inference approach we tested the relative impact of forest patch size and landscape forest cover (measures of forest amount at the patch and landscape scales, respectively), patch shape and isolation (forest configuration indices at the patch scale), forest fragmentation (forest configuration index at the landscape scale), and matrix composition on the diversity, abundance and biomass of dung beetles.Results
Patch size, landscape forest cover and matrix composition were the best predictors of dung beetle assemblages. Species richness, beetle abundance, and biomass decreased in smaller patches surrounded by a lower percentage of forest cover, and in landscapes dominated by open-area matrices. Community evenness also increased under these conditions due to the loss of rare species.Conclusions
Forest loss at the patch and landscape levels and matrix composition show a larger impact on dung beetles than forest spatial configuration. To preserve dung beetle assemblages, and their key functional roles in the ecosystem, conservation initiatives should prioritize a reduction in deforestation and an increase in the heterogeneity of the matrix surrounding forest remnants.20.
Spatial relationship between human population density, land use intensity and biodiversity in the Czech Republic 总被引:1,自引:0,他引:1
We test a hypothesis about the spatial coincidence of human population density and species richness, and analyze effects of land conversion and ecosystem use on species richness and landscape diversity in human dominated Central European country, the Czech Republic. We calculated fraction of aboveground net primary productivity appropriated by humans and compared it to the species richness of vertebrate, invertebrate and plant groups and to landscape diversity index in 560 mapping grid squares with grid size approximately 130?km2. Spatial correlations and regressions were established between human population density, appropriation of net primary production, land cover and biodiversity. We found positive spatial coincidence between human population density and species richness. Although the amount of net primary production was not related to species richness in general, we found significant negative spatial relationship between ecosystem use intensity and landscape diversity. As the area of the Czech Republic exhibits relatively high land use intensities, spatial patterns of human impacts have important implications for land management and biodiversity conservation in a cultural landscape. 相似文献