Fragmentation affects plant community composition over time

Collins, Cathy D.; Banks-Leite, Cristina; Brudvig, Lars A.; Foster, Bryan L.; Cook, William M.; Damschen, Ellen I.; Andrade, Ana; Austin, M. P.; Camargo, José Luís; Driscoll, Don A.; Holt, Robert D.; Laurance, William F.; Nicholls, Anthony; Orrock, John L.

doi:10.1111/ecog.02607

Cited by 70 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 83 publications

(133 reference statements)

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“…An advantage to experiments at these scales is that they exert effects through entire food webs and ecosystems (Fayle et al ), permitting evaluation of responses that extended well beyond species richness, to fragmented landscapes at scales that often approximate conservation and management activities. Five long‐term experiments have lasted two to nearly four decades in duration (Haddad et al , , Brudvig et al , Collins et al , Ewers et al ), namely, the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP; Brazil), Kansas Fragmentation Experiment (USA), Wog Wog Habitat Fragmentation Experiment (Wog Wog; Australia), Savannah River Site Corridor Experiment (SRS Corridor Experiment; USA), and Moss Fragmentation Experiments (UK, Canada, Fig. ).…”

Section: Theory the Real World And The Emergence Of Fragmentation Ementioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of theory and experiments to conservation in fragmented landscapes

et al. 2016

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The clearing and fragmentation of terrestrial ecosystems is commonly acknowledged as a major cause of the decline of biodiversity. These and other predicted responses to habitat fragmentation are derived from theory, which ecologists have tested with empirical approaches ranging from observations to experimental manipulations. These empirical approaches have also identified areas of theory in need of additional development. For example, experimental studies of fragmentation have provided insights such as the key role played by the matrix surrounding fragments, the importance of edge effects, and the impacts of corridors linking fragments with one another. Much less clear, however, is the extent to which these theoretical and empirical studies – while advancing our conceptual understanding of ecological responses to landscape change – help guide management and conservation practice. We review lessons learned from landscape-scale fragmentation experiments and observational studies, present the results of a survey of fragmentation and conservation experts which probed for links and mismatches between fragmentation studies and conservation practice, and discuss how future studies can contribute to conservation practice. Our survey showed that respondents consider fragmentation theory and empirical studies and their findings important for guiding conservation and management practices. The survey also identified that there are disconnects between what is typically studied by fragmentation ecologists and factors that are central to the practice of biodiversity conservation, notably, community-based human dimensions (e.g. economic, social, health issues), policy and governance, ecosystem services, eco-evolutionary responses of species, and interaction of multiple threats to biodiversity and ecosystem processes. We discuss how these disconnects can present opportunities for experiments to continue to provide valuable recommendations for conservation practice in fragmented landscapes

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Section: Theory the Real World And The Emergence Of Fragmentation Ementioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of theory and experiments to conservation in fragmented landscapes

et al. 2016

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“…, Collins et al. ). Higher β‐diversity suggests community differentiation and lower β‐diversity signals homogenization (Socolar et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, Collins et al. ). Furthermore, higher light availability at forest edges than interior sites could present benign environments that enhance overall survival (Murcia , Sizer and Tanner , Harper et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Edge effects reduce α‐diversity but not β‐diversity during community assembly in a human‐modified tropical forest

Krishnadas

Kumar²,

Comita

2019

Ecological Applications

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Citation: Krishnadas, M., A. N. Kumar, and L. S. Comita. 2019. Edge effects reduce a-diversity but not b-diversity during community assembly in a human-modified tropical forest. Ecol Appl 29(8):Abstract. Edge effects can alter the spatial organization of diversity in fragmented habitats. For tropical forests, however, there has been large variation in the strength and direction of such effects reported by different studies. For long-lived organisms like trees, one reason for inconsistent patterns might be due to most studies having examined patterns of diversity and compositional variation in older life stages that bear the legacy of a forest past. Younger life stages can reveal ongoing processes of assembly, but multi-stage examinations are rare. For seedling, sapling, and adult life stages of trees in a human-modified wet tropical forest in the Western Ghats Biodiversity Hotspot (India), we examined how proximity to forest edges (edge influence) modified the spatial organization of diversity. Specifically, for each life stage we tested whether edge influence led to loss of aand c-diversity and decreased b-diversity in this landscape. We found lower aand c-diversity closer to forest edges, but only for seedlings. Seedling composition at 90-100 m from forest edges diverged from composition of sites within 60 m, suggesting that edge influence restricted the recruitment of some species to interior sites. In contrast, b-diversity was greater near edges than interior forest for all life stages and most prominently for seedlings. Furthermore, b-diversity at edges was primarily driven by species turnover, suggesting either marked species-environment associations or dispersal limitation. Low turnover at 90-100 m implies that b-diversity arose from stochastic fluctuations in occurrences and abundances of the same species set. Overall, we find that high b-diversity structured spatial patterns of diversity near edges, but recruitment bottlenecks are likely to reduce alpha diversity of forest fragments. Our results also corroborate the need to maintain sufficiently large areas of tropical forest free from edge effects to avoid the loss of interior forest species. To improve landscape-scale diversity of fragmented landscapes, restoration efforts should focus on recovery of species that are unable to regenerate near forest edges.

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“…We expand the small but growing body of ecological scholarship on sacred natural sites through a case study showing how sacred natural sites might offer an effective middle ground between experimental and observational fragmentation studies, potentially allowing for more rigorous mensurative studies of the consequences of habitat loss and fragmentation in long‐cleared, mixed agricultural systems. As an illustration of this potential, we examine the ecological and social drivers of forest composition and productivity – key variables of interest in fragmentation theory (Cardinale et al , , Collins et al , Thompson et al ) – in longstanding patches of dry Afromontane forest conserved by followers of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church.…”

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confidence: 99%

Sacred natural sites as mensurative fragmentation experiments in long‐inhabited multifunctional landscapes

et al. 2016

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Well‐controlled landscape experiments have played key roles in advancing fragmentation science, but such experiments are costly and may not be possible in many ecosystems – including the long‐inhabited landscapes typical of many developing countries. In such contexts observational studies of pre‐existing forest patches may offer valuable insights, but these bring other challenges including the non‐random location of patches, the heterogeneous matrix between patches, and patch‐specific management practices that may influence forest community composition. This paper argues that sacred natural sites might provide a middle ground between experimental and observational studies, allowing for more rigorous mensurative fragmentation experiments in long‐inhabited multi‐functional landscapes. To illustrate this potential, we analyze the drivers of productivity in ‘church forests’ across northern Ethiopia. These forest patches conserved by followers of the Ethiopian Orthodox church provide ample variation in area, edge, and surrounding matrix characteristics. Church forests also provide variation in long‐term forest community composition, elevation and rainfall. Finally, unlike most observational studies, church forests offer a relatively stable institutional structure, including longstanding religious norms, allowing researchers to control for some heterogeneity in human influences. By combining remotely sensed data on church forest patches (n = 2558) with field data on church forest tree species composition (n = 27) and social survey data on church forest management practices (n = 145 respondents in 6 church communities) we show how ecological and anthropogenic factors influence church forest productivity. Like experimental patches, church forest productivity increases with size and decreases with amount of edge; productivity also increases with rainfall and increased tree species diversity within a given patch. But there is also evidence that church forest productivity and species composition are both affected by human management rooted in longstanding religious norms. Findings highlight how studies in sacred natural sites systems might help understand relationships between forest productivity, species diversity, and human management in long‐fragmented landscapes.

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Fragmentation affects plant community composition over time

Cited by 70 publications

References 83 publications

The contribution of theory and experiments to conservation in fragmented landscapes

The contribution of theory and experiments to conservation in fragmented landscapes

Edge effects reduce α‐diversity but not β‐diversity during community assembly in a human‐modified tropical forest

Sacred natural sites as mensurative fragmentation experiments in long‐inhabited multifunctional landscapes

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