Relationship Between Game Species and Landscape Structure in the SE of Spain

Habitat use and home range traits of resident and relocated hares (Lepus europaeus, Pallas)

“…The LEM were calculated for the home range according to Fearer and Stauffer (2004) using Fragstat 3.3 software (McGarigal and Marks, 1995) after the rasterization process (Jimenez-Garcia et al, 2006). The LEM were analyzed either as absolute or relative values by the nonparametric method (Wilcoxon rank scores).…”

“…Studies on the habitats and populations of wild fauna were produced later, using the landscape structure analysis (Fahrig and Merrian, 1985;Fahrig and Paloheimo, 1988;Dunning et al, 1992;Johnson et al, 1992;Anderson and Gutzwiller, 1994;Danielson and Anderson, 1999;With, 1999). The influences of the territory space-structure were investigated on single species and their home-range (Temple, 1986;Haila et al, 1987;Robbins et al, 1989;McGarigal and McComb 1995;Clark, 1999;Glennon and Porter, 1999;Kie et al, 2001;Fearer and Stauffer, 2004;Said and Servanty, 2005;Jimenez-Garcia et al, 2006;Belda et al, 2007;Martinez-Perez et al, 2007). Different authors produced a series of indices (landscape ecology metrics, LEM) to estimate the space structure of the territory (Shannon and Weaver, 1949;Simpson, 1949;O'Neill et al, 1988;Gustafson and Parker, 1992;Li and Reynolds, 1995;Ritters et al, 1995;Gustafson, 1998;Hargis et al, 1998;Jaeger 2000).…”

Predicting the spring abundance distribution of red-legged partridge populations in agricultural regions using environmental models and an application for game management

“…In this context, the most notable long-term trends for rural depopulation and agricultural abandonment in poorly productive areas are generally followed by scrub encroachment and afforestation (Santos et al 2006). Moreover, Jimenez- Garcia et al (2006) found that red-legged partridges were positively influenced by the surface of old abandonment areas in other Mediterranean agrosystems (southeastern Spain). Nevertheless, this response showed a relative preference for dry and low colonizing shrubs in the Alicante Province and this type of shrubland could provide some cover and food for partridges.…”

“…Thus the study of environmental processes at regional scale is important to complement game state (local) studies and to envision a broader management approach (Peiro & Seva 1993, Peiro & Blanc 1998, Vargas et al 2006, Farfan et al 2009). Geographic Information Systems (GISs) have been playing an increasingly important role in wildlife biology and management at regional level, because they provide the means for storing, displaying and analysing multivariate spatial data, developing predictive models from the relationships among data and extrapolating the potential distribution of species population parameters from models (see Hodgson et al 1988, Agee et al 1989, Ferrier & Smith 1990, Walker 1990, Pereira & Itami 1991, Mladenoff et al 1995, Liu et al 1995, Borralho et al 2000, Jimenez-Garcia et al 2006, Cousins 2007. Furthermore, Peiro & Blanc (1998) have used GIS environmental/game management databases and discriminant analysis to predict density intervals and population trends (1980 to 1987) of the red-legged partridge in the same study area as this paper.…”

“…Borralho et al (1999,2000) incorporated and manipulated redlegged partridge locations and environmental variables in a vector-based GIS of farmlands in Portugal, and some multivariate linear or logistic regression models of partridge detections were fitted using forward stepwise selection. Jimenez- Garcia et al (2006) related hunting bags of several game species with land uses and landscape indices, which were used as independent variables in linear regression models. Meriggi et al (2007) used logistic models to plan red-legged partridge reintroduction in central Italy.…”