Towards the use of ecological heterogeneity to design reserve networks: a case study from Dadia National Park, Greece

Kati, Vassiliki; Poirazidis, Κonstantinos; Dufrêne, Marc; Halley, John M.; Korakis, Georgios; Schindler, Stefan; Dimopoulos, Panayotis

doi:10.1007/s10531-010-9788-y

Cited by 37 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 54 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…On the basis of the assumption that environmental heterogeneity increases species diversity, it is often proposed that highly heterogeneous areas should receive a higher priority for conservation than less heterogeneous areas (29,30) and that management actions should be targeted at increasing the heterogeneity of habitat conditions as a means for promoting local species diversity (12,31). Our findings demonstrate that such decisions may lead to unintended results, particularly if the overall size of the protected area is small and population sizes are already small, as often is the case.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Area–heterogeneity tradeoff and the diversity of ecological communities

Allouche

Kalyuzhny

Moreno‐Rueda

et al. 2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

282

305

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For more than 50 y ecologists have believed that spatial heterogeneity in habitat conditions promotes species richness by increasing opportunities for niche partitioning. However, a recent stochastic model combining the main elements of niche theory and island biogeography theory suggests that environmental heterogeneity has a general unimodal rather than a positive effect on species richness. This result was explained by an inherent tradeoff between environmental heterogeneity and the amount of suitable area available for individual species: for a given area, as heterogeneity increases, the amount of effective area available for individual species decreases, thereby reducing population sizes and increasing the likelihood of stochastic extinctions. Here we provide a comprehensive evaluation of this hypothesis. First we analyze an extensive database of breeding bird distribution in Catalonia and show that patterns of species richness, species abundance, and extinction rates are consistent with the predictions of the area-heterogeneity tradeoff and its proposed mechanisms. We then perform a metaanalysis of heterogeneity-diversity relationships in 54 published datasets and show that empirical data better fit the unimodal pattern predicted by the area-heterogeneity tradeoff than the positive pattern predicted by classic niche theory. Simulations in which species may have variable niche widths along a continuous environmental gradient are consistent with all empirical findings. The area-heterogeneity tradeoff brings a unique perspective to current theories of species diversity and has important implications for biodiversity conservation.habitat heterogeneity | neutral theory | stochastic model of community dynamics | conservation planning

show abstract

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Area–heterogeneity tradeoff and the diversity of ecological communities

Allouche

Kalyuzhny

Moreno‐Rueda

et al. 2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

282

305

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In agricultural areas, ecological heterogeneity and complex patch shapes, as measured by landscape metrics, are often related to naturalness and increased species richness (Moser et al 2002;Kati et al 2010;Renetzeder et al 2010, Schindler 2010. In our study, rural areas were particularly heterogeneous, being diverse, of a high fractal dimension and including many small patches.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of oil palm plantations on the structure of the agroforestry mosaic of La Gamba, southern Costa Rica: potential implications for biodiversity

et al. 2011

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Human activities often cause changes and homogenization in landscape structure. To investigate the impact of changing cultivation systems on structural and functional aspects of a tropical agroforestry system, we developed satellite based land cover maps of the La Gamba area in southwestern Costa Rica and refined them by mapping fine-scale linear landscape elements. Performing a landscape pattern analysis, we compared eight sections of the study area by landscape metrics. Furthermore we performed a Morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA) for hypothetical non-forest, forest generalist and forest specialist species, and compared the current situation to a possible future scenario with double the area covered by oil palm plantations after a virtual conversion of other agricultural patches. The heterogeneous rural sections clearly differed from the homogeneous forests and especially pasture-dominated rural sections included many diverse, small and elongated patches, many linear landscape elements but few big plantations. According to the scenario with double the area covered by oil palm plantations, non-forest species lost large parts of their habitat, while forest species mainly lost corridors. The protection of natural landscape elements that support wildlife movement between forest areas is of major importance, particularly as the globally increasing cultivation of oil palm is significantly altering many tropical land mosaics, including the countryside of La Gamba. We propose the establishment of eight least cost path corridor routes in the study area to make the agricultural area pervious for wildlife.

show abstract

“…The indicators that are most relevant in terms of environmental policy are those that are easy to survey, efficient, cost-effective, sensitive to processes of change and robust against other influences (e.g. EEA, 2007;Gregory et al, 2009;Kati et al, 2010;Pauli et al, 2007;Renetzeder et al, 2010;Schindler et al, 2008;Tasser et al, 2008). Frequently, environmental indicators are related to habitat and species diversity, land use and land cover, and invasive species.…”

Section: Indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%