Abstract
Abstract Background In many parts of the world, roadsides are regularly managed for traffic-safety reasons. Hence, there are similarities between roadsides and certain other managed habitats, such as wooded pastures and mown or grazed grasslands. In contrast to roadsides, the latter habitats have declined rapidly in Europe during the last century, and today only a fraction of their former extent remains. For many species historically associated with these habitats, roadsides may therefore function as new primary habitats or as dispersal corridors in fragmented landscapes. Current recommendations for roadside management to promote conservation values are largely based on studies of plants in semi-natural grasslands, although such areas often differ from roadsides in terms of environmental factors and impacts. Moreover, roadsides provide habitats not only for plants but also for many insects, especially if they are sandy and exposed to the sun. For these reasons, stakeholders in Sweden have emphasised the need for more targeted management recommendations, based on actual studies of roadside biodiversity. Methods The proposed systematic map is intended to provide an overview of the available evidence on how biodiversity is affected by various forms of roadside management, and how such management influences the dispersal of species along roads or roadsides. Relevant interventions include e.g. mowing, shrub removal, control of invasive/nuisance species, sowing or planting, burning, grazing by livestock, scraping and ditching. Non-intervention or alternative forms of roadside management will be used as comparators. Relevant outcomes include measures of species or genetic diversity, the abundance of individual species or groups of organisms, species distribution patterns, and movement rates of individuals or propagules. Searches will be made for peer-reviewed and grey literature in English and several other languages. No geographical restrictions will be applied, and all species and species groups will be considered.
Highlights
In many parts of the world, roadsides are regularly managed for traffic-safety reasons
Roadsides as habitats and dispersal corridors The creation of road networks has been a critical component of the development of our civilisation
In the 1970s, coincident with the development of landscape ecology, conservation biologists became interested in how roads fragment the landscape and interact with landscape processes [2]
Summary
Search terms The review team has conducted a scoping exercise to assess alternative search strings, testing them against a set of some 20 articles known to be relevant. Each member of the review team will use national and international contacts to get information on current research related to the topic of the review, and to find nonpeer-reviewed literature, including reports published in e.g. Danish, Dutch, French, German, Norwegian, Spanish and Swedish. Articles found by searches in databases will first be evaluated for inclusion based on titles and abstracts combined This assessment will be made by a single reviewer, who in cases of uncertainty will tend towards inclusion. Relevant types of intervention Roadside management, including but not restricted to mowing, removal of shrubs and saplings, pruning, coppicing, control of invasive/nuisance species, herbicide use, sowing or planting, burning, grazing by livestock, harrowing, scraping, macadamisation, ditching and maintenance of ditches.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
