Abstract
In conservation biology there have been varying answers to the question of “How much land to protect?” Simulation models using decision-support software such as Marxan show that the answer is sensitive to target type and amount, and issues of scale. We used a novel model system for landscape ecology to test empirically whether the minimum conservation requirements to represent all species at least once are consistent across replicate landscapes, and if not, whether these minimum conservation requirements are linked to biodiversity patterns. Our model system of replicated microcosms could be scaled to larger systems once patterns and mechanisms are better understood. We found that the minimum representation requirements for lichen species along the microlandscapes of tree trunks were remarkably consistent (4–6 planning units) across 24 balsam fir trees in a single stand, as well as for 21 more widely dispersed fir and yellow birch trees. Variation in minimum number of planning units required correlated positively with gamma diversity. Our results demonstrate that model landscapes are useful to determine whether minimum representation requirements are consistent across different landscapes, as well as what factors (life history, diversity patterns, dispersal strategies) affect variation in these conservation requirements. This system holds promise for further investigation into factors that should be considered when developing conservation designs, thus yielding scientifically-defensible requirements that can be applied more broadly.
Highlights
The hallmarks of experimentation are controls, randomization, and replication
We propose the use of a novel model system to determine whether consistent “rules” for minimum conservation requirements can be developed
We can consider lichen thalli as analogous to patches of different land cover types, and individual trees are analogues to a landscape[27,28], making replicate experimental landscapes possible (Fig. 1). We harness this model system to experimentally test a key question in systematic conservation planning (SCP), that of whether a fixed number of planning units can be uniformly applied across different landscapes to achieve the same conservation outcome of having all species in the system represented in at least one protected area
Summary
The hallmarks of experimentation (whether manipulative or observational) are controls, randomization, and replication. Biocrusts[26] and lichen covered trunks of trees of the same species growing in the same stand have been proposed as model systems for landscapes[27] In this latter model system, the patterns of lichen species occurrence along the trunks of trees were shown to be statistically consistent across 24 trees sampled in a single stand and across a broader region for lichens living on two different species of trees[27]. We harness this model system to experimentally test a key question in SCP, that of whether a fixed number of planning units can be uniformly applied across different landscapes to achieve the same conservation outcome of having all species in the system represented in at least one protected area
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