The influence of spatial scales on Red List composition: Forest species in Fennoscandia

L. Tingstad,A. Dahlberg,I. Gjerde,J.A. Grytnes

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2017.07.005

Abstract

National Red Lists are widely used prioritizing tools for nature conservation. However, status and trends of species vary with scale, and accounting for a larger spatial scale may provide complementary perspectives for nature conservation. We investigate effects of up-scaling and influence of wider-scale distribution patterns for composition of Red Lists.We collated nationally red-listed forest species in Norway, Sweden and Finland, and extracted “Candidates for a Fennoscandian Red List” (CFRL), defined as species red-listed where they appear in the region. For each country, we compared composition of organism groups and forest type associations of species that were national CFRL to the nationally red-listed species not CFRL. European distribution patterns were compared to investigate how broader-scale distribution is reflected in national Red Lists.Among the 4830 nationally red-listed forest species in Fennoscandia, 58% were CFRL. The fraction of species in the different forest type and species groups differed significantly between the two spatial scales for several groups, although the overall differences in composition were relatively small. Red-listed species had more confined distribution patterns, suggesting that many nationally red-listed species owe their status to being at the edge of their distribution range.An up-scaling had a large effect on which species designated to a Red List, but a relatively small impact on which organism groups or forest types that contained most red-listed species. A regional perspective generated by compilation of national Red Lists can give valuable complementary information on the status of species and effects of scale.

Highlights

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has been assessing the global threat status of species since the 1960’s to highlight declining and rare species with a risk of extinction
The aims of this study were to 1) investigate differences in species composition and species habitat affiliation between National Red Lists from Norway, Sweden and Finland and the selected candidates for a regional Fennoscandian Red List from each of these countries, 2) to analyse if differences of scale may relate to European distribution patterns of the species, and 3) to discuss how consideration of larger geographical scales may complement the national perspective in biodiversity conservation priorities
2785 (58%) of the red-listed forest species in Fennoscandia were red-listed in the countries they appear in and considered Candidates for the Fennoscandian Red List (CFRL) (Fig. 1; for full species list see Appendix Table A.1)

Summary

Introduction

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has been assessing the global threat status of species since the 1960’s to highlight declining and rare species with a risk of extinction. The result is the IUCN Red List, which with its scientific based criteria and coverage of all multicellular taxonomic groups, forms one of the most comprehensive data sources for nature conservation and management (Lamoreux et al, 2003; Mace et al, 2008; Rodrigues et al, 2006; Zamin et al, 2010). As available resources for species conservation are limited, and neither species nor threat factors are evenly distributed, biodiversity conservation has to deal with prioritizations. Priorities are set by political goals and economy, and there is today an extensive use of national Red Lists in the setting of conservation priorities at various scales (Keller and Bollmann, 2004; Martín-Lopez et al, 2011; Mittermeier et al, 1998; Possingham et al, 2002; Schmeller et al, 2014)

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