Landscape Connectivity Research Articles

Landscape Composition and Crop Border Vegetation Diversity Effect on Pollinators, Auxiliary Fauna, and Phytophagous Arthropods of Leguminous Cropland in Araba (Basque Country)

Many strategies and directives are starting to address the importance of an appropriate landscape for agricultural biodiversity, such as pollinators and auxiliary fauna. Therefore, it is necessary to identify which landscape features are more important for agricultural biodiversity conservation and the ecosystem services they offer, like pollination and pest control. Thus, the main objective of this study was to assess the effect of landscape composition, configuration, connectivity, and crop border vegetation on arthropod diversity. The arthropod community was sampled in eight legume crops located across a gradient of landscape complexity. Additionally, the border vegetation of each plot was characterized, and the surrounding landscape was analyzed at a small and a large scale. For the statistical analysis, Generalized Linear Mix Models and redundancy analyses were applied. Pollinators were positively affected mainly by landscape connectivity. Pest control agents were less influenced by the landscape and only before harvest were they positively affected by riparian forests. Finally, phytophagous arthropod richness increased with border vegetation diversity and cropland in the surroundings. In conclusion, in the leguminous crops of Araba landscape connectivity together with cropland extension in the surroundings should be considered to promote ES-offering fauna diversity.

Travel specific resource selection by female Kodiak brown bears during the sockeye salmon spawning season

BackgroundAccess to salmon resources is vital to coastal brown bear (Ursus arctos) populations. Deciphering patterns of travel allowing coastal brown bears to exploit salmon resources dispersed across the landscape is critical to understanding their behavioral ecology, maintaining landscape connectivity for the species, and developing conservation strategies.MethodsWe modeled travel behavior of 51 radio-collared female Kodiak brown bears (U. a. middendorffi) from 2008 to 2015 during the sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) stream spawning season to identify landscape patterns associated with travel pathways. To accomplish this, we first identified behavioral states of marked individuals, and then developed a resource selection function (RSF) to evaluate environmental covariates that were predictors of selection during travel behavior.ResultsLandcover edges, elderberry-salmonberry stands, lowland tundra, elevation, terrain position, and stream length influenced selection for travel corridors. The RSF validated well and was comparable to corridors identified by pathways used by bears while travelling.ConclusionsModels identified spatial predictions of the relative probability of selection while bears were travelling during the salmon spawning season and identified areas that contained potential movement corridors important for bears inhabiting Kodiak Island. Our results characterized factors influencing travel, identified important movement corridors, and provided managers with information to make informed resource management decisions.

Integrating revised DPSIR and ecological security patterns to assess the health of alpine grassland ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

Alpine grassland ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) provide critical services but face threats from human activity and climate change. Ensuring ecosystem health is vital for sustainability and preserving ecosystem services and processes, especially in delicate ecosystems such as the Gannan alpine grasslands. However, there is currently a lack of a comprehensive model that integrates ecosystem structure, function, processes, and socioeconomic factors. This study proposes a comprehensive ecosystem health assessment approach that combines the revised driver–pressure–state–impact–response (DPSIR) framework with ecological security patterns (ESPs), overcoming the limitations of previous models that focused primarily on ecosystem structure without sufficiently addressing dynamic ecosystem processes. This method aims to diagnose the health of the Gannan alpine grasslands on the QTP from 2000 to 2020. We found that in the context of global climate change, the ecological health was maintained at a relatively high level (covering 75.41 % of the area) in most areas of Gannan, whereas lower levels (12.09 %), were found in the northern areas of Gannan and southwestern areas of Maqu likely resulting from higher livestock density, increased population density, and weaker landscape connectivity. The results of the driver analysis showed that livestock inventory (with an influence Q-value of 0.70) significantly affected the health of the Gannan alpine grassland ecosystem, suggesting that sustainable livestock management is essential for maintaining ecological corridor connectivity, protecting core zones and promoting regional sustainability.

Constructing ecological network based on multi-objective genetic algorithms: a case study of Changsha City, China

ContextRegional ecological security faces serious threats in a changing world. Ecological network (EN) provides decision-makers with spatial strategies for maintaining ecological security and landscape sustainability via alleviating the contradiction between ecological conservation and economic growth. Despite years of intense and fruitful studies, accurately identifying ecological source patches when facing multiple conflicting objectives still remains a challenge.ObjectivesThis study aimed to propose an advanced framework for recognizing ecological source patches with consideration of multiple objectives and further constructing EN, which would promote a more profound understanding of local ecological condition and provide spatial guidance for ecological conservation planning.MethodsTaking Changsha City as the study area, we evaluated the ecological condition by considering three key ecosystem services, i.e., habitat maintenance, carbon sequestration and water yield using the InVEST model. Ecological source patches were identified using multi-objective genetic algorithms (MOGA) in view of ecosystem services, landscape connectivity and the total area of ecological source patches. Ecological corridors were extracted by applying Minimum Cumulative Resistance (MCR) model based on modified ecological resistance surface. The EN was established by combining these ecological source patches with ecological corridors.ResultsThe EN in Changsha City was comprised of 51 ecological source patches and 50 ecological corridors. The ecological source patches were primarily distributed across the eastern and western mountainous areas with the total area of 2842 km2, occupying 24.05% of the study area. There was a clear lack of ecological source patches along the Xiangjiang River owing to the high level of urbanization, which deserved particular attention for ecological restoration. Overall, the identified ecological source patches provided 87.31% of ecosystem service supply and 82.49% of the whole landscape connectivity by occupying 67.09% of the dominant patch area. The depicted ecological corridors formed two clusters in the central and northeastern parts of the study area.ConclusionsThis study offered new insights into accurately identifying ecological source patches by coordinating various conservation objectives. With the application of MOGA, the proposed framework consolidated ecosystem services, landscape connectivity and patch area to effectively delineate core ecological patches.

Quantifying urban sprawl and investigating the cause-effect links among urban sprawl factors, commuting modes, and time: A case study of South Korean cities

This study aims to create a detailed urban sprawl index, investigate the relationship between density and other urban sprawl factors, and analyze how these factors affect commuting mode time in South Korean cities using structural equation modeling and multiple linear regression. Urban sprawl factors are categorized from various individual perspectives into density, urban landscape, land-use mix, centeredness, and street connectivity. We show that while scores for urban landscape, density, and centeredness were high in cities with large populations, scores for land-use mix and street connectivity were high in cities with medium and small populations. We found that density had significant effects on urban landscape, centeredness, and street connectivity. The indirect effects of density on commuting modes and time counterbalance the direct effects, indicating that while the indirect effects do not change the direction of the direct effects, they reduce their magnitude, making the total effect smaller than the direct effect. A higher density was associated with fewer commuters using cars and higher numbers of public transit, but the reduction in cars was limited to less than 30 min of commuting time. In addition, high density was positively associated with commuting time. High scores for urban landscape, land-use mix, and street connectivity were associated with a reduction in commuting time but did not have an effect on the conversion from cars to public transit for the journey to work. High scores for urban landscape and street connectivity were associated with more walking commuters but were limited to commuting for less than 60 min. This study shows that urban sprawl factors are mutually complementary for commuting mode changes and time. This study provides evidence for establishing sustainable transportation plans. In addition, the urban sprawl index can be used in future research to investigate the effects of urban sprawl on various social and environmental phenomena.

Large wetlands representation in SWAT+: the case of the Pantanal in the Paraguay River Basin

The Paraguay River Basin forms part of the La Plata River Basin in South America. Its streamflow is significantly attenuated by a high evapotranspiration rate, very gentle slopes and the presence of a vast wetland known as the Pantanal. Modeling the hydrology of watersheds in which the flood pulse is affected by the presence of large floodplains can pose issues for hydrological models that do not account for spatial complexity and simplify water routing using linear assumptions. The new version of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool, known as SWAT+, routes water using variations of the kinematic wave model. However, with the inclusion of connectivity and Landscape Units, SWAT+ provides more flexibility in terms of representing the hydrologic fluxes in the watershed. The main objective of this study is to use the concept of Landscape Units and connectivity to represent the water exchanges between uplands, floodplains and channels. We developed code routines to (1) temporally retain surface and subsurface water coming from the upland into the floodplain, by assuming a reservoir-like floodplain behavior, and (2) represent overbank flow, aiming to fully simulate the interactions between channels and floodplains. The model was calibrated based on monthly discharge for the period 1990 to 2020. The simulated average annual water storage in the floodplains of the Paraguay River is ~108.81 mm accounting for 56.5% of the total annual discharge at the outlet. Furthermore, ~61% of the total annual surface runoff in the Paraguay River Basin flows through the floodplains. Results indicate that the model is able to capture the hydrologic regime in the Paraguay River representing an improvement of SWAT+.

Spatiotemporal Correlation Analysis of Landscape Pattern and Habitat Quality in and Around China’s Tropical Rainforest National Park

With the establishment of the national park system in China, balancing ecological conservation within national parks and development in surrounding areas has become a critical issue. Despite its importance, studies on the scale effects of landscape fragmentation and its relationship with habitat quality (HQ) in these regions remain scarce. Therefore, this study focuses on the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park (HTRNP) in China and the surrounding nine cities and counties. The optimal scale for analyzing the spatiotemporal characteristics of landscape patterns, we assessed the best grain size and extent of landscape pattern indices using the regional information loss assessment model, area loss index, and semivariance function analysis. Based on this, the Fragstats and InVEST models analyzed the spatiotemporal evolution of landscape patterns and HQ from 1980 to 2020. Additionally, bivariate spatial autocorrelation theory was applied to examine the spatial correlation between the two. The results show that (1) the landscape indices in the study area vary with grain size and extent. The optimal grain size is 300 m, and the optimal extent is 2 km × 2 km. (2) Over the past 40 years, the landscape pattern of HTRNP has remained stable. In contrast, the surrounding areas exhibit notable spatial differentiation, with landscapes in coastal town centers becoming increasingly fragmented. (3) Over the past 40 years, the overall HQ in the study area has been relatively high, showing a spatial distribution pattern that decreases gradually from the center of HTRNP outward to rural areas, towns, and coastal regions. HTRNP has maintained a high and stable HQ, while the surrounding areas exhibited a decreasing trend in HQ, although the decline was relatively modest. (4) The spatial distribution of HQ aligns closely with landscape patterns, indicating a significant spatial correlation. The landscape connectivity of HTRNP remains high, with consistently superior HQ. In contrast, coastal town centers are characterized by highly fragmented landscapes and poor HQ. This study reveals the spatiotemporal dynamics of landscape patterns and HQ, along with their spatial associations. These findings provide a scientific basis for ecological conservation in national parks and the planning optimization of surrounding areas.

Mapping spatiotemporal patterns of avocado expansion and land-use intensity in central Mexico and their effects on landscape connectivity

Mapping spatiotemporal patterns of avocado expansion and land-use intensity in central Mexico and their effects on landscape connectivity

A spatiotemporal analysis framework of the ecological security pattern based on the ecological “source–surface–corridor” and its implications

A reasonable ecological security pattern can improve landscape connectivity, promote biological circulation, maintain ecological processes, and improve regional ecosystem service functions and human well-being. Accordingly, systematically and scientifically analyzing the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the regional ecological security pattern has essential theoretical and practical significance. This research proposed that the analysis framework of the ecological security pattern should include a complete system composed of ecological sources, resistance surfaces, and corridors. Thus, this research uses the ecological network method to systematically analyze the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the ecological security pattern in the Qinba–Dabie intersection zone in China, a complete natural ecological unit across administrative regions, from 2000 to 2020. Results revealed the following: (1) The distribution change law of the ecological sources in the study area was consistent with the distribution change law of their centrality. (2) In the northeast of the study area, the disappearance of the small ecological sources, which play a stepping stone role, led to a longer length and a weaker centrality of ecological corridors. (3) The resistance surface in the study area showed an overall growth trend, while the ecological corridor network showed an overall deterioration trend. Based on the results, this research suggests that the systematic analysis and targeted protection of ecological sources are the basis for maintaining the ecological security pattern, and targeted improvement of ecological resistance surface is the key to improving the ecological security pattern. Therefore, measures such as the protection of core ecological sources, the rational layout of ecological sources as stepping stones, and the improvement of resistance values at ecological key points should be paid attention to in the future.

Genetic connectivity of wolverines in western North America

Wolverine distribution contracted along the southern periphery of its range in North America during the 19th and 20th centuries due primarily to human influences. This history, along with low densities, sensitivity to climate change, and concerns about connectivity among fragmented habitats spurred the recent US federal listing of threatened status and special concern status in Canada. To help inform large scale landscape connectivity, we collected 882 genetic samples genotyped at 19 microsatellite loci. We employed multiple statistical models to assess the landscape factors (terrain complexity, human disturbance, forest configuration, and climate) associated with wolverine genetic connectivity across 2.2 million km2 of southwestern Canada and the northwestern contiguous United States. Genetic similarity (positive spatial autocorrelation) of wolverines was detected up to 555 km and a high-to-low gradient of genetic diversity occurred from north-to-south. Landscape genetics analyses confirmed that wolverine genetic connectivity has been negatively influenced by human disturbance at broad scales and positively influenced by forest cover and snow persistence at fine- and broad–scales, respectively. This information applied across large landscapes can be used to guide management actions with the goal of maintaining or restoring population connectivity.

Mapping schistosomiasis risk landscapes and implications for disease control: A case study for low endemic areas in the Middle Paranapanema river basin, São Paulo, Brazil.

Schistosomiasis, a chronic parasitic disease, remains a public health issue in tropical and subtropical regions, especially in low and moderate-income countries lacking assured access to safe water and proper sanitation. A national prevalence survey carried out by the Brazilian Ministry of Health from 2011 to 2015 found a decrease in human infection rates to 1%, with 19 out of 26 states still classified as endemic areas. There is a risk of schistosomiasis reemerging as a public health concern in low-endemic regions. This study proposes an integrated landscape-based approach to aid surveillance and control strategies for schistosomiasis in low-endemic areas. In the Middle Paranapanema river basin, specific landscapes linked to schistosomiasis were identified using a comprehensive methodology. This approach merged remote sensing, environmental, socioeconomic, epidemiological, and malacological data. A team of experts identified ten distinct landscape categories associated with varying levels of schistosomiasis transmission potential. These categories were used to train a supervised classification machine learning algorithm, resulting in a 92.5% overall accuracy and a 6.5% classification error. Evaluation revealed that 74.6% of collected snails from water collections in five key municipalities within the basin belonged to landscape types with higher potential for S. mansoni infection. Landscape connectivity metrics were also analysed. This study highlights the role of integrated landscape-based analyses in informing strategies for eliminating schistosomiasis. The methodology has produced new schistosomiasis risk maps covering the entire basin. The region's low endemicity can be partly explained by the limited connectivity among grouped landscape-units more prone to triggering schistosomiasis transmission. Nevertheless, changes in social, economic, and environmental landscapes, especially those linked to the rising pace of incomplete urbanization processes in the region, have the potential to increase risk of schistosomiasis transmission. This study will help target interventions to bring the region closer to schistosomiasis elimination.

Desert landscape features influencing the microgeographic genetic structure of Nelson's pocket mouse Chaetodipus nelsoni.

Elucidating the factors that drive the genetic patterns of natural populations is key in evolutionary biology, ecology and conservation. Hence, it is crucial to understand the role that environmental features play in species genetic diversity and structure. Landscape genetics measures functional connectivity and evaluates the effects of landscape composition, configuration, and heterogeneity on microevolutionary processes. Deserts constitute one of the world's most widespread biomes and exhibit a striking heterogeneity of microhabitats, yet few landscape genetics studies have been performed with rodents in deserts. We evaluated the relationship between landscape and functional connectivity, at a microgeographic scale, of the Nelson's pocket mouse Chaetodipus nelsoni in the Mapimí Biosphere Reserve (Chihuahuan desert). We used single-nucleotide polymorphisms and characterized the landscape based on on-site environmental data and from Landsat satellite images. We identified two distinct genetic clusters shaped by elevation, vegetation and soil. High elevation group showed higher connectivity in the elevated zones (1250-1350 m), with scarce vegetation and predominantly rocky soils; whereas that of Low elevation group was at <1200 m, with denser vegetation and sandy soils. These genetic patterns are likely associated with the species' locomotion type, feeding strategy and building of burrows. Interestingly, we also identified morphological differences, where hind foot size was significantly smaller in individuals from High elevation compared to Low elevation, suggesting the possibility of ecomorphs associated with habitat differences and potential local adaptation processes, which should be explored further. These findings improve our understanding of the genetics and ecology of C. nelsoni and other desert rodents.

Dieback of spruce plantations: deadwood stands and management heterogeneity enhance beetle diversity and habitat connectivity

Forest ecosystems are important for biodiversity conservation and human societies, but are under pressure due to climate change and human interventions. This applies to natural forests as well as tree plantations. The latter are globally widespread and therefore gaining increasing importance for biodiversity conservation. However, even after dieback due to increasing disturbance frequencies, such plantations are primarily managed for economic returns, leading to growing conflicts among stakeholders. In particular, the impact of forest management on biodiversity is being discussed. This study investigates the effects of five management approaches in a landscape severely affected by spruce (Picea abies L.) dieback on beetle diversity, conservation, and community composition. We considered direct effects of management and indirect effects of environmental parameters separately in ground-dwelling and flight-active beetles. Beetle diversity was strongly affected by forest management, with non-intervention deadwood stands being most beneficial for beetles. In addition, we show indirect effects of environmental factors. In general, parameters related to salvage logging (e.g. open canopies, tree stumps) influenced beetle diversity and conservation negatively, while positive effects were found for soil nutrient availability and plant species richness. Community composition differed strongly among management categories and indicated a lack of landscape connectivity for open habitat species, as we found only low proportions of such species even on salvage-logged sites. We propose a mixture of management approaches after bark beetle outbreaks, including a substantial proportion of non-intervention deadwood stands, to increase landscape heterogeneity and connectivity. This may increase overall biodiversity while addressing the concerns of both forestry and species conservation.

The roles of habitat isolation, landscape connectivity and host community in tick-borne pathogen ecology.

Habitat loss and forest fragmentation are often linked to increased pathogen transmission, but the extent to which habitat isolation and landscape connectivity affect disease dynamics through movement of disease vectors and reservoir hosts has not been well examined. Tick-borne diseases are the most prevalent vector-borne diseases in the United States and on the West Coast, Ixodes pacificus is one of the most epidemiologically important vectors. We investigated the impacts of habitat fragmentation on pathogens transmitted by I. pacificus and sought to disentangle the effects of wildlife communities and landscape metrics predictive of pathogen diversity, prevalence and distribution. We collected pathogen data for four co-occurring bacteria transmitted by I. pacificus and measured wildlife parameters. We also used spatial data and cost-distance analysis integrating expert opinions to assess landscape metrics of habitat fragmentation. We found that landscape metrics were significant predictors of tick density and pathogen prevalence. However, wildlife variables were essential when predicting the prevalence and distribution of pathogens reliant on wildlife reservoir hosts for maintenance. We found that landscape structure was an informative predictor of tick-borne pathogen richness in an urban matrix. Our work highlights the implications of large-scale land management on human disease risk.

Developing a composite index of conservation value to determine the conservation status of protected areas: The case of the Krau Wildlife Reserve and Tasek Bera Ramsar Site, Peninsular Malaysia

In Peninsular Malaysia, the various forms and contexts of assessing the conservation status of a protected area has led to inconsistent results, causing misunderstanding and uncertainty among protected area managers. Furthermore, these assessments rely heavily on the conservation value inside the protected area, despite the fact that its value is also influenced by the external environment. In this regard, using a composite index of conservation value (CICV) provides the opportunity for a more practical assessment of conservation status. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop a CICV to determine the conservation status of two protected areas in Peninsular Malaysia, i.e., the Krau Wildlife Reserve and Tasek Bera Ramsar Site. Land use/land cover maps inside and outside the protected areas, developed using Landsat images from 2014, were the basis for the conservation value assessment, which employed three landscape scale indicators, i.e., naturalness, fragmentation, and connectivity. Through an analytical hierarchical process, the indicators were combined to develop a CICV inside and outside each protected area. Acceptable robustness values obtained through sensitivity analysis enabled the calculation of the CICV scores. For each protected area, the internal and external sites were then merged to calculate a net CICV. The inside, outside, and net CICV scores were used to determine the area’s conservation status on a critical value scale with the markers ‘very critical’, ‘critical’, ‘moderate’, ‘good’, and ‘excellent’. Inside the Krau Wildlife Reserve, the CICV was 88.4 %, indicating an ‘excellent’ conservation status, while its outside status is ‘critical’ with a CICV of 35 %. The net CICV of this area was 64.29 %, yielding a ‘good’ net conservation status. The CICV inside and outside Tasek Bera Ramsar Site were 35 % and 21.34 % respectively, both of which represent a ‘critical’ conservation status. The net CICV was found to be 22.52 %, suggesting that the net conservation status is ‘critical’. The results show that the external landscape of protected areas is a threat that influences the areas’ net conservation status. Therefore, a comprehensive conservation status assessment requires a composite index that integrates conservation values from the outside to help protected area managers easily understand and interpret findings, and thus, effectively coordinate conservation planning.

Multi-scenario Simulation and Landscape Connectivity Evaluation of the Evolution of Green Space Ecological Network in Central Urban Area of Shanghai

Multi-scenario Simulation and Landscape Connectivity Evaluation of the Evolution of Green Space Ecological Network in Central Urban Area of Shanghai

A comprehensive framework to assess multi‐species landscape connectivity

Abstract Due to the central role of landscape connectivity in many ecological processes, evaluating and accounting for it has gained attention in both theoretical and applied ecological sciences. To address this challenge, researchers often use generic species to simplify multi‐species connectivity assessments. Yet, this approach tends to oversimplify movement behaviour, likely reducing realism and precision of connectivity model outputs. Also, the most widely used methods and theories for assessing landscape connectivity, namely circuit and network theories, have strong limitations. Finally, uncertainty or robustness estimates are rarely integrated in connectivity assessments. Here, we propose a versatile framework, which, instead of using arbitrary defined generic species, first identifies species groups based on species' environmental niches and morphological, biological, and ecological traits. Second, it combines circuit and network theories to take the best of the two methods to assess landscape connectivity for those groups, while integrating uncertainties in modelling choices. Specifically, ecological continuities (i.e. landscape elements contributing to connectivity) are calculated for these groups and used together with group dispersal capacities to derive network‐based connectivity metrics for conservation areas. We detailed our framework through a case study where we assess the connectivity of 1619 protected areas in metropolitan France for 193 vertebrate species. Our study revealed that both the protection of ecological continuities and the connectivity of protected areas for 11 mammal and 19 bird groups, respectively, were quite low, with variations among groups. Different protection types (i.e. national parks, reserves or prefectural orders) contributed unequally to the overall connectivity of group‐specific suitable habitats. Considering uncertainty propagation was crucial, as many connectivity metrics varied among repetitions. The proposed framework combines different connectivity tools to provide a more relevant and comprehensive assessment of landscape connectivity. It can be used to inform the decision‐making process for spatial planning, particularly in the context of connectivity conservation and management, or support theoretical studies to better understand the ecological role of landscape connectivity. Its flexibility allows easy application under various environmental conditions, including future scenarios.

New Approaches for Regeneration of an Outstanding Baroque Living Heritage, the Széchenyi Linden Allée in Hungary

Allées used to be the essential artistic tools and indispensable parts of the strictly architectural, formal Baroque gardens. Beyond the practical purposes of edging paths and garden ways for walking, hunting, or horse and carriage riding, allées played a vital role in marking visual and landscape connections and thus the spatial projection of the noble estate, its wealth, and social rank. In Historical Hungary, Baroque architecture and garden art appeared in German-Austrian and French examples in the 18th century. The Széchenyi Linden Allée is an outstanding linear garden space of Baroque Garden art at Nagycenk, West Hungary. The generous composition, created by the prominent Count Széchenyi family in the mid-18th century, has remained a magnificent entity in the landscape ever since. Despite barely two hundred years of detected or unknown environmental or habitat changes, as early as 1942, the allée received a nature conservation nomination. More than a half-century later, in 2002, the allée became a historical and landscape aesthetical heritage within the Fertő-Hanság Cultural Landscape World Heritage site. Unfortunately, the once magnificent tree lines have severely eroded in recent decades due to mature trees’ subsequent death, inadequate replacement, lack of regular maintenance and tree care, and effects of climate change. In recent years (2011, 2018), landscape and horticultural analyses and visual and instrumental tree assessments were performed to help the conservation and rebirth of the allée, maintain the mature trees, and restore the landscape within a long-term renewal plan. Along with the 2018 survey and plan, the short-term maintenance works were completed in 2019–2020. This study, based on site surveys in 2022 and 2024, aims to identify the results of the primary management, analyses the vitality of mature trees after crown reductions, and then proposes a resilient and sustainable regeneration method with the habitat, cultural, natural, and genetic heritage, and the feasible maintenance contexts in focus. As proposed in the 2018 plan, the reproduction of mature trees started in 2020 and resulted in well-developing grafts for a later allée restoration. Due to the challenges of climate change, the regeneration project requires a special, long-term restoration management plan with a special focus on the still vital and possible remaining mature trees, the well-growing individuals from previous replanting, and the nursery school seedlings conserving the genetic heritage of the Széchenyi lime trees with long-viability capacity.

Spatiotemporal evolution of ecological environmental quality and its dynamic relationships with landscape pattern in the Zhengzhou Metropolitan Area: A perspective based on nonlinear effects and spatiotemporal heterogeneity

Understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics between landscape pattern changes and ecological environmental quality is essential for optimizing regional landscapes and improving the ecological environment. However, previous studies have certain shortcomings in understanding both aspects: On one hand, ecological environment assessments that overlook air quality may be misleading; On the other hand, the spatiotemporal driving mechanisms between landscape patterns and ecological environmental quality are still unclear. This study considers air quality information, refines ecological remote sensing indices, and employs the Random Forest-Multiscale Geographically and Temporally Weighted Regression (RF-MGTWR) analytical framework to reveal the nonlinear effects and spatiotemporal heterogeneity between landscape patterns and ecological environmental quality across the dimensions of aggregation, connectivity, and diversity. The results indicate:(1) ARSEI (Advanced Remote Sensing Ecological Index) is more suitable for assessing ecological environment quality in areas with air pollution compared to RSEI (Remote Sensing Ecological Index). (2) Ecological environmental quality is most strongly influenced by landscape connectivity, followed by diversity and aggregation. The driving effects of landscape aggregation, diversity, and connectivity will change around the values of 91, 0.64, and 80, respectively, all exhibiting complex nonlinear relationships.(3) Landscape patterns exhibit opposing trends in ecological benefits between urban centers and rural areas: In urban centers, landscape aggregation is negatively correlated with ecological environmental quality, while increased connectivity and diversity have positive effects; this is reversed in areas with good ecological conditions. As urbanization progresses, the positive impacts of landscape connectivity and diversity are enhanced, although the positive effects of diversity gradually diminish. (4) The combination of random forests and MGTWR offers a comprehensive and innovative perspective for analyzing driving mechanisms. Based on the findings, landscape planners should pay attention to the impact thresholds, scales of action, and spatiotemporal heterogeneity between landscape indicators and ecological environment quality.

Construction and Optimization of Ecological Security Patterns Based on Ecosystem Services in the Wuhan Metropolitan Area

Rapid urbanization has affected ecosystem stability, and the construction of ecological security patterns (ESPs) can rationally allocate resources and achieve ecological protection. Priority evaluation of critical areas can maximize the benefits of ecological protection, which is crucial for sustainable urban development. However, most prior studies have focused on assessing individual elements of the ESP, rarely considering both the protection priority of ecological sources and corridors. We constructed ESPs for the Wuhan Metropolitan Area (WMA) from 2000 to 2020 and evaluated the priority of ecological sources and corridors for protection. The findings indicated that high-level ecological sources exhibited higher overall landscape connectivity and ecosystem service values with lower patch fragmentation. The average area proportions of primary, secondary, and tertiary ecological sources in 2000, 2010, and 2020 were 41.11%, 23.03%, and 29.86%, respectively. High-level ecological corridors had shorter lengths and offered higher comprehensive ecosystem service values. The total length of secondary corridors exceeded that of primary corridors by 1951.19 km, 650.39 km, and 2238.18 km in 2000, 2010, and 2020, respectively. Primary corridors, which connected fragmented and isolated sources, should have their ecological land percentage increased to enhance connectivity. Secondary corridors connected two independent and distant sources, providing the basis for ecological protection in the intervening area, whose surrounding habitats should be protected. This study identifies the ecological protection priority and offers a theoretical basis and practical reference for balancing urban development with ecological protection.