Systematic Conservation Planning Research Articles

系统保护规划的理论、方法及关键问题

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 系统保护规划的理论、方法及关键问题 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201304220768 作者: 作者单位: 中国科学院生态环境研究中心城市与区域生态国家重点实验室,中国科学院生态环境研究中心城市与区域生态国家重点实验室 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国土资源部公益性行业科研专项项目(201011018) Theory, work frame and hot issues of systematic conservation planning Author: Affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology,Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences,Chinese Academy of Sciences,State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology,Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences,Chinese Academy of Sciences Fund Project: 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:为了减缓生物多样性丧失的趋势、将有限的保护资源用于关键区域,Margules等提出了系统保护规划(Systematic Conservation Planning)概念和方法,目前该方法已成为国际主流保护规划方法。与传统基于专家决策的保护体系规划方法不同,系统保护规划拥有量化的保护目标、保护成本,并综合考虑保护体系连通性、人为干扰因素,使用优化算法计算,从而获得空间明晰的生物多样性保护体系。在阐述规划理念、规划流程与方法的基础上,重点评述了生物多样性替代指标的选择、保护规划成本的计算、保护目标的设置、规划结果的可靠性评估等关键问题,并结合我国的具体情况,探讨了该方法在我国的应用前景,以期为推进我国生物多样性与生态服务功能的保护做出贡献。 Abstract:Biodiversity provides numerous essential services to humanity. But in past few decades, a large number of species have become increasingly threatened by anthropogenic disturbances. The current rates of extinction are estimated to be 100-1000 times greater than pre-human rates. In order to decrease the biodiversity loss rate and maximize the limited protection resources in key biodiversity areas, Margules raised the idea of Systematic Conservation Planning (SCP). It was widely used in conservation planning. In contrast to traditional method of conservation planning by expert decision, quantitative conservation targets, costs synthesized network connectivity, human disturbances and optimal algorithm were considered in SCP for obtaining a spatial-explicit conservation system. After analysis of planning theory, procedure, methods and review of existing SCP tools, four key issues in SCP research were summarized. The first issue is biodiversity indicators selection which means biodiversity mapping or quantification at genes, species, and ecosystems level to generates a biodiversity distribution matrix. It was demonstrated, at large scale, that quantification of biodiversity importance for species and ecosystems are more suitable than genes method, especially for a combination of species and ecosystems. The second is the estimation of cost that can be calculated in monetary and non-monetary terms. Many methods of cost quantification were reviewed in these paper and it indicated that conservation cost should not only incorporates socioeconomic data, but also biological features. The most important destination of SCP is to achieve some minimum representation of biodiversity features for the smallest possible cost by optimization. So an explicit conservation target is required. However, obtaining a rational target depends largely on the experiences of the experts who are forming these targets and that will inevitable bring about bias due to poor knowledge of the area and taxa. Our review suggests that a convictive method should take both static and dynamic factors into account and to construct heterogeneity target for different conservation feature(ecosystem services, vulnerability, e.g.) as the target in SCP is worthy of further study. Once outcomes of SCP were generated from mathematical algorithm, the reliability and performability are still indeterminacy. Therefore, as the fourth key issue, how to evaluate result and error from SCP are given in our context. Summing up these issues, its foreground for further application in China was also analyzed under current biodiversity situation. Distinctly, Chinese scientists need to realize that the development of ecological productive mode in China have failed to keep pace with rapid economic development. In the face of heterogeneous land use pattern, target function should take various context into consideration during planning procedure. In addition, the expropriation for biodiversity conservation means that the government expropriate land of rural collective economy organization because of dual system of state ownership and collective ownership. For this reason, the estimation of conservation opportunity cost is more meaningful than land purchase cost. This paper, therefore, by reviewing a large amount of past literatures, makes a summary and a commentary on the theory, work frame and key topics on SCP that might promote the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in China in the future. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

基于系统保护规划的三江平原湿地保护网络体系优化

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 基于系统保护规划的三江平原湿地保护网络体系优化 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201402180281 作者: 作者单位: 黑龙江省科学院自然与生态研究所,黑龙江省林业设计研究院,北京林业大学自然保护区学院,黑龙江省科学院自然与生态研究所,黑龙江省科学院自然与生态研究所,黑龙江省科学院自然与生态研究所 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: Q143 基金项目: 国家自然科学基金(C030801);黑龙江省基础青年基金项目(JC03-09) SCP (systematic conservation planning) optimization for a wetland conservation network system on Sanjiang Plain, China Author: Affiliation: Heilongjiang Academy of sciences-Institute of Natural Resources,,,,, Fund Project: 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:综合三江平原湿地不同层次、不同维度的生物多样性特征,在系统保护规划方法(Systematic Conservation Planning, SCP)框架下,以集水区为规划单元,计算研究区域不可替代性指数,确定高保护价值网络体系,通过保护空缺分析对现有保护网络进行优化,并评估优化体系的有效性。结果表明:三江平原湿地高保护价值区域的分布呈现沿河流分布的特点;现有保护区中湖泊和目标物种的保护状态比较好;保护网络体系优化后,沼泽湿地在保护网络中的比重由22.88%重增加到50%以上;河流湿地由16.20%增加到33.92%;地下水资源在现有保护网络中的比重非常低,仅为2.01%,优化后保护网络中保护比重增加到12.05%,因此在今后的保护区规划中,应该重视对地下水资源的保护和管理。另外本研究结合生态脆弱性对高保护价值的空缺设计3个情景方案,并根据生态威胁的种类和强度提出各优先保护方案的保护建议,为保护管理决策提供依据。 Abstract:This study optimized an existing conservation network system using SCP and gap analysis while evaluating the effectiveness of the new system. The process of establishing high-value conservation networks took into account biodiversity features of different levels and dimensions in the Sanjiang Plain. The process also accounted for the irreplaceability of catchments, since these planning units fall under the framework of SCP. In the horizontal dimension, we had two conservation level objectives, one for the ecosystem level and one for the species level. Eight types of marsh wetland systems, all lake ecosystems, and high conservation value river wetland systems were selected as ecosystem level conservation surrogates. Thirteen endangered birds and four endangered mammals were selected as species level conservation surrogates. In the vertical dimension, we chose 3 effective underground water distribution areas. Ecosystem conservation targets were set based on ecological function value, rarity and threat trends. Species conservation targets were set based on level of endangerment, scope for survival, and population growth/decline trends. Protection targets were set for water resources according to their runoff modulus and recharge modulus. SCP utilizes the key concept of irreplaceability, which is a measure, varying from zero to one, indicating the importance of an area (planning unit) for the achievement of regional conservation targets. A map of irreplaceability values is therefore a base map of conservation planning. Finally, we combined irreplaceability values with vulnerability factors (factors threatening the ecology of the region) to design different planning options. Results were as follows:(1) High conservation value areas accounted for about 16% of the whole region and were generally distributed along river and lake ecosystems. Specifically, at headwater intersections, such as the intersection of the Heilongjiang and Wusulijiang, the junction of the Tongjiang and Fuyuan, the marsh wetlands between Fujin and Baoqing, the waterfront in Hulin, and the middle part of Luobei, the northeast Hegang, northeast of Yilan, and the south Muling.(2) Lake ecosystems and target species were well-protected in existing conservation areas. They accounted for 83.90% and 81.25% of the whole conservation network respectively. After the prioritization, these percentages increased only slightly to 86.65% and 100%.(3) Marsh, riverine and wetland ecosystem protection by the existing conservation network was less effective. Prioritization would afford an increase in marsh wetlands (from 22.88% to more than 50%), riverine wetlands (from 16.20% to 33.92%), and underground water resources (from just 2.01% to 12.05%).(4) Vulnerability analysis showed high vulnerability areas on the Sanjiang Plain were mainly distributed in Jiamusi, south of Hegang, north of Shuangyashan and Jixi, the middle of Huanan and Luobei, and the intersection of the Fujin and Suibin.The work detailed above indicates that future conservation planning must continue to preserve well-protected ecosystems and species and emphasizes the need for protection and management of marsh, riverine and wetland ecosystems, especially underground water resources. Quantification of resource irreplaceability and vulnerability were evaluated as a supplement to this future conservation planning. The authors combined irreplaceability and vulnerability indexes to propose three scenarios (the ecological value prioritized scenario, the rescue prioritized scenario and the economic avoidance prioritized scenario), and provide recommendations for decision-makers under each scenario in terms of ecological threats.This irreplaceability-based biodiversity conservation planning method integrates protected objects, conservation targets and contributions into one framework and expresses the information in a quantified form. Quantifications enables conservation planning and prioritizing work to be more scientific and better visualized, providing a feasible and effective framework for natural reserve network establishment and prioritization. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Multi-objective optimization in systematic conservation planning and the representation of genetic variability among populations.

Biodiversity crises have led scientists to develop strategies for achieving conservation goals. The underlying principle of these strategies lies in systematic conservation planning (SCP), in which there are at least 2 conflicting objectives, making it a good candidate for multi-objective optimization. Although SCP is typically applied at the species level (or hierarchically higher), it can be used at lower hierarchical levels, such as using alleles as basic units for analysis, for conservation genetics. Here, we propose a method of SCP using a multi-objective approach. We used non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II in order to identify the smallest set of local populations of Dipteryx alata (baru) (a Brazilian Cerrado species) for conservation, representing the known genetic diversity and using allele frequency information associated with heterozygosity and Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. We worked in 3 variations for the problem. First, we reproduced a previous experiment, but using a multi-objective approach. We found that the smallest set of populations needed to represent all alleles under study was 7, corroborating the results of the previous study, but with more distinct solutions. In the 2nd and 3rd variations, we performed simultaneous optimization of 4 and 5 objectives, respectively. We found similar but refined results for 7 populations, and a larger portfolio considering intra-specific diversity and persistence with populations ranging from 8-22. This is the first study to apply multi-objective algorithms to an SCP problem using alleles at the population level as basic units for analysis.

基于C-Plan系统保护规划软件的长白山阔叶红松林保护效率研究

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 基于C-Plan系统保护规划软件的长白山阔叶红松林保护效率 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201404040643 作者: 作者单位: 北京林业大学林学院 省部共建森林培育与保护重点实验室 北京,黑龙江科学院自然与生态研究所 哈尔滨,北京林业大学自然保护区学院 北京,中国林业出版社 北京,北京林业大学林学院 省部共建森林培育与保护重点实验室 北京,北京林业大学林学院 省部共建森林培育与保护重点实验室 北京 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 科技部"十二五"科技支撑项目(2012BAC01B03) Conservation effectiveness of broadleaved korean pine forest in Changbai Mt. based on C-Plan systematic conservation planning software Author: Affiliation: BeiJing forestry university,,,,,Beijing forestry university Fund Project: 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:阔叶红松林(Broadleaved Korean pine forest)是北温带物种最丰富的地带性群落之一,是极危动物东北虎(Panthera tigris altaica)的重要栖息地。长白山地区是阔叶红松林在中国范围内的中心分布区,中国政府建立了由24个自然保护区组成的网络来保护阔叶红松林及其他自然生态系统。以长白山地区为研究区域,在系统保护规划方法流程框架下,选择阔叶红松林生态系统中具有代表性的物种和群落做为优先保护对象,并制定量化保护目标,利用系统保护规划软件C-Plan,计算了研究区域规划单元的不可替代性值、各保护对象在保护网络中实现其保护目标的贡献值(Ti)及包含多个保护对象的保护区域的保护效率值(C),以此在多角度评估保护网络及其中各自然保护区的保护效率。结果显示:现有保护网络涵盖了本研究确立保护对象种类的90.4%,已达到保护目标的保护对象占其总数的25.3%。以保护阔叶红松林为"标尺"衡量各保护区的保护效率,长白山国家级自然保护区与松花江三湖省级自然保护区保护效率值最高,其余各保护区保护效率值不足10,整个保护网络保护效率值为59.99。不可替代性分析结果显示:仍有79.97%的高保护价值规划单元未被现有保护网络覆盖,空间上存在明显空缺。将空缺纳入保护网络后,新保护网络的保护效率值将提高到96.32,提高了36.33,77种保护对象达到保护目标(占保护对象总数的92.8%),5种保护对象仍未能达到保护目标,但保护对象贡献值Ti均不同程度提高,保护成效显著。 Abstract:Broadleaved Korean pine forest is one of the zonal communities with most abundant species in the North Temperate Zone. It is also an important habitat for the endangered animal of Amur tiger (Panthera tigris altaica). Changbai Mountain have been the center of China distribution areas for broadleaved Korean pine forest. A network of 24 nature reserves have been established by the Chinese government to protect Broadleaved Korean pine forest and local natural ecosystem.The paper applied the C-Plan,by following the theoritical framwork of systematic conservation planning, we seletced the representative species and communities in Broadleaved Korean pine forest ecosystem as priority conservation objects and set quantitative conservation target which is in the light of the biodiversity characteristic of broadleaved Korean pine forest. In addition, three key indicators were also caculated: (1) The irreplaceability value of planning unit of study areas; (2)the contribution value (Ti) to the reserved network by the conservation objects; (3) the conservation effectiveness value (Ti) of the protected area which contains multiple objects. All those results were aimed to multiple perspectives evalutating the conservation effieiency of the reserved network and the reserves in it. The evaluation results indicated: the existing conservation network has covered 90.4% of the protection objects 25.3% of protection objects reached the protection target.The highest conservation effectiveness value occurred in Changbai Mountain Reserve and Songhuang River Reserve.The rest of reserves has conservation effectiveness value less than 10. The conservation effectiveness value of whole conservation network is 59.99. The results of irreplaceability analysis indicated that 79.97% of planning units with high protection value has not been covered by existing conservation network.There are obviously GAP in layout. The new conservation network's conservation effectiveness value was 96.32, increased by 36.33 after including GAPs into conservation network. For 77 kinds of protection objects, it reached the protection target. It accounted for 92.8% of total protection objects. 5 kinds of protection objects could not reach protection target, while their protection efficiency has greatly enhanced.The protection effectiveness of the study area was significantly enhanced. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Conservation planning in agricultural landscapes: hotspots of conflict between agriculture and nature.

AimConservation conflict takes place where food production imposes a cost on wildlife conservation and vice versa. Where does conservation impose the maximum cost on production, by opposing the intensification and expansion of farmland? Where does conservation confer the maximum benefit on wildlife, by buffering and connecting protected areas with a habitable and permeable matrix of crop and non-crop habitat? Our aim was to map the costs and benefits of conservation versus production and thus to propose a conceptual framework for systematic conservation planning in agricultural landscapes.LocationWorld-wide.MethodsTo quantify these costs and benefits, we used a geographic information system to sample the cropland of the world and map the proportion of non-crop habitat surrounding the cropland, the number of threatened vertebrates with potential to live in or move through the matrix and the yield gap of the cropland. We defined the potential for different types of conservation conflict in terms of interactions between habitat and yield (potential for expansion, intensification, both or neither). We used spatial scan statistics to find ‘hotspots’ of conservation conflict.ResultsAll of the ‘hottest’ hotspots of conservation conflict were in sub-Saharan Africa, which could have impacts on sustainable intensification in this region.Main conclusionsSystematic conservation planning could and should be used to identify hotspots of conservation conflict in agricultural landscapes, at multiple scales. The debate between ‘land sharing’ (extensive agriculture that is wildlife friendly) and ‘land sparing’ (intensive agriculture that is less wildlife friendly but also less extensive) could be resolved if sharing and sparing were used as different types of tool for resolving different types of conservation conflict (buffering and connecting protected areas by maintaining matrix quality, in different types of matrix). Therefore, both sharing and sparing should be prioritized in hotspots of conflict, in the context of countryside biogeography.

Systematic conservation planning for groundwater ecosystems using phylogenetic diversity.

Aquifer ecosystems provide a range of important services including clean drinking water. These ecosystems, which are largely inaccessible to humans, comprise a distinct invertebrate fauna (stygofauna), which is characterized by narrow distributions, high levels of endemism and cryptic species. Although being under enormous anthropogenic pressure, aquifers have rarely been included in conservation planning because of the general lack of knowledge of species diversity and distribution. Here we use molecular sequence data and phylogenetic diversity as surrogates for stygofauna diversity in aquifers of New South Wales, Australia. We demonstrate how to incorporate these data as conservation features in the systematic conservation planning software Marxan. We designated each branch of the phylogenetic tree as a conservation feature, with the branch length as a surrogate for the number of distinct characters represented by each branch. Two molecular markers (nuclear 18S ribosomal DNA and mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I) were used to evaluate how marker variability and the resulting tree topology affected the site-selection process. We found that the sites containing the deepest phylogenetic branches were deemed the most irreplaceable by Marxan. By integrating phylogenetic data, we provide a method for including taxonomically undescribed groundwater fauna in systematic conservation planning.

Combined use of systematic conservation planning, species distribution modelling, and connectivity analysis reveals severe conservation gaps in a megadiverse country (Peru).

Conservation planning is crucial for megadiverse countries where biodiversity is coupled with incomplete reserve systems and limited resources to invest in conservation. Using Peru as an example of a megadiverse country, we asked whether the national system of protected areas satisfies biodiversity conservation needs. Further, to complement the existing reserve system, we identified and prioritized potential conservation areas using a combination of species distribution modeling, conservation planning and connectivity analysis. Based on a set of 2,869 species, including mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, butterflies, and plants, we used species distribution models to represent species' geographic ranges to reduce the effect of biased sampling and partial knowledge about species' distributions. A site-selection algorithm then searched for efficient and complementary proposals, based on the above distributions, for a more representative system of protection. Finally, we incorporated connectivity among areas in an innovative post-hoc analysis to prioritize those areas maximizing connectivity within the system. Our results highlight severe conservation gaps in the Coastal and Andean regions, and we propose several areas, which are not currently covered by the existing network of protected areas. Our approach helps to find areas that contribute to creating a more representative, connected and efficient network.

Selective‐logging and oil palm: multitaxon impacts, biodiversity indicators, and trade‐offs for conservation planning

Strong global demand for tropical timber and agricultural products has driven large-scale logging and subsequent conversion of tropical forests. Given that the majority of tropical landscapes have been or will likely be logged, the protection of biodiversity within tropical forests thus depends on whether species can persist in these economically exploited lands, and if species cannot persist, whether we can protect enough primary forest from logging and conversion. However, our knowledge of the impact of logging and conversion on biodiversity is limited to a few taxa, often sampled in different locations with complex land-use histories, hampering attempts to plan cost-effective conservation strategies and to draw conclusions across taxa. Spanning a land-use gradient of primary forest, once- and twice-logged forests, and oil palm plantations, we used traditional sampling and DNA metabarcoding to compile an extensive data set in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo for nine vertebrate and invertebrate taxa to quantify the biological impacts of logging and oil palm, develop cost-effective methods of protecting biodiversity, and examine whether there is congruence in response among taxa. Logged forests retained high species richness, including, on average, 70% of species found in primary forest. In contrast, conversion to oil palm dramatically reduces species richness, with significantly fewer primary-forest species than found on logged forest transects for seven taxa. Using a systematic conservation planning analysis, we show that efficient protection of primary-forest species is achieved with land portfolios that include a large proportion of logged-forest plots. Protecting logged forests is thus a cost-effective method of protecting an ecologically and taxonomically diverse range of species, particularly when conservation budgets are limited. Six indicator groups (birds, leaf-litter ants, beetles, aerial hymenopterans, flies, and true bugs) proved to be consistently good predictors of the response of the other taxa to logging and oil palm. Our results confidently establish the high conservation value of logged forests and the low value of oil palm. Cross-taxon congruence in responses to disturbance also suggests that the practice of focusing on key indicator taxa yields important information of general biodiversity in studies of logging and oil palm.

Balancing extractive and non-extractive uses in marine conservation plans

Socioeconomic considerations are crucial in the design process of marine protected areas (MPAs). Most systematic planning processes that incorporate socioeconomic aspects mainly concentrate on extractive user interests by integrating spatial data on fisheries thus overlooking other interests such as non-extractive recreational uses of the marine environment such as wildlife observation, diving or kayaking. Additionally, most theory on systematic spatial conservation planning is focused on the design of single zone reserves. The present study, focused in Wales (UK), uses the systematic conservation software Marxan with Zones to quantify the benefits of integrating extractive and non-extractive interests in the planning process of MPAs and assesses whether the impacts on affected users differs between single vs. multiple zones MPAs. Results indicate that MPAs designed with consideration of non-extractive interests reduced the potential economic impacts on this sector by approximately 50% more than MPAs designed without that consideration, without extra cost to the extractive sector. The design of a multiple-zone MPA outperformed that of a single-zone MPA by reducing and generating more equitable impacts for both extractive and non-extractive interests. This study highlights the importance of including the interests of any groups that might be impacted by the designation of an MPA.

When is a marine protected area network ecologically coherent? A case study from the North‐east Atlantic

ABSTRACTCreating representative networks of marine protected areas (MPAs) as part of an ecosystem‐based management approach is generally advocated to protect the full spectrum of marine ecosystems and vulnerable species. Core objectives for designing MPA networks incorporate issues of scale, size and spacing. Ascertaining when such objectives have been met, and thus when a network can be judged to be ecologically coherent, presents an ongoing challenge. This paper presents a broad‐scale approach to assess the degree of ecological coherence within one such network.In 2013 an independent ecological coherence assessment was requested by OSPAR, the Regional Seas Convention for the North‐east Atlantic, of the ecological coherence of its regional MPA network. As is often the case in the marine environment, the data were not sufficiently comprehensive or spatially inclusive to allow for a thorough assessment for the entire region. Consequently two levels of testing were applied: (1) basic tests applied to the whole OSPAR maritime area; and (2) a more sophisticated second level of tests directed at specific OSPAR regions and subregions for which more complete datasets were available. The former considered major gaps based on basic distribution thresholds and representativity (both biogeographic and bathymetric). The latter focused on broad‐scale habitat presence to determine replication, adequacy and connectivity.On the basis of these tests it was concluded that while the OSPAR MPA network as a whole is not ecologically coherent, nonetheless significant progress towards global targets, such as protection of 10% of marine and coastal environments under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has been made. Gaps in the distribution of MPAs were identified, particularly under‐representation of certain biogeographic provinces and bathymetric zones of depths greater than 75 m including bathyal (200–3000 m) and abyssal (3000–6000 m) depths.To address such gaps, a cooperative region by region approach will be required by the OSPAR Parties to identify where positioning new MPAs can enhance ecological coherence.A limitation of the 2013 assessment was that it did not consider which MPAs are designated and managed for the protection of specific features; rather, it assumed that all features that fall within an MPA are protected. With a redevelopment of the OSPAR MPA database underway it is hoped that reporting of such details by Parties will improve, allowing for more specificity in future analyses. However, as the first such assessment of its kind our two‐level approach serves as a case study of a pragmatic example of how assessments of ecologically coherent networks might be undertaken using GIS to contribute to systematic conservation planning. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Building robust conservation plans.

Systematic conservation planning optimizes trade-offs between biodiversity conservation and human activities by accounting for socioeconomic costs while aiming to achieve prescribed conservation objectives. However, the most cost-efficient conservation plan can be very dissimilar to any other plan achieving the set of conservation objectives. This is problematic under conditions of implementation uncertainty (e.g., if all or part of the plan becomes unattainable). We determined through simulations of parallel implementation of conservation plans and habitat loss the conditions under which optimal plans have limited chances of implementation and where implementation attempts would fail to meet objectives. We then devised a new, flexible method for identifying conservation priorities and scheduling conservation actions. This method entails generating a number of alternative plans, calculating the similarity in site composition among all plans, and selecting the plan with the highest density of neighboring plans in similarity space. We compared our method with the classic method that maximizes cost efficiency with synthetic and real data sets. When implementation was uncertain--a common reality--our method provided higher likelihood of achieving conservation targets. We found that χ, a measure of the shortfall in objectives achieved by a conservation plan if the plan could not be implemented entirely, was the main factor determining the relative performance of a flexibility enhanced approach to conservation prioritization. Our findings should help planning authorities prioritize conservation efforts in the face of uncertainty about future condition and availability of sites.

Marine conservation of multispecies and multi-use areas with various conservation objectives and targets

AbstractMarine spatial management is an important step in regulating the sustainable use of marine resources and preserving habitats and species. The systematic conservation planning software “Marxan” was used to analyse the effect of different conservation objectives and targets on the design of a network of marine protected areas around two islands of the Azores archipelago, Northeast Atlantic. The analyses integrated spatial patterns of the abundance and reproductive potential of multispecies, the vulnerability of fish to fishing, habitat type, algae biotopes, and socio-economic costs and benefits (including fishing effort and recreational activities). Three scenarios focused on fisheries-related objectives (“fisheries scenarios”, FSs) and three on multiple-use and biodiversity conservation objectives (“biodiversity scenarios”, BSs), respectively. Three different protection targets were compared for each set, the existing, minimum, and maximum levels of protection, whereas conservation features were weighted according to their biologically/ecologically functioning. Results provided contrasting solutions for site selection and identified potential gaps in the existing design. The influence of the conservation objective on site selection was most evident when minimum target levels were applied. Otherwise, solutions for FSs and BSs were very similar and mostly shaped by the protection level. More important, BSs that considered opportunity cost and benefits achieved conservation targets more cost-efficiently. The presented systematic approach ensures that targets for habitats with high fish abundance, fecundity, and vulnerability are achieved efficiently. It should be of high applicability for adaptive management processes to improve the effectiveness of existing spatial management practices, in particular when fishing and leisure activities coexist, and suggest that decision-makers should account for multiple users’ costs and benefits when designing and implementing marine reserve networks.

Using multivariate statistics to explore trade‐offs among spatial planning scenarios

SummaryScenario planning can be useful to guide decision‐making under uncertainty. While systematic conservation planning can create protected‐area networks for multiple and complex reserve–design scenarios, planners rarely compare different reserve networks explicitly, or quantify trade‐offs among scenarios.We demonstrate the use of multivariate statistics traditionally applied in community ecology to compare reserves designed under different scenarios, using conservation planning for beaches in South Africa as an example. Twelve reserve–design scenarios were run in Marxan in a hierarchical experimental design with three levels: including/excluding the probability of site destruction; two different cost types; and three different configurations of existing terrestrial and marine reserves.Multivariate statistics proved to be useful tools in the conservation planning context. In our case study, they showed that the trade‐off associated with including the probability of site destruction during coastal reserve design depended on the cost type: if the cost is related to the site‐destruction probability then reserves are significantly larger; if not, then reserves are significantly more costly. In both cases, the configuration of existing reserves lockeda prioriinto the solutions was more important and resulted in significantly larger and more costly reserves.Synthesis and applications. This study demonstrates a novel application of multivariate statistical tools to robustly quantify potential trade‐offs among diverse sets of reserve–design scenarios. These statistics can be applied: to support negotiations with stakeholders and decision‐makers regarding reserve configurations in the face of uncertainty; in reserve–design sensitivity analyses; and in priority setting for future research and data collection to improve conservation plans.

Biodiversity data requirements for systematic conservation planning in the Mediterranean Sea

MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 508:261-281 (2014) - DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10857 REVIEW Biodiversity data requirements for systematic conservation planning in the Mediterranean Sea Noam Levin1,*, Marta Coll2,3, Simonetta Fraschetti4, Gideon Gal5, Sylvaine Giakoumi6,7, Cordula Göke8, Johanna Jacomina Heymans9, Stelios Katsanevakis10, Tessa Mazor7, Bayram Öztürk11, Gil Rilov12, Juliusz Gajewski13, Jeroen Steenbeek14, Salit Kark7 1Department of Geography, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem 91905, Israel 2Institute of Marine Science (ICM-CSIC), Passeig Maritim de la Barceloneta, No. 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain 3Laboratoire Écosystèmes Marins Exploités, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR EME 212, Centre de Recherche Halieutique Méditerranéenne et Tropicale, Avenue Jean Monnet, BP 171, 34203 Sète Cedex, France 4Laboratory of Marine Biology, Università del Salento, DiSTeBA, CoNISMa, 73100 Lecce, Italy 5Kinneret Limnological Laboratory, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research PO Box 447, Migdal 14950, Israel 6Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Inland Waters, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Agios Kosmas, 16777 Athens, Greece 7ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia 8Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark 9Scottish Association for Marine Science, Scottish Marine Institute, Oban, Argyll PA37 1QA, UK 10European Commission Joint Research Centre, Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Water Resources Unit, Via E. Fermi 2749, Building 27, Ispra (VA) 21027, Italy 11Laboratory of Marine Biology, Faculty of Fisheries, Istanbul University, Ordu Cad. No. 200, Laleli, Istanbul, Turkey 12National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research (IOLR), PO Box 8030, Haifa 31080, Israel 13Maritime Institute in Gdansk, ul. Dlugi Targ 41/42, 80–830 Gdansk, Poland 14Ecopath International Initiative Research Association, Barcelona, Spain *Corresponding author: noamlevin@mscc.huji.ac.il ABSTRACT: The Mediterranean Sea’s biodiversity and ecosystems face many threats due to anthropogenic pressures. Some of these include human population growth, coastal urbanization, accelerated human activities, and climate change. To enhance the formation of a science-based system of marine protected areas in the Mediterranean Sea, data on the spatial distribution of ecological features (abiotic variables, species, communities, habitats, and ecosystems) is required to inform conservation scientists and planners. However, the spatial data required is often lacking. In this review, we aimed to address the status of our knowledge for 3 major types of spatial information: bathymetry, classification of marine habitats, and species distributions. To exemplify the data gaps and approaches to bridge them, we examined case studies that systematically prioritize conservation in the Mediterranean Sea. We found that at present the data required for conservation planning is generally more readily available and of better quality for the European countries located in the Western Mediterranean Sea. Additionally, the Mediterranean Sea is lagging behind other marine regions where rigorous criteria for conservation planning has been applied in the past 20 yr. Therefore, we call upon scientists, governments, and international governmental and non-governmental organizations to harmonize current approaches in marine mapping and to develop a framework that is applicable throughout the Mediterranean region. Such coordination between stakeholders is urgently needed before more countries undertake further extensive habitat mapping, so that future conservation planning can use integrated spatial datasets. KEY WORDS: Conservation planning · Mediterranean Sea · Biodiversity · Habitats · Bathymetry · Spatial data Full text in pdf format Supplementary material PreviousCite this article as: Levin N, Coll M, Fraschetti S, Gal G and others (2014) Biodiversity data requirements for systematic conservation planning in the Mediterranean Sea. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 508:261-281. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10857 Export citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 508. Online publication date: August 04, 2014 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2014 Inter-Research.

Spatial conservation priorities for top predators reveal mismatches among taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity

Systematic conservation planning is traditionally based on biological features, sometimes representing a single biodiversity component, such as top predators. However, few studies have tested the efficiency of traditional spatial prioritizations to capture the phylogenetic and functional diversity of entire faunas. Here, we evaluated (1) the congruence among spatial prioritization analyses based on taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity for mammals and birds occurring in Brazil; and (2) the congruence among outputs of spatial priorities for carnivores and birds of prey and priorities for conserving the phylogenetic and functional diversity of all mammal and bird species. Priority sites differed among taxonomic groups as well as among biodiversity aspects, with low congruence among them. Overall, both strategies – full group and top predators – were not efficient and have not captured even half of all variation in phylogenetic and functional diversity existing in the groups.

Satellite tracking of sympatric marine megafauna can inform the biological basis for species co-management.

ContextSystematic conservation planning is increasingly used to identify priority areas for protection in marine systems. However, ecosystem-based approaches typically use density estimates as surrogates for animal presence and spatial modeling to identify areas for protection and may not take into account daily or seasonal movements of animals. Additionally, sympatric and inter-related species are often managed separately, which may not be cost-effective. This study aims to demonstrate an evidence-based method to inform the biological basis for co-management of two sympatric species, dugongs and green sea turtles. This approach can then be used in conservation planning to delineate areas to maximize species protection.Methodology/ResultsFast-acquisition satellite telemetry was used to track eleven dugongs and ten green turtles at two geographically distinct foraging locations in Queensland, Australia to evaluate the inter- and intra-species spatial relationships and assess the efficacy of existing protection zones. Home-range analysis and bathymetric modeling were used to determine spatial use and compared with existing protection areas using GIS. Dugong and green turtle home-ranges significantly overlapped in both locations. However, both species used different core areas and differences existed between regions in depth zone use and home-range size, especially for dugongs. Both species used existing protection areas in Shoalwater Bay, but only a single tracked dugong used the existing protection area in Torres Strait.Conclusions/Significance:Fast-acquisition satellite telemetry can provide evidence-based information on individual animal movements to delineate relationships between dugongs and green turtles in regions where they co-occur. This information can be used to increase the efficacy of conservation planning and complement more broadly based survey information. These species also use similar habitats, making complimentary co-management possible, but important differences exist between locations making it essential to customize management. This methodology could be applied on a broader scale to include other sympatric and inter-related species.

Conservation priority of global Galliformes species based on phylogenetic diversity

In this study, based on phylogenetic diversity (PD), I develop a conservation strategy for Galliformes species around the world. A cladogram of 197 Galliformes species derived from a previous study was used for calculating PD metrics. Branch length is an important aspect of the phylogenetic information a tree can convey, but 2 traditionally-used metrics, the number of phylogenetic groups to which a taxon belongs (I) and the proportion that each taxon contributes to the total diversity of the group (W), are fully node-based and do not take branch length into account. Therefore, to measure PD more appropriately, I combined a branch-related metric, pendant edge (P), in addition to I and W. A final combined rank for Galliformes species was obtained by summing the ranks of the 3 metrics. My results showed that the 5% top priority species for conserving evolutionary potential were Galloperdix lunulata, Haematortyx sanguiniceps, Margaroperdix madagarensis, Syrmaticus soemmerringii, Coturnix pectoralis, Polyplectron napoleonis, Alectoris melanocephala, Xenoperdix udzungwensis, Afropavo congensis and Syrmaticus reevesii. The current species priority ranking based on pylogenetic diversity and the official International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) ranking of Galliformes species was significantly correlated when considering the 5 categories of IUCN (critical endangered, endangered, vulnerable, near threatened and least concern). This indicated the feasibility of introducing the PD index into the network of IUCN regional Red List assessment. The 5% top priority countries selected using the complementarity principle possessing diversified Galliformes genetic resources were China, Indonesia, Mexico, India, Colombia, Australia, Brazil, Angola, Congo and Japan (in descending order). China, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil, India and Colombia are consistently selected among the 4 top priority sets of richness, rarity, endemicity and PD. This result indicated that the priority result from PD is highly congruent with conventional measures. Along with other conventional ecological attributes, the alternative conservation scenario based on PD is reasonable and can be adopted in systematic conservation planning.

English

Chosenia arbutifolia was used as a case study for establishing a priority protected area (PPA) due to climate change in Northeastern China. A detailed investigation of 2884 plots in Northeastern China and model current and future potential suitable habitat distributions of C. arbutifolia was done to plan PPAs due to climate change. A general computational method was tested for the PPAs prediction using different classical models. First, the current and future suitable habitats of C. arbutifolia was estimated using species distribution model (Maxent). Second, PPAs was identified using the results of Maxent and systematic conservation planning software (zonation). In doing so, we were able to identify key protection areas. Our results suggest that PPAs may be able to integrate the current and future suitable habitats of C. arbutifolia into a single practical zone for sustainable development. Existing nature reserves in these areas were found to be much smaller than the PPAs we identified, suggesting the need for expansion of these zones. Finally, some recommended protection areas based on our PPAs were highlight, which can provide areas of both in situ and ex situ conservation for C. arbutifolia. Our results have broad implications for conservation biology and the redefinition of protective zones for atrisk species.

Applications of systematic approaches in freshwater conservation planning

Systematic conservation planning (SCP) is a widely accepted biodiversity-focused approach to selecting priority areas for protection. Since freshwater ecosystems are globally in urgent need of more conservation and the development of freshwater protected areas has lagged behind such need, SCP is proposed to be widely applied in freshwater conservation. As SCP originates from terrestrial realms, freshwater-specific characteristics should be considered when applied to freshwater systems. The challenges mainly include difficulty in data collection for freshwater species and uncertainty in classification of coarse-filters for representation, while also considering the maintenance of natural connectivity in fresh waters and taking longitudinal, lateral, and climate-change-caused threats into account. Only by addressing these issues may the representativeness and persistence of freshwater biodiversity be ensured in the proposed conservation network. Though challenging at times, the application of systematic approaches in freshwater conservation planning has been widely attempted throughout the last 12 years and applied in different freshwater ecosystems at different scales. In addition, the consideration of freshwater-specific issues has been becoming more and more comprehensive. This review divides the whole process of SCP into successive steps while discussing detailed applications of freshwater planning at each step. First, according to the review, each step attempts to explore many alternatives, such as using surrogates from the species level to the ecosystem level (or a combination within this range) to represent the spatial variation of freshwater biodiversity, deriving raw data from various sources to use for planning, applying different techniques to expand or integrate data, setting various target forms to ensure representativeness or persistence, considering existing protected areas in different ways in the process of planning, using priority principles in various paradigms for both representativeness and persistence, and applying several types of software to the final design of the protection network. Second, applications in each step (except “setting representative targets”) have been more or less tried in considering freshwater-specific issues. For representativeness issues, accepting various sources of information and attempting different ways of data reduction are the main approaches to solving these challenges. For persistence issues, identifying the main ecological processes and threats in freshwater systems and involving them in the process of prioritization are major concerns, and setting targets or priority principles are key steps for taking these persistence issues into account. Finally, more systematic conservation of freshwater systems and new or improved alternatives of each step are expected to enrich this field of study.

The efficiency of indicator groups for the conservation of amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest.

The adequate selection of indicator groups of biodiversity is an important aspect of the systematic conservation planning. However, these assessments differ in the spatial scales, in the methods used and in the groups considered to accomplish this task, which generally produces contradictory results. The quantification of the spatial congruence between species richness and complementarity among different taxonomic groups is a fundamental step to identify potential indicator groups. Using a constructive approach, the main purposes of this study were to evaluate the performance and efficiency of eight potential indicator groups representing amphibian diversity in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Data on the geographic range of amphibian species that occur in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest were overlapped to the full geographic extent of the biome, which was divided into a regular equal-area grid. Optimization routines based on the concept of complementarily were applied to verify the performance of each indicator group selected in relation to the representativeness of the amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest as a whole, which were solved by the algorithm “simulated annealing,” through the use of the software MARXAN. Some indicator groups were substantially more effective than others in regard to the representation of the taxonomic groups assessed, which was confirmed by the high significance of the data (F = 312.76; P < 0.01). Leiuperidae was considered as the best indicator group among the families analyzed, as it showed a good performance, representing 71% of amphibian species in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest (i.e., 290 species), which may be associated with the diffuse geographic distribution of their species. In this sense, this study promotes understanding of how the diversity standards of amphibians can be informative for systematic conservation planning on a regional scale.