Conservation actions could be more efficient if there is congruence among taxa in the distribution of species. Patterns in the geographical distribution of five taxa were used to identify nationally important regions for conservation in Canada. Two measures of surrogacy were significantly and positively correlated among taxa, and conservation areas selected for one taxon represented other taxa significantly better than random selections. However, few large protected areas exist in the sites of highest conservation value in southern Canada; these regions are therefore a priority for future conservation regard. By focusing this effort on threatened and endangered species, which are a national priority in Canada, most other species could also benefit.
The identification of conservation areas based on systematic reserve-selection algorithms requires decisions related to both spatial and ecological scale. These decisions may affect the distribution and number of sites considered priorities for conservation within a region. We explored the sensitivity of systematic reserve selection by altering values of three essential variables. We used a 1:20,000-scale terrestrial ecosystem map and habitat suitability data for 29 threatened vertebrate species in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada. To these data we applied a reserve-selection algorithm to select conservation sites while altering selection unit size and shape, features of biodiversity (i.e., vertebrate species), and area conservation targets for each biodiversity feature. The spatial similarity, or percentage overlap, of selected sets of conservation sites identified (1) with different selection units was ≤40%, (2) with different biodiversity features was 59%, and (3) with different conservation targets was ≥94%. Because any selected set of sites is only one of many possible sets, we also compared the conservation value (irreplaceability) of all sites in the region for each variation of the data. The correlations of irreplaceability were weak for different selection units (0.23 ≤ r ≤ 0.67), strong for different biodiversity features (r = 0.84), and mixed for different conservation targets (r = 0.16; 0.16; 1.00). Because of the low congruence of selected sites and weak correlations of irreplaceability for different selection units, recommendations from studies that have been applied at only one spatial scale must be considered cautiously.Resumen: La identificación deáreas de conservación basada en algoritmos de selección sistemática de reservas requiere decisiones relacionadas tanto con la escala espacial como la ecológica. Estas decisiones pueden afectar la distribución y el número de sitios considerados prioridades de conservación en una región. Exploramos la sensibilidad de la selección sistemática de reservas alterando los valores de tres variables esenciales. Utilizamos un mapa de ecosistema terrestre a escala 1:20,000 y datos de aptitud de hábitat para 29 especies amenazadas de vertebrados en la región de Okanagan en Columbia Británica, Canadá. Aplicamos un algoritmo de selección sistemática de reservas a estos datos para seleccionar sitios de conservación mientras se alteraba el tamaño y la forma de la unidad seleccionada, las características de la biodiversidad (es decir, especies de vertebrados) y los objetivos de conservación para cada característica de biodiversidad del paisaje. La similitud espacial, o porcentaje de traslapamiento, de conjuntos de sitios de conservación selectos identificada 656 Sensitivity of Systematic SelectionWarman et al. con (1) diferentes unidades de selección fue ≤40%, (2) diferentes características de biodiversidad fue 59% y (3) diferentes objetivos de conservación fue ≥94%. Debido a que cualquier conjunto de sitios seleccionado es solo uno de muchos conjuntos po...
Patterns in the geographic distribution of seven species groups were used to identify important areas for conservation in British Columbia, Canada. Potential priority sites for conservation were determined using an integer programming algorithm that maximized the number of species represented in the minimum number of sites. Sweep analyses were used to determine how well the set of priority sites identified for each species group represented the other species groups. Although areas of highest species richness were different for each species group, they all included sites in the southern interior of British Columbia, where there is limited protection. Furthermore, less than 13% of the distribution ranges for 23 of 25 bird species of special conservation concern were located within existing protected areas. Species at risk of extinction were poorly represented (26%–42%) in priority sets of sites selected for amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, since these sites were generally scattered throughout the province. However, priority sites for species at risk represented 72%–91% of the species in other groups. Therefore, conservation activities in sites identified for such species have the potential to benefit many other species. These sites could be investigated in more detail to augment existing conservation and protection efforts in British Columbia.
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