Coastal settlement patterns and exposure to sea-level rise in the Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Gopalakrishnan, Tharani; Kumar, Lalit; Hasan, Kamrul

doi:10.1007/s11111-020-00350-w

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…While the negative impacts of sea-level rise on Sri Lanka is well documented, most such adversities impact shorelines and nearshore coastal zones [123]. As environments most vulnerable to sea-level rise in Sri Lanka fall outside the distribution range of both focal species [124][125][126], thus we opted not to include seal-level rise as a predictor. The environmental variables we used in our ENMs were of coarse resolution (~1 km), which is sufficient for broad-scale ENMs.…”

Section: Limitations Of Enm and Future Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioclimatic Envelopes for Two Bat Species from a Tropical Island: Insights on Current and Future Distribution from Ecological Niche Modeling

Bandara

Madurapperuma²,

Edirisinghe³

et al. 2022

Diversity

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Bats perform critical ecosystem functions, including the pollination, seed dispersal, and regulation of invertebrate populations. Yet, bat populations are declining worldwide primarily due to habitat loss and other anthropogenic stressors. Thus, studies on bat ecology, particularly on environmental determinants of bat occupancy, are paramount to their conservation. High mobility, nocturnal behavior, and roosting site selection of bats make conventional surveys challenging. Moreover, little is known about geographic distribution, habitat suitability, and responses to climate change among tropical bat species. To bridge these research gaps, we applied ecological niche modeling to two Ceylonese bat species, Kerivoula malpasi and Kerivoula picta, to map their geographic distribution. Seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation were critical environmental predictors of bat distribution in general. Southwestern lowland forests contained the most optimal habitats for the relatively wide-ranging Kerivoula picta, while the central highlands provided the most suitable habitats for the narrow-ranging Kerivoula malpasi. No tangible changes in the highly suitable habitats were evident in response to projected climate change for either species. Yet, the optimal ranges of K. malpasi can become fragmented in the future, whereas the most optimal habitats for K. picta are likely to become spatially contiguous in the future. Habitat availability or fundamental niche alone is insufficient to reliably forecast species persistence, thus we caution against considering these two bat species as resilient to climate change. Our findings will enable the conservation authorities to initiate preemptive conservation strategies, such as the establishment of landscape-scale habitat connectivity and management of buffer zones around conservation lands. We also encourage conservation authorities to employ ecological niche models to map potential species distributions and to forecast range shifts due to climate change.

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Section: Limitations Of Enm and Future Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioclimatic Envelopes for Two Bat Species from a Tropical Island: Insights on Current and Future Distribution from Ecological Niche Modeling

Bandara

Madurapperuma²,

Edirisinghe³

et al. 2022

Diversity

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“…The land is surrounded by the Indian Ocean on three sides and there is no area that is more than 10 km from the coast. Therefore, the region is highly exposed to climate change induced coastal hazards, including sea-level rise, flooding and coastal erosion, which increases the risk of soil and aquifer salinization [12][13][14]. Being a semi-arid region, short duration precipitation and high rates of evaporation exacerbate the salinization issue [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Linking Long-Term Changes in Soil Salinity to Paddy Land Abandonment in Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Gopalakrishnan

Kumar

2021

Agriculture

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Soil salinity is a serious threat to coastal agriculture and has resulted in a significant reduction in agricultural output in many regions. Jaffna Peninsula, a semi-arid region located in the northern-most part of Sri Lanka, is also a victim of the adverse effects of coastal salinity. This study investigated long-term soil salinity changes and their link with agricultural land use changes, especially paddy land. Two Landsat images from 1988 and 2019 were used to map soil salinity distribution and changes. Another set of images was analyzed at four temporal periods to map abandoned paddy lands. A comparison of changes in soil salinity with abandoned paddy lands showed that abandoned paddy lands had significantly higher salinity than active paddy lands, confirming that increasing salts owing to the high levels of sea water intrusion in the soils, as well as higher water salinity in wells used for irrigation, could be the major drivers of degradation of paddy lands. The results also showed that there was a dramatic increase in soil salinity (1.4-fold) in the coastal lowlands of Jaffna Peninsula. 64.6% of the salinity-affected land was identified as being in the extreme saline category. In addition to reducing net arable lands, soil salinization has serious implications for food security and the livelihoods of farmers, potentially impacting the regional and national economy.

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“…The total Jaffna Peninsula is surrounded by water on three sides, and no part is more than 10 km from the coast. In our previous study, we reported that the majority of the population (58.3%) in Jaffna Peninsula are living close to the coast (within 2 km of the coastline) in high-density settlements [54]. Further, 62% of the population are located within 5 masl, and are less than 3 km from the coast.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Modeling and Mapping of Soil Salinity and its Impact on Paddy Lands in Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Gopalakrishnan

Kumar

2020

Sustainability

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Soil salinity is a major threat to land productivity, water resources and agriculture in coastal areas and arid and semi-arid regions of the world. This has a significantly negative effect on the land and causes desertification. Monitoring salt accumulation in the soil is crucial for the prevention of land degradation in such environments. This study attempted to estimate and map soil salinity in Jaffna Peninsula, a semi-arid region of Sri Lanka. A Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) model was constructed using Sentinel 2A satellite imagery and field-measured soil electrical conductivity (EC) values. The results showed that satisfactory prediction of the soil salinity could be made based on the PLSR model coupled with Sentinel 2A satellite imagery (R2 = 0.69, RMSE = 0.4830). Overall, 32.8% of the land and 45% of paddy lands in Jaffna Peninsula are affected by salt. The findings of this study indicate that PLSR is suitable for the soil salinity mapping, especially in semi-arid regions like Jaffna Peninsula. The results underpin the importance of building adaptive capacity and implementing suitable preventive strategies for sustainable land and agricultural management.

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Coastal settlement patterns and exposure to sea-level rise in the Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Cited by 6 publications

References 37 publications

Bioclimatic Envelopes for Two Bat Species from a Tropical Island: Insights on Current and Future Distribution from Ecological Niche Modeling

Bioclimatic Envelopes for Two Bat Species from a Tropical Island: Insights on Current and Future Distribution from Ecological Niche Modeling

Linking Long-Term Changes in Soil Salinity to Paddy Land Abandonment in Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Modeling and Mapping of Soil Salinity and its Impact on Paddy Lands in Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

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