Considering plant functional connectivity in landscape conservation and restoration management

Abstract

Landscape connectivity has traditionally been studied for animal species rather than for plants, especially under a multispecies approach. However, connectivity can be equally critical for both fauna and flora and, thus, an essential point in the selection of key management areas and measures. This paper explores a spatially explicit framework to assess the contribution of habitat patches in the conservation and enhancement of plant functional connectivity and habitat availability in a multispecies context. It relies on graph theory and a habitat availability index and differentiates between two management scenarios: (i) conservation; and (ii) restoration, by considering current and potential species distribution based on species distribution models together with a vegetation survey. The results mapped at high spatial resolution priority target areas to apply management measures. We found that intervening in a small proportion of the study area may lead to double the average overall landscape connectivity of the studied species. This study aimed at proposing an innovative methodology that allows studying connectivity for multiple plant species at landscape scale while integrating their individual characteristics. The proposed framework is a step toward incorporating connectivity concerns into plant biodiversity management, based on a better understanding of landscape structure and functionality. Here, we illustrated its significant potential for local conservation and restoration planning and resource optimization.

Habitat remediation followed by managed connectivity reduces unwanted changes in evolutionary trajectory of high extirpation risk populations

“…Overall, we find that the timing and rate of migration is a critical predictor of the genetic make-up of recovered populations and that some combinations of these parameters can send newly connected populations on entirely new evolutionary trajectories. Through this work, we add to the body of evidence that identifies habitat suitability, management actions, and population connectivity as the most limiting factors for a species’ long-term viability (Bouzat et al 2009; Baling et al 2016; Bubac et al 2019; Hilty et al 2020; Goicolea et al 2022; Gonzalez et al 2023; Li et al 2023; Smith et al 2023) and provide a model that can evaluate the risks and benefits of common management strategies.…”

Exploratory GIS: Modelling Past Land Use and Occupancy with Functional Connectivity, Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage Area, NSW, Australia

“…Connectivity science within ecological network analysis can take many forms, from graph trees to circuit theory to functional connectivity assessments (Dickson et al 2018;Gibaja, Marreiros, & Mazzucco 2020;Goicolea et al 2022;Laliberté & St-Laurent 2020;Leming et al 2019;McRae et al 2008). Adopted into this exploratory GIS modelling is the concept of functional connectivity (Vogt et al 2009;Wainwright et al 2011).…”

Modelling Climatically Suitable Areas for Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla King) and Their Shifts across Neotropics: The Role of Protected Areas

“…Ecuador is one of the countries with the highest global conservation priority that currently requires more connectivity between existing PA areas in the SNAP [192,194]. Recent studies suggest that improving connectivity between PAs could be one of the best initiatives to safeguard current biodiversity and enhance adaptive capacity in the context of future climate change [79,195,196]. However, it is also necessary to improve monitoring within PAs through new current initiatives based on the use of remote sensing for the detection of deforestation hotspots and selective logging [197,198], such as drones applied to monitoring the current state of forests [199,200].…”

“…They are undoubtedly the most widely used tools to predict the potential distribution of species in the future, but despite their potential to be used in restoration plans, their use has been very limited in this regard. For example, they have made it possible to identify the distribution of timber forest species facilitating their adequate management and conservation in certain territories [78,79], and recently have facilitated ecological restoration strategies principally in the European continent [79][80][81].…”