Gap analysis of the Ramsar site network at 50: over 150 important Mediterranean sites for wintering waterbirds omitted

Popoff, Nadège; Gaget, Élie; Béchet, Arnaud; Dami, Laura; Rau, Pierre Defos du; Geijzendorffer, Ilse R.; Guelmami, Anis; Mondain‐Monval, Jean‐Yves; Perennou, Christian; Suet, Marie; Verniest, Fabien; Deschamps, Clémence; Taylor, Nigel G.; Azafzaf, Hichem; Bendjedda, Nadjiba; Bino, Taulant; Borg, John J.; Božič, Luka; Dakki, Mohamed; Encarnação, Vítor; Erciyas-Yavuz, Kiraz; Etayeb, Khaled; Gaudard, Clémence; Hatzofe, Ohad; Langendoen, Tom; Ieronymidou, Christina; Mikuška, Tibor; Molina, Blas; Petkov, Nicky; Portolou, Danae; Qaneer, Tareq; Sayoud, Samir; Šćiban, Marko; Topić, Goran; Uzunova, Danka; Vine, Gal; Vizi, Andrej; Zenatello, Marco; Abdou, Wed; Galewski, Thomas

doi:10.1007/s10531-021-02236-1

Cited by 9 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…However, some of the most important European wetlands indicated by our analyses lack any protection, such as the Pagasitic Gulf (Greece, CMF), or are only partially protected (Albufeira do Alqueva (Portugal), EAF; Dniester Estuary (Ukraine), CMF). Many (coastal) wetlands in the Mediterranean Region are not designated as Ramsar sites at all, even though they host different waterbird species of conservation concern and/or a substantial population of wintering waterbirds (Popoff et al, 2021). It is striking that important gaps exist in protected areas, both when sites are prioritized for maintaining flyway connectivity as well as when they are listed because of the waterbird populations they harbour.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such temporary wetlands may however be valuable for migratory waterbirds, but their interannual importance is less predictable. In addition, the actual state of wetlands is often unknown, some important wetlands are not legally protected, and adequate enforcement and monitoring is lacking in many protected wetlands (Keeley et al, 2021; Popoff et al, 2021). We know Palearctic‐Afrotropical migratory bird populations are decreasing, especially within the Black Sea‐Mediterranean flyway (Boere & Stroud, 2006; Vickery et al, 2014) and that natural wetland loss is alarmingly accelerating, amongst others due to effects of climate change and human hydrological engineering (Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Highway(s) overhead: Strong differences in wetland connectivity and protected status challenge waterbird migration along the four Palearctic‐Afrotropical flyways

Deboelpaep

Partoens

Koedam

et al. 2022

Diversity and Distributions

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Aim Waterbirds that travel seasonally between Europe and Africa use wetlands along four major Palearctic‐Afrotropical flyways. However, it is unknown to what extent the overall connectivity of these flyways may be threatened by ongoing habitat loss and degradation. Here, we contrasted the wetland connectivity along these four flyways, applying graph‐theoretic connectivity metrics on an intercontinental scale. We also explored for which flyway connectivity is most at risk. We then identified the most important wetlands by their contribution to connectivity in each flyway. Location Western Palearctic, Afrotropics. Methods Based on high‐resolution wetland maps, we calculated directional probabilistic connectivity metrics. Estimates of overall connectivity of each flyway were obtained, as well as the relative importance of wetlands, for birds with different migration strategies: short‐distance hoppers and long‐distance jumpers. Results The East‐Atlantic flyway and Eastern Mediterranean flyway had higher overall functional connectivity than the two central routes, reflecting the larger barrier represented by the Mediterranean Sea and Sahara Desert. Fewer than 5% of all wetlands supported more than 70% of the total connectivity of the network in each flyway, regardless of the considered migration strategy. These wetlands were either large, strategically positioned or both. Removing non‐protected wetlands from the analysis showed that the connectivity of some flyways could be jeopardized and that the East‐Atlantic and Eastern Mediterranean flyway may be most vulnerable to additional habitat loss. Main conclusions Our results illustrate (i) the major contribution of unprotected wetlands to flyway connectivity, (ii) the importance of integrating migration ecology into site‐based connectivity analyses and (iii) the utility of graph‐based connectivity metrics to inform conservation prioritization under present and future scenarios.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Highway(s) overhead: Strong differences in wetland connectivity and protected status challenge waterbird migration along the four Palearctic‐Afrotropical flyways

Deboelpaep

Partoens

Koedam

et al. 2022

Diversity and Distributions

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“…In addition, European countries should allocate a larger share of their international development assistance to biodiversity conservation. Finally, governments should be urged to honor the commitments to designate PAs they made by ratifying international conventions, for example, the identification of sites of international importance for waterbirds through the Ramsar Convention (Popoff et al, 2021).…”

Section: Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coupling future climate and land‐use projections reveals where to strengthen the protection of Mediterranean Key Biodiversity Areas

Verniest

Galewski

Julliard

et al. 2022

Conservat Sci and Prac

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HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L'archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.

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Effectiveness of protected areas for osprey survival at intercontinental scale

Montillo¹,

Sforzi²,

Sammuri³

et al. 2022

Biodivers Conserv

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Gap analysis of the Ramsar site network at 50: over 150 important Mediterranean sites for wintering waterbirds omitted

Cited by 9 publications

References 36 publications

Highway(s) overhead: Strong differences in wetland connectivity and protected status challenge waterbird migration along the four Palearctic‐Afrotropical flyways

Highway(s) overhead: Strong differences in wetland connectivity and protected status challenge waterbird migration along the four Palearctic‐Afrotropical flyways

Coupling future climate and land‐use projections reveals where to strengthen the protection of Mediterranean Key Biodiversity Areas

Effectiveness of protected areas for osprey survival at intercontinental scale

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