Novel ecosystems and social-ecological resilience

Collier, Marcus

doi:10.1007/s10980-015-0243-z

Cited by 40 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 66 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In Brazil, for example, the management of forest for production of fruits of Euterpe oleracea (commercially known as ‘açaí’) has been shown to cause floristic impoverishment with perceivable consequences for forest succession (Freitas et al , ). The use and modification of remaining natural habitats by people that depend on natural resources may therefore create ‘novel ecosystems’ ( sensu Hobbs, Higgs & Harris, ) that differ from their ‘pristine’ counterparts not only in terms of species composition but also in successional trajectories (Collier, ).…”

Section: Secondary Forest Dynamics In Human‐modified Landscapesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple successional pathways in human-modified tropical landscapes: new insights from forest succession, forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Old-growth tropical forests are being extensively deforested and fragmented worldwide. Yet forest recovery through succession has led to an expansion of secondary forests in human-modified tropical landscapes (HMTLs). Secondary forests thus emerge as a potential repository for tropical biodiversity, and also as a source of essential ecosystem functions and services in HMTLs. Such critical roles are controversial, however, as they depend on successional, landscape and socio-economic dynamics, which can vary widely within and across landscapes and regions. Understanding the main drivers of successional pathways of disturbed tropical forests is critically needed for improving management, conservation, and restoration strategies. Here, we combine emerging knowledge from tropical forest succession, forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research to identify the main driving forces shaping successional pathways at different spatial scales. We also explore causal connections between land-use dynamics and the level of predictability of successional pathways, and examine potential implications of such connections to determine the importance of secondary forests for biodiversity conservation in HMTLs. We show that secondary succession (SS) in tropical landscapes is a multifactorial phenomenon affected by a myriad of forces operating at multiple spatio-temporal scales. SS is relatively fast and more predictable in recently modified landscapes and where well-preserved biodiversity-rich native forests are still present in the landscape. Yet the increasing variation in landscape spatial configuration and matrix heterogeneity in landscapes with intermediate levels of disturbance increases the uncertainty of successional pathways. In landscapes that have suffered extensive and intensive human disturbances, however, succession can be slow or arrested, with impoverished assemblages and reduced potential to deliver ecosystem functions and services. We conclude that: (i) succession must be examined using more comprehensive explanatory models, providing information about the forces affecting not only the presence but also the persistence of species and ecological groups, particularly of those taxa expected to be extirpated from HMTLs; (ii) SS research should integrate new aspects from forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research to address accurately the potential of secondary forests to serve as biodiversity repositories; and (iii) secondary forest stands, as a dynamic component of HMTLs, must be incorporated as key elements of conservation planning; i.e. secondary forest stands must be actively managed (e.g. using assisted forest restoration) according to conservation goals at broad spatial scales.

show abstract

Section: Secondary Forest Dynamics In Human‐modified Landscapesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple successional pathways in human-modified tropical landscapes: new insights from forest succession, forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Furthermore, the concept of novel ecosystems (Hobbs et al ., ) and the growing literature on social‐ecological resilience (Stone‐Jovicich, ) highlight the interaction of human agency with other biological actors, resulting in dynamic hybrid landscapes. The work of Marcus Collier (; ) suggests that such landscapes are a resource for the future that ecologists themselves do not yet appreciate or understand. As Rademacher (: 145) contends, comprehending these ‘multiple ecologies of urbanism’ will require ‘ethnographically sophisticated analytics that address how urbanites actively reconfigure place‐specific fragments of meaning to create, and recreate, urban nature in the present’.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Weeds, Pheasants and Wild Dogs: Resituating the Ecological Paradigm in Postindustrial Detroit

Draus¹,

Roddy²

2018

Int J Urban Regional Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Chicago School of urban sociology has been criticized for its over‐reliance on organic and ecological metaphors. We propose that a useful updated integration of urban sociology and ecology could be achieved with the aid of complementary concepts, such as patch dynamics and assemblage, from both fields. In this exploratory article, we draw on more than 50 qualitative interviews conducted with residents of three different Detroit neighborhoods, together with field observations, photographs and documentary evidence, to examine both actual and metaphorical references to the natural world. We consider allusions to ‘drug infestation’ as well as other references to territorialization processes and associations with plants and animals that emerged out of our interviews and interactions with neighborhood residents. In conclusion, we maintain that social science may have much to learn from contemporary ecological research, and that a resituated ecological paradigm would challenge and benefit contemporary urban research.

show abstract

“…Regardless of terminology, highly modified ecosystems do exist (Chapin and Starfield ; Hobbs et al . ; Collier ) and when traditional conservation objectives can no longer be achieved, it is imperative to find an acceptable management framework within which conservation decision makers can communicate and develop new management strategies.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since the 1930s, several terms have been used to describe modified systems (Tansley 1935), including "anthropogenic ecosystems", "no-analog communities", "synthetic or emerging ecosystems", and "spontaneous vegetation" (Truitt et al 2015). Regardless of terminology, highly modified ecosystems do exist (Chapin and Starfield 1997;Hobbs et al 2006;Collier 2015) and when traditional conservation objectives can no longer be achieved, it is imperative to find an acceptable management framework within which conservation decision makers can communicate and develop new management strategies.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Grappling with the social dimensions of novel ecosystems

Backstrom

Garrard

Hobbs

et al. 2018

Frontiers in Ecol & Environ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The novel ecosystem concept has emerged in response to the increasing prevalence of modified ecosystems. Traditional conservation and restoration strategies have been deemed inadequate to guide the management of ecosystems that are the product of anthropogenic environmental change and have no “natural” analogs. Opinions about novel ecosystems are currently divided between those who embrace the flexibility offered by the concept and those who see it as a shift toward the abandonment of traditional strategies. However, the debate is missing a key element: recognition that all conservation decisions are socially constructed and that the concept of novel ecosystems is most practicable within a decision or management context. Management of novel ecosystems should be framed in such a context, and the concept evaluated for its capacity to meet social, ecological, and economic objectives.

show abstract

Novel ecosystems and social-ecological resilience

Cited by 40 publications

References 66 publications

Multiple successional pathways in human-modified tropical landscapes: new insights from forest succession, forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research

Multiple successional pathways in human-modified tropical landscapes: new insights from forest succession, forest fragmentation and landscape ecology research

Weeds, Pheasants and Wild Dogs: Resituating the Ecological Paradigm in Postindustrial Detroit

Grappling with the social dimensions of novel ecosystems

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About