The expert or the algorithm?—comparison of priority conservation areas in the Cape Floristic Region identified by park managers and reserve selection software

Cowling, Richard M.; Pressey, Robert L.; Sims-Castley, Rebecca; Roux, Aliza le; Baard, Ernst H. W.; Burgers, Chris J.; Palmer, Guy H.

doi:10.1016/s0006-3207(02)00397-x

Cited by 127 publications

(98 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…The second part of our process involves the integration of data inherent to our particular study system (national and regional infrastructure composition and environmental regulations) with other independent sources of information including mortality records and expert knowledge to validate the models. Incorporating expert knowledge is accepted as a suitable method to complement reserve selection processes based on mathematical models (Store and Kangas, 2001;Cowling et al, 2003;Elbroch et al, 2011). Our systematic selection process could improve the design of protected areas and also help managers and power line companies prioritize mitigation and corrective actions, saving time and money.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using risk prediction models and species sensitivity maps for large-scale identification of infrastructure-related wildlife protection areas: The case of bird electrocution

Pérez‐García

DeVault

Botella

et al. 2017

Biological Conservation

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A B S T R A C TThe use of systematic area-selection procedures to design protected areas can help optimize conservation actions. However, this process has rarely been used to identify high-risk mortality areas to protect wildlife from human impacts. Electrocution on power lines is one the most important human-related causes of bird mortality worldwide, especially for raptors. Identifying and correcting dangerous individual pylons can significantly reduce the number of electrocution victims, but applying this procedure at a large spatial scale is impractical. In this paper we describe a new selection process that allows for identification of high-risk mortality areas at large scales, combining spatial electrocution risk models with maps of species sensitivity to such an impact. We used the Valencia Region (eastern Spain) as our study system. The risk prediction map was built using bird electrocution records on 1 km × 1 km grids from 2000 to 2009 and the species sensitivity map was built using data on presence and use of four raptor species. The combination of both maps was compared to the distribution of Special Protected Areas and validated by local experts to identify prediction errors or gaps. The final proposal of high priority areas to protect birds from electrocution covered 16.3% of the Valencia Region. Our work supports the use of predictive models and sensitivity maps in the decision-making process to locate high priority infrastructure-related wildlife protection areas at a large scale.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using risk prediction models and species sensitivity maps for large-scale identification of infrastructure-related wildlife protection areas: The case of bird electrocution

Pérez‐García

DeVault

Botella

et al. 2017

Biological Conservation

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“…The simplest way to avoid areas impacted by invasive alien species was to exclude them from the prioritization process. Rouget et al (2003) and Cowling et al (2003) mapped terrestrial areas covered by agriculture, urban development, and dense stands of invasive alien species (wattles, pines, and eucalyptus) as transformed and did not consider them for achieving conservation targets. Similarly, Pierce et al (2005) excluded from the planning process areas transformed by urbanization, agriculture, afforestation and dense stands of invasive alien plants.…”

Section: Approaches Applied To Address Biological Invasions In Consermentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological Invasions in Conservation Planning: A Global Systematic Review

et al. 2018

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Biological invasions threaten biodiversity in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, requiring substantial conservation and management efforts. To examine how the conservation planning literature addresses biological invasions and if planning in the marine environment could benefit from experiences in the freshwater and terrestrial systems, we conducted a global systematic review. Out of 1,149 scientific articles mentioning both "conservation planning" and "alien" or any of its alternative terms, 70 articles met our selection criteria. Most of the studies were related to the terrestrial environment, while only 10% focused on the marine environment. The main conservation targets were species (mostly vertebrates) rather than habitats or ecosystems. Apart from being mentioned, alien species were considered of concern for conservation in only 46% of the cases, while mitigation measures were proposed in only 13% of the cases. The vast majority of the studies (73%) ignored alien species in conservation planning even if their negative impacts were recognized. In 20% of the studies, highly invaded areas were avoided in the planning, while in 6% of the cases such areas were prioritized for conservation. In the latter case, two opposing approaches led to the selection of invaded areas: either alien and native biodiversity were treated equally in setting conservation targets, i.e., alien species were also considered as ecological Mačić et al. Biological Invasions in Conservation Planning features requiring protection, or more commonly invaded sites were prioritized for the implementation of management actions to control or eradicate invasive alien species. When the "avoid" approach was followed, in most of the cases highly impacted areas were either excluded or invasive alien species were included in the estimation of a cost function to be minimized. Most of the studies that followed a "protect" or "avoid" approach dealt with terrestrial or freshwater features but in most cases the followed approach could be transferred to the marine environment. Gaps and needs for further research are discussed and we propose an 11-step framework to account for biological invasions into the systematic conservation planning design.

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“…Predictive models are now widely used in conservation biology (systematic conservation planning), although decisions about conservation are currently mainly based on subjective criteria, such as personal experiences or expert judgment (Cook et al, 2010). Few applied conservation practices are based on results of using systematic conservation planning, despite the objectiveness of this method (Cowling et al, 2003). There are studies on the problems of modelling, such as the lack of certainty (Addison et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recorded and potential distributions on the iberian peninsula of speciesof Lepidoptera listed in the Habitats Directive

Romo¹,

Camero-R.²,

García‐Barros³

et al. 2014

Eur. J. Entomol.

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Abstract. Using data on the known Iberian distributions of 10 species of Lepidoptera listed in the Habitats Directive referenced to the 10 × 10 km UTM grid, we determined their potential distributions and their relationships with selected bioclimatic factors associated with mean temperature and precipitation using Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA). Scores for Specialization and Marginality were determined in order to evaluate the relationships between the predictions of the model and climatic factors. The number of squares on the Iberian Peninsula in which the species are recorded and those squares predicted to be favourable for these species were determined if they matched the network of Protected Natural Areas. This suggested that a further eight 10 × 10 km squares should be included in Protected Natural Areas. The results also indicate that climate determines the distributions of most of the species. Although overall there is a close association between the observed and predicted distributions, the less thoroughly documented geographic ranges (i.e. those of the moth species) depart from this pattern.

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The expert or the algorithm?—comparison of priority conservation areas in the Cape Floristic Region identified by park managers and reserve selection software

Cited by 127 publications

References 52 publications

Using risk prediction models and species sensitivity maps for large-scale identification of infrastructure-related wildlife protection areas: The case of bird electrocution

Using risk prediction models and species sensitivity maps for large-scale identification of infrastructure-related wildlife protection areas: The case of bird electrocution

Biological Invasions in Conservation Planning: A Global Systematic Review

Recorded and potential distributions on the iberian peninsula of speciesof Lepidoptera listed in the Habitats Directive

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