Habitat loss

Context Amphibians are declining worldwide and land use change to agriculture is recognized as a leading cause. Argentina is undergoing an agriculturalization process with rapid changes in landscape structure. Objectives We evaluated anuran response to landscape composition and configuration in two landscapes of east-central Argentina with different degrees of agriculturalization. We identified sensitive species and evaluated landscape influence on communities and individual species at two spatial scales. Methods We compared anuran richness, frequency of occurrence, and activity between landscapes using call surveys data from 120 sampling points from 2007 to 2009. We evaluated anuran responses to landscape structure variables estimated within 250 and 500-m radius buffers using canonical correspondence analysis and multimodel inference from a set of candidate models. Results Anuran richness was lower in the landscape with greater level of agriculturalization with reduced amount of forest cover and stream length. This pattern Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (

Changes in the status and distribution of Wisconsin's double-crested cormorant (DCCO) breeding population during the 20th century closely approximate a similar pattern throughout the Great Lakes and generally along the Atlantic coast: a gradual increase in popula- tion size from about 1921 until about 1950, followed by a population crash, and then a remarkable population resurgence beginning in the early

Translocations are becoming increasingly popular as appropriate management strategies for the genetic restoration of endangered species and populations. Although a few studies have shown that the introduction of novel alleles has reversed the detrimental effects of inbreeding over the short-term (i.e., genetic rescue), it is not clear how effective such translocations are for both maintaining neutral variation that may be adaptive in the future (i.e., genetic restoration) and increasing population viability over the long-term. In addition, scientists have expressed concerns regarding the potential genetic swamping of locally adapted populations, which may eliminate significant components of genetic diversity through the replacement of the target population by the source individuals used for translocations. Here we show that bird translocations into a wild population of greater prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus) in southeastern Illinois were effective in both removing detrimental variation associated with inbreeding depression as well as restoring neutral genetic variation to historical levels. Furthermore, we found that although translocations resulted in immediate increases in fitness, the demographic recovery and long-term viability of the population appears to be limited by the availability of suitable habitat. Our results demonstrate that although translocations can be effective management tools for the genetic restoration of wild populations on the verge of extinction, their long-term viability may not be guaranteed unless the initial conditions that led to most species declines (e.g., habitat loss) are reversed.

The Cape Dwarf Chameleon (Bradypodion pumilum) is an endemic South African species that is currently threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation of its natural habitat through urbanization and agriculture. To conduct studies that will assist in understanding these anthropogenic effects on gene flow, population structure, and genetic diversity, we developed eight microsatellite loci using an enrichment protocol. Number of alleles ranged from 5 to 26 with observed heterozygosities of 0.279–0.930. Several loci did not meet HW expectations, but this may be a result of extreme demographic fluctuations that have been noted for this species. These loci will prove useful to examine the population genetics of these threatened reptiles and for providing information that will be used for generating and updating conservation assessments.

. Forest bird diversity in Mediterranean areas affected by wildfires: a multi-scale approach. -Ecography 25: 161-172. Fire is a key mechanism creating and maintaining habitat heterogeneity in Mediterranean landscapes by turning continuous woody landscapes into mosaics of forests and shrublands. Due to the long historical role of fires in the Mediterranean, we hypothesised a moderate negative effect of this type of perturbation on forest bird distribution at a landscape level. We conducted point bird censuses in Aleppo pine forest patches surrounded by burnt shrublands and studied the relationships between three ecological groups of bird species (forest canopy species, forest understorey species, and ubiquitous species) and the features of local habitat, whole patch and surrounding landscape. We used a multi-scale approach to assess the effects of landscape variables at increasing spatial scales on point bird richness. Regarding local habitat components, canopy species were positively associated with tall pines while understorey species with the cover of shrubs and plants from holm-oak forests. Forest birds were positively related to patch size and irregular forest shapes, that is, with high perimeter/size ratios. Thus, these species did not seem to perceive edges as low quality but rather favourable microhabitats. We did not detect any negative effect of isolation or cover of woodlands in the landscape on the presence of forest species after local habitat factors had been accounted for. Finally, only local habitat factors entered the model for ubiquitous species. We suggest that mosaic-like landscapes shaped by fires in the Mediterranean basin are not strongly associated with negative effects fragmentation on forest birds other than those related with habitat loss. S. Herrando (sherrand@bio.ub.es) (present address: Grup Català d'Anellament, Girona 168 E-5,

The disappearance of large vertebrates in the tropical belt may be the next biological insult of the global extinction crisis. Large predators and their prey are at particular risk in Asia, where they are threatened by poaching and habitat loss. To facilitate the best use of limited conservation resources, we created an objective, ecology-based method for identifying priority areas for conservation that incorporates both habitat representation and landscape-level features. Using tigers as an example, our method captures the range of ecological habitats where they occur, accounting for ecological, demographic, genetic, and behavioral differences. Our analysis is hierarchical. We divided the tiger range into distinct bioregions and identified tiger habitat types within each. We then delineated tiger conservation units throughout the bioregions and ranked the units based on habitat integrity, poaching pressure, and tiger population trends. To maintain representation of tiger populations and their ecology in the different tiger habitats, we made comparisons only among tiger conservation units from the same tiger habitat types nested within the same bioregion. We identified 159 tiger conservation units in three bioregions-the Indian subcontinent, Indochina, and Southeast Asia. We ranked the units in three categories that reflect the probability of long-term persistence of tiger populations (highest in level I units). Twenty-five tiger conservation units were classified as level I, 21 as level II, and 97 as level III. An additional 16 tiger conservation units for which little information is available were identified for immediate surveys. Levels I , II, and those identified for immediate surveys are the priority areas for immediate funding and for a regional tiger conservation strategy. One feature emerging from the study showed that protected areas cover only small areas of tiger conservation units. If the long-term prospects for tiger conservation are to improve, poaching must be stopped and protected areas increased in number, linked, and buffered by natural habitats. To enhance landscape integrity, the priority tiger conservation units that straddle international borders should be managed as transboundary reserves, giving tiger conservation a stronger regional structure. Like tigers, populations of other wide-ranging mammalian carnivores and large herbivores also are declining due to poaching and loss of habitat. The method we present for tigers can be adapted readily to improve conservation strategies for these species as well. Método con Bases Ecológicas para Definir Prioridades para la Conservación de Mamíferos Mayores: El Tigre como Caso de Estudio Resumen: La desaparición de vertebrados grandes en el cinturón tropical podría ser el siguiente insulto biológico de la crisis de exteinción global. Los depredadores grandes y sus presas se encuentran en un riesgo particular en Asia donde la caza furtiva y la pérdida de hábitats los amenaza. Para facilitar el mejor uso de

Most of the available data on declining populations of amphibians pertain to frogs and, to a lesser extent, salamanders. In keeping with their generally less understood biology, the population trends and conservation status of caecilian amphibians (Gymnophiona) are also much less known. We reviewed reports of threats to and declines of populations of caecilians. Despite a lack of field-study details (e.g., localities, dates, and sampling methods) and quantitative data, there are several recent reports of threats to and declines and extinctions of caecilians. A range of causal explanations (habitat loss, pollution, chytridiomycosis, and scientific collecting) for these perceived declines have been proposed but little or no associated evidence has been given. Although caecilians are often considered rare and thought to require pristine habitat, published, quantitative data demonstrate that at least some species can occur in high abundance in disturbed, synanthropic environments. Few estimates of caecilian population parameters have been made and very few field methods have been tested, so the assumed rarity of any taxa remains inadequately demonstrated. Distribution and taxonomic data are also inadequate. Because they are generally poorly known and often cryptic, caecilians can be overlooked in standard faunal surveys, meaning that lack of opportunistic collection over several years might not represent evidence of decline. The conservation status of most species must be considered data deficient. More precise assessments will require a substantial increase in all areas of caecilian research, especially those involving new fieldwork. Future reports of caecilian conservation biology need to be explicit and more quantitative.

Habitat fragmentation and diversity loss due to increased conversion of natural habitats to agricultural uses influence the distribution and abundance of wildlife species and thus may change the ecology of pathogen transmission. We used hantaviruses in Panama as a research model to determine whether anthropogenic environmental change is associated with changes in the dynamics of viral transmission. Specifically, we wanted to determine whether hantavirus infection was correlated with spatial attributes of the landscape at both large and small scales or whether these changes are mediated by changes in community composition. When analyzed at coarse spatial scales, hantavirus reservoirs were more commonly found in disturbed habitats and edge habitats than in forested areas. At local scales, reservoir species dominance was significantly correlated with the slope of the terrain. To evaluate the effect of small-mammal diversity loss on infection dynamics, we implemented an experiment with selective species removal at experimental sites. Seroprevalence of hantavirus was higher in the community of small mammals and increased through time in the experimental sites. The higher seroprevalence in experimental plots suggests that greater diversity likely reduces encounter rates between infected and susceptible hosts. Our studies suggest that habitat loss and fragmentation and species diversity loss are altering hantavirus infection dynamics in Panama. Our work represents a multidisciplinary approach toward disease research that includes biodiversity concerns such as environmental change and degradation, human settlement patterns, and the ecology of host and nonhost species, work that may be especially important in tropical countries.

The indirect effects of climate on species interactions were initially surprising, but ecological models that account for ecosystem decline have long underestimated their ubiquity and strength. Indirect effects not only yield "unexpected results", but also some of the strongest ecological effects (i.e. phase-shifts) that have been regarded as "catastrophes" on coral reefs, "collapses" of kelp forests and "crises" in seagrass meadows. Such effects went unanticipated because the impact of one species on another required knowledge of a third element that was inadequately understood. Subsequent debate over the causes of habitat loss has often been polarised by two extreme points of view, i.e. consumer versus producer effects. It is our perspective that these debates will persist unless we clarify the context-dependency of two kinds of indirect effect; those driven by strong consumer effects and those driven by strong producer effects. On human-dominated coasts, loss of coral, kelp and seagrass can occur as a function of change in trophic cascades (i.e. consumer effects) as well as change to competitive hierarchies (i.e. producer competition for resources). Because production and consumption are under strong physiological control by climate (providing predictable responses), there is merit in recognising the type and context of indirect effects to reduce errors associated with model-based forecasting. Indeed, forecasts of how global (e.g. elevated temperature and CO 2 ) and local drivers (e.g. fishing and pollution) combine to drive ecological change will often depend on the relative strength of different kinds of indirect effects (i.e. consumer effects vs producer effects). By recognising the context-dependency of the indirect effects under investigation, the information content of forecasts may not only increase, but also provide an improved understanding of indirect effects and community ecology in general.

Human impacts on the natural environment have reached such proportions that in addition to an Ôextinction crisisÕ, we now also face a broader Ôbiome crisisÕ. Here we identify the world's terrestrial biomes and, at a finer spatial scale, ecoregions in which biodiversity and ecological function are at greatest risk because of extensive habitat conversion and limited habitat protection. Habitat conversion exceeds habitat protection by a ratio of 8 : 1 in temperate grasslands and Mediterranean biomes, and 10 : 1 in more than 140 ecoregions. These regions include some of the most biologically distinctive, species rich ecosystems on Earth, as well as the last home of many threatened and endangered species. Confronting the biome crisis requires a concerted and comprehensive response aimed at protecting not only species, but the variety of landscapes, ecological interactions, and evolutionary pressures that sustain biodiversity, generate ecosystem services, and evolve new species in the future.

Habitat Reintroduction Tourism A B S T R A C T Brown bears (Ursus arctos) are threatened by habitat loss, habitat fragmentation by infrastructure and human settlements, and have been hunted to local extinction in large areas of their former range. We analyzed the habitat use during the non denning period of 106 radio-collared bears in an expanding bear population in Sweden in relation to resorts and towns, terrain ruggedness, sex and age of bears. Bear use increased substantially with increasing distance to towns and resorts for comparable habitat and terrain types, also for independent scat surveys using DNA-analyses. More than 74% of all female bear locations were in the 29% of the terrain classified as ''rugged'' and located >10 km from any town or resort, whereas similar habitat closer to towns or resorts was avoided. Bears closer to larger settlements and resorts (<10 km) were on average 27-51% younger than in areas beyond (mean 4.4 ± 0.4 versus 8.9 ± 0.8 years for males and 4.4 ± 0.4 versus 6.0 ± 0.2 years for females). Sub-adult bears (<4 years) comprised up to 52% of all bear use within 10 km from resorts and settlements, likely representing exploratory dispersing individuals. These areas, however, contained only 8% of the old males (>7 years), the remaining 92% located beyond 10 km from major resorts and settlements. Recreational resorts are developing rapidly, typically near national parks, and may thus limit expansion or fragment existing bear habitats. Together with active conservation, safeguarding undeveloped corridors of forest and rugged terrain may be important for successful recolonization of the brown bear into its original range.

Abstract: Oceania is a diverse region encompassing Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, New Zealand, and Polynesia, and it contains six of the world&#x27;s 39 hotspots of diversity. It has a poor record for extinctions, particularly for birds on islands and mammals. Major causes include habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, and overexploitation. We identified six major threatening processes (habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, climate change, overexploitation, pollution, and disease) based on a comprehensive review of the ...

Repairs to legal drains in the United States may be regulated to protect adjacent wetlands under Section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, commonly known as the Clean Water Act (CWA). However, few studies have examined effects of legal drain clean-outs on adjacent wetlands and associated migratory waterbird populations. 1 compare water regimes, cove~to-open water ratios, and waterbird use on Bruns, Big, Meszaros, and Kraft sloughs (BBMK) in Sargent County, North Dakota before and after the clean-out of Crete-Cogswell Drain No. 11, and relate wetland habitat loss to observed disease-related mortality among staging waterfowl in fall 1990 and spring 1991. Water regimes of BBMK were exceptionally stable, with few records of drawdowns before 1984 when the clean-out began. After the clean-out (1987 90), BBM were dry by midsummer in all years and open area declined by 96% by 1990, whereas Kraft Slough (a control area) had water throughout all years and percent open area did not change. Numerous species of waterbirds nested in BBMK before the clean-out, and mean ranks of waterbird density were similar. After the clean-out, waterbirds failed to breed successfully in all years at BBM, and use as major waterfowl staging areas and for waterfowl hunting also ended. At Kraft Slough, use by breeding and staging waterbirds continued in all years, as did waterfowl hunting. Reduced access to fresh water after the Drain No. 11 clean-out may have contributed to a dieoff of 487 lesser snow geese (£7~en caerutescens) from necrotic enteritis in Kraft Slough in November 1990. Loss of three major staging areas in Sargent County as a result of the drain clean-out has further concentrated migrant waterfowl, particularly during drought periods, increasing the magnitude of risk when epizootics occur in southeastern North Dakota. Ducks and geese banded in Sargent County have been recovered from 34 and 14 states, 7 and 6 provinces of Canada, and 13 and 1 other countries, respectively, indicating waterfowl populations from a wide area are potentially vulnerable to epizo~tics when crowded into limited roosting habitat. Despite causing the loss of wetland habitat for thousands of midcontinent waterfowl and other waterbirds, a Federal Court in North Dakota ruled that the clean-out of Drain No. 1 ! met the criteria necessary to be considered maintenance under Section 404 clause (f)(l)(c) and was not recaptured under clause (f)(2). This outcome suggests current law does not protect wetland functions needed to support migratory waterbird populations or associated recreational values when sites have become naturally restored through lack of maintenance of legal drains.

Human intervention in the hydrologic basin of the Colorado River has eliminated water discharge and sediment supply to the river's mouth and its delta. After ∼95 years of applying strong flow control policies, the previous sedimentary budget in the delta has changed, the delta now being entirely exposed to the hydrodynamic forces in its basin. In order to assess the anthropogenic impact of water diversion on deltaic sedimentary processes and short-term delta geomorphic evolution, textural and mineralogical analyses were performed on 68 sediment samples collected from the river, estuary, beach, continental shelf, delta plain and desert. The results show a consistent NE to SW textural gradient on the shallow-marine platform adjacent to the Colorado River delta (an area known as the Upper Gulf of California), and a net cross-basinal sediment transport occurring in the same direction. Two opposing littoral transport components exist along the Sonoran and Baja Californian coasts: (1) net sediment transport from SE to NW along the Sonoran coast delivers sediments from the ocean into the estuarine basin through the Sonora channel of the deltaic system of the Colorado River; and (2) sediment transport from N to S along the Baja Californian coast removes sediments from the estuarine basin of the Colorado River into the Northern Gulf of California (NGC). The residual sediment transport pattern observed suggests a counterclockwise path of exchange of materials between the estuarine basin of the Colorado River and the NGC. Multivariate cluster and factor analyses of the heavy-mineral data reveal the existence of a sedimentary system dominated by two end-members, representing two heavy-mineral sedimentary provinces: (1) the Sonora province is characterized by a heavy-mineral suite of garnet and zircon (G–Z), whose sediment supply originates from the sandy sediments of the Sonora Mesa deposits and Sonora's Gran Desierto; and (2) the Baja California province is characterized by a hornblende–epidote–pyroxene (H–E–P) suite, whose sediments originate from the earlier supply of the Colorado River. Since the Colorado River is no longer supplying sediments from its drainage basin, the H–E–P-rich sediments now actively dispersed in the system have mainly originated through intense reworking of the delta. Moreover, G–Z-rich sediments are starting to invade areas previously dominated by H–E–P sediments. On the basis of the prevailing hydraulic regime, textural and mineralogical characteristics of the sediments, and hydrographic and bathymetric information from the region, a hypothetical sediment dynamics model for the delta region is proposed, in which the tidally influenced, wave-dominated, sediment-reworked, slightly eroding Sonoran coast changes into a tide-dominated, depositional, very slowly prograding Baja Californian coast. This study shows that human intervention of the hydrologic basin of the Colorado River is not only responsible for inducing drastic hydrologic changes in its estuary (i.e., from brackish to hypersaline), but also for inducing drastic changes in the hydrographic circulation of the receiving basin (i.e., from long-basinal to cross-basinal). These changes are ultimately responsible for the relocation of massive volumes of the delta's sediment inventory, and for the serious ecological impact of habitat loss of indigenous species, such as the now endangered Totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi) and Vaquita (Phocoena sinus).

Millions of raptors and other Neotropical migratory birds are constrained to a narrow geographic corridor during migration through Veracruz, México. Over many years of work, a clearly identifi ed list of problems has defi ned the agenda of a long-term conservation plan for this globally important migration stopover site. Threats to migrants include habitat loss, pesticide use, and negative human attitudes towards raptors that result in direct persecution. The Veracruz River of Raptors Project (VRR) started in 1991 as a long-term initiative to address these problems. Its adaptive conservation plan is based on three core strategic lines of work: 1) research, focused on identifying key stopover habitat sites, understanding migration ecology, and assessing conservation risk by species/habitat associations; 2) monitoring, through a long-term program to track populations based on migration counts and banding, and 3) environmental education, through an alliance to implement programs with students and teachers in rural and urban schools and permanent, year-round presence through its new Mario A. Ramos Bird Observatory. These activities are supported by three core processes for long-term sustainability: a) an international training scheme to ensure qualifi ed human resources; b) a renewable fundraising system that includes a membership program, a private donor base, an ecotourism program, and a continuous fundraising process through foundations, and c) the formalization of partnerships and development of a network of contacts, from local to international, to support the work developed onsite. This approach to conservation implementation has sustained the VRR Project for 18 years. We anticipate utilizing these same strategies to advance the project's goals in the future.

Human activity during the Anthropocene has transformed landscapes worldwide on a scale that rivals or exceeds even the largest of natural forces. Landscape ecology has emerged as a science to investigate the interactions between natural and anthropogenic landscapes and ecological processes across a wide range of scales and systems: from the effects of habitat or resource distributions on the individual movements, gene flow, and population dynamics of plants and animals; to the human alteration of landscapes affecting the structure of biological communities and the functioning of entire ecosystems; to the sustainable management of natural resources and the ecosystem goods and services upon which society depends. This novel and comprehensive text presents the principles, theory, methods, and applications of landscape ecology in an engaging and accessible format that is supplemented by numerous examples and case studies from a variety of systems, including freshwater and marine "scapes".

Essentials of Landscape Ecology is suitable for upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses in landscape ecology. This textbook can also be used as a supplemental text in other ecology courses, as well as courses in forestry, resource and wildlife management, conservation and restoration biology, sustainable land-use and environmental planning.  For the professional landscape ecologist, it provides an authoritative overview of the latest research and developments.

Available through all major booksellers or directly from Oxford University Press:
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/essentials-of-landscape-ecology-9780198838388

The relative influence of habitat loss vs. habitat fragmentation per se (the breaking apart of habitat) on species distribution and abundance is a topic of debate. Although some theoretical studies predict a strong negative effect of fragmentation, consensus from empirical studies is that habitat fragmentation has weak effects compared with habitat loss and that these effects are as likely to be positive as negative. However, few empirical investigations of this issue have been conducted on tropical or wide-ranging species that may be strongly influenced by changes in patch size and edge that occur with increasing fragmentation. We tested the relative influence of habitat loss and fragmentation by examining occupancy of forest patches by 20 mid-and large-sized Neotropical mammal species in a fragmented landscape of northern Guatemala. We related patch occupancy of mammals to measures of habitat loss and fragmentation and compared the influence of these two factors while controlling for patch-level variables. Species responded strongly to both fragmentation and loss, and response to fragmentation generally was negative. Our findings support previous assumptions that conservation of large mammals in the tropics will require conservation strategies that go beyond prevention of habitat loss to also consider forest cohesion or other aspects of landscape configuration.

Coastal prairies are the primary winter destination for two dozen species of migratory grassland birds and losses of this habitat have proven detrimental to their populations. As a result, some of Partners in Flight&#39;s (PIF) highest priority birds are grassland species. To examine grassland bird use of coastal prairies, Project Prairie Birds survey methodology was designed and field work was initiated in 1998. Avian surveys were conducted at 34 sites, each with multiple tran- sects for a minimum of two years by all-volunteer, three-person crews identifying all species flushed from vegetation. Seasonal vegetation surveys measured five variables using five one square-meter sample areas. We also measured vertical thickness using a density board. We selected nine sites (26.5%) with three or more years of survey data for analysis. Thirty-nine species were detected of which 36% have PIF combined species assessment scores of 10 or above. In addition, 24% of the individuals were Le Conte...

Habitat fragmentation is one of the principal threats to primates. Studies of primates in fragments usually conclude that fragmentation negatively affects some aspect of their biology or ecology. Nevertheless, the definition and quantification of fragmentation vary considerably among studies, resulting in contradictions and results that are difficult to interpret. We here 1) discuss the problems associated with the definition of habitat fragmentation and the ways of measuring it, 2) emphasize the importance of the concepts and methods from landscape ecology and metapopulation theory for the study of primates in fragmented landscapes, and 3) offer recommendations for more precise use of concepts associated with habitat fragmentation from the primates' perspective. When specific knowledge of the study species/population is available, we suggest that the definition of the variables to be measured should be functional from the primates' perspective, based, e.g., on their habitat requirements and dispersal capacity. The distance to the nearest fragment may not be the best way to measure the isolation between populations. Fragmentation per se is a landscape scale process and, hence, landscape scale studies are required to understand how species are distributed across heterogeneous landscapes. Finally, it is important to consider that what happens at the fragment scale could be the consequence of processes that interact at various spatial and temporal scales.

European intertidal salt marshes are important nursery sites for juvenile fish and crustaceans. Due to the increasing threat of habitat loss, the seasonal changes of salt marsh fish communities need to be understood in order to appreciate the ecological and economic importance of the saltmarsh habitat. This study was the first in Great Britain to investigate the seasonal changes of salt marsh fish communities and the variation in community structure between closely located marsh habitats. Between February 2007 and March 2008, five marshes on three estuaries of the Essex coastline were sampled using flume nets to block off intertidal creeks at high tide. Fourteen fish species were caught. The community overall was dominated by three species that made up 91.6% of the total catch: the common goby Pomatoschistus microps (46.2% of the total catch), juvenile herring Clupea harengus (24.3%), and juvenile and larval sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax (21.2%). Cluster analysis demonstrated clear seasonal patterns, with some community structures unique to specific marshes or estuaries. The marsh fish community shifts from a highly diverse community during spring, to a community dominated by D. labrax and P. microps in autumn, and low diversity during winter months. Gravimetric stomach content analysis of fish community identified three main trophic guilds; macroinvertivores, planktivores and omnivores. The macroinvertivore feeding guild contained D. labrax and P. microps, the two most frequently occurring species. This investigation demonstrates the importance of British salt marshes as nursery habitats for commercial fish species.

The Kashmir markhor, Capra falconeri cashmiriensis, is classified as endangered throughout its range because of habitat loss, unsustainable hunting and competition with domestic livestock. We investigated environmental factors influencing species distribution in Chitral Gol National Park (CGNP) based on the 'presence-only' dataset and predicted the potential distribution of markhor in order to compute a habitat suitability (HS) map using ecological niche factor analysis (ENFA). Kashmir markhor presence-only data was recorded for a period of four years during 2003-2007 from 487 point locations in summer, spring and winter. The geographical position of animals and the related topographic and habitat variables were used to accurately assess species occurrence within the study area and to predict its distribution. ENFA is used to describe distribution patterns and to identify key variables influencing the ecological niche of markhor. The ENFA model revealed that markhor occurred at a mean elevation of 2818 m with a mean slope of 33.4 . The species requirements seem different from the average habitat conditions available in the study area. Whereas the specialisation factor indicated some specific habitat requirements of markhor, it was found that they still occupied a wider ecological niche. The model suggested that markhor avoid higher elevations but showed a strong relationship with comparatively steep slopes. ENFA computed 25% of the area of CGNP under suitable and optimal conditions for the long-term existence of Kashmir markhor in CGNP. ENFA computed a HS map for markhor showing its widespread distribution within the study area. Steep slopes and a lower to medium elevation range were mostly preferred by markhor.

With rapid global urban growth, the proximity between urban and protected areas will increase. We identify four categories of nations, based on the proportion of people in urban areas, the amount of protected area, and the 1995 and estimated 2030 distance between cities and protected areas: urbanized nations (>60% urban) with a high population density (>40 people/km 2 ) and close proximity between urban and protected areas (e.g., Europe); urbanized nations with a relatively low population density and moderate proximity between urban and protected areas (e.g., United States); rural nations with a lots of parks (>5% of land area), where proximity will dramatically increase (e.g., China); and rural nations with limited protected area systems (e.g., West Africa). A literature review of 163 studies identified 22 important urban effects on protected areas. Effects range from global to local, with two-thirds of the effects essentially limited to within 50 km of an urban area. We also examined conservation projects of The Nature Conservancy to determine if threats reported by conservation practitioners varied with proximity to urban area. Although many types of threats occurred at all proximities, threat types overall correlated significantly with proximity to an urban area, including more frequent problems with habitat loss due to residential development and wastewater/sewage. Thus, with the median distance from a park to an urban area already less than 50 km in many regions, we conclude that thousands of protected areas are already impacted by urban areas and many more will be impacted in the future.

The Segura River Basin is one of the most arid and regulated zones in the Mediterranean as well as Europe that includes four hydrologic river types, according to their natural flow regime: main stem rivers, stable streams, seasonal streams and temporary streams. The relationships between flow regime and fluvial and riparian habitats were studied at reference and hydrologically altered sites for each of the four types. Flow regime alteration was assessed using two procedures: (1) an indirect index, derived from variables associated with the main hydrologic pressures in the basin, and (2) reference and altered flow series analyses using the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA) and the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration in Rivers (IAHRIS). Habitats were characterized using the River Habitat Survey (RHS) and its derived Habitat Quality Assessment (HQA) score, whereas riparian condition was assessed using the Riparian Quality Index (RQI) and an inventory of riparian native/exotic species. Flow stability and magnitude were identified as the main hydrologic drivers of the stream habitats in the Segura Basin. Hydrologic alterations were similar to those described in other Mediterranean arid and semiarid areas where dams have reduced flow magnitude and variability and produced the inversion of seasonal patterns. Additionally, the Segura Basin presented two general trends: an increase in flow torrentiality in main stems and an increase in temporality in seasonal and temporary streams. With the indirect alteration index, main stems presented the highest degree of hydrologic alteration, which resulted in larger channel dimensions and less macrophytes and mesohabitats. However, according to the hydrologic analyses, the seasonal streams presented the greatest alteration, which was supported by the numerous changes in habitat features. These changes were associated with a larger proportion of uniform banktop vegetation as well as reduced riparian native plant richness and mesohabitat density. Both stream types presented consequent reductions in habitat and riparian quality as the degree of alteration increased. However, stable streams, those least impacted in the basin, and temporary streams, which are subject to great hydrologic stress in reference conditions, showed fewer changes in physical habitat due to hydrologic alteration. This study clarifies the relationships between hydrologic regime and physical habitat in Mediterranean basins. The hydrologic and habitat indicators that respond to human pressures and the thresholds that imply relevant changes in habitat and riparian quality presented here will play a fundamental role in the use of holistic frameworks when developing environmental flows on a regional scale.

Animal-mediated pollination is essential for both ecosystem services and conservation of global biodiversity, but a growing body of work reveals that it is negatively affected by anthropogenic disturbance. Landscape-scale disturbance results in two often inter-related processes: (1) habitat loss, (2) disruptions of habitat configuration (i.e. fragmentation). Understanding the relative effects of such processes is critical in designing effective management strategies to limit pollination and pollinator decline. We reviewed existing published work from 1989 to 2009 and found that only six of 303 studies considering the influence of landscape context on pollination separated the effects of habitat loss from fragmentation. We provide a synthesis of the current landscape, behavioural, and pollination ecology literature in order to present preliminary multiple working hypotheses explaining how these two landscape processes might independently influence pollination dynamics. Landscape disturbance primarily influences three components of pollination interactions: pollinator density, movement, and plant demography. We argue that effects of habitat loss on each of these components are likely to differ substantially from the effects of fragmentation, which is likely to be more complex and may influence each pollination component in contrasting ways. The interdependency between plants and animals inherent to pollination systems also has the possibility to drive cumulative effects of fragmentation, initiating negative feedback loops between animals and the plants they pollinate. Alternatively, due to their asymmetrical structure, pollination networks may be relatively robust to fragmentation. Despite the potential importance of independent effects of habitat fragmentation, its effects on pollination remain largely untested. We postulate that variation across studies in the effects of 'fragmentation' owes much to artifacts of the sampling regimes adopted, particularly (1) incorrectly separating fragmentation from habitat loss, and (2) mis-matches in spatial scale between landscapes studied and the ecological processes of interest. The field of landscape pollination ecology could be greatly advanced through the consideration and quantification of the matrix, landscape functional connectivity, and pollinator movement behaviour in response to these elements. Studies designed to disentangle the independent effects of habitat loss and fragmentation are essential for gaining insight into landscape-mediated pollination declines, implementing effective conservation measures, and optimizing ecosystem services in complex landscapes.

Soybeans represent a recent and powerful threat to tropical biodiversity in Brazil. Developing effective strategies to contain and minimize the environmental impact of soybean cultivation requires understanding of both the forces that drive the soybean advance and the many ways that soybeans and their associated infrastructure catalyse destructive processes. The present paper presents an up-to-date review of the advance of soybeans in Brazil, its environmental and social costs and implications for development policy. Soybeans are driven by global market forces, making them different from many of the land-use changes that have dominated the scene in Brazil so far, particularly in Amazonia. Soybeans are much more damaging than other crops because they justify massive transportation infrastructure projects that unleash a chain of events leading to destruction of natural habitats over wide areas in addition to what is directly cultivated for soybeans. The capacity of global markets to absorb additional production represents the most likely limit to the spread of soybeans, although Brazil may someday come to see the need for discouraging rather than subsidizing this crop because many of its effects are unfavourable to national interests, including severe concentration of land tenure and income, expulsion of population to Amazonian frontier, and gold-mining, as well as urban areas, and the opportunity cost of substantial drains on government resources. The multiple impacts of soybean expansion on biodiversity and other development considerations have several implications for policy: (1) protected areas need to be created in advance of soybean frontiers, (2) elimination of the many subsidies that speed soybean expansion beyond what would occur otherwise from market forces is to be encouraged, (3) studies to assess the costs of social and environmental impacts associated with soybean expansion are urgently required, and (4) the environmental-impact regulatory system requires strengthening, including mechanisms for commitments not to implant specific infrastructure projects that are judged to have excessive impacts.

Native populations of the axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), a microendemic salamander from Central Mexico, have seen alarming decline in the last decades owing to habitat loss caused by urban growth. The last remnant of its distribution is in a highly heterogeneous urban-rural water system in the Xochimilco region, at the southern edge of Mexico City. We developed a model of the species local distribution based on its ecological niche, using occurrence data and ad hoc limnetic variables via the Genetic Algorithm for Rule-set Production (GARP), to identify suitable areas for the species and prioritize conservation efforts. Results indicated that potential distribution of the axolotl in Xochimilco is limited to 11 sites in six reduced, isolated, and scattered areas, located mostly in zones where traditional agriculture (chinampas) is the primary land use. Recent surveys found only a single organism in the whole study region, in one of the predicted sites, suggesting a critical situation for the long-term survival of the axolotl in the wild, and demanding urgent actions toward habitat and population restoration. This study also illustrates the utility of niche modeling approaches for aquatic systems at a fine scale.

Abstract Papua New Guinea (PNG) sustains some of the world's most biologically and culturally rich forests. Like many tropical nations, PNG is changing rapidly as it attempts to develop economically, but corporate misdealing and weak governance are undermining its capacity to do so sustainably. Overexploitation of forests is rampant, with most accessible forests likely to be logged or disappear in 1–2 decades.

We examined the response of vascular plant species richness to long-term habitat loss and fragmentation of Estonian calcareous grasslands (alvars). The current number of habitat specialist species in 35 alvars was not explained by their current areas and connectivities but it was explained by their areas and connectivities 70 years ago (R 2 ¼ 0.27). We estimated the magnitude of extinction debt in local communities by assuming an equilibrium species richness in 14 alvars that had lost only a small amount of area and by applying this model to the remaining alvars, in which the average area has declined from 3.64 km 2 in the 1930s to 0.21 km 2 at present. The extinction debt estimated for individual alvars was around 40% of their current species number. Our conclusions are applicable to temperate grasslands in general, which have lost much area because of agricultural intensification and cessation of traditional management.

This paper presents a comprehensive spatial model for exploring the interaction between road transportation and environment. The potential negative impacts of transportation on environment can be listed as degradation of air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, increased threat of global climate change, degradation of water resources, noise and habitat loss and fragmentation. Within this interaction, of particular importance is the relationship between urban structure and transport emissions, since it is the urban structure that fundamentally determines transportation demand. Due to the spatial nature of the interaction, Spatial Information Sciences (SIS) has many advantages compared with other systems. The developed model integrates data and methods on spatial bases, detects changes, encompasses monitoring and analyzes the interaction. In order to verify the developed concepts, a pilot project was conducted at the southeast part of Istanbul Metropolitan Area, where the development of motorway and its effects to land use categories between 1987 and 2001 period was analyzed. Within the study area, the road transportation network had been doubled, whereas the construction sites were tripled within the years of 1987-2001. A significant decrease was observed at barren and agricultural land classes. Using the suggested model an integrated framework for exploring the interaction was constituted and the results were discussed.

Forest fragmentation and habitat loss are two of the main drivers of wildlife population declines. Animals exposed to habitat disturbances must develop behavioral strategies to adapt to novel, rapidly fluctuating socioecological challenges. Understanding the behavioral flexibility of endangered primates as a response to ecological challenges, e.g., anthropogenic habitat disturbance, is a key element in the design of successful conservation initiatives for remaining populations. We studied the social behavior of a group of 11 adult and subadult brown spider monkeys (Ateles hybridus) living in a recently isolated and densely populated forest fragment in the Magdalena River Valley, Colombia, and compared their behavior to that of other wild spider monkey populations. From June 2009 to July 2010 we assessed diet, activity budgets, and the rates of affiliative and agonistic interactions initiated and received by adult male and female spider monkeys. The diet of our focal group was quite different from that in most previous studies of Ateles: leaves accounted for ca. 40% of their diet, and fruits represented barely half of their diet, suggesting that this population has had to adjust its feeding strategies to the local ecological challenges. We found no sex differences in the time males and females spent resting, moving, and socializing, but females tended to invest more time in feeding than males did. Male-to-female aggression was the most common agonistic interaction, and same-sex aggressions were almost absent. We found no significant differences in rates of grooming or embracing between the different types of dyads. The resemblance of our results to those of similar studies in less disturbed habitats suggests that spider monkeys might adapt to certain levels of ecological and social disturbance, at least initially, and are a Int J Primatol (2012) 33:769-783 starting point to understand better the initial effects of fragmentation on the behavioral repertoire of these primates.

The Neotropics harbor between 30-50% of the world's herpetofauna. However, little is known about the ecology and natural history of many species, making conservation strategies difficult to plan. After reviewing published papers on world herpetofauna conservation, it was shown that conservation biology has a low impact factor in scientific journals in comparison with other related disciplines such as evolutionary biology and ecology. Moreover, herpetology has one of the lowest impact factors within the biological sciences journals. The number of publications on amphibian and reptile conservation has increased in recent years; however, only 31% of the papers on herpetofaunal conservation have been published in high impact journals. There are many challenges to overcome in the conservation of the Neotropical herpetofauna. Uniform and stable taxonomic nomenclature is critical to avoid overestimation of species richness and diversity for conservation assessments, and in the context of legal proceedings. Herpetofaunal research needs to be conducted within the appropriate socio-political and economic framework, in order to effectively implement conservation area networks. It is important to reevaluate the role of protected area systems in ensuring the persistence of communities and populations, and to identify strategies and future conservation priorities, based on climate-change scenarios. Population and community studies at different spatial and temporal scales are necessary to understand herpetofauna responses to anthropogenic disturbances, habitat loss and fragmentation, edge and matrix effects, and their synergy with micro-climatic gradients, emergent diseases and shifting patterns of genetic diversity. One of the biggest challenges for herpetofaunal conservation science in the neotropics is to control habitat loss and increase landscape connectivity along altitudinal gradients, while at the same time control species invasion that alter native species' interactions and spread emergent diseases (e.g. Chytridiomycosis) facilitated by climate change.

In common with other farmland species, hares (Lepus spp.) are in widespread decline in agricultural landscapes due to agricultural intensification and habitat loss. We examined the importance of habitat heterogeneity to the Irish hare (Lepus timidus hibernicus) in a pastoral landscape. We used radio-tracking during nocturnal active and diurnal inactive periods throughout one year. In autumn, winter and spring, hares occupied a heterogeneous combination of improved grassland, providing food, and Juncus-dominated rough pasture, providing refuge. In summer, hares significantly increased their use of improved grassland. This homogeneous habitat can fulfil the discrete and varied resource requirements of hares for feeding and shelter at certain times of year. However, improved grassland may be a risky habitat for hares as silage harvesting occurs during their peak birthing period of late spring and early summer. We therefore posit the existence of a putative ecological trap inherent to a homogeneous habitat of perceived high value that satisfies the hares' habitat requirements but which presents risks at a critical time of year. To test this hypothesis in relation to hare populations, work is required to provide data on differential leveret mortality between habitat types. Crown

Marine biodiversity worldwide is under increasing threat, primarily as a result of over-harvesting, pollution and climate change. Chondrichthyan fishes (sharks, rays and chimaeras) have a perceived higher intrinsic risk of extinction compared to other fish. Direct fishing mortality has driven many declines, even though some smaller fisheries persist without associated declines. Mixedspecies fisheries are of particular concern, as is illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The lack of specific management and reporting mechanisms for the latter means that many chondrichthyans might already be susceptible to extinction from stochastic processes entirely unrelated to fishing pressure itself. Chondrichthyans might also suffer relatively more than other marine taxa from the effects of fishing and habitat loss and degradation given coastal habitat use for specific life stages. The effects of invasive species and pollution are as yet too poorly understood to predict their long-term role in affecting chondrichthyan population sizes. The spatial distribution of threatened chondrichthyan species under World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List criteria are clustered mainly in (1) south-eastern South America;

Humans are making increasing demands on natural ecosystems. One recent study has concluded that our species is consuming or diverting some 40% of the net photosynthetic productivity of our planet. Many habitats are being converted to simpler systems which provide more harvestable goods to people. As a result, genetic diversity, species and whole ecosystems are disappearing; some scientists suggest that as many as 25% of the world's species could be lost in the next several decades.

Aim: Understanding how habitat loss and overhunting impact large carnivores is important for broad-scale conservation planning. We aimed to assess how these threats interacted to affect jaguar habitat (Panthera onca) between 1985-2013 in the Gran Chaco, a deforestation hotspot.

Location: Gran Chaco ecoregion in Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia. Methods: We modelled jaguar habitat change from 1985-2013 using a time-calibrated species distribution model that uses all occurrence data available for that period. We modelled habitat as a function of resource availability and hunting threats, which allowed us to separate core (high resource availability and low hunting threat), refuge (low resources but safe), attractive sink (high resources but risky) and sink (low resources and risky) habitat for 1985, 2000 and 2013.

Results: Jaguar core areas contracted by 33% (82,400 km 2) from 1985-2013, mainly due to an expansion of hunting threats. Sink and attractive sink habitat covered 58% of the jaguar range in 2013 and most confirmed jaguar kill sites occurred in these.

We used a spatially explicit population model that was generalized to produce nine ecological profiles of long-lived species with stable home ranges and natal dispersal to investigate the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on population dynamics. We simulated population dynamics in landscapes composed of three habitat types (good-quality habitat ranging from 10-25%, poor-quality habitat ranging from 10-70%, and matrix). Landscape structures varied from highly fragmented to completely contiguous. The specific aims of our model were (1) to investigate under which biological circumstances the traditional approach of using two types only (habitat and matrix) failed and assess the potential impact of restoring matrix to poorquality habitat, (2) to investigate how much of the variation in population size was explained by landscape composition alone and which key attributes of landscape structure can serve as predictors of population response, and (3) to estimate the maximum fragmentation effects expressed in equivalent pure loss of goodquality habitat. Poor-quality habitat mattered most in situations when it was generally not considered (i.e., for metapopulations or spatially structured populations when it provides dispersal habitat). Population size increased up to 3 times after restoring matrix to poor-quality habitat. Overall, habitat amount accounted for 68% of the variation in population size, whereas ecological profile and fragmentation accounted for approximately 13% each. The maximal effect of (good-quality) habitat fragmentation was equivalent to a pure loss of up to 15% of good-quality habitat, and the maximal loss of individuals resulting from maximal fragmentation reached 80%. Abundant dispersal habitat and sufficiently large dispersal potential, however, resulted in functionally connected landscapes, and maximal fragmentation had no effect at all. Our findings suggest that predicting fragmentation effects requires a good understanding of the biology and habitat use of the species in question and that the uniqueness of species and the landscapes in which they live confound simple analysis.

Dans les sociétés occidentales modernes, les personnes exclues du logement de droit commun sont très minoritaires mais leur nombre a augmenté ces dernières années. Elles se retrouvent dans diverses situations d’habitat : hébergements chez des particuliers, dans des institutions, des hôtels à leurs frais, des squats, d’autres habitats de fortune ou encore sans abri. Cette dernière situation suscite beaucoup d’interrogations : comment se fait-il que des personnes ne recourent pas aux hébergements sociaux et dorment à la rue ? Une raison parfois avancée dans le monde politique ou le grand public est le « choix personnel ». D’autres parlent de cas psychiatriques. Deux autres causes souvent avancées sont le manque de places disponibles, et l’effet de dissuasion lié à de nombreux refus par manque de place ou aux conditions d’hébergement jugées indignes dans certains centres d’urgence. Comment faire la part entre ces diverses explications ? Et ne peut-on pas en envisager d’autres ?
Cette étude apporte un éclairage quelque peu différent sur cette question. Elle s’intéresse principalement aux personnes en situation de non-recours durable (au moins plusieurs mois), et notamment à celles qui ne demandent plus d’hébergement, voire refusent les places qui leur sont proposées. Elle mobilise à la fois des techniques statistiques, par l’exploitation des données issues de l’enquête HYTPEAC (2011), et des techniques de recherche qualitative, permettant d’accéder directement aux personnes concernées.
Cette étude apporte deux résultats principaux. Le premier souligne que toutes les personnes sans domicile n’ont pas les mêmes probabilités de recours aux hébergements sociaux, et conduit à interroger les pratiques de priorisation à l’œuvre dans le système de prise en charge. Le second résultat, qui concerne spécifiquement les personnes sans abri sédentarisées depuis au moins plusieurs mois, voire années, explique les refus de places pourtant disponibles par la difficulté rencontrée par ces personnes pour casser les relations signifiantes qu’elles ont nouées dans un environnement qui les expose pourtant à une dégradation de leur état de santé et à des violences.
Ces deux résultats invitent à reconsidérer ce qui est appelé « la grande exclusion » à l’aune de sa dimension collective. Plutôt que d'expliquer le sans-abrisme de longue durée par des choix individuels, et d'en déduire que le mieux est de ne pas intervenir, le regard sociologique sur ces situations limites apporte de nouvelles perspectives et ouvre une réflexion sur la création d'un "droit à habiter".