Scribd
Upload
28 views30 pages

Landscape Ecology and Habitat Fragmentation

This document discusses key concepts in landscape ecology, including how landscape structure and processes are impacted by habitat fragmentation from human land use activities like intensive agriculture and timber extraction. Habitat fragmentation can negatively impact species in various ways by reducing patch size and increasing isolation, and creating more habitat edges. It discusses how these changes alter community and ecosystem functions. The document also examines how landscape structure influences species dispersal and population densities. Finally, it introduces geographical ecology and island biogeography theory, including the species-area relationship and equilibrium model of island biogeography.

Uploaded by

Vaishali Vasan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
28 views30 pages

Landscape Ecology and Habitat Fragmentation

This document discusses key concepts in landscape ecology, including how landscape structure and processes are impacted by habitat fragmentation from human land use activities like intensive agriculture and timber extraction. Habitat fragmentation can negatively impact species in various ways by reducing patch size and increasing isolation, and creating more habitat edges. It discusses how these changes alter community and ecosystem functions. The document also examines how landscape structure influences species dispersal and population densities. Finally, it introduces geographical ecology and island biogeography theory, including the species-area relationship and equilibrium model of island biogeography.

Uploaded by

Vaishali Vasan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Introduction – Landscape Ecology

• Landscape Ecology: Study of landscape


structure and processes.
– Landscape: Heterogeneous area composed of
several ecosystems.
– Landscape Elements: Visually distinctive
patches in an ecosystem.
Human Land Use Practices

Ecosystem simplification:
Intensive Agriculture
&
Clean Farming
Timber Extraction
&
Fragmentation
Roads: Formation of Barriers in Landscapes
Formation of
Terrestrial “Islands”
Habitat Fragmentation
• Process of breaking contiguous unit into
smaller pieces; area & distance
components
• Leads to:

• Community & Ecosystem processes


altered
#patches Patch size

Patch isolation
Edge
Habitat Fragmentation
• area-sensitive species: species that
require minimum patch size for daily
life requirements
• Edge effects: influence of factors from
outside of a patch
Increased Edge Habitat
Increased Edge Habitat
Edge Effects
• Habitat surrounding a patch can:
- change abiotic conditions; e.g., temp.
- change biotic interactions, e.g.,
predation
Example of nest predation = edge effect of
approximately 50 m into forest patch
Habitat Fragmentation
• First-Order Effects: fragmentation leads
to change in a species’ abundance
and/or distribution
Habitat Fragmentation
• Higher-Order Effects: fragmentation
indirectly leads to change in a species
abundance and/or distribution via
altered species interactions
Habitat Fragmentation: Species-
Specific Sensitivity?
• Rare species = more vulnerable
• Wide ranging species = large-area
requirements
• Species with reduced mobility = more
vulnerable
• Species with low fecundity (related to
rarity?)
• Species with short life cycle (or multi-
stage life cycle?)
Habitat Fragmentation: Species-
Specific Sensitivity?
• Interior-dependent species
• Species vulnerable to human exploitation
or disturbance
• Specialist species?
Implications of Changes in Scale
Insects sampled at 10-m intervals for 100 m
45
40
35
30
25 Predator
20 Prey
15
10
5
0
Implications of Changes in Scale
Insects sampled at 2000-m intervals for 20,000 m

45
40
35
30
25 Predator
20 Prey
15
10
5
0
Landscape Processes
• Landscape structure influences processes
such as the flow of energy, materials, and
species between the ecosystem within a
landscape.
Landscape Structure and
Dispersal of Small Mammals
Habitat Patch Size and Isolation
and Density of Butterfly
Populations
Introduction – Geographical Ecology

• MacArthur defined geographical ecology as


search for patterns of plant and animal life
that can be put on a map.
– Above level of landscape ecology
Island Area and Species Richness

Species-Area Relationship
Island Biogeography
• equilibrium model suggesting number of
species occurring on an island represents
a balance between immigration (in) and
extinction (out)
• Robert MacArthur & E.O. Wilson
Equilibrium Model of Island
Biogeography
• Proposed rates of extinction on islands would be
determined mainly by island size.
– LG near islands will support highest number.
– SM far islands will support lowest number.
– SM near and LG far will support intermediate number.

You might also like