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Society for Conservation Biology 16th
Annual Meeting July 14-July 19 2002
co-hosted by DICE and the British Ecological Society
Abstracts for Planning and Reserve Design
Session Two
Tuesday 16th July, 10.15 - 12.15, Grimond
Lecture Theatre 1
Chair: Neil Burgess
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timetable
(BLOCK CAPITALS indicate the presenting author)
10.15 - 10.30
HOBSON, PETER, and Jed Bultitude. Environmental Management Unit, Otley College,
Otley, Suffolk IP6 9EY, UK, <prhobson@otleycollege.ac.uk>.
RAPID FOREST ASSESSMENT – INFORMING STRATEGIC PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT IN WOODLANDS
A study of the structural characteristics of eight woodland reserves selected from
Canada and the UK revealed marked differences between stands subjected to environmentally
sympathetic management and those released from any form of silvicultural practice.
The clearest evidence for this distinction was in the frequency of occurrence, and
in the spatial arrangement, of cavities, logs, brash, snags, pits, mounds and canopy
gaps. These features are recognised as diagnostic characteristics of ‘old growth’
forest and were targeted in the assessment with the aim of establishing a mechanism
that would enable forest managers to effectively evaluate the potential conservation
status of candidate sites. Ultimately, a rapid assessment of forest structure may
be used as a surrogate measure of biodiversity. Finally, a site assessment form is
proposed which will enable foresters and woodland managers to make informed value
judgements of the current structural status of their woodlands as part of strategic
planning and management.
10.30 - 10.45
FERRAZ, GONÇALO, Gareth J. Russell, Philip C. Stouffer, Richard O. Bierregaard,
Stuart L. Pimm, and Thomas E. Lovejoy. Center for Environmental Research and Conservation,
Columbia University, MC 5557 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027, USA, <gfo4@columbia.edu>
(GF, GJR, SLP), Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee,
569 Dabney Hall, Knoxville, TN 37996-1610, USA (GJR), Biological Dynamics of Forest
Fragments Project, National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), C. P. 478, Manaus,
AM 69011-970, Brazil (PCS, ROB, TEL), Smithsonian Institution, SI 463,1000 Jefferson
Drive SW, Washington, DC 20560, USA (TEL), Department of Biological Sciences, Southeastern
Louisiana University, Hammond, LA 70402, USA (PCS), Department of Biology, University
of North Carolina, Charlotte, NC 28223, USA (ROB).
RATE OF SPECIES LOSS FROM AMAZONIAN FOREST FRAGMENTS
Conservation managers need to know how many species forest fragments will hold and
for how long. We analyse the mist-net captures of understory birds up to 14 years
post-isolation in 11 patches of the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project
(Manaus, Brazil). From the declining numbers after isolation, we derive a scaling
law of the time it takes to lose half a fragment's species as a function of its area.
We use a Bayesian approach to infer extinction from the data in light of two different
expected distributions of extinction probabilities among species. Different expectations
produce different results, but this variation still allows a general scaling of the
rate of species loss to fragment size: a 1000-fold increase in area leads to a 10-fold
increase in the time it takes fragments to lose half their species. The results suggest
that tropical forest reserves <1000 ha will lose many species within decades.
Only larger fragments will retain their species for long enough to offer the hope
of remedial actions, including reintroducing lost species or regenerating cleared
forests.
10.45 - 11.00
OLSON, DEANNA H. US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest
Research Station, 3200 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA, <dedeolson@fs.fed.us>.
THE ROLE OF RIPARIAN RESERVES AND LEAVE ISLANDS IN FOREST BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT
While the value of large scale reserve systems is well known for biodiversity conservation,
and habitat fragmentation is a chief concern in managed systems, the role of smaller
protected areas can be significant for some taxa. The role of smaller-scale terrestrial
and aquatic reserves is under investigation in the managed federal forests of the
US Pacific Northwest. In particular, multi-taxa protection appears to be provided
by riparian buffers along streams and upland "leave islands", and may offer
fine-scale species-provisions at the forest stand or project scales for taxa that
are not effectively protected by larger reserves. Current multi-taxa studies are
addressing riparian buffer widths (~5, 15, 65, and 130 m) and leave island sizes
(0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 ha) for functions of short-term "lifeboating" and longer-term
species persistence within managed forest contexts. Taxa benefiting from such provisions
include relatively uncommon and low mobility taxa with restricted ranges such as
many amphibians, arthropods, molluscs, vascular plants, lichens, bryophytes, and
fungi. Coincident with these research findings is the policy development of clear
species persistence goals for public lands.
11.00 - 11.15
Jenkins, Clinton and ANTHONY B. ANDERSON. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary
Biology, University of Tennessee, 569 Dabney Hall, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-1610,
USA (CJ) and 614 15th St. NE, Washington, DC 20002, USA, <anthonybanderson@hotmail.com>
(AA).
USING CONSERVATION PRIORITIES TO DESIGN A BIOLOGAL CORRIDOR IN THE ATLANTIC FOREST
OF BRAZIL
In the Atlantic forest, one of the world’s top biodiversity hotspots, priority-setting
efforts by the scientific community indicate that virtually all intact habitat in
this biome is of high or extremely high importance for conservation. These efforts
have provided a basis for defining immense conservation corridors, such as one encompassing
a 77,500 km2 area of largely degraded landscapes in the Brazilian states of Bahia
and Espiritu Santo. Effecting protection of the Atlantic forest over the short term
requires targeting smaller areas of maximum conservation value. Distribution data
on passerine birds in the Americas reveals that the highest concentration of threatened
species occurs in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, and specifically in lowland
forest fragments that border an almost continuous strip of montane forests >600
m in altitude. Based on this information, we have delimited a 6,700 km2 corridor
that encompasses both lowland and montane areas, contains over 50% forest cover and,
in addition to protecting threatened species, provides critical environmental services
to urban centres that contain 90% of the state’s population. With habitat restoration
in highly targeted areas, the proposed corridor design should achieve maximum conservation
benefits over a short period (<25 years).
11.15 - 11.30
WILSON, KERRIE, Arian Newton and Antonio Lara. School of Forestry, University
of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia, 3000, <k.wilson@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au>
(KW) and United Nations Environment Programme – World Conservation Monitoring Centre,
219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge, CB30DL (AN) and Instituto de Silvicultura, Universidad
Austral de Chile, Chile (AL).
INCORPORATING VULNERABILITY INTO THE SELECTION OF CONSERVATION RESERVES
The objectives of this research were to develop a rigorous assessment procedure to
identify forest areas within a landscape that are most vulnerable to loss or conversion.
The case study forest system for this research was the 10th region of Chile. Firstly,
the spatial distribution of deforestation within the landscape was obtained by conducting
an assessment of the areas that have experienced land cover change from pre-European
times to the present. A model was then developed that allowed the spatial pattern
of forest loss or conversion to be predicted. The combination of spatial statistical
models with spatially explicit data in a GIS environment has enabled the delineation
of forest areas within the landscape with a high probability of loss or conversion.
Secondly, the information on vulnerable forest areas was combined with an assessment
of priority areas in terms of biodiversity value or irreplaceability for achieving
pre-determined conservation targets for species and forest types. Combining the information
from the vulnerability and biodiversity assessments has enabled a thorough evaluation
of the current protected areas network and the prioritisation of areas for protection.
11.30 - 11.45
ARAÚJO, MIGUEL B., Paul H. Williams and Robert J. Fuller. Centre of Macroecology
and Conservation, University of Évora, Largo dos Colegiais, 7000-730 Évora,
Portugal, <mba@uevora.pt> (MBA); Biogeography and Conservation Laboratory,
The Natural History Museum, London SW5 5BD, UK (MBA, PHW), British Trust for Ornithology,
The Nunnery, Norfolk, IP24, UK (RJF).
DYNAMICS OF EXTINCTION AND THE SELECTION OF NATURE RESERVES
Familiar quantitative reserve-selection techniques are tailored to simple decision
problems, where the representation of species is sought at minimum cost. However,
conservationists have begun to ask whether representing species in reserve networks
is sufficient to avoid extinctions within selected areas. An attractive, but previously
untested idea is to model current species’ probabilities of occurrence as an estimate
of persistence in the near future. Using distribution data for passerine birds in
Great Britain, we show that: 1) species’ probabilities of occurrence are negatively
related to probabilities of extinction, at least when a particular 20-year period
is considered; and 2) extinctions can be reduced if areas are selected to maximise
current species’ probabilities of occurrence. Our results suggest that more extinctions
could be avoided, when even a simple treatment of persistence was incorporated within
reserve selection methods.
11.45 - 12.00
BURGESS, NEIL, Jennifer D'Amico, and Emma Underwood, Conservation Science Program,
World Wildlife Fund-US, 1250 24th St., NW, Washington DC 20037, USA, <neil.burgess@wwfus.org>
(NB, JD), Dept. of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California - Davis,
Davis, CA, 95616, USA (EU).
AN INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT OF THREATS TO BIODIVERISTY IN AFRICA
The terrestrial ecoregions of Africa harbour some of the most spectacular biological
diversity on earth; however, they face an increasing variety of threats. Given the
limited resources of governments and international conservation organisations, there
is an urgent and practical need to set priorities. The World Wildlife Fund-US has
recently completed a continental analysis of biodiversity and threats of the 119
terrestrial ecoregions across Africa. Patterns of species richness, species endemism
and ecological phenomena are identified for ecoregions within nine biomes and then
integrated with factors such as habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and habitat protection
in a matrix to identify conservation priorities. We highlight the most biologically
outstanding ecoregions in Africa, recognising 31 ecoregions in seven biomes where
conservation investment is most urgently needed to maintain globally outstanding
biodiversity, and a further 26 ecoregions where conservation action less urgent,
but where opportunities exist to maintain areas of outstanding biodiversity.
12.00 - 12.15
BALL, LIANNE. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2730 Loker Avenue West, Carlsbad,
CA 92008, USA, <Lianne_Ball@r1.fws.gov>.
INTRODUCING REALITY TO THEORY: MATCHMAKING IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Preserve systems designed for two habitat conservation plans (HCPs) in southern California
were designed using a mix of ecological theory (e.g. patch size) and opportunity
(e.g. land was available). Implementation of the HCPs and monitoring the success
of conservation goals will occur throughout the 50-year life of the permits. In addition
to the inherent difficulties in determining the ecological efficacy of reserve design,
there are real-world constraints on accomplishing this task. Management of the preserves
is complicated because they contain a mix of components that are fixed for 50 years
and do not exist yet. The budget for monitoring and management of the preserves is
capped and had to be determined when agreements were signed. Conversely, conservation
analyses evaluated the effectiveness of the entire preserve system on species, but
that preserve does not exist on the ground yet. The entry of privately held land
into the preserve system (50% of on HCP) is at the discretion of landowners and could
take the entire 50 years. This fluid condition means that the preserve is constantly
evolving and our ability to respond with on the ground management changes unpredictably.
This has implications for the burden of success placed on adaptive management.
The SCB2002 pages are maintained by Christine Eagle
email: C.M.Eagle@ukc.ac.uk
Conference email: scb2002@ukc.ac.uk
Last updated: 30.06.02