No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
Mace GM, Norris K, and Fitter AH. Biodiversity and ecosystem services: a multilayered relationship. Trends Ecol Evol
Abstract
The relationship between biodiversity and the rapidly expanding research and policy field of ecosystem services is confused and is damaging efforts to create coherent policy. Using the widely accepted Convention on Biological Diversity definition of biodiversity and work for the U.K. National Ecosystem Assessment we show that biodiversity has key roles at all levels of the ecosystem service hierarchy: as a regulator of underpinning ecosystem processes, as a final ecosystem service and as a good that is subject to valuation, whether economic or otherwise. Ecosystem science and practice has not yet absorbed the lessons of this complex relationship, which suggests an urgent need to develop the interdisciplinary science of ecosystem management bringing together ecologists, conservation biologists, resource economists and others.
... Finally, a number of conceptual frameworks for analyzing the relationships between ecosystems and human wellbeing are more sensitive to an LMIC context (e.g., [16,[68][69][70]). These frameworks point to the importance of property rights or capital in shaping people s access to ecosystem services or nature s benefits to people. ...
... Distinctions between mechanisms and moderators are also emphasized following the conceptual frameworks on the effects of forests and urban greenspaces on human health outcomes in high-income countries [9][10][11]. The importance of means of access in ecosystem-wellbeing frameworks [16,[68][69][70] informs the description of property rights and capital as moderators of the effects of forests on human health outcomes in LMICs. The conceptual framework depicted in Figure 2 is therefore more specific and targeted than the IUFRO and WWF global frameworks and the ecosystem-wellbeing frameworks by focusing on rural communities in LMICs and human health outcomes. ...
Forests are increasingly recognized for their beneficial roles in human health. However, there is a debate on how forest health benefits can be accessed equitably, particularly by vulnerable forest-dependent rural communities in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Access to forest health benefits is determined by a range of interconnected means, including property rights, as well as natural, physical, human, social, and financial capital. This paper presents a literature review of the roles of means of access in shaping human health effects of forests. Evidence suggests that variations in these means of access are associated with varying ability to access forest health benefits. However, existing evidence is thin, mixed, and weak. A conceptual model is then developed to provide a framework for understanding how means of access moderate the effects of forests on health in rural LMICs to guide the generation of strong evidence. The multiple interconnected factors moderating the health effects of forests at the core of the conceptual framework promote the multisec-toral and transdisciplinary approaches needed to enhance equitable access to forest health benefits.
... Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems, and their provision is underpinned by biodiversity (MA, 2005). Biodiversity can serve multiple roles in the provision of ecosystem services by acting as a regulator of ecosystem processes (e.g., more diverse biological communities increase resilience to pests and environmental change), as a service in itself (e.g., enhancing genetic variability for goods such as novel pharmaceuticals) and as a good (e.g., appreciation of biodiversity components such as wildlife and scenic places) (Mace et al., 2012). Ecosystem services are commonly referred to in the following categories: (i) provisioning services, which describe the material outputs from ecosystems, such as food, water and other resources; (ii) regulating services, or services that ecosystems provide by acting as regulators, such as regulating the quality of air and soil; (iii) supporting services, which underpin almost all other services, such as habitat for species and the maintenance of genetic diversity; and (iv) cultural services, which consist of the nonmaterial benefits people obtain from contact with ecosystems, including aesthetic, spiritual and psychological benefits (TEEB, 2010). ...
... Ecosystem services are the benefits that people obtain from ecosystems, and their provision is underpinned by biodiversity (MA, 2005). Mace et al. (2012) explain that biodiversity can serve multiple roles in the provision of ecosystem services by acting as a regulator of ecosystem processes (e.g. more diverse biological communities increase resilience to pests and environmental change), as a service in itself (e.g. enhancing genetic variability for goods such as novel pharmaceuticals) and as a good (e.g. ...
... These ES are intrinsically linked to the fundamental structure, functions, and processes of ecosystems, and are distinct from the goods and benefits that people subsequently derive from them. Their assessment encompasses the production and synthesis of scientific knowledge to support informed decisions, through the evaluation of the condition, trends, and future trajectories of ecosystems and their services (Mace et al. 2012). The key to achieving reliable ES assessments depends on the availability and quality of data, as well as the selection of suitable, relevant, and, preferably, harmonized indicators and models (Müller & Burkhard 2012). ...
... These linkages underpin ES synergies and trade-offs between different ES. Considering these connections implies looking at multiple ES simultaneously to foster sustainable management and use of resources (Mace et al. 2012). Ecosystem services conceptual models (ESCMs) are useful tools that can support ES assessment and management (Olander et al. 2018). ...
African coastal ecosystems encompass high biodiversity that provides crucial ecosystem services (ES). However, the supply of these ES is threatened due to ecosystem degradation, which threatens human well-being and livelihoods. This study investigated the link between pressures and the ES provided by marine macroinvertebrates (MMI) in mangroves and seagrasses. We assessed ecosystem condition (marine protected areas, MPAs), pressures, namely climate change (sea surface temperature and sea level), land-use and land-cover changes, and overexploitation (mangrove deforestation and overfishing), and core MMI ES (provisioning, regulation, cultural). Our results revealed a low ratio of MPAs compared to the Aichi target 11, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive conservation strategy. Sea temperature and level showed an increasing trend, indicating the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems to climate change. The decline in mangrove forest cover highlights the need to mitigate adverse effects of land-use change. The increasing number of artisanal fishery licenses suggests an increased pressure on MMI, which can have severe consequences for local communities. MMI food production, particularly shrimp, and recreational fishing increased in the last two decades. Regulation services, and cultural services related to research and education, varied through time due to the limited availability of data. This information was used to develop an exploratory conceptual model illustrating the complex relationships among pressures, condition, MMI ES, and management goals for the sustainable use of marine resources and their connection with food security. Our findings underscore the importance of preserving MMI populations and habitats while addressing knowledge gaps to enhance the resilience of coastal ecosystems.
... The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) identified four categories of ecosystem services: provisioning services (such as water, food production, carbon sequestration, and regulating services); cultural services (such as spiritual, historical, and social values); and supporting services (such as plant production and nutrient cycling). Biodiversity can fulfill three distinct functions in relation to ecosystem services: regulating ecosystem processes, serving as a final ecosystem service, or functioning as an asset [4]. Regulating ecosystem processes refers to the role of biodiversity in maintaining the balance and functioning of ecosystems, such as pollination by bees or natural pest control. ...
... After conducting a bootstrap analysis on 100,000 samples of data related to forests (tree diameters, heights, and volumes), it was determined that eight diversity indices described in Table 1 yield robust results, meaning that they consistently showed an increase or decrease in biodiversity over pairwise comparisons, i.e., when comparing the same region at two different times or two different regions at the same time, in terms of biodiversity. These indices are (as numbered in Table 1) as follows: 3 Shannon entropy; 4 Shannon equitability; 6 Simpson dominance; 8 ...
Since biodiversity is a multifaceted aspect of natural systems, several indices have been suggested to measure it. In this paper, we examined a number of well-known diversity indexes to see whether some performed better than others when applied to forest data. In order to reach this goal, we used data on basic forest variables (such as the diameters, heights, and volumes of trees) from forest plots to see if common diversity indices lead to the same conclusions about changes in biodiversity in a pairwise comparison (i.e., comparing the same region at two different times or two different regions at the same time). Out of a collection of 17 diversity indices, 8 of them exhibited robustness, indicating their constant ability to demonstrate either an increase or decrease in biodiversity over pairwise comparisons. However, it is important to note that the remaining seven diversity indices may yield inconsistent or inconclusive results, but only with regard to forest data, highlighting the complexity and nuances of measuring biodiversity with different sorts of data. In this review article, all 17 indices are presented, allowing the reader to choose which ones are most applicable to their particular dataset (genetic, econometric, sociometric, etc.).
... A few examples of provisioning services include the provision of water, raw material supplies, food, and medical supplies (Mace et al., 2012). ...
... Because they store more heat and interact more with approaching cold fronts and stronger winds due to their shallower and shorter-lasting ice cover, North America's shallower Laurentian Great Lakes are already producing more winter snowstorms. It is possible that healthy, functioning ecosystems will be valued and used as a buffer against more and more catastrophic weather events (Mace et al., 2012). 16.13 Threats to water biodiversity 16.13.1 Invasion of exotic species Anthropogenic activities are causing species to disappear at an alarming rate (Martnez-Harms & Balvanera, 2012). ...
... In fact, C. australis is the predominant species within the street arboretum of the city of Lisbon (Soares et al. 2011 Regarding the richness of the three gardens studied (Figure 20), it is evident that the Jardim Guerra Junqueiro is the one in which the highest number of species is concentrated (117 species) followed by the Jardim França Borges and in last, the Jardim Teófilo Braga, due to its small size and dominance of Celtis australis. The variability of species within the garden is generally an important factor in assessing its ecosystem benefits provided over the various seasons and years (Mace, Norris, and Fitter 2012). Regarding specifically of biodiversity, it would also be important to consider the shrub and herbaceous component, which, in this study, due to lack of data, will not be considered within the assessments. ...
The ecosystems services provide by street trees and other elements were already assessed in previous studies. However, gardens have a different structure and are managed according to different criteria, which in turn, may have repercussion in the capacity of the trees to provide Ecosystem Services (ES). However, as far as we know, no study has ever dealt with this topic, particularly for Lisboa, or in the Iberian Peninsula. As such this project has the objective of study the contribution of garden areas for urban ecology, promotion of diversity and other ecosystem services. The work was developed mainly to test one of tools readily available and in common use and to test its utility in scenario planning.
The study uses the iTree-eco software to analyse three gardens in Lisbon municipality (Jardim Guerra Junqueiro, Jardim Teofilo Braga, and Jardim França Borges) focusing on species abundance and diversity, and their contributions to the provision of ecosystem services. A comparison of tree characteristics and ES estimations was done for a sample of tree species common in both, gardens and street alignments. Future scenarios were explored using the i-Tree software's forecasting function, emphasizing the importance of data-driven decision-making in urban planning.
Of the three studied gardens, Jardim Guerra Junqueiro has the high species richness and diversity. whereas the Teófilo Braga has the lowers. The same patterns were studied regarding tree sizes (estimated by canopy and DBH).
The study results highlight the importance of species, such as Taxodium huegelii, Ficus benghalensis, Celtis australis, and Platanus orientalis, for their contributions to carbon accumulation, carbon absorption, stormwater management, and air pollutant removal, respectively. Economic quantification demonstrates the significant economic value generated by certain species, differenced by type of leaf phenology, tree and canopy dimension, emphasizing the importance of their representation in the urban landscape.
The study confirms the importance of data analysis in understanding urban vegetation's impact on ecosystem services. It reveals the contributions of an array of species to ecosystem benefits, providing valuable insights for urban planners and designers. Comparative analyses between street and garden vegetation highlight the influence of location, type of maintenance and location taking in considerations on plant growth and benefits.
This study depicts the value of integrating qualitative and dimensional (quantitative) data into urban forest planning, enabling informed decisions for positive results of urban interventions.
... Beyond preventing land degradation, this commitment also bolsters agricultural productivity, presenting a symbiotic relationship between restoration efforts, local communities, and the broader environment. It echoes the sentiment that sustainable land use is not only an environmental imperative but also a pathway to improving the quality of life for local communities [34,[37][38][39][40]. The practical applications of the research findings extend across a spectrum of stakeholders. ...
Effective restoration strategies play a crucial role in mitigating the environmental impact of mining and colliery activities while promoting ecological resilience and rejuvenating ecosystem services. However, many organizations find it challenging to understand and balance their efforts in restoring degraded lands. For example, their restoration plans lack clarity and overlook relevant ecosystem services. This study reviews and focuses on the potential restoration of ecosystem services at TATA Steel's Noamundi Iron Ore Mine and West Bokaro Colliery to contribute to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG-15, for localization. The approach involved assessing the number of preventive measures being implemented to restore a particular ecosystem service. Moreover, the potential of each preventive measure is to restore that ecosystem service. The findings underscore the significance of preventive measures and comprehensive restoration plans in enhancing carbon sequestration, soil fertility, habitat creation, and genetic diversity conservation. Our results showed that the impact scores and ranks of various ecosystem services demonstrate the positive effects of restoration efforts, emphasizing the importance of reestablishing forests, restoring water bodies and wetlands, and allocating land for agriculture and public use. The research provides valuable insights for decision-makers in developing sustainable land management strategies, ensuring biodiversity conservation and local communities' well-being. By prioritizing ecosystem services in restoration initiatives, stakeholders can contribute to the sustainable management of natural resources and foster a harmonious coexistence between human activities and the environment.
... La biodiversidad puede desempeñar tres funciones diferentes en los servicios de los ecosistemas: como un regulador de los procesos del ecosistema, como un servicio final del ecosistema o como un bien (Mace et al., 2012). Sin embargo, debido a que la descripción de la biodiversidad es complicada, no es sencillo explicar el desempeño de la biodiversidad o los impactos de su declinación en los servicios ecosistémicos en general (Elmqvist y Maltby, 2010). ...
Objective: To analyze the relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem services in an agroecological context. Materials and Methods: Different sources of information (114) were consulted and analyzed, referring to the available literature in the fields of biology, agricultural sciences and agroecology, with the purpose of deepening the state of knowledge related to biodiversity and ecosystem services provided by agroecological systems. Results: This review addresses an updating process constituted by the main efforts in this branch of knowledge and proposes a systematic search of the key topics and approaches that have been developed to understand the services provided by biodiversity as a key principle of agroecology. It also provides a guide for the development of research that allows a comprehensive understanding of the ecosystem services generated by biodiversity management. Analyses of the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services in agroecosystems should be part of comprehensive studies in the agroecological context, so that from science it becomes evident which practices are more effective for the sustainability of productions. Conclusions: Multifunctional, biodiverse ecosystems that implement management practices that optimize land use and efficiently manage ecosystem services should become the paradigm for sustainable agroecosystem management. There is a strong interrelationship between the functioning of biodiversity and the development of ecosystem processes that will subsequently form the basis of production, based on the richness and spatial and temporal variability of species, their performance in the complexity of ecosystems and the maintenance of ecosystem services at different scales.
... The environmental component is directly linked to the present work and is associated with the conservation and protection of the natural environment. Biodiversity, which refers to the variety and variability of life on Earth, is a fundamental element of this component, it serves as a pillar supporting ecosystems, their services, and consequently, human well-being (Mace et al. 2012). Biodiversity is currently under significant pressure, with numerous species facing extinction at an unprecedented rate (Cowie et al. 2022). ...
Preserving biodiversity is a paramount global concern and, in this regard, monitoring urban biodiversity has increasingly taken on a significant role. Citizen science has emerged as a resource for addressing this challenge, offering a cost-effective approach capable of producing extensive data while promoting public engagement. In this work, a Lisbon university campus was used to determine the effectiveness of a citizen science project launched on the BioDiversity4All/iNaturalist platform to monitor urban biodiversity and analyse the influence of different engagement actions on biodiversity observations. The data analysis was based on biodiversity observations, including the temporal evolution of observations, the most frequently observed taxonomic groups, and the impact of promotional actions on project data. Additionally, the profiles of the observers were analyzed to assess their level of engagement and continued involvement in citizen science. The project had an effect on the increase in the number of observers and observations, and it was also possible to see a positive effect of the organized activities. The two indices used showed that Researchers and Students were the observer categories responding the most to the project, followed by Naturalists and Others. The results highlighted the capacity of citizen science to increase interest in biodiversity among both the university community and the general public. Furthermore, this work underlines the role of different strategies such as BioBlitzes, social media campaigns, and formal education activities to reduce the impact of relevant limitations associated with citizen science, namely taxonomic, aesthetic, and temporal biases.
... In both cases, land-use change can have a considerable effect on terrestrial biodiversity (Haines-Young, 2009;Hansen et al., 2012). In addition to its inherent value, biodiversity contributes to the provision of natural resources (e.g., timber, minerals, and water) and services (e.g., flood defense and air purification) on which socioeconomic systems depend (Mace et al., 2011;Grizzetti et al., 2018;Smith et al., 2013); as such, urbanization threatens the resources upon which humans rely (Arnold et al., 2011;Kang et al., 2022). With urbanization expected to rise, these problems are set to worsen unless the needs that underpin biodiversity-from archaea to animals-are satisfied alongside those of humans. ...
Urban development is a key driver of global biodiversity loss. “Green” infrastructure is integrated to offset some impacts of development on ecosystem quality by supporting urban biodiversity, a prominent example being green roofs. The effects of green infrastructures on urban biodiversity are not well understood and poorly included in life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. Here, we present a novel methodology that quantifies the local impact of green infrastructures on terrestrial biodiversity—demonstrated here for sedum roofs in London, UK—and integrates within LCA. It relates energy provision by plants to the metabolic requirements of animals to determine what species richness (number of species) and species abundance (number of individuals) are supported. We demonstrate this methodology using a case study, comparing the life cycle impact of developing 18 buildings, with either asphalt concrete or sedum roofs, on ecosystem quality. We found the sedum roofs (0.018 km²) support 53 species (673 individuals), equivalent to 1.3% of the development's life cycle impacts on ecosystem quality. Complete offsetting requires considerable reduction in transport use throughout the development's lifetime, and lower environmental impact material selection during construction (contributing 98% and 2%, respectively). The results indicate sedum roofs offer minor impact mitigation capacities in the context of urban development, and this capacity is limited for all green infrastructures by species richness in local species pools. This paper demonstrates the potential and limitations of quantifying terrestrial biodiversity offsets offered by green infrastructures alongside urbanization, and the need for realistic expectations of what role it might play in sustainable urban design.
... Future extensions could particularly focus on the role of mitigation options allowing for the technological substitution of pollination services. Pollination services are a production input and not a good of its own (Mace et al. 2012;Bateman et al. 2014). A collapse of pollination services from both wild and managed pollinators can (partially) be mitigated by manual pollination (Fitter 2013) or mechanized pollination for instance by drones (Hiraguri et al. 2023). ...
Animal-mediated pollination is important for agricultural seed and crop production, and critical to overall ecosystem health. However, the scientific literature focused on the economic valuation of pollination services has thus far neglected the role of pollination services in seed production. The marketed food output of many crops is not dependent on pollination services, but these crops indirectly depend on pollination services with respect to their seed production. This study proposes a partial equilibrium framework for identifying the value of pollination services. Using Germany as a case study, we find the value of pollination services is about 33% higher when seed production is considered. This increased valuation is driven by two effects: higher seed costs due to high dependence on pollination services, and a higher demand for seeds due to the land expansion needed to mitigate a potential pollinator collapse. This study demonstrates that more sophisticated approaches are needed to estimate the economic value of pollination services more accurately.
... A better understanding of temporal dynamics is critical for sustainably addressing urban challenges, as well as for ensuring well-functioning and multifunctional nature in cities. Finally, research on the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services has been the focus of academic debate (Mace et al., 2012;Schröter et al., 2014). In urban areas there is a need to improve the evidence base for such relationships (Schwarz et al., 2017), as well as for how biodiversity and ecosystem services individually interact with components of urban systems (Beninde et al., 2015;Hamel et al., 2021). ...
In an increasingly urbanized world, the concepts of ecosystem services and nature-based solutions can help tackle grand challenges. However, ambiguity in their definitions and in the relationship between the two concepts complicates comprehensive research efforts as well as their effective application in policy and planning in urban systems. This paper presents a framework to clarify and explicitly relate the two concepts, enhancing their applicability in the management of urban challenges. Within the framework, addressing urban challenges serves as the starting point for the development and implementation of nature-based solutions. Nature-based solutions alter the flows of ecosystem services that are produced by an ecosystem by altering the performance of the ecosystem or by changing how people engage with the ecosystem. This results both in changes in the target ecosystem services, as well as non-targeted ecosystem services, leading to benefits. Using two illustrative case studies, we show how the framework can be applied to two urban challenges that are expected to increase in intensity in cities across the world: stormwater management and urban heat stress. Moreover, we highlight key research topics that will benefit from more integrated use of nature-based solutions and ecosystem services. The framework helps emphasize co-benefits, and can be used to help make co-benefits and multifunctionality explicit in urban decision-making and planning processes.
... Thus, any effort to protect ecosystems with relatively high soil carbon stocks will also benefit threatened plant species. Biodiversity is also important because contributes to soil formation, thereby contributing to enhancing SOC content [73,74]. Many studies showed that higher plant diversity promotes higher litter accumulation in natural ecosystems [75,76]. ...
Vegetation Type (VT) mapping using Optical Earth observation data is essential for the management and conservation of natural resources, as well as for the evaluation of the supply of provisioning ecosystem services (ESs), the maintenance of ecosystem functions, and the conservation of biodiversity in anthropized environments. The main objective of the present work was to determine the spatial patterns of VTs related to climatic, topographic, and spectral variables across Santa Cruz province (Southern Patagonia, Argentina) in order to improve our understanding of land use cover at the regional scale. Also, we examined the spatial relationship between VTs and potential biodiversity (PB), ESs, and soil organic content (SOC) across our study region. We sampled 59,285 sites sorted into 19 major categories of land cover with a reliable discrimination level from field measurements. We selected 31 potential predictive environmental dataset covariates, which represent key factors for the spatial distribution of land cover such as climate (four), topography (three), and spectral (24) factors. All covariate maps were generated or uploaded to the Google Earth Engine cloud-based computing platform for subsequent modeling. A total of 270,292 sampling points were used for validation of the obtained classification map. The main land cover area estimates extracted from the map at the regional level identified about 142,085 km2 of grasslands (representing 58.1% of the total area), 38,355 km2 of Mata Negra Matorral thicket (15.7%), and about 25,189 km2 of bare soil (10.3%). From validation, the Overall Accuracy and the Kappa coefficient values for the classification map were 90.40% and 0.87, respectively. Pure and mixed forests presented the maximum SOC (11.3–11.8 kg m−2), followed by peatlands (10.6 kg m−2) and deciduous Nothofagus forests (10.5 kg m−2). The potential biodiversity was higher in some shrublands (64.1% in Mata Verde shrublands and 63.7% in mixed shrublands) and was comparable to those values found for open deciduous forests (Nothofagus antarctica forest with 60.4%). The provision of ESs presented maximum values at pure evergreen forests (56.7%) and minimum values at some shrubland types (Mata Negra Matorral thicket and mixed shrubland) and steppe grasslands (29.7–30.9%). This study has provided an accurate land cover and VT map that provides crucial information for ecological studies, biodiversity conservation, vegetation management and restoration, and regional strategic decision-making.
... Un requisito importante para gestionar los recursos forestales con el objetivo de reducir el dióxido de carbono presente en la atmósfera y aumentar su acumulación en la biomasa forestal es obtener mapas de la distribución espacial de biomasa aérea en grandes áreas (Rodríguez-Veiga et al., 2019). Por otro lado, la biodiversidad forestal (es decir, el número de especies) es esencial para el bienestar humano, ya que está estrechamente relacionada con la provisión de servicios ecosistémicos (Mace et al., 2012). Se necesita entonces, información precisa sobre la diversidad, y la estructura de las comunidades de bosques para definir políticas de conservación efectivas que preserven estos bosques y los servicios que brindan. ...
Los bosques nativos de Uruguay brindan importantes servicios ecosistémicos. A pesar de esto, son
escasos los mapas con la distribución espacial de atributos de la vegetación en el país. El objetivo de este estudio
fue obtener mapas con la distribución espacial de la biomasa aérea y la riqueza de especies que muestren zonas
con altas concentraciones de ambas variables, fundamentales para la mitigación del cambio climático y la
conservación la biodiversidad. El área de estudio comprende la ecorregión Cuenca Sedimentaria Gondwánica. Para
la estimación de la biomasa aérea y la riqueza de especies se utilizaron Modelos Lineales Generalizados, donde las
variables de respuesta fueron calculadas utilizando datos de campo del Inventario Forestal Nacional. Las variables
explicativas en el modelo se obtuvieron con información espectral, de retrodispersión y de textura derivada de
Sentinel-2, y ALOS PALSAR; así como de datos ambientales, de topografía y clima. El modelo para la estimación
de biomasa presentó una devianza explicada (D
2
) de 0,25, mientras que el de riqueza de especies la D
2
fue 0,19.
Para evaluar ambos modelos se realizaron validaciones cruzadas, obteniendo un R
2
de 0,25 para biomasa y de
0,20 para riqueza de especies, con un error cuadrático medio relativo de 45,8 % y de 32,5 %, respectivamente. El
mapa bivariado con la distribución conjunta de la riqueza de especies y la biomasa aérea muestra que existe una
correlación positiva entre ambas variables en el 63,8 % de la superficie de bosque nativo de la ecorregión. Los
resultados de este trabajo podrían ser utilizados tanto para el mantenimiento de los almacenes de carbono, como
para la conservación de la biodiversidad.
... Biodiversity encompasses species diversity, genetic composition, and ecosystems, and is crucial for ecosystem services that benefit humanity [1] [2] [3]. Unfortunately, biodiversity is rapidly declining [2], posing a significant risk to people from various socioeconomic backgrounds. ...
... The products and conservation functionalities furnished by an ecosystem, such as climate adjustment, soil and water conservation, carbon capture, and other functions that are difficult to commercialize, are denoted as ecosystem services [1,2]. However, ecosystem services are decreasing because of global climate change and human intervention [3,4]. Meanwhile, the situation leads to complex trade-off and synergistic effects among competing economic and environmental targets [5][6][7]. ...
Revealing trade-off and synergistic relationships among ecosystem services plays a key role in ensuring a stable ecosystem for long-term development. It is the crucial precondition for realizing watershed protection and high-quality development. The variations in land use during 1990–2020 are investigated by taking the typical areas for returning farmland to forests as an example. The spatiotemporal distributions of six key ecosystem services, namely carbon storage, water yield, net primary productivity (NPP), soil conservation, habitat quality, and forest recreation are quantified by the InVEST model and statistical data. We also uncover the spatial difference in the ecosystem in Loess Plateau, located in northern Shaanxi, with hot spot analysis and probe the trade-off and synergistic correlations among the investigated ecosystem services. The results show that: (1) the farmland decreased dramatically. On the contrary, the forests and orchards increased significantly. (2) During the same period, carbon storage and habitat quality increased, and water yield, NPP, soil conservation, and forest recreation initially declined, but subsequently rose to higher values than that in 1990. All these services in the southeastern part of the research area surpass those found in the northwest. (3) The ecosystem services relationships in northern Shaanxi are mainly characterized by synergistic correlations, which became stronger from 1990 to 2020. The trade-off effects mainly occur among the water yield and other ecosystem services and are distributed in the west and north of the investigated area. Based on these findings, this work provides scientific principles for improving the ecological environment and enhancing the resource sustainability of the study area.
... Indeed, the most functionally important species are often the most prone to extinction (Rao and Larsen, 2010). Consequently, their loss could generate waves of ecological change, shifts in community composition, and disruptions to marine ecosystem functioning (Cardinale et al., 2012;Chapin et al., 2000;Mace et al., 2012;McCauley et al., 2015). ...
Human pressures in the ocean are restructuring biological communities, driving non-random extinctions, and disrupting marine ecosystem functioning. In particular, fisheries bycatch, the incidental mortality of non-target species, is a major threat to seabirds worldwide. Direct bycatch data are often scarce. Instead, leveraging trait-based analyses with fine-scale fisheries data could answer fundamental questions about spatial patterns of bycatch-threatened species and facilitate targeted conservation strategies. Here, we combine a dataset of species' traits and distribution ranges for 361 seabird and sea duck species with spatially resolved fishing effort data for gillnet, longline, trawl, and purse seine gears. First, we quantify geographic patterns of seabird community traits. Second, we describe how community traits could shift under local extinction scenarios in areas where bycatch-threatened seabirds spatially overlap with fishing activities. These objectives allow us to highlight the collective contribution of species currently threatened from bycatch to ecosystem functioning. We reveal distinct spatial variation in the community weighted mean of five seabird traits (body mass, generation length, clutch size, diet guild, and foraging guild) are evident. Moreover, our results show that fisheries bycatch is selectively removing a distinct suite of traits from the community within particular oceanic regions. Specifically, fisheries bycatch is threatening species with larger body masses, slower reproductive speeds (smaller clutch sizes and longer generation lengths), and specialised diet and foraging guilds. The spatial non-uniformity of the community trait shifts suggests that within specific marine regions, communities have limited redundancy and therefore may have less insurance to buffer against declines in ecosystem functioning. Our extinction scenario warns that seabirds currently threatened from fisheries bycatch substantially contribute to community functional composition. Management actions that incorporate species’ traits and fine-scale fisheries datasets as tools for marine spatial planning will add an important dimension when evaluating the success of conservation initiatives.
... The concept of ecosystem services (ESs) provides an opportunity to revitalize research on the development and implementation of environmental conservation and protection policies (Mace et al., 2012;Beaumont et al., 2017;Gould et al., 2019). Following the research on the identification and mapping of ESs by region and ecosystem type, social science studies have relied largely on environmental economics approaches to estimate the value of these services (Nieto-Romero et al., 2014;Jacobs et al., 2016;Gould et al., 2019;Kadykalo et al., 2019). ...
Recent studies have shown the importance of relationships with nature, emotions felt, forms of attachment, and experience of nature on conservation motivations. They have proposed characterizing relational values based on these complex interactions with ecosystems. We analyzed these links for ecosystem services (ESs) associated with fish farming ponds. The analysis was based on an online survey conducted on mainland France. We identified the types of pro-environmental profiles and investigated the determinants of pro-environmental behaviors. We analyzed the types of services prioritized according to individual profiles and the factors determining sensitivity. We distinguish between individual ESs that are more hedonic in nature, and regulating or heritage cultural ESs that refer to collective motivations rather linked to eudaimonic well-being. The results highlight the importance of factors related to eudaimonic well-being, which help integrate the role of ethical values and commitment to conservation. The modeling shows little influence of the usual sociodemographic variables and the strong significance of variables considering the knowledge and familiarity with these ecosystems and the pro-environment commitment, which refers to eudaimonic well-being. These results allow us to discuss the specificities of awareness-raising policies, which imply a rationale for active citizenship.
... Understanding how significant ES are for biodiversity conservation and supporting natural environmental processes requires knowledge of them [6]- [9]. On the other hand, ES research is equally essential when deciding to conserve natural ecosystems and their components for supporting economic opportunities [10] and providing a human habitat [11]- [13], [3]. ...
The ability of natural systems to provide services is critical to the sustainability of the environment. The increasing environmental pressures necessitate the creation of conditions conducive to the preservation and sustainability of natural ecosystems. A review of similar studies reveals that when evaluating ecosystem services, more consideration should be given to evaluating ecosystem stability. The Ukrainian Biosphere Reserve was chosen as the study polygon due to its importance as a conservation area and the diversity of natural ecosystems. The Analytical Hierarchy Method, in this case, provides a very straightforward way to analyze such complicated systems. The first step is to identify and value the services offered by the Biosphere Reserve’s wetland, forest, and aquatic ecosystems. Then, four criteria (C1–C4) and impacts (P1–Pn) that directly affect the ecological sustainability of a certain ecosystem within each criterion were identified. The overall weight of each impact on specific ecosystem sustainability was computed and estimated to reach the main goal (G). The integrated ecological stability evaluation index (CEI) was then calculated using the overall weight values. Wetland and forest ecosystem indices were calculated to be 0.63 and 0.64, indicating that these systems are moderately stable. The stability index for aquatic ecosystems is 0.75, indicating that the system is ecologically stable. As a result, it is critical to focus on reducing negative factors affecting wetlands and forest ecosystems, such as sylvatization and/or recreational activities, to strengthen ecosystem stability and the ability to provide services.
... Essential benefits provided by forest ecosystems include provisional (timber and non-timber forest products), regulatory (carbon sequestration and water purification), and cultural services (recreational and spiritual characteristics). All such services that humans obtain from ecosystems, namely, ecosystem services (ES), are intricately dependent on biodiversity [3][4][5][6][7]. The biodiversity in the corresponding ecosystems may in turn sustain forest ecosystems and guarantee their continued viability. ...
With the degradation and destruction of ecosystem structures and functions, humans are losing essential goods and services from forest ecosystems [...]
... The concept of ecosystem services (ESs) provides an opportunity to revitalize research on the development and implementation of environmental conservation and protection policies (Mace et al., 2012;Beaumont et al., 2017;Gould et al., 2019). Following the research on the identification and mapping of ESs by region and ecosystem type, social science studies have relied largely on environmental economics approaches to estimate the value of these services (Nieto-Romero et al., 2014;Jacobs et al., 2016;Gould et al., 2019;Kadykalo et al., 2019). ...
Recent studies have shown the importance of relationships with nature, emotions felt, forms of attachment, and experience of nature on conservation motivations. They have proposed characterizing relational values based on these complex interactions with ecosystems. We analyzed these links for ecosystem services (ESs) associated with fish farming ponds. The analysis was based on an online survey conducted on mainland France. We identified the types of pro-environmental profiles and investigated the determinants of pro-environmental behaviors. We analyzed the types of services prioritized according to individual profiles and the factors determining sensitivity. We distinguish between individual ESs that are more hedonic in nature, and regulating or heritage cultural ESs that refer to collective motivations rather linked to eudaimonic well-being. The results highlight the importance of factors related to eudaimonic well-being, which help integrate the role of ethical values and commitment to conservation. The modeling shows little influence of the usual sociodemographic variables and the strong significance of variables considering the knowledge and familiarity with these ecosystems and the pro-environment commitment, which refers to eudaimonic well-being. These results allow us to discuss the specificities of awareness-raising policies, which imply a rationale for active citizenship.
This chapter explores the interdependencies between renewable energy technologies (RETs) and their social and health implications in the abatement of climate change. Research shows that the production and deployment of RETs impacts greatly on biodiversity which anchors the biopsychosocial health of their host communities. Hence, the prospect of an actors-led socio-technical system in the governance of innovative knowledge required to drive progress and resilience in the shift from fossil fuel-led energy consumption to renewables was explored through the lens of Multi-level Perspective (MLP). The MLP transition theory was used as a framing in the understanding of the socio-technical transformation brought on by the deployment of RETs and the role of actors as well as their agency within the RET innovation process.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to demonstrate the interconnectivity between circular economy, biodiversity, and institutional investors literature. Secondly, to critically discuss the degree to which institutional investors are involved in promoting biodiversity and circular economy models that will improve the state of biodiversity.
Methodology
A literature search was conducted on papers from 2013 to 2023, followed by a discussion based on the results.
Findings
The findings indicate that only one article examines all three terms together and reveals conflicting views on the effectiveness of circular economy in achieving sustainability. To avoid confusion, metrics should include circular economy, biodiversity, and investors. While ESG is associated with circular economy, its limitations can hinder sustainability. Effective CE business models face obstacles such as uncertainty of outcomes and resource shortages.
Originality
This research is original in that it focuses on the interconnectivity of these terms and emphasizes the need for sustainable tools to aid in biodiversity restoration and promote a clearer path to sustainability.
Desertification in karst is an effect of climate change and not sustainable anthropogenic activities, the combination
of which, however, causes the gradual loss of karst natural resources, such as soil, vegetation, and
groundwater. A considerable percentage of global karst areas is found in drylands, characterized by negative
water balance and scarce presence of soils. High fragility of the karst environment, and its vulnerability to land
degradation and pollution because of the peculiar anisotropic setting, environmental dynamics, and of the direct
connection between the surface and the subsurface, are at the origin of the severe problems deriving from
desertification processes in karst. In addition to natural drivers, such as geology and topography, karst desertification
is generally due to four main factors, mostly or partly related to human activity: deforestation, improper
land use, groundwater overexploitation, and climate changes. Through the analysis of a collection of studies
conducted in several karst territories around the world, the present paper aims to provide an overview of the
processes leading to desertification risks in karst areas. Emphasizing the need to preserve these fragile environments,
characterized by peculiar features and precious freshwater resources, this review summarizes the main
situations at the global scale of rocky desertification in karst, at the same time providing indications for
developing innovative and multi-disciplinary approaches addressed toward mitigation of the risk related to
desertification in karst.
This document is the first deliverable from SmartSOIL and attempts to clarify some of the socio economic context and frameworks for developing soil science. A key concept that has attracted considerable interest from scientists and policy makers alike is the ecosystem service approach. In soil science, the use of an ecosystem service approach has been developed in parallel with the concept of soil functions, which also have found their way into EU policy developments such as the proposed EU Soil Framework Directive. We find that soil functions overlap with intermediate services in recent ecosystem service categorisations, such as the one used for the UK National Ecosystem Assessment. The distinction between intermediate and final ecosystem services is crucial in this respect, at least if an ecosystem service approach is supposed to serve as a basis for economic assessments of changes in service delivery due to land use or land management changes.
We further highlight the challenges in understanding the underlying complexity in processes and services and illustrated approaches that could be used to manage this complexity in order to produce results that can be of relevance in practice. This includes clarification of soil stock and (service) flow concepts that motivate (albeit theoretical) questions about the meaning of soil resilience and sustainability. As a main product of this work, we produced a comprehensive overview table that highlights the variety of ecosystem services derived from a lowland arable landscape. Central to this overview is the identification of intermediate service outcomes related to soil that are relevant to final service provision. Such information is particularly useful to identify future research needs in order to quantify and understand crucial links between ‘what soil does and provides’ and the associated final ecosystem services, which are to be valued in monetary terms for assessments of economic impacts of service flow changes due to changes in land use and management.
The intensive management of cropland refers to a reduction in habitat complexity (i.e., shade tree cover, tree species richness, crop species richness) to gain more profits. This usually entails a decrease in biodiversity, but agroforestry systems have been shown to provide a solution to the need for profits while maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. Invertebrates are important bioindicators since they are not just affected by a decrease in habitat complexity; they are also key for the maintenance of ecosystems given their ecological roles. We aimed to understand how agricultural intensification impacted invertebrate abundance and richness in an agroforestry system in Bali, Indonesia. We set up 53 × 25 m 2 plots and collected data via pitfall and pan traps. We linked those data to vegetation data (canopy cover, tree species richness, crop species richness), habitat type (rustic vs. polyculture), and productivity. Overall, we found that the abundance and richness of invertebrate taxa were positively influenced by increasing canopy cover and crop and tree species richness. This supports the habitat heterogeneity hypothesis, which indicates that increased habitat complexity promotes higher invertebrate species richness and abundance. The abundance and richness of certain invertebrate taxa, including agents of biocontrol, were shown to increase in plots with higher yields, thus solidifying the important role of invertebrate communities in the provision of ecosystem services. Harvesting crops from complex agroforestry systems ensures a sustainable income for local communities as well as habitats for invertebrates.
Alueidenkäytön suunnitteluun ja lainsäädäntöön tarvitaan kokonaisvaltaista muutosta luontokadon torjumiseksi. Nykyinen ohjausjärjestelmä ei kykene riittävästi turvaamaan viherrakennetta, ekologista kytkeytyvyyttä ja luonnon monimuotoisuutta.
Olen kirjoittanut yhdessä Aleksi Heinilän, Atte Moilasen ja Juho Rajaniemen kanssa tietokoosteen ympäristöministeriön pyynnöstä. Esitämme siinä, miten alueidenkäytössä tulisi edistää luonnon monimuotoisuutta ja ekologista kytkeytyvyyttä. Lue lisää:
https://acadsci.fi/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Ekologinen-kytkeytyvyys-ja-luonnon-monimuotoisuus-2024.pdf
Biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management are imperative for sustaining life on Earth. Despite the growing recognition of its importance outside the field of environmental sciences, biodiversity has been polemically criticized as a fad, arguing that it has become a passing trend in sustainable finance. To foster a comprehensive understanding, we provide a bibliometric analysis of 334 articles in accounting, economics, and finance (AEF) journals retrieved from the Web of Science database. We conduct science mapping and a co-citation analysis to portrait the scientific landscape and research foci. Consistent with previous studies, we find that mainstream AEF journals are largely silent on biodiversity. In addition, research from Asia is severely underrepresented.
Agroforestry is integrated with agriculture crops, perennial trees, and livestock or pasture. Agroforestry has the potential for sustainable development and increases the overall income of farmers though intervention of trees with agriculture crops. Nowadays the population of the world is increasing day by day, and total agriculture of land is decreasing; simultaneously demand of food also increases; to fulfill the demand of food, farmers are using high quantity of different chemical fertilizer, pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides for increasing the yield; it results to soil degradation and also affects environmental conditions. Agroforestry is a suitable tool to mitigate the soil degradation problems and mitigate climate change. Agroforestry is competent to protect natural resources like soil, water, nutrients of soil, ecological biodiversity, mainline the temperature and air quality by various agroforestry practices under different regions and conditions. It is estimated that the requirement of water will be increased up to 19% by 2050 and 5% of productivity is decreased due to soil degradation. Agroforestry is able to improve the infiltration rate, water-holding capacity of soil, improve the productivity of soil, and increase the nutrient status of soil and control of soil erosion. Agroforestry system gives good strength to conserve the soil and water. Different agroforestry systems are very diverse in nature, cultivating different food crops, fruit crops, and fodder crops and integrated with livestock. Due to the diverse nature of agroforestry, it is able to provide food security and health for the farmer. It is estimated that 75% foods are obtained from 12% of plants and animal that we are cultivating on a large scale. In this chapter the main focus is on the role of agroforestry in the conservation of soil, water, and environmental and ecological biodiversity and its role on the crop production.
We present the results from a new framework providing an assessment of how climate change risks to natural capital accrue with warming of 1.5–4 °C in six countries (China, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, and India). Unlike typical biodiversity and climate change studies, this assessment also considers landcover and population changes across a range of 17 ecosystem services. The potential impacts of climate change (alone) on natural capital at 1.5 °C is greatest in Brazil and least in Ghana. However, when population and landcover change are included, areas projected to be at high natural capital risk begin to accrue by 1.5 °C in all countries. By 2 °C, Ethiopia and Ghana show increasing areas at high risk, even though they are at low risk owing to climate alone. Thus, current impacts to biodiversity and ecosystem services and changes in potential demand coupled with warming exceed changes projected by climate alone. However, this also indicates that there is adaptation potential, especially with warming of < 2 °C, to reduce risk through restoring habitat. At lower levels of warming, targeted restoration of marginal agricultural habitats would increase the bank of natural capital for use by people and provide support for remaining agricultural lands. By 3 °C, the adaptation potential from restoration is substantially less: < 1% in Brazil, India and Egypt; 7–8% in China and Ethiopia; but still 26% in Ghana. This indicates that restoration as an adaptation option for biodiversity, and thus, natural capital, rapidly decreases with increasing temperatures. By 2100, factoring in population change (SSP2), current ecological footprint, and current landcover, even with only 1.5 °C warming, large parts of Brazil, eastern China, most of Egypt, much of Ethiopia, southwestern Ghana (except for protected areas), and most of India are at high to extreme natural capital risk with an adaptation deficit potentially equating to a soft adaptation limit.
Globally, the Unionida have suffered an increasing decline in both their populations and distribution range. This phenomenon has been well documented in Europe and North America. In Argentina, the study of the group reached its height between 1960 and 1980, producing valuable but now outdated information. This study aims to explore the distribution range before and after 1990 and discuss the potential threats to Unionida (Hyriidae and Mycetopodidae families) in Argentina. We analyzed bibliographies, databases, and new samplings following the malacological provinces of Argentina (MP) zoogeographic scheme. A total of 2452 georeference records were analyzed. Of the 35 species detected up to 1990, 17 (48%) have not been recorded since that year. Freshwater mussels are recorded in seven of the eight MP and in six there has been a reduction of more than 50%. Climate change (increasing water temperature, droughts or extreme floods, and fires), globalization (invasive species), and human activity (intensive agriculture, wastewater discharge, construction of dams or river channelization, and commercial exploitation) have all contributed to the decline and reduction of native mussel populations, leading to range reduction and extirpation. The results of the present study will allow future research to estimate the endangered status and degree of conservation of unionidan species in southern South America, which provide multiple ecosystem services.
In the semi-arid plains of Southern India, outside the protected area network, sacred groves forests and the barren lands invaded by Prosopis juliflora are reckoned to be the major greenery, but have homogenous and heterogeneous vegetation respectively. This study attempted to compare 50 Sacred Groves Stands (SGS) and 50 monodominant Prosopis juliflora Stands (PJS) for the functional diversity, evenness, floral diversity, carbon stock and dynamics, carbon-fixing traits, dendrochronology of trees, soil nutrient profiles, and soil erosion. Quadrat sample survey was adopted to record stand density, species richness, abundance, basal area and leaf area index; composite soil samples were collected at depths 0–30 cm for nutrient profiling (N, P, K, and OC). Photosynthesis rate (µmole co2 m²/sec), air temperature (°c), leaf intracellular co2 concentration (ppm), ambient photosynthetic active radiation (µmole m²/sec), transpiration rate (m. mole H2O m²/sec) were determined for the 51 tree species existed in SGS and PJS using Plant Photosynthesis system. Structural Equation Model (SEM) was applied to derive the carbon sequestering potential and photosynthetic efficiency of eight dominant tree species using vital input parameters, including eco-physiological, morphological, and biochemical characterization. The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model, in conjunction with ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS 10.3, was adopted to map soil loss. Carbon source/sink determinations inferred through Net Ecosystem Productivity (NEP) assessments showed that mature SGS potentially acted as a carbon sink (0.06 ± 0.01 g C/m²/day), while matured PJS acted as a carbon source (−0.34 ± 0.12 g C/m²/day). Soil erosion rates were significantly greater (29.5 ± 13.4 ton/ha/year) in SGS compared to PJS (7.52 ± 2.55 ton/ha/year). Of the eight selected tree species, SEM revealed that trees belonging to the family Fabaceae [Wrightia tinctoria (estimated coefficient: 1.28, p = 0.02) > Prosopis juliflora (1.22, p = 0.01) > Acacia nilotica (1.21, p = 0.03) > Albizia lebbeck (0.97, p = 0.01)] showed comparatively high carbon sequestering ability.
The main strategy adopted by EU Member States to stem biodiversity loss is the establishment of new protected areas to be included in the Natura 2000 network. The effectiveness of this network is not satisfactory everywhere, with critical issues concerning poor consideration of socio-ecological system, planning that treats protected area as isolated entities, and conservation objectives that are not always synergistic with the objectives of maintaining a good level of both ecosystem services supply and multifunctionality. The paper explores these weaknesses in order to propose a conceptual framework to guide next steps within the LIFE IMAGINE project and provide the partnership with a fertile ground for discussion. The project pursues the aim of supporting the development of an integrated, unified, coordinated and participatory management strategy for the Natura 2000 network in the Umbria region (Italy). The integration between the ecosystem services framework, biodiversity conservation needs and the investigation of socio-ecological system shows potentials to derive planning implications useful to achieve the objectives and to support the multidisciplinary approach of the project.
It is widely acknowledged that biodiversity change is affecting human well‐being by altering the supply of Nature's Contributions to People (NCP). Nevertheless, the role of individual species in this relationship remains obscure. In this article, we present a framework that combines the cascade model from ecosystem services research with network theory from community ecology. This allows us to quantitatively link NCP demanded by people to the networks of interacting species that underpin them. We show that this “network cascade” framework can reveal the number, identity and importance of the individual species that drive NCP and of the environmental conditions that support them. This information is highly valuable in demonstrating the importance of biodiversity in supporting human well‐being and can help inform the management of biodiversity in social‐ecological systems.
The Aarhus Convention is a globally recognised benchmark for democratic environmental governance. However, no assessment exists on whether European MPAs comply with the legal standards set out by the Convention. Here, we focus on public authorities’ websites on MPAs as tools for promoting transparency, public involvement, and democratic processes. We assessed the websites of 61 European MPAs in thirteen countries using a survey structured by the three pillars of the Convention: access to information, participation in decision-making, and access to justice. We show that while most websites are used to disseminate information, they do not serve yet as participatory instruments. Very few have an area dedicated to public participation in decision-making and, when available, they provide scarce information on the outcomes of public involvement. Most websites provide general information on the MPA conservation objectives, but less than half provide access to reports on the results of management. Few websites provide information on available means to challenge unlawful acts. Websites’ potential as one of the most widely used, easily accessible, cost-effective sources of information and means for interaction with the general public should be better exploited. Increasing and facilitating the ability of the public to participate in MPA processes is key to ensure MPA success and environmental justice.
Canga is an environment of great natural and economic value because it harbours a considerable number of endemic species on a substrate that is rich in iron ore. In the Amazon, this open vegetation type grows on top of isolated outcrops in a dense forest matrix found in the Carajás region, in southeastern Pará. Of these outcrops, the Parque Nacional dos Campos Ferruginosos (PNCF) is the only area of Amazonian canga with a strict protection status. Therefore, industrial activity in the region needs to implement mitigation actions to ensure species and habitat conservation. The objective of this study is to complement and review the floristic list of this recently created protected area, enabling us to compare the floristic similarity between it and other 14 Amazonian canga outcrops found outside the conservation units of full protection in the region. This data provides a basis to understand the floristic and phylogenetic complementarity of those patches to support conservation action. For this, six field trips were carried out in the Serra da Bocaina and two in the Serra do Tarzan, respectively, in order to increase the sampling efforts in PNCF and to obtain a more comprehensive plant list. Floristic composition was investigated using multivariate analyses (non-metric multidimensional scaling and unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean) and phylogenetic structure across studied areas. We added 159 species to the floristic list of the PNCF and the results of the analyses showed that all 16 areas (n.b. PNCF comprises two of these sites) have an overall floristic similarity of 42%, with the least similar areas at 35% and the most similar at 50%. The different micro-habitats found in each study site highlight the high beta diversity of the Amazonian canga sites, making each area unique. Therefore, even if the Parque Nacional dos Campos Ferruginosos does not harbour all the species found in the other Amazonian canga sites, it is strategic for the conservation of the vegetation on ferruginous outcrops in the Amazon, protecting its biodiversity, different habitats, and associated ecosystem services.
The intersection of ecosystem and exposure science with health concerns has led to a gradual infiltration of these disciplines. Exposure to natural ecosystems, defined as ecological exposure, has proven to be substantially beneficial to health, providing more effective and preventive measures than dealing with downstream consequences of the disease. Besides, the eco-environment & health field has shifted its paradigm from focusing on negative environmental exposure to exploring the positive health benefits of ecological exposure. However, a unified framework that integrates the nexus of natural ecosystem, exposure, and health is still lacking. To address these challenges, we propose a new framework, Exposure Ecology (EE), and reviewed relevant studies. We suggest the domain and scope of EE include subject-reality, object-reality, subject-virtual, and object-virtual dimensions and that all previous studies can be covered within this coordinate frame. We analyze the trends and shortcomings of each domain and explain the pathways of ecological exposure to health, including reduction, restoration, promotion capacity, and potential harm. Furthermore, we discuss the theoretical basis for the formation of the theoretical framework of EE, as well as the EE-derived hypotheses, implications, and connections to other related fields. In short, the EE-driven holistic critical review enhances our understanding of this frontier topic substantially, and it can serve as a unified framework for understanding the nexus of natural ecosystems, ecological exposure, and health, and realizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Floodplains are important ecosystems that contribute to the ecological stability of the landscape. A number of ecosystem functions and services are significantly influenced by ecological aspects of floodplain habitats. This article focuses on the ecological quality and estimated amount of carbon stored in the biomass of habitats located in the studied watersheds, with an emphasis on floodplains. The habitats and their ecological quality were determined and assessed using the Biotope Valuation Method (BVM), an expert method for evaluating habitat (biotope) types based on eight ecological characteristics, mainly concerning various aspects of their biodiversity and vulnerability. The objective of this study is to compare the resulting assessments of habitats located in floodplains with assessments of habitats situated in the surrounding landscape. The study was carried out on three selected small stream watersheds in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic, which differ from each other in terms of the predominant land use and the overall level of anthropogenic pressure on the landscape. The results indicate that floodplains have a higher ecological value compared to the surrounding landscape, except for floodplains in areas with intensive agriculture. The ability of floodplains to store carbon in biomass turned out to be higher in the watershed with a higher percentage of tree stands, where woody plants store significantly more carbon in the biomass compared to other types of vegetation. It has been shown that human pressure on floodplains and land use significantly affects ecosystem functions and services. In addition to the intensity of agriculture, these were, in particular, pressures from an expansion of built-up areas and infrastructure developments, and forest management. In this study, forest stands in floodplain were more stable and had a more beneficial species composition than forests in the surrounding landscape.
The fragmentation of habitats associated with urbanisation poses a significant threat to already vulnerable and endangered mammal species. While the county of Dorset has been identified as one of the UK's biodiversity hotspots, it is characterised by large-scale urbanisation and intensive agriculture. Focusing on the largest urban area of Dorset-the conurbation of Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole-this study aims to investigate the importance of urban areas in supporting vulnerable and endangered mammals by comparing it to four other major land cover categories in the county: arable & horticulture, grassland, woodland, and heathland. The study utilises data collected by the county's environmental records department through mainly volunteer-contributed ad-hoc sighting data of 10 872 georeferenced mammal records collected between 2000 and 2018. Our findings reveal that, despite having significantly different mammal communities to all other land covers, urban land cover was shown to host four out of five of the vulnerable and endangered species recorded in this study. These included the European rabbit (vulnerable on the IUCN red list), hazel dormouse (vulnerable on the UK red list), West European hedgehog (vulnerable on the UK red list) and European water vole (endangered on the UK red list). Our findings highlight the significance of urban areas as important habitats for mammal biodiversity, presenting an opportunity for the conservation of specific vulnerable and endangered species. Despite limitations in ad-hoc sighting data, our analysis indicates an overrepresentation of certain 'charismatic' species, like foxes and hedgehogs, in urban samples, likely due to their high intrinsic value to the population. While the recognition of urban habitats for 'red list' species is growing, it is also important to acknowledge the relative importance of charismatic species to urban human communities in conservation and management.strategies.
Environmental change is disrupting mutualisms between organisms worldwide. Reported declines in insect populations and changes in pollinator community compositions in response to land use and other environmental drivers have put the spotlight on the need to conserve pollinators. While this is often motivated by their role in supporting crop yields, the role of pollinators for reproduction and resulting taxonomic and functional assembly in wild plant communities has received less attention. Recent findings suggest that observed and experimental gradients in pollinator availability can affect plant community composition, but we know little about when such shifts are to be expected, or the impact they have on ecosystem functioning. Correlations between plant traits related to pollination and plant traits related to other important ecosystem functions, such as productivity, nitrogen uptake or palatability to herbivores, lead us to expect non‐random shifts in ecosystem functioning in response to changes in pollinator communities. At the same time, ecological and evolutionary processes may counteract these effects of pollinator declines, limiting changes in plant community composition, and in ecosystem functioning. Despite calls to investigate community‐ and ecosystem‐level impacts of reduced pollination, the study of pollinator effects on plants has largely been confined to impacts on plant individuals or single‐species populations.
With this review we aim to break new ground by bringing together aspects of landscape ecology, ecological and evolutionary plant–insect interactions, and biodiversity–ecosystem functioning research, to generate new ideas and hypotheses about the ecosystem‐level consequences of pollinator declines in response to land‐use change, using grasslands as a focal system. Based on an integrated set of seven hypotheses, we call for more research investigating the putative pollinator‐mediated links between landscape‐scale land use and ecosystem functioning. In particular, future research should use combinations of experimental and observational approaches to assess the effects of changes in pollinator communities over multiple years and across species on plant communities and on trait distributions both within and among species.
Questions
What are the main vegetation types of forest and shrubland vegetation in central and eastern Euxine Turkey and SW Georgia? What are the main environmental factors affecting their diversity? What is their syntaxonomic position? Can we integrate them into the European vegetation classification system?
Location
Central and eastern Euxine Turkey and SW Georgia.
Methods
We collected 3104 vegetation plots of forest and shrubland vegetation in the study region and performed Two-Way Indicator Species Analysis (TWINSPAN) classification. We described vegetation types based on the classification results, expert knowledge and information from literature sources. We defined diagnostic species and prepared distribution maps for each vegetation type. To determine the most significant environmental variables on floristic differentiation, we used canonical correspondence analysis. Detrended correspondence analysis with passive projection of most significant environmental variables was run to interpret the environmental variation of vegetation types.
Results
The studied vegetation was divided into 29 vegetation types related to seven main vegetation groups: relict Mediterranean forests and shrubland (mainly along the coastline, beside some inland localities), lowland to submontane forests, central Euxine mountain forests, eastern Euxine (Colchic) mountain forests, subeuxine forests, azonal riparian forests and subalpine and alpine shrubland. Elevation is the most important factor causing the differentiation in vegetation. It is followed by longitude and latitude. Among climatic variables, temperature seasonality, annual precipitation and precipitation of the wettest quarter are the most significant factors for vegetation differentiation. These factors correlate with the reduction of maritime climate and geomorphological features.
Conclusions
Vegetation types mostly correspond to the syntaxa accepted in the EuroVegChecklist. However, some of them do not appear in the EuroVegChecklist since they appear only beyond Europe. We described three syntaxa as new: Abietion equi-trojani, Querco cerridis-Carpinion orientalis and Piceo orientalis-Fagenion orientalis. The study revealed high vegetation diversity of the region that should be taken into consideration in ecosystem management and used as a reference in restoration and mitigation of the effects of global changes.
Please cite this article as: Savari, M., Khaleghi, B., Factors influencing the application of forest conservation behavior among rural communities in Iran, Environmental and Sustainability Indicators (2024), doi: https://doi. Abstract 3 Today, the importance of natural forests is obvious to everyone, but every year a large part of these 4 resources is lost due to various reasons such as human and natural factors, among which the 5 contribution of human factors is more than others. Therefore, most of the forest destructions is 6 caused by the irresponsible behavior of humans, who did not adopt reasonable methods in 7 encountering these treasures and utilizing them, and instead of planning for sustainable use, they 8 have greedily exploited and profited from them. As a result, one of the challenges of most countries 9 is how to solve this problem and prevent further damages to forests. In this regard, this research 10 was conducted with the main goal of factors affecting the use of forest conservation behavior 11 (FCB) among rural communities in Iran. For achieving that, three general goals were followed: (1) 12 conducting a coherent research to identify the most important factors affecting FCB (2) identifying 13 the most important FCB among locals and (3) providing practical policies in the field of forest 14 conservation for policy makers and decision makers in order to the sustainable management of 15 these natural ecosystems. At first, using research literature, 18 influencing factors on FCB were 16 identified, which were placed in economic, social, psychological and human classes. The results 17 of prioritizing FCBs among people indicated that the behaviors of preventing the entry of an 18 excessive number of livestock into the forest and not lighting a fire near or in the forest are used 19 more than other behaviors. In addition the results showed that social capital with an explanatory 20 value of 65.5% has the greatest effect on FCB. In addition, the findings indicated that among the 21 economic, social capital, psychological and human factors, the variables of the dependence level 22 on the forest, social norm, intention and environmental knowledge and awareness were the most 23 important influencing variables, respectively. Also, the findings indicated that among the 24 economic, social capital, psychological and human factors, the variables of the dependence level 25 on the forest, social norm, intention and environmental knowledge and awareness were the most 26 important influencing variables, respectively. 27 Keywords: forest conservation, natural resources, conservation behavior, sustainable forest 28 management, Iran 29 30 J o u r n a l P r e-p r o o f 2
Biodiversity and ecosystem services are vital for humanity. We explain what these terms encompass and show examples of their relevance for our well-being. However, we are currently losing species at unprecedented rates due to a variety of human pressures, such as habitat loss, pollution, or climate change. This makes it very important to be able to quantify biodiversity and, more importantly, quantify impacts on biodiversity. We introduce several examples of indicators to quantify biodiversity as such and explain how to obtain the underlying species richness and abundance information. Afterward we highlight different methods and indexes that are used for quantifying impacts on biodiversity in sustainability assessments tools. Once we understand the magnitude and distribution of impacts, we can take steps to transform production processes and activities to improve and encourage better biodiversity protection. Here, we take a Life Cycle Assessment example to showcase that careful selection of future hydropower reservoirs has a large potential to limit biodiversity impacts.
In recent decades, aquatic macrophytes have been recognized as a significant component of aquatic ecosystems, which play an important role in providing environment and ecosystem services. Aquatic macrophytes also play a key role in the production of bioenergy, biochar formation, climate change, photosynthesis, etc. The presence and activity of macrophytes enhance sediment formation, carbon sequestration, natural water purification, remediation of organic and inorganic pollutants, etc. in the aquatic ecosystem. They also provide natural medicines, fibers, biochemicals, and other resources to the human society. There are several evidences that macrophyte diversity enhances the functioning, services, and stability of the ecosystem and provides multiple benefits to human well-being. This chapter delves into the functions and ecosystem services associated with aquatic macrophytes, which play a crucial role in maintaining the health and sustainability of aquatic ecosystems and significantly impact the well-being of human societies.
Ecosystem services are the benefits humankind derives from the workings of the natural world. These include most obviously the supply of food, fuels and materials, but also more basic processes such as the formation of soils and the control and purification of water, and intangible ones such as amenity, recreation and aesthetics. Taken together, they are crucial to survival and the social and economic development of human societies. Though many are hidden, their workings are now a matter of clear scientific record. However, the integrity of the systems that deliver these benefits cannot be taken for granted, and the process of monitoring them and of ensuring that human activity does not place them at risk is an essential part of environmental governance, not solely at a global scale but also regionally and nationally. In this chapter, we assess the importance of ecosystem services in a European context, highlighting those that have particular importance for Europe, and we set out what is known about the contribution biodiversity makes to each of them. We then consider pressures on European ecosystem services and the measures that might be taken to manage them. One of the key insights from this work is that all ecosystems deliver a broad range of services, and that managing an ecosystem primarily to © Royal Society of Chemistry 2010. deliver one service will reduce its ability to provide others. A prominent current example of this is the use of land to produce biofuels. There is an urgent need to develop tools for the effective valuation of ecosystem services, to achieve sustainable management of the landscape to deliver multiple services.
Predicting ecosystem responses to global change is a major challenge in ecology. A critical step in that challenge is to understand how changing environmental conditions influence processes across levels of ecological organization. While direct scaling from individual to ecosystem dynamics can lead to robust and mechanistic predictions, new approaches are needed to appropriately translate questions through the community level. Species invasion, loss, and turnover all necessitate this scaling through community processes, but predicting how such changes may influence ecosystem function is notoriously difficult. We suggest that community-level dynamics can be incorporated into scaling predictions using a trait-based response–effect framework that differentiates the community response to environmental change (predicted by response traits) and the effect of that change on ecosystem processes (predicted by effect traits). We develop a response-and-effect functional framework, concentrating on how the relationships among species' response, effect, and abundance can lead to general predictions concerning the magnitude and direction of the influence of environmental change on function. We then detail several key research directions needed to better scale the effects of environmental change through the community level. These include (1) effect and response trait characterization, (2) linkages between response-and-effect traits, (3) the importance of species interactions on trait expression, and (4) incorporation of feedbacks across multiple temporal scales. Increasing rates of extinction and invasion that are modifying communities worldwide make such a research agenda imperative.
The appropriateness of species richness as an ecological indicator or decision variable for setting conservation and management priorities depends on many assumptions. Most critical is that current levels of species richness allow prediction of future contributions of various locations to biodiversity conservation and ecological function. Also important is the assumption that estimates of species richness can be compared among locations. Challenges arise because estimates of species richness are affected by area, scale and intensity of sampling, taxonomic grouping, estimation methods, and the dynamic nature of species richness. Nonetheless, species richness can contribute to prioritizing locations for biodiversity conservation provided it is not used in isolation—additional metrics, such as species composition, endemism, functional significance, and the severity of threats, are also required. The spatial domain of measurement also must be documented and justified. A multicriteria decision process is more likely to realize comprehensive conservation goals than prioritization of locations based on species richness alone.
Biodiversity is presently a minor consideration in environmental policy. It has been regarded as too broad and vague a concept to be applied to real-world regulatory and management problems. This problem can be corrected if biodiversity is recognized as an end in itself, and if measurable indicators can be selected to assess the status of biodiversity over time. Biodiversity, as presently understood, encompasses multiple levels of biological organization. In this paper, I expand the three primary attributes of biodiversity recognized by Jerry Franklin — composition, structure, and function—into a nested hierarchy that incorporates elements of each attribute at four levels of organization: regional landscape, community-ecosystem, population-species, and genetic. Indicators of each attribute in terrestrial ecosystems, at the four levels of organization, are identified for environmental monitoring purposes. Projects to monitor biodiversity will benefit from a direct linkage to long-term ecological research and a commitment to test hypotheses relevant to biodiversity conservation. A general guideline is to proceed from the top down, beginning with a coarse-scale inventory of landscape pattern, vegetation, habitat structure, and species distributions, then overlaying data on stress levels to identify biologically significant areas at high risk of impoverishment. Intensive research and monitoring can be directed to high-risk ecosystems and elements of biodiversity, while less intensive monitoring is directed to the total landscape (or samples thereof). In any monitoring program, particular attention should be paid to specifying the questions that monitoring is intended to answer and validating the relationships between indicators and the components of biodiversity they represent.
1. Ecosystem services are the benefits humans obtain from ecosystems. The importance of research into ecosystem services has been widely recognized, and rapid progress is being made. However, the prevailing approach to quantifying ecosystem services is still based on static analyses and single services, ignoring system dynamics, uncertainty and feedbacks. This is not only partly due to a lack of mechanistic understanding of processes and a dearth of empirical data, but also due to a failure to engage fully with the interdisciplinarity of the problem.
2. We argue that there is a tendency to ignore the feedbacks between and within both social and ecological systems, and a lack of explicit consideration of uncertainty. Metrics need to be developed that can predict thresholds, which requires strong linkages to underlying processes, while the development of policy for management of ecosystem services needs to be based on a broader understanding of value and drivers of human well-being.
3. We highlight the complexities, gaps in current knowledge and research, and the potentially promising avenues for future investigation in four priority research areas: agendas, processes, metrics and uncertainty.
4. Synthesis and applications. The research interest in the field of ecosystem services is rapidly expanding, and can contribute significantly to the sustainable management of natural resources. However, a narrow disciplinary approach, or an approach which does not consider feedbacks within and between ecological and social systems, has the potential to produce dangerously misleading policy recommendations. In contrast, if we explicitly acknowledge and address uncertainties and complexities in the provision of ecosystem services, progress may appear slower but our models will be substantially more robust and informative about the effects of environmental change.
Ecosystem services are vital for humans in urban regions. However, urban development poses a great risk for the ability of
ecosystems to provide these services. In this paper we first address the most important ecosystem services in functional urban
regions in Finland. Well accessible and good quality recreational ecosystem services, for example, provided by urban nature,
are an important part of a high-quality living environment and important for public health. Vegetation of urban regions can
have a role in carbon dioxide sequestration and thus in climate change mitigation. For instance, estimates of carbon sinks
can be compared to total CO2 emissions of an urban region, and the municipality can aim at both increasing carbon sinks and decreasing CO2 emissions with proper land-use planning. Large and contiguous core nature areas, smaller green areas and ecological connections
between them are the essence of regional ecological networks and are essential for maintaining interconnected habitats for
species and thus biological diversity. Thus, both local and regional level ecological networks are vital for maintaining ecosystem
services in urban regions. The impacts of climate change coupled with land-use and land cover change will bring serious challenges
for maintaining ecosystem services in urban areas. Although not yet widely used in planning practices, the ecosystem services
approach can provide an opportunity for land-use planning to develop ecologically sustainable urban regions. Currently, information
on ecosystem services of urban regions is lacking and there is a need to improve the knowledge base for land-use planning.
KeywordsEcosystem services-Finland-Land-use planning-Recreation-Urban green areas-Urban region
The paper seeks to contribute to the expanding literature on ecosystem service assessment by considering its integration with
economic analyses of such services. Focussing upon analyses for future orientated policy and decision making, we initially
consider a single period during which ecological stocks are maintained at sustainable levels. The flow of ecosystems services
and their contribution to welfare bearing goods is considered and methods for valuing resultant benefits are reviewed and
illustrated via a case study of land use change. We then broaden our time horizon to discuss the treatment of future costs
and benefits. Finally we relax our sustainability assumption and consider economic approaches to the incorporation of depleting
ecological assets with a particular focus upon stocks which exhibit thresholds below which restoration is compromised.
KeywordsEcosystem services–Economic valuation–Stocks and flows–Wellbeing–Spatial and temporal issues–Sustainability–Irreversibility–UK National Ecosystem Assessment (UK NEA)
The participation of the public in environmental decision-making and management is increasingly seen as essential for the success of conservation initiatives. Ecological scientists and conservation practitioners have, however, argued that a lack of understanding of biodiversity issues by the public is a barrier to their effective participation in decision-making processes. These arguments are often based on studies where scientific knowledge is used as the sole measure of public understanding of biodiversity, and therefore fail to account for individuals’ constructs of biodiversity and related issues such as biodiversity management.We examined individuals’ mental constructs of biodiversity, and their conceptual contexts, through a series of focus group discussions with members of the general public in Scotland. To gain a fuller picture of public understanding of biodiversity, we distinguished between mental associations with the term ‘biodiversity’, and the meanings associated with biodiversity-related concepts independent of scientific terminology.We found participants to express rich mental concepts of biodiversity, irrespective of their scientific knowledge. These included notions of balance, food chains and human–nature interactions, and showed strong normative dimensions that were used to define desirable or ideal states of nature. These concepts of biodiversity were, in turn, strongly related to their attitudes towards how best to manage biodiversity.This study highlights that a better understanding of individuals’ mental constructs of biodiversity, which are linked to their attitudes towards biodiversity management, is essential for the design of biodiversity-related policies that are supported by the public.
▪ Abstract  It has often been argued that conserving biodiversity is necessary for maintaining ecosystem functioning. We critically evaluate the current evidence for this argument. Although there is substantial evidence that diversity is able to affect function, particularly for plant communities, it is unclear if these patterns will hold for realistic scenarios of extinctions, multitrophic communities, or larger spatial scales. Experiments are conducted at small spatial scales, the very scales at which diversity tends to increase owing to exotics. Stressors may affect function by many pathways, and diversity-mediated effects on function may be a minor pathway, except in the case of multiple-stressor insurance effects. In general, the conservation case is stronger for stability measures of function than stock and flux measures, in part because it is easier to attribute value unambiguously to stability and in part because stock and flux measures of functions are anticipated to be more affected by multitrophic dynamics. Nor is biodiversity-ecosystem function theory likely to help conservation managers in practical decisions, except in the particular case of restoration. We give recommendations for increasing the relevance of this area of research for conservation.
Humans are altering the composition of biological communities through a variety of activities that increase rates of species invasions and species extinctions, at all scales, from local to global. These changes in components of the Earth's biodiversity cause concern for ethical and aesthetic reasons, but they also have a strong potential to alter ecosystem properties and the goods and services they provide to humanity. Ecological experiments, observations, and theoretical developments show that ecosystem properties depend greatly on biodiversity in terms of the functional characteristics of organisms present in the ecosystem and the distribution and abundance of those organisms over space and time. Species effects act in concert with the effects of climate, resource availability, and disturbance regimes in influencing ecosystem properties. Human activities can modify all of the above factors; here we focus on modification of these biotic controls. The scientific community has come to a broad consensus on many aspects of the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, including many points relevant to management of ecosystems. Further progress will require integration of knowledge about biotic and abiotic controls on ecosystem properties, how ecological communities are structured, and the forces driving species extinctions and invasions. To strengthen links to policy and management, we also need to integrate our ecological knowledge with understanding of the social and economic constraints of potential management practices. Understanding this complexity, while taking strong steps to minimize current losses of species, is necessary for responsible management of Earth's ecosystems and the diverse biota they contain. Based on our review of the scientific literature, we are certain of the following conclusions: 1)Species' functional characteristics strongly influence ecosystem properties. Functional characteristics operate in a variety of contexts, including effects of dominant species, keystone species, ecological engineers, and interactions among species (e.g., competition, facilitation, mutualism, disease, and predation). Relative abundance alone is not always a good predictor of the ecosystem-level importance of a species, as even relatively rare species (e.g., a keystone predator) can strongly influence pathways of energy and material flows. 2)Alteration of biota in ecosystems via species invasions and extinctions caused by human activities has altered ecosystem goods and services in many well-documented cases. Many of these changes are difficult, expensive, or impossible to reverse or fix with technological solutions. 3)The effects of species loss or changes in composition, and the mechanisms by which the effects manifest themselves, can differ among ecosystem properties, ecosystem types, and pathways of potential community change. 4)Some ecosystem properties are initially insensitive to species loss because (a) ecosystems may have multiple species that carry out similar functional roles, (b) some species may contribute relatively little to ecosystem properties, or (c) properties may be primarily controlled by abiotic environmental conditions. 5)More species are needed to insure a stable supply of ecosystem goods and services as spatial and temporal variability increases, which typically occurs as longer time periods and larger areas are considered. We have high confidence in the following conclusions: 1)Certain combinations of species are complementary in their patterns of resource use and can increase average rates of productivity and nutrient retention. At the same time, environmental conditions can influence the importance of complementarity in structuring communities. Identification of which and how many species act in a complementary way in complex communities is just beginning. 2)Susceptibility to invasion by exotic species is strongly influenced by species composition and, under similar environmental conditions, generally decreases with increasing species richness. However, several other factors, such as propagule pressure, disturbance regime, and resource availability also strongly influence invasion success and often override effects of species richness in comparisons across different sites or ecosystems. 3)Having a range of species that respond differently to different environmental perturbations can stabilize ecosystem process rates in response to disturbances and variation in abiotic conditions. Using practices that maintain a diversity of organisms of different functional effect and functional response types will help preserve a range of management options. Uncertainties remain and further research is necessary in the following areas: 1)Further resolution of the relationships among taxonomic diversity, functional diversity, and community structure is important for identifying mechanisms of biodiversity effects. 2)Multiple trophic levels are common to ecosystems but have been understudied in biodiversity/ecosystem functioning research. The response of ecosystem properties to varying composition and diversity of consumer organisms is much more complex than responses seen in experiments that vary only the diversity of primary producers. 3)Theoretical work on stability has outpaced experimental work, especially field research. We need long-term experiments to be able to assess temporal stability, as well as experimental perturbations to assess response to and recovery from a variety of disturbances. Design and analysis of such experiments must account for several factors that covary with species diversity. 4)Because biodiversity both responds to and influences ecosystem properties, understanding the feedbacks involved is necessary to integrate results from experimental communities with patterns seen at broader scales. Likely patterns of extinction and invasion need to be linked to different drivers of global change, the forces that structure communities, and controls on ecosystem properties for the development of effective management and conservation strategies. 5)This paper focuses primarily on terrestrial systems, with some coverage of freshwater systems, because that is where most empirical and theoretical study has focused. While the fundamental principles described here should apply to marine systems, further study of that realm is necessary. Despite some uncertainties about the mechanisms and circumstances under which diversity influences ecosystem properties, incorporating diversity effects into policy and management is essential, especially in making decisions involving large temporal and spatial scales. Sacrificing those aspects of ecosystems that are difficult or impossible to reconstruct, such as diversity, simply because we are not yet certain about the extent and mechanisms by which they affect ecosystem properties, will restrict future management options even further. It is incumbent upon ecologists to communicate this need, and the values that can derive from such a perspective, to those charged with economic and policy decision-making.
Trophic structure is determined by competitive and predator-prey interactions. In freshwater pelagic communities, the collective efficiency of herbivorous plankton in consuming primary producers is up to 10 times as great as is the efficiency of forest herbivores in consuming their food. Conversely, forest predators are about three times as efficient in consuming herbivore production as are zooplanktivorous fish. The presence of an additional level, piscivorous fish, in pelagic communities accounts for the difference. In the aquatic system, herbivorous zooplankton are freed from predation by the effect of piscivorous fish on their predators; in the terrestrial system, green plants are freed from herbivory by predation on the herbivores. Pelagic ecosystems have more trophic levels as a result of selection for small rapidly growing primary producers, which cannot hold space in the fluid medium, in contrast to large space-occupying producers in the terrestrial environment. Consumers in pelagic systems are more frequently gape limited in the size range of food they can ingest than are grasping consumers in terrestrial systems. The energy within the living, nondetrital components is more finely divided between trophic levels in pelagic systems than in terrestrial systems. Ecological efficiencies do not determine trophic structure; rather, they are its product. -from Authors
The global decline of insect pollinators, especially bees, is cause for concern, and there is an urgent need for cost-effective conservation measures in agricultural landscapes. While landscape context and habitat quality are known to influence species richness and abundance of bees, there is a lack of evidence from manipulative field experiments on bees' responses to adaptive management across differently structured landscapes. We present the results of a large-scale study that investigated the effects of a targeted agri-environment scheme (AES) on bumble bees (Bombus spp.) over three years in the United Kingdom. Forage patches of different sizes were sown with a conservation flower mixture across eight sites covering a broad range of agricultural land use types. Species richness and worker densities (especially of the longer-tongued Bombus species for which the mixture was targeted) were significantly higher on sown forage patches than on existing non-crop control habitats throughout the three-year study, but the strength of this response depended on both the proportions of arable land and abundance of herbaceous forb species in the surrounding landscape. The size of sown patches also affected worker density, with smaller patches (0.25 ha) attracting higher densities of some species than larger patches (1.0 ha). Our models show that a targeted AES can deliver greater net benefits in more intensively farmed areas, in terms of the number and species richness of bumble bees supported, than in heterogeneous landscapes where other foraging habitats exist. These findings serve to strengthen the evidence base for extending agri-environment schemes to boost declining pollinator populations to a larger number of agricultural landscapes across the globe.
The Convention on Biological Diversity's 2020 targets are an improvement over the 2010 target, but they could be strengthened.
The continued growth of human populations and of per capita consumption have resulted in unsustainable exploitation of Earth’s
biological diversity, exacerbated by climate change, ocean acidification, and other anthropogenic environmental impacts. We
argue that effective conservation of biodiversity is essential for human survival and the maintenance of ecosystem processes.
Despite some conservation successes (especially at local scales) and increasing public and government interest in living sustainably,
biodiversity continues to decline. Moving beyond 2010, successful conservation approaches need to be reinforced and adequately
financed. In addition, however, more radical changes are required that recognize biodiversity as a global public good, that
integrate biodiversity conservation into policies and decision frameworks for resource production and consumption, and that
focus on wider institutional and societal changes to enable more effective implementation of policy.
Theory suggests evolutionary change can significantly influence and act in tandem with ecological forces via ecological-evolutionary feedbacks. This theory assumes that significant evolutionary change occurs over ecologically relevant timescales and that phenotypes have differential effects on the environment. Here we test the hypothesis that local adaptation causes ecosystem structure and function to diverge. We demonstrate that populations of Trinidadian guppies (Poecilia reticulata), characterized by differences in phenotypic and population-level traits, differ in their impact on ecosystem properties. We report results from a replicated, common garden mesocosm experiment and show that differences between guppy phenotypes result in the divergence of ecosystem structure (algal, invertebrate, and detrital standing stocks) and function (gross primary productivity, leaf decomposition rates, and nutrient flux). These phenotypic effects are further modified by effects of guppy density. We evaluated the generality of these effects by replicating the experiment using guppies derived from two independent origins of the phenotype. Finally, we tested the ability of multiple guppy traits to explain observed differences in the mesocosms. Our findings demonstrate that evolution can significantly affect both ecosystem structure and function. The ecosystem differences reported here are consistent with patterns observed across natural streams and argue that guppies play a significant role in shaping these ecosystems.
Community ecology and ecosystem ecology provide two perspectives on complex ecological systems that have largely complementary strengths and weaknesses. Merging the two perspectives is necessary both to ensure continued scientific progress and to provide society with the scientific means to face growing environmental challenges. Recent research on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning has contributed to this goal in several ways. By addressing a new question of high relevance for both science and society, by challenging existing paradigms, by tightly linking theory and experiments, by building scientific consensus beyond differences in opinion, by integrating fragmented disciplines and research fields, by connecting itself to other disciplines and management issues, it has helped transform ecology not only in content, but also in form. Creating a genuine evolutionary ecosystem ecology that links the evolution of species traits at the individual level, the dynamics of species interactions, and the overall functioning of ecosystems would give new impetus to this much-needed process of unification across ecological disciplines. Recent community evolution models are a promising step in that direction.
In this paper, I formalize the idea of sustainable development in terms of intergenerational well-being. I then sketch an argument that has recently been put forward formally to demonstrate that intergenerational well-being increases over time if and only if a comprehensive measure of wealth per capita increases. The measure of wealth includes not only manufactured capital, knowledge and human capital (education and health), but also natural capital (e.g. ecosystems). I show that a country's comprehensive wealth per capita can decline even while gross domestic product (GDP) per capita increases and the UN Human Development Index records an improvement. I then use some rough and ready data from the world's poorest countries and regions to show that during the period 1970-2000 wealth per capita declined in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, even though the Human Development Index (HDI) showed an improvement everywhere and GDP per capita increased in all places (except in sub-Saharan Africa, where there was a slight decline). I conclude that, as none of the development indicators currently in use is able to reveal whether development has been, or is expected to be, sustainable, national statistical offices and international organizations should now routinely estimate the (comprehensive) wealth of nations.
More than half the world's rainforest has been lost to agriculture since the Industrial Revolution. Among the most widespread tropical crops is oil palm (Elaeis guineensis): global production now exceeds 35 million tonnes per year. In Malaysia, for example, 13% of land area is now oil palm plantation, compared with 1% in 1974. There are enormous pressures to increase palm oil production for food, domestic products, and, especially, biofuels. Greater use of palm oil for biofuel production is predicated on the assumption that palm oil is an "environmentally friendly" fuel feedstock. Here we show, using measurements and models, that oil palm plantations in Malaysia directly emit more oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds than rainforest. These compounds lead to the production of ground-level ozone (O(3)), an air pollutant that damages human health, plants, and materials, reduces crop productivity, and has effects on the Earth's climate. Our measurements show that, at present, O(3) concentrations do not differ significantly over rainforest and adjacent oil palm plantation landscapes. However, our model calculations predict that if concentrations of oxides of nitrogen in Borneo are allowed to reach those currently seen over rural North America and Europe, ground-level O(3) concentrations will reach 100 parts per billion (10(9)) volume (ppbv) and exceed levels known to be harmful to human health. Our study provides an early warning of the urgent need to develop policies that manage nitrogen emissions if the detrimental effects of palm oil production on air quality and climate are to be avoided.
The hope among policy-makers and scientists alike is that conservation strategies designed to protect biodiversity also provide direct benefits to people by protecting other vital ecosystem services. The few studies that have examined the delivery of ecosystem services by existing conservation efforts have concentrated on large, 'wilderness'-style biodiversity reserves. However, such reserves are not realistic options for densely populated regions. Here, we provide the first analyses that compare representation of biodiversity and three other ecosystem services across several contrasting conservation strategies in a human-dominated landscape (England). We show that small protected areas and protected landscapes (restrictive zoning) deliver high carbon storage and biodiversity, while existing incentive payment (agri-environment) schemes target areas that offer little advantage over other parts of England in terms of biodiversity, carbon storage and agricultural production. A fourth ecosystem service-recreation-is under-represented by all three strategies. Our findings are encouraging as they illustrate that restrictive zoning can play a major role in protecting natural capital assets in densely populated regions. However, trade-offs exist even among the four ecosystem services we considered, suggesting that a portfolio of conservation and sustainability investments will be needed to deliver both biodiversity and the other ecosystem services demanded by society.
The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) introduced a new framework for analyzing social-ecological systems that has had wide influence in the policy and scientific communities. Studies after the MA are taking up new challenges in the basic science needed to assess, project, and manage flows of ecosystem services and effects on human well-being. Yet, our ability to draw general conclusions remains limited by focus on discipline-bound sectors of the full social-ecological system. At the same time, some polices and practices intended to improve ecosystem services and human well-being are based on untested assumptions and sparse information. The people who are affected and those who provide resources are increasingly asking for evidence that interventions improve ecosystem services and human well-being. New research is needed that considers the full ensemble of processes and feedbacks, for a range of biophysical and social systems, to better understand and manage the dynamics of the relationship between humans and the ecosystems on which they rely. Such research will expand the capacity to address fundamental questions about complex social-ecological systems while evaluating assumptions of policies and practices intended to advance human well-being through improved ecosystem services.
Although the effect of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning has become a major focus in ecology, its significance in a fluctuating environment is still poorly understood. According to the insurance hypothesis, biodiversity insures ecosystems against declines in their functioning because many species provide greater guarantees that some will maintain functioning even if others fail. Here we examine this hypothesis theoretically. We develop a general stochastic dynamic model to assess the effects of species richness on the expected temporal mean and variance of ecosystem processes such as productivity, based on individual species' productivity responses to environmental fluctuations. Our model shows two major insurance effects of species richness on ecosystem productivity: (i) a buffering effect, i.e., a reduction in the temporal variance of productivity, and (ii) a performance-enhancing effect, i.e., an increase in the temporal mean of productivity. The strength of these insurance effects is determined by three factors: (i) the way ecosystem productivity is determined by individual species responses to environmental fluctuations, (ii) the degree of asynchronicity of these responses, and (iii) the detailed form of these responses. In particular, the greater the variance of the species responses, the lower the species richness at which the temporal mean of the ecosystem process saturates and the ecosystem becomes redundant. These results provide a strong theoretical foundation for the insurance hypothesis, which proves to be a fundamental principle for understanding the long-term effects of biodiversity on ecosystem processes.
The term 'biodiversity' is a simple contraction of 'biological diversity', and at first sight the concept is simple too: biodiversity is the sum total of all biotic variation from the level of genes to ecosystems. The challenge comes in measuring such a broad concept in ways that are useful. We show that, although biodiversity can never be fully captured by a single number, study of particular facets has led to rapid, exciting and sometimes alarming discoveries. Phylogenetic and temporal analyses are shedding light on the ecological and evolutionary processes that have shaped current biodiversity. There is no doubt that humans are now destroying this diversity at an alarming rate. A vital question now being tackled is how badly this loss affects ecosystem functioning. Although current research efforts are impressive, they are tiny in comparison to the amount of unknown diversity and the urgency and importance of the task.
Plant diversity and niche complementarity had progressively stronger effects on ecosystem functioning during a 7-year experiment,
with 16-species plots attaining 2.7 times greater biomass than monocultures. Diversity effects were neither transients nor
explained solely by a few productive or unviable species. Rather, many higher-diversity plots outperformed the best monoculture.
These results help resolve debate over biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, show effects at higher than expected diversity
levels, and demonstrate, for these ecosystems, that even the best-chosen monocultures cannot achieve greater productivity
or carbon stores than higher-diversity sites.
Human impacts, including global change, may alter the composition of soil faunal communities, but consequences for ecosystem
functioning are poorly understood. We constructed model grassland systems in the Ecotron controlled environment facility and
manipulated soil community composition through assemblages of different animal body sizes. Plant community composition, microbial
and root biomass, decomposition rate, and mycorrhizal colonization were all markedly affected. However, two key ecosystem
processes, aboveground net primary productivity and net ecosystem productivity, were surprisingly resistant to these changes.
We hypothesize that positive and negative faunal-mediated effects in soil communities cancel each other out, causing no net
ecosystem effects.
Land use has generally been considered a local environmental issue, but it is becoming a force of global importance. Worldwide
changes to forests, farmlands, waterways, and air are being driven by the need to provide food, fiber, water, and shelter
to more than six billion people. Global croplands, pastures, plantations, and urban areas have expanded in recent decades,
accompanied by large increases in energy, water, and fertilizer consumption, along with considerable losses of biodiversity.
Such changes in land use have enabled humans to appropriate an increasing share of the planet's resources, but they also potentially
undermine the capacity of ecosystems to sustain food production, maintain freshwater and forest resources, regulate climate
and air quality, and ameliorate infectious diseases. We face the challenge of managing trade-offs between immediate human
needs and maintaining the capacity of the biosphere to provide goods and services in the long term.
Pollination is exclusively or mainly animal mediated for 70% to 90% of angiosperm species. Thus, pollinators provide an essential ecosystem service to humankind. However, the impact of human-induced biodiversity loss on the functioning of plant-pollinator interactions has not been tested experimentally. To understand how plant communities respond to diversity changes in their pollinating fauna, we manipulated the functional diversity of both plants and pollinators under natural conditions. Increasing the functional diversity of both plants and pollinators led to the recruitment of more diverse plant communities. After two years the plant communities pollinated by the most functionally diverse pollinator assemblage contained about 50% more plant species than did plant communities pollinated by less-diverse pollinator assemblages. Moreover, the positive effect of functional diversity was explained by a complementarity between functional groups of pollinators and plants. Thus, the functional diversity of pollination networks may be critical to ecosystem sustainability.
The transmission of infectious diseases is an inherently ecological process involving interactions among at least two, and often many, species. Not surprisingly, then, the species diversity of ecological communities can potentially affect the prevalence of infectious diseases. Although a number of studies have now identified effects of diversity on disease prevalence, the mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear in many cases. Starting with simple epidemiological models, we describe a suite of mechanisms through which diversity could increase or decrease disease risk, and illustrate the potential applicability of these mechanisms for both vector-borne and non-vector-borne diseases, and for both specialist and generalist pathogens. We review examples of how these mechanisms may operate in specific disease systems. Because the effects of diversity on multi-host disease systems have been the subject of much recent research and controversy, we describe several recent efforts to delineate under what general conditions host diversity should increase or decrease disease prevalence, and illustrate these with examples. Both models and literature reviews suggest that high host diversity is more likely to decrease than increase disease risk. Reduced disease risk with increasing host diversity is especially likely when pathogen transmission is frequency-dependent, and when pathogen transmission is greater within species than between species, particularly when the most competent hosts are also relatively abundant and widespread. We conclude by identifying focal areas for future research, including (1) describing patterns of change in disease risk with changing diversity; (2) identifying the mechanisms responsible for observed changes in risk; (3) clarifying additional mechanisms in a wider range of epidemiological models; and (4) experimentally manipulating disease systems to assess the impact of proposed mechanisms.
Human-driven ecosystem simplification has highlighted questions about how the number of species in an ecosystem influences its functioning. Although biodiversity is now known to affect ecosystem productivity, its effects on stability are debated. Here we present a long-term experimental field test of the diversity-stability hypothesis. During a decade of data collection in an experiment that directly controlled the number of perennial prairie species, growing-season climate varied considerably, causing year-to-year variation in abundances of plant species and in ecosystem productivity. We found that greater numbers of plant species led to greater temporal stability of ecosystem annual aboveground plant production. In particular, the decadal temporal stability of the ecosystem, whether measured with intervals of two, five or ten years, was significantly greater at higher plant diversity and tended to increase as plots matured. Ecosystem stability was also positively dependent on root mass, which is a measure of perenniating biomass. Temporal stability of the ecosystem increased with diversity, despite a lower temporal stability of individual species, because of both portfolio (statistical averaging) and overyielding effects. However, we found no evidence of a covariance effect. Our results indicate that the reliable, efficient and sustainable supply of some foods (for example, livestock fodder), biofuels and ecosystem services can be enhanced by the use of biodiversity.
Just as individuals have preferences regarding the various goods and services they purchase every day, they also hold preferences regarding public goods such as those provided by the natural environment. However, unlike private goods, environmental goods often cannot be valued by direct reference to any market price, which makes economic analysis of the costs and benefits of environmental change problematic. A number of methods have been developed to address this problem by attempting to value environmental preferences. Principal among these has been the contingent valuation (CV) method, which uses surveys to ask individuals how much they would be willing to pay or willing to accept in compensation for gains or losses of environmental goods. The period from the mid‐1980s has seen a massive expansion in use of the CV method, and from its original roots in the USA, through Europe and the developed world, the method has now reached worldwide application with a substantial proportion of current studies being undertaken in developing countries where environmental services are often the dominating determinant of everyday living standards. The method has simultaneously moved from the realm of pure academic speculation into the sphere of institutional decision analysis. However, the 1990s have witnessed a developing critique of the CV method, with a number of commentators questioning the underlying validity of its derived valuations. This volume reflects this time of heated debate over the CV method. It contains specially written papers from both sides of that debate, as well as from commentators who see it as an interesting experimental tool regardless of the question of absolute validity of the estimates made. The book is arranged in four main parts, covering theoretical (Part I) and methodological (Part II) aspects of the debate, presenting case studies from the USA, Europe (UK), and a developing country (Philippines) (Part III), and looking at the institutional frameworks within which CV studies are applied (Part IV).
Pollination is exclusively or mainly animal mediated for 70% to 90% of angiosperm species. Thus, pollinators provide an essential ecosystem service to humankind. However, the impact of human-induced biodiversity loss on the functioning of plant-pollinator interactions has not been tested experimentally. To understand how plant communities respond to diversity changes in their pollinating fauna, we manipulated the functional diversity of both plants and pollinators under natural conditions. Increasing the functional diversity of both plants and pollinators led to the recruitment of more diverse plant communities. After two years the plant communities pollinated by the most functionally diverse pollinator assemblage contained about 50% more plant species than did plant communities pollinated by less-diverse pollinator assemblages. Moreover, the positive effect of functional diversity was explained by a complementarity between functional groups of pollinators and plants. Thus, the functional diversity of pollination networks may be critical to ecosystem sustainability.
The suppression of agricultural pests has often been proposed as an important service of natural enemy diversity, but few experiments have tested this assertion. In this study we present empirical evidence that increasing the richness of a particular guild of natural enemies can reduce the density of a widespread group of herbivorous pests and, in turn, increase the yield of an economically important crop. We performed an experiment in large field enclosures where we manipulated the presence/absence of three of the most important natural enemies (the coccinellid beetle Harmonia axyridis, the damsel bug Nabis sp., and the parasitic wasp Aphidius ervi) of pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum) that feed on alfalfa (Medicago sativa). When all three enemy species were together, the population density of the pea aphid was suppressed more than could be predicted from the summed impact of each enemy species alone. As crop yield was negatively related to pea aphid density, there was a concomitant non-additive increase in the production of alfalfa in enclosures containing the more diverse enemy guild. This trophic cascade appeared to be influenced by an indirect interaction involving a second herbivore inhabiting the system – the cowpea aphid, Aphis craccivora. Data suggest that high relative densities of cowpea aphids inhibited parasitism of pea aphids by the specialist parasitoid, A. ervi. Therefore, when natural enemies were together and densities of cowpea aphids were reduced by generalist predators, parasitism of pea aphids increased. This interaction modification is similar to other types of indirect interactions among enemy species (e.g. predator–predator facilitation) that can enhance the suppression of agricultural pests. Results of our study, and those of others performed in agroecosystems, complement the broader debate over how biodiversity influences ecosystem functioning by specifically focusing on systems that produce goods of immediate relevance to human society.
Human-driven ecosystem simplification has highlighted questions about how the number of species in an ecosystem influences its functioning. Although biodiversity is now known to affect ecosystem productivity, its effects on stability are debated. Here we present a long-term experimental field test of the diversity–stability hypothesis. During a decade of data collection in an experiment that directly controlled the number of perennial prairie species, growing-season climate varied considerably, causing year-to-year variation in abundances of plant species and in ecosystem productivity. We found that greater numbers of plant species led to greater temporal stability of ecosystem annual aboveground plant production. In particular, the decadal temporal stability of the ecosystem, whether measured with intervals of two, five or ten years, was significantly greater at higher plant diversity and tended to increase as plots matured. Ecosystem stability was also positively dependent on root mass, which is a measure of perenniating biomass. Temporal stability of the ecosystem increased with diversity, despite a lower temporal stability of individual species, because of both portfolio (statistical averaging) and overyielding effects. However, we found no evidence of a covariance effect. Our results indicate that the reliable, efficient and sustainable supply of some foods (for example, livestock fodder), biofuels and ecosystem services can be enhanced by the use of biodiversity.
Decomposition of plant litter is a key process for the flow of energy and nutrients in ecosystems that may be sensitive to the loss of biodiversity. Two hypothetical mechanisms by which changes in plant diversity could affect litter decomposition are (1) through changes in litter species composition, and (2) by altering the decomposition microenvironment. We tested these ideas in relation to the short-term decomposition of herbaceous plant litter in experimental plant assemblages that differed in the numbers and types of plant species and functional groups that they contained to simulate loss of plant diversity. We used different litterbag experiments to separate the two potential pathways through which diversity could have an effect on decomposition. Our two litterbag trials showed that altering plant diversity affected litter breakdown differently through changes in decomposition microenvironment than through changes in litter composition. In the decomposition microenvironment experiment there was a significant but weak decline in decomposition rate in relation to decreasing plant diversity but no significant effect of plant composition. The litter composition experiment showed no effect of richness but significant effects of composition, including large differences between plant species and functional groups in litter chemistry and decomposition rate. However, for a nested subset of our litter mixtures decomposition was not accurately predicted from single-species bags; there were positive, non-additive effects of litter mixing which enhanced decomposition. We critically assess the strengths and limitations of our short-term litterbag trials in predicting the longer-term effects of changes in plant diversity on litter decomposition rates.
Nature provides a wide range of benefits to people. There is increasing consensus about the importance of incorporating these “ecosystem services” into resource management decisions, but quantifying the levels and values of these services has proven difficult. We use a spatially explicit modeling tool, Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST), to predict changes in ecosystem services, biodiversity conservation, and commodity production levels. We apply InVEST to stakeholder-defined scenarios of land-use/land-cover change in the Willamette Basin, Oregon. We found that scenarios that received high scores for a variety of ecosystem services also had high scores for biodiversity, suggesting there is little tradeoff between biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services. Scenarios involving more development had higher commodity production values, but lower levels of biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services. However, including payments for carbon sequestration alleviates this tradeoff. Quantifying ecosystem services in a spatially explicit manner, and analyzing tradeoffs between them, can help to make natural resource decisions more effective, efficient, and defensible.
The effect of biodiversity on natural communities has recently emerged as a topic of considerable ecological interest. We review studies that explicitly test whether the number of species in a community (species richness) regulates the temporal variability of aggregate community (total biomass, productivity, nutrient cycling) and population (density, biomass) properties. Theoretical studies predict that community variability should decline with increasing species richness, while population variability should increase. Many, but not all, empirical studies support these expectations. However, a closer look reveals that several empirical studies have either imperfect experimental designs or biased methods of calculating variability. Furthermore, most theoretical studies rely on highly unrealistic assumptions. We conclude that evidence to support the claim that biodiversity regulates temporal variability is accumulating, but not unequivocal. More research, in a broader array of ecosystem types and with careful attention to methodological considerations, is needed before we can make definitive statements regarding richness-variability relationships.
There is an important analytical distinction for conservationists between the flow of ecosystem services and the stock of natural capital that underpins or constitutes them. The relationship between these two is often complex and indeterminate. Ecosystem services result from the interplay of different biological and physical processes across a variety of scales. Flows of ecosystem services may be imperfectly related to stocks of natural capital. Conservation is concerned with the protection of certain stocks of natural capital, but also with maintaining the complex web of relationships that characterize biodiversity. Despite the obvious links between ecosystem services, natural capital, and biodiversity, these are not identical. Practitioners and policy makers should be cautious in their use of the proxy indicator of ecosystem services when developing mechanisms for biodiversity conservation. Conceptual clarity is essential in order to harness the potentially important role that ecosystem service based interventions can play in mainstreaming conservation issues.
The enormity and complexity of problems like environmental degradation and biodiversity loss have led to the development of
indicator species and other surrogate approaches to track changes in environments and/or in biodiversity. Under these approaches
particular species or groups of species are used as proxies for other biota, particular environmental conditions, or for environmental
change. The indicator species approach contrasts with a direct measurement approach in which the focus is on a single entity
or a highly targeted subset of entities in a given ecosystem but no surrogacy relationships with unmeasured entities are assumed.
Here, we present a broad philosophical discussion of the indicator species and direct measurement approaches because their
relative advantages and disadvantages are not well understood by many researchers, resource managers and policy makers. A
goal of the direct measurement approach is to demonstrate a causal relationship between key attributes of the target ecosystem
system (for example, particular environmental conditions) and the entities selected for measurement. The key steps in the
approach are based on the fundamental scientific principles of hypothesis testing and associated direct measurement that drive
research activities, management activities and monitoring programs. The direct measurement approach is based on four critical
assumptions:(1) the ‘right’ entities to measure have been selected, (2) these entities are well known, (3) there is sufficient
understanding about key ecological processes and (4) the entities selected can be accurately measured. The direct measurement
approach is reductionist and many elements of the biota, many biotic processes and environmental factors must be ignored because
of practical considerations. The steps in applying the indicator species approach are broadly similar to the direct measurement
approach, except surrogacy relationships also must be quantified between a supposed indicator species or indicator group and
the factors for which it is purported to be a proxy. Such quantification needs to occur via: (1) determining the taxonomic,
spatial and temporal bounds for which a surrogacy relationship does and does not hold. That is, the extent of transferability
of a given surrogate such as an indicator species to other biotic groups, to landscapes, ecosystems, environmental circumstances
or over time in the same location can be determined; and (2) determining the ecological mechanisms underpinning a surrogacy
relationship (for example, through fundamental studies of community structure). Very few studies have rigorously addressed
these two tasks, despite the extremely widespread use of the indicator species approach and similar kinds of surrogate schemes
in virtually all fields of environmental, resource and conservation management. We argue that this has the potential to create
significant problems; thus, the use of an indicator species approach needs to be better justified. Attempts to quantify surrogacy
relationships may reveal that, in some circumstances, the alternative of direct measurement of particular entities of environmental
or conservation interest will be the best option.
Keywordsenvironmental and biodiversity surrogates–the indicator species approach–direct ecological measurement–ecological transferability–environmental monitoring–biodiversity conservation
Most attempts to quantify the impact of humanity on nature and bring it to public attention have centred around estimates of extinction rates. Suggestions that these figures have been exaggerated are, in our view, misplaced, but extinction rate estimates do face other problems – inevitable uncertainty, an arguably weak link to economic value, and insensitivity to short-term change. We therefore look here at other large-scale measures of the changing state of nature, focusing on recent analyses of trends in population size, numbers of populations and habitat extent. In spite of being limited by sampling inadequacies, these data provide a sensitive short-term complement to the long-term perspective gained from considering extinction rates that can be linked directly both to economic values and to public concerns. Although further work is needed on extinction rates, we conclude that significant new emphasis should be placed on instituting broader, more systematic monitoring of habitats and populations.
The bold commitment made by the world's governments to reduce the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010 will soon be tested. On the basis of the continuing declines measured by most indicators, it now seems inevitable that the outcome will be that it has not been achieved. Here, in order to build on the momentum created by the 2010 target, we propose a shift away from a large set of static targets towards a smaller number of specific targets. Specifically, we present three categories of targets (red, green and blue) with examples of each. These relate respectively to (1) those biodiversity outcomes that must be avoided to avert situations that are deleterious for people, (2) the highly valued biodiversity conservation priorities, and (3) an improved scientific understanding necessary for adaptive management now and into the future.
The global biodiversity crisis has motivated new theory and experiments that explore relationships between biodiversity (species richness and composition in particular), productivity and stability. Here we emphasize that these relationships are often bi-directional, such that changes in biodiversity can be both a cause and a consequence of changes in productivity and stability. We hypothesize that this bi-directionality creates feedback loops, as well as indirect effects, that influence the complex responses of communities to biodiversity losses. Important, but often neglected, mediators of this complexity are trophic interactions. Recent work shows that consumers can modify, dampen or even reverse the directionality of biodiversity-productivity-stability linkages inferred from the plant level alone. Such consumer mediation is likely to be common in many ecosystems. We suggest that merging biodiversity research and food-web theory is an exciting and pressing frontier for ecology, with implications for biodiversity conservation.
This letter is in response to an article by Ken Wallace titled “Classifications of ecosystem services: problems and solutions” (Biological Conservation 139, 2007). This letter discusses the points we see as problematic with Wallace’s framework and sets out our conceptualization of linking ecosystem services with human welfare. In this letter we suggest that utilizing the terms intermediate services, final services and benefits should go a long way to clearing up much of the ambiguity in ecosystem services typologies, especially for economic valuation purposes. As Wallace points out, clearly defining and organizing the concept of ecosystem services is not just a semantic decision, but it is integral to operationalizing something that can clearly illuminate tradeoffs in natural resource management.
Experimental investigations of the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (BEF) directly manipulate diversity then monitor ecosystem response to the manipulation. While these studies have generally confirmed the importance of biodiversity to the functioning of ecosystems, their broader significance has been difficult to interpret. The main reasons for this difficulty concern the small scales of the experiment, a bias towards plants and grasslands, and most importantly a general lack of clarity in terms of what attributes of functional diversity (FD) were actually manipulated. We review how functional traits, functional groups, and the relationship between functional and taxonomic
diversity have been used in current BEF research. Several points emerged from our review.
First, it is critical to distinguish between response and effect functional traits when quantifying or manipulating FD. Second, although it is widely done, using trophic position as a functional group designator does not fit the effect-response trait division needed in BEF research. Third, determining a general relationship between taxonomic and FD is neither necessary nor desirable in BEF research. Fourth, fundamental principles in community and biogeographical ecology that have been largely ignored in BEF research could serve to dramatically improve the scope and predictive capabilities of BEF research. We suggest that distinguishing between functional response traits and functional effect traits both in combinatorial manipulations of biodiversity and in descriptive studies of BEF could markedly improve the power of such studies. We construct a possible framework for predictive, broad-scale BEF research that requires integrating functional, community, biogeographical, and ecosystem ecology with taxonomy.
The ecosystem has served as a central organizational concept in ecology for nearly a half century and continues to evolve. As a level in the biotic hierarchy, ecosystems are often viewed as ecological communities integrated with their abiotic environments. This has always been imperfect because of a mismatch of scales between communities and ecosystem processes as they are made operational for field study. Complexity theory has long been forecasted to provide a renewed foundation for ecosystem theory but has been slow to do so. Partly this has arisen from a difficulty in translating theoretical tenets into operational terms for testing in field studies. Ecosystem science has become an important applied science for studying global change and human environmental impacts. Vigorous and important directions in the study of ecosystems today include a growing focus on human‐dominated landscapes and development of the concept of ecosystem services for human resource supply and well‐being. Today, terrestrial ecosystems are viewed less as well‐defined entities or as a level in the biotic hierarchy. Instead, ecosystem processes are being increasingly viewed as the elements in a hierarchy. These occur alongside landscape processes and socioeconomic processes, which combine to form coupled social–ecological systems across a range of scales.
Contents
Summary
21
I.
An organizational concept
22
II.
An imperfect marriage
22
III.
A type of complex adaptive system?
25
IV.
A component of social–ecological systems
28
V.
Conclusions and future research
30
Acknowledgements
31
References
32
Species loss can result in secondary extinctions and changes in ecosystem functions at distant trophic levels. Such effects of species loss are predicted to be affected by both the number of species lost within a trophic level (horizontal diversity) and the number of trophic levels lost (vertical diversity). We experimentally manipulated horizontal and vertical diversity within an aquatic insect community, and examined responses throughout the food web. Horizontal and vertical diversity both impacted ciliates: reduction of detritivorous insect diversity resulted in secondary extinctions and decreased density of ciliates, but only when an insect predator was simultaneously absent. Horizontal and vertical diversity differed in their effect on other foodweb processes, including detrital processing, predator growth, and densities of rotifers, flagellates and flatworms. These results caution that foodweb effects of multitrophic species loss may not be reliably predicted from manipulations of just one dimension of diversity.
It has become essential in policy and decision-making circles to think about the economic benefits (in addition to moral and scientific motivations) humans derive from well-functioning ecosystems. The concept of ecosystem services has been developed to address this link between ecosystems and human welfare. Since policy decisions are often evaluated through cost-benefit assessments, an economic analysis can help make ecosystem service research operational. In this paper we provide some simple economic analyses to discuss key concepts involved in formalizing ecosystem service research. These include the distinction between services and benefits, understanding the importance of marginal ecosystem changes, formalizing the idea of a safe minimum standard for ecosystem service provision, and discussing how to capture the public benefits of ecosystem services. We discuss how the integration of economic concepts and ecosystem services can provide policy and decision makers with a fuller spectrum of information for making conservation-conversion trade-offs. We include the results from a survey of the literature and a questionnaire of researchers regarding how ecosystem service research can be integrated into the policy process. We feel this discussion of economic concepts will be a practical aid for ecosystem service research to become more immediately policy relevant.
The nations of the world have set themselves a target of reducing the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010. Here, we propose a biodiversity intactness index (BII) for assessing progress towards this target that is simple and practical-but sensitive to important factors that influence biodiversity status-and which satisfies the criteria for policy relevance set by the Convention on Biological Diversity. Application of the BII is demonstrated on a large region (4 × 106km2) of southern Africa. The BII score in the year 2000 is about 84%: in other words, averaged across all plant and vertebrate species in the region, populations have declined to 84% of their presumed pre-modern levels. The taxonomic group with the greatest loss is mammals, at 71% of pre-modern levels, and the ecosystem type with the greatest loss is grassland, with 74% of its former populations remaining. During the 1990s, a population decline of 0.8% is estimated to have occurred.
One of the most ambitious ecological studies of the past few decades was the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), which examined the consequences of ecosystem change for human well-being. The MA developed global ecological scenarios as a process to inform policy options, despite enormous uncertainties. These scenarios were based on an interlocking suite of models that forecast the future. Following the recent completion and publication of the MA, there is now movement towards making the value of ecosystem services an integral part of key policy decisions. Here, we review the MA approach and suggest areas where immediate progress can be made to increase the likelihood that decision-makers will embrace the vision of assessments such as the MA.