Active Management of Protected Areas Enhances Metapopulation Expansion Under Climate Change

Conservation Letters

Callum R. Lawson³  Jonathan J. Bennie²  Chris D. Thomas⁴  Jenny A. Hodgson¹ 

[1] Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Biosciences Building, Crown Street, University of Liverpool, UK;Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK;Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK;Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, UK

关键词: Agri‐environment scheme;    colonization;    connectivity;    dispersal;    global warming;    habitat fragmentation;    metapopulation dynamics;   

DOI  :  10.1111/conl.12036

来源: Wiley

【 摘 要 】

Abstract

There is a need to adapt biodiversity conservation to climate change, but few empirical studies are available to guide decision-making. Existing networks of protected areas (PAs) have been preferentially colonized during species’ range expansions, but this could be due to their original habitat quality and/or to ongoing management activity. Here, we examine how PA status and active conservation management have influenced the range expansion of a butterfly Hesperia comma through fragmented landscapes. PAs under active conservation management were over three times more likely to be colonized than unprotected, unmanaged sites of the same basic vegetation type. Conservation action also increased the survival rate of existing populations inside and outside of PAs. We conclude that PAs facilitate range expansions by preventing habitat degradation and encouraging active conservation that improves habitat quality, and that conservation interventions on nondesignated sites also have a role to play in adapting conservation to climate change.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2013 The Authors. Conservation Letters published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.