Why is landscape ecology important

Landscapes are scale-dependent. Two species that occur within the same habitat, such as grasshoppers and bison Bison bison on the tallgrass prairies of North America, are likely to have very different perceptions of the landscape in terms of the distribution and availability of their preferred forage, given the different scales at which they each operate.

The idea that landscapes are scale-dependent acknowledges that patchiness i. Multiscale patch structure may reflect the different scales at which various processes or disturbances that shape the landscape operate.

From this viewpoint, any type of spatial distribution at any scale could constitute a landscape. We will discuss this perspective more fully in Chapters 2 and 3. Landscapes are dynamic. Disturbances across a wide range of scales, from those occurring over minutes within a few square centimeters to those operating over tens of millennia across thousands of square kilometers, have all contributed to the landscapes we see around us today.

Understanding how anthropogenic landscape change compares to the natural disturbance regime, and whether it fits within the range of historical variation for a particular landscape, is important for evaluating the potential impacts of human activities on the structure and function of landscapes.

We will discuss this topic more fully in Chapter 3. Furthermore, the rate at which landscapes change may be just as important as—if not more important than—the resulting structural changes e. We will consider the effects of landscape dynamics on a variety of ecological responses throughout this book. Spatial context is important.

Given that landscapes are heterogeneous, we can expect that ecological dynamics will vary spatially. For example, if habitats vary in their suitability for a particular species, then population growth rates of that species will likewise vary among habitat types.

High-quality habitats should support viable populations, whereas low-quality habitats cannot Pulliam Our understanding of the population dynamics within patches thus requires information on habitat quality in other words, population dynamics are habitat-dependent.

However, habitat quality p. For example, reproductive success for forest-breeding songbirds might be higher for individuals that nest in the center of a habitat patch than at its margins where nest predation rates tend to be higher , or in a forest patch surrounded by second-growth forest than in one surrounded by agricultural fields where again, nest predation rates are expected to be higher , or in a landscape that is still predominantly forested than in one that has very little forest cover remaining where nest predation rates are uniformly greater; Donovan et al.

Thus, spatial context may well be important for understanding what goes on within individual patches or landscapes , and will definitely be important for understanding what goes on between patches. Ecological flows are important.

Because spatial context is important, we should anticipate that the nature of the patch boundary and the intervening matrix —the mosaic of land-cover or land-use types that occurs between habitat patches—can influence the magnitude of ecological flows among patches. Patch boundaries may be porous to the movement of certain organisms but impermeable to others, depending on how different organisms perceive and respond to the structure of the habitat edge , which occurs at the juxtaposition of different vegetation communities.

Agricultural or stormwater runoff from the surrounding landscape is a familiar source of non-point-source pollution in marine and freshwater systems. Asymmetrical flows across patch or system boundaries can have profound effects on the dynamics within, as well as between, patches or systems on the landscape.

This will be a recurring theme in many of the later chapters of this book, where we consider the effects of asymmetrical flows individual movement and dispersal, gene flow, and nutrient flows; Chapters 6 , 9 , and 11 on various ecological processes.

Connectivity is important. The notion that organisms, materials, or nutrients flow to varying degrees among patches or systems on the landscape implies that some areas of the landscape are connected, at least functionally, even if they are not obviously connected in a structural sense e. Connectivity can be considered an emergent property of landscapes; it emerges as a consequence of the interaction between ecological flows and the landscape pattern Taylor et al.

It could thus be argued that much of landscape ecology is ultimately concerned with the measurement and study of connectivity. Connectivity is important for understanding the propagation of disturbances across the landscape; the movement and redistribution of organisms, materials, and nutrients; the resulting structure and dynamics of populations; gene flow and population genetic structure; the spread of invasive species and diseases; community patterns and dynamics; and ecosystem structure and function Chapters 6— Thus, connectivity will be a pervasive theme throughout this book, and an entire chapter Chapter 5 is devoted to this important concept.

Landscapes are multifunctional. Humans are the principal driver of landscape change worldwide, as landscapes are increasingly being transformed and used for a variety of ecological, societal, and economic functions Ojima et al.

Landscapes are thus multifunctional in that they provide humanity with an array of goods and services. Therefore, landscape management requires a means of identifying and resolving the conflicts that inevitably arise in response to competing interests and valuation systems Mander et al. Recall that landscape ecology arose in response to the perceived need to manage resources more holistically and at a broader landscape scale.

Although we will consider the management implications of landscape ecology throughout this book, the final chapter Chapter 11 examines in greater detail how principles derived from landscape ecology can be used to meet the environmental and societal challenges that stem from human land use i.

The demands of time and your personal interests will necessarily dictate how you use this text. Because many diverse fields contribute to landscape ecology, readers of this book are also likely to be quite diverse. The first five chapters cover not only the discipline of landscape ecology introduced in this chapter , but also its major research themes, including issues of spatial p. These chapters provide many of the core concepts that will be emphasized repeatedly throughout the remainder of the book.

Chapter 5 , on landscape connectivity, could be considered a bridge chapter, given that it spans the domains encompassed by landscape pattern analysis in the chapter that precedes it and ecological responses to landscape pattern in the chapters that follow.

Chapters 6—11 consider the ecological consequences of spatial pattern for a wide range of processes and phenomena involving individual movement and dispersal Chapter 6 , population distributions and dynamics Chapter 7 , population spatial spread Chapter 8 , gene flow and population genetic structure Chapter 9 , community structure and dynamics Chapter 10 , and ecosystem structure and function Chapter Although readers should feel free to focus on chapters that are of particular interest, the chapters have been developed and arranged in a hierarchical fashion, such that material in later chapters builds on concepts and approaches presented in earlier chapters.

Each chapter provides a mix of basic concepts, examples, and case studies along with more advanced topics related to the theoretical foundation, quantitative methods, or modeling applications relevant to a particular area of research. The beginning student, practitioner, or casual reader wishing for an overview of the basic concepts should focus on the introductory sections of the chapter and the chapter summary points at its end. More advanced students and research scientists are likely to benefit most from the more in-depth coverage of methodologies, analyses, and modeling considerations featured in most chapters.

However, this book is not an instruction manual. Although issues involved in the collection, analysis, and modeling of spatial data are discussed, the primary objective is to give you the necessary information with which to evaluate these concerns from the standpoint of your own interests, research, or management needs.

The intent is to provide an overview of available tools and methods, along with some general guidance as to their use, and then direct interested readers to additional resources where they can obtain more detailed information on the topic. Finally, as a pedagogical tool, this book has been organized around the way in which these topics are presented in my own course on landscape ecology.

It is hoped that the discussion questions at the end of each chapter will challenge the reader to think more deeply or broadly about the topics presented within the chapter. These questions can also help facilitate discussion within a classroom or seminar setting. Some of these questions can be used for class assignments or as essay questions on examinations, and thus might prove especially useful in that regard for instructors—and students—of landscape ecology.

Landscape ecology studies the reciprocal effects of spatial pattern heterogeneity and ecological processes. It emphasizes the structure, function, and change in landscapes over time. The ways in which human land-use activities modify landscape structure and function are a major research focus in landscape ecology, which provides a scientific basis for understanding and managing landscapes as well as the goods and services they provide. Landscape ecology is a relatively new scientific discipline, having become established some 35 years ago in Europe before spreading to North America, Australia, and elsewhere.

Do you see hills? Do you see flat land? Do you see water? Do you see ridges? But these structures now have a significant impact on how things grow or not in your environment.

Which areas are more likely to be dry? Which areas are more dark or sheltered from extreme weather? Why is the fog gathering there instead of the first valley? Without even looking at the specific plants or animal species, we can already start to make some big picture predictions about how survival resources are collecting in this environment. Convex land structures funnel water into valleys. With a bit of practice, these are very basic types of landscape structures you can use to track the flow of wind, water, even fog through the land.

This is often a relief to beginners who might feel overwhelmed by the need to learn names for all your local species. Forest ecologies can also be a mixture of different types of forests. Wetlands frequently play an essential role in the overall health of an ecosystem by cleaning the water. We all know that plants and trees are important.

Landscape architecture helps to protect and care for them. To allow plants grow properly they need good quality soil, the right amount of water, the correct level of sun exposure and protection from pests. Landscape architecture takes all these things into account when trying to find the right plants composition for each site.

There are even online tools available which landscape architects use to find the right plants for each location [5]. Landscape architects often promote ideas like orchards in urban areas, for they not only look good, produce oxygen and promote social well-being but also provide nutritious fruits.

Cultivating orchards in cities is a good educational tool for children to learn how to grow and harvest their own food as well as socialize [6]. Sitting under a tree can be pleasant but it also has an important practical effect — trees provide a cooling effect.

They provide shade from the sun and a quiet peaceful place to go in a noisy urban environment. Landscape architecture provides outdoor recreation areas. This increases the quality of the physical well-being of the local population giving them more choices for recreation and the chance to get social connections with other people using the space.

Terrestrial Ecology. Terrestrial ecology is a branch of ecology that deals with the study of land organisms and how they interact with each other and adapt to their environment. Aquatic Ecology. Microbial Ecology. Systems Ecology. Taxonomic Ecology.

Evolutionary Ecology. Population Ecology. Behavioral Ecology. What are the four types of ecology? The different types of ecology include- molecular ecology , organismal ecology , population ecology , community ecology , global ecology , landscape ecology and ecosystem ecology. What is the concept of ecology? Ecology is the branch of science that deals with the study of interactions between living organisms and their physical environment.

Both are closely interrelated and they have continuous interaction so that any change in the environment has an effect on the living organisms and vice-versa. What are the instrument used in measuring ecological factors? Several tools aid ecologists in measuring abiotic factors, including thermometers, altimeters, pH meters and many other devices.

Measuring Temperature. Determining Light Intensity.