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Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems

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A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X). This special issue belongs to the section "Landscape Ecology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2021) | Viewed by 45931

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Patrick J. Comer

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Guest Editor

NatureServe, Science Division, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
Interests: biodiversity conservation; terrestrial ecosystem mapping; status and trend assessment of ecosystem condition; climate change vulnerability and adaptation; systematic conservation planning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Reed F. Noss

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Florida Institute for Conservation Science, 112 Half Moon Trail, Melrose, FL 32666, USA
Interests: natural history; biogeography; disturbance ecology; conservation planning

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Terrestrial ecosystems are under unprecedented stress from human land uses and climate change. It is increasingly urgent to document and track status and trends in terrestrial ecosystems (i.e., uplands and wetlands, typically with rooted vegetation) in ways that parallel methods for documenting relative “endangerment” status for plant and animal species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Ecosystems is one emerging global standard for ecosystem risk assessment. NatureServe Conservation Status assessment is a similar approach. Both approaches integrate rangewide data and knowledge to document the relative risk status of ecosystem types. In order to determine at-risk status, a given ecosystem type must be classified, described, and mapped. A series of measures are then applied addressing trends in ecosystem extent, the relative restricted nature of its distribution, and the relative severity of environmental degradation and disruption of biotic processes. For IUCN, all measures aim to gauge the risk of range-wide ecosystem “collapse.” Ecosystems may be assigned to the categories Collapsed (CO), Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN), Vulnerable (VU), Near Threatened (NT), Least Concern (LC), Data Deficient (DD), or Not Evaluated (NE). Comparable categories exist with the NatureServe approach.

We are calling for papers that illustrate examples of these and related assessment approaches, as applied to terrestrial ecosystems. Papers could investigate methodological issues associated with these and related assessment approaches. These issues could include, but are not limited to, how ecosystem types are defined and mapped, methods and data requirements for component measures, and/or provide synthetic treatments of terrestrial ecosystems at regional, continental, or global scales.

Mr. Patrick J. Comer
Prof. Dr. Reed F. Noss
Guest Editors

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Keywords

Terrestrial (upland and wetland) ecosystems
Conservation status assessment
Risk of ecosystem collapse
IUCN Red List of Ecosystems
NatureServe Conservation Status
Ecosystem typology
Ecosystem distribution
Ecosystem degradation
Disruption of biotic processes
Range restriction
Predictive models of ecosystem risk

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 5660 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Addressing Climate Change Vulnerability in the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems—Results Demonstrated for a Cross-Section of Major Vegetation-Based Ecosystem Types in the United States

by Patrick J. Comer, Jon C. Hak and Patrick McIntyre

Land 2022, 11(2), 302; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11020302 - 16 Feb 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3937

Abstract

The IUCN Red List of Ecosystems (RLE) is a global standard for ecosystem risk assessment that integrates data and knowledge to document the relative risk status of ecosystem types as critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), and vulnerable (VU). A series of indicators for each type gauge the probability of range wide “collapse”. Climate change vulnerability can factor into RLE assessments, especially as indicators of climate change severity under the criteria for environmental degradation over the recent and upcoming 50 years. We applied a new framework to assess climate change vulnerability—and thus, severity of climate change degradation—to a cross-section of 33 upland ecosystem types in the United States to demonstrate this input to the RLE. The framework addressed climate exposure and ecosystem resilience. Measures of climate change exposure used climate projections for the mid-21st century compared against a 20th century baseline. Augmenting measures in use for RLE assessment, measures of resilience included several for adaptive capacity, including topoclimate variability, diversity with functional species groups, and vulnerability of any keystone species. All 33 types were listed as VU (n = 22), EN (n = 9), or CR (n = 2) and 51% scored at least one step higher (e.g., LC up to VU) from climate change severity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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16 pages, 3470 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Forest Ecosystem Fragmentation in Ecuador: Challenges for Sustainable Land Use in the Tropical Andean

by Jin Kyoung Noh, Cristian Echeverria, Gabriel Gaona, Janina Kleemann, Hongmi Koo, Christine Fürst and Pablo Cuenca

Land 2022, 11(2), 287; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11020287 - 13 Feb 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3239

Abstract

Natural ecosystems are declining and fragmenting globally at unprecedented rates. Fragmentation of natural ecosystems leads to decline in functions and services with severe impact on people. In Ecuador, despite establishment of the nationwide ecosystem classification, this baseline information has not been fully exploited to generate a monitoring system for ecosystem changes. Forest ecosystems are altered daily in Ecuador by human impact, but the relationship between forest fragmentation and human land use has not been adequately explored. To provide an overview of how recent forest fragmentation at the national and ecosystem level was affected by practices in human land use, we quantified the degree of forest fragmentation using the forest fragmentation index (FFI). The relationship between the degree of forest ecosystem fragmentation and human land use of 64 natural forest ecosystems was analyzed during the time period 1990 to 2014. At the national level, the expansion of pasture and inhabited area significantly increased forest fragmentation. The regression models based on the FFI value indicated that the forest fragmentation was highly correlated to pastures in forest ecosystems with low, moderate, and high fragmentation in 2014 due to a progressive increase in pastures. This study showed the critical gaps between forest conservation strategies and actual practices in human land use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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14 pages, 2382 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessing Ecosystem Condition: Use and Customization of the Vegetation Departure Metric

by Randy Swaty, Kori Blankenship, Kimberly R. Hall, Jim Smith, Megan Dettenmaier and Sarah Hagen

Land 2022, 11(1), 28; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11010028 - 24 Dec 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4020

Abstract

Assessment of ecosystem change often focuses on the degree of conversion and representation in networks of protected areas. While essential, these factors alone do not provide a holistic index of ecosystem conditions. Metrics that compare the current state of ecosystems to a meaningful reference condition can help identify “hidden” risks, lost functions, and provide conservation and management-relevant insights. Here we review a departure metric that can be used to measure ecosystem conditions and its implementation for all lands in the United States by the LANDFIRE Program. We then use two case studies to demonstrate how manually calculating the departure metric is used to explore under- and over-representation of structural stages. Finally, we document the assumptions, interpretation, and limitations of the departure metric, and discuss its current and possible future applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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20 pages, 5280 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Including Condition into Ecological Maps Changes Everything—A Study of Ecological Condition in the Conterminous United States

by Kevin B. Knight, Patrick J. Comer, Brian R. Pickard, Doria R. Gordon and Theodore Toombs

Land 2021, 10(11), 1145; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10111145 - 27 Oct 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3629

Abstract

In 2021, the Biden administration signed an executive order to protect 30% of American lands by 2030. Accomplishing this ambitious goal in the U.S. requires understanding the relative contribution of public and private lands toward supporting biodiversity. New approaches are needed because existing approaches focus on quantity of habitat without incorporating quality. To fill this need, we developed a 30 m resolution national habitat condition index (HCI) that integrates quality and quantity measures of habitat. We hypothesized that including an evaluation of the quality of habitat at landscape scales, both in conservation-focused preserves and working lands would provide a better assessment of the value of geographies for conservation. We divided the conterminous U.S. by major land cover type and into natural and cultivated lands and then spatially mapped multiple anthropogenic stressors, proximity to aquatic habitat, and vegetation departure from expected natural disturbance regimes. Each map layer was then scored for site impact and distance decay and combined into a final national index. Field observations providing scored relative ecological conditions were used for HCI calibration and validation at both CONUS and regional scales. Finally, we evaluate lands by management (conservation versus working lands) and ownership (public versus private) testing the value of these lands for conservation. While we found regional differences across CONUS, functional habitat was largely independent of protection status: working lands provide clear habitat and other values. These results are relevant for guiding strategies to achieve the U.S. 30 by 30 goals. Where similar data exist in other countries, analogous modeling could be used to meet their national conservation commitments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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15 pages, 3846 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synthesizing Data to Classify and Risk Assess Vegetation Types for Regulations in Inland New South Wales Australia

by John Benson

Land 2021, 10(10), 1050; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10101050 - 07 Oct 2021

Viewed by 1729

Abstract

From 1998, land-use regulations in New South Wales Australia referred to risk status of plant community types and abiotic landscapes. Lacking was a uniform vegetation classification for 77% of NSW comprising the inland arid, semi-arid and cropping agricultural zones: regions that contain patchy floristic plot data. In response, 562 plant communities, mainly at levels 8 in the IVC, were classified by synthesizing plot-based analyses, qualitative descriptions, maps, extensive field checks, new field samples and peer review. Qualitative information was vital to complete a thorough classification. Each type was assigned a risk category based on six risk assessment criteria developed prior to IUCN RLE. Occurrences in protected areas were audited and related to original extent yielding a protected area/adequacy code. Results were used in land change assessment tools and contributed to the listing of 40 threatened ecological communities under biodiversity laws. Two mapping methods attained different levels of reliability. Applying risk criteria to coarse versus fine levels in typologies can produce different results. Mid-to fine level global hierarchies best suit ecosystem risk assessment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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14 pages, 14681 KiB

Open AccessArticle

South Africa’s Red List of Terrestrial Ecosystems (RLEs)

by Andrew Luke Skowno and Maphale Stella Monyeki

Land 2021, 10(10), 1048; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10101048 - 06 Oct 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5158

Abstract

Ecosystem level indicators are emerging as important pillars of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework of the Convention on Biological Diversity; at the same time, the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems (RLEs) is experiencing rapid global uptake. We applied a systematic RLE assessment to 456 terrestrial ecosystems in South Africa between 2017 and 2021. What sets South Africa apart in this endeavour is that an independently formulated ecosystem threat status indicator was developed between 2004 and 2008 and the list of threatened ecosystems (effectively a proto RLE) was integrated into the national environmental regulatory framework in 2011. Through this, Critically Endangered and Endangered types were afforded a form of statutory protection through increased regulation of land-use change activities. We describe the transition to the IUCN RLE framework and focus on both the technical steps of incorporating the best available data into a credible assessment, and the unique social and legal processes to ensure that the biodiversity conservation sector in South Africa understood and supported the proposed replacement of the existing list of threatened ecosystems (2011) with the RLE (2021). We discuss the policy development steps required in South Africa, and the pros and cons of maintaining a legislative link for RLE implementation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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16 pages, 4218 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Red-Listed Ecosystem Status of Interior Wetbelt and Inland Temperate Rainforest of British Columbia, Canada

by Dominick A. DellaSala, James R. Strittholt, Rebecca Degagne, Brendan Mackey, Jeffery R. Werner, Michelle Connolly, Darwyn Coxson, Andrew Couturier and Heather Keith

Land 2021, 10(8), 775; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10080775 - 23 Jul 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 8808

Abstract

The Interior Wetbelt (IWB) of British Columbia, which includes the globally rare Inland Temperate Rainforest (ITR), contains primary forests poorly attributed and neglected in conservation planning. We evaluated the IWB and ITR using four IUCN Red List of Ecosystems Criteria: geographic distribution, environmental degradation (abiotic and biotic factors), and likelihood of ecosystem collapse. Clearcut logging (3.2M ha) represented 57% of all anthropogenic disturbances, reducing potential primary forest by 2.7 million ha (28%) for the IWB and 524,003 ha (39%) for the ITR. Decadal logging rates nearly doubled from 5.3% to 10.2% from 1970s–2000s. Core areas (buffered by 100-m from roads and developments) declined by 70% to 95% for the IWB and ITR, respectively. Vulnerable was assigned to karst, the only abiotic factor assessed, because it was associated with rare plants. For biotic factors, Old-Growth Birds were Vulnerable, Southern Woodland Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) habitat and Sensitive Fish were Endangered, and Old-Growth Lichens habitat was Critical. Overall, the IWB was ranked as Endangered and the ITR as Critical with core area collapse possible within 9 to 18 years for the ITR, considered one of the world’s most imperiled temperate rainforests. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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18 pages, 1788 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Regional Land Eco-Security Evaluation for the Mining City of Daye in China Using the GIS-Based Grey TOPSIS Method

by Xinchang Zhang, Min Chen, Kai Guo, Yang Liu, Yi Liu, Weinan Cai, Hua Wu, Zeyi Chen, Yiyun Chen and Jianguo Zhang

Land 2021, 10(2), 118; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10020118 - 26 Jan 2021

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 2913

Abstract

Regional ecological security assessment is a significant methodology for environmental protection, land utilisation, and human development. This study aims to reveal the regional constraints of ecological resources to overcome the difficulties and complexities in quantification of current models used in land ecosystems. For this purpose, the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) was linked to a grey relational analysis and integrated with a geographic information system. The obtained method was used to construct a land eco-security evaluation on a regional scale for application in a traditional mining city, Daye, in central China. Parameter analysis was introduced to the method to produce a more realistic spatial distribution of eco-security. Subsequently, based on the pressure–state–response framework, the eco-security index was calculated, and the carrying capacity of land resources and population for each sub-region were analysed. The results showed that: (i) very insecure and insecure classes comprised 5.65% and 18.2% of the total area, respectively, highlighting the vulnerable eco-environmental situation; (ii) moderate secure classes areas comprised a large amount of arable land, spanning an area of 494.5 km²; (iii) secure areas were distributed in the northwest, containing mostly water and wetland areas and accounting for 426.3 km²; and (iv) very secure areas were located on the southeastern region, involving traditional woodland with a better vegetation cover and an overall higher eco-environmental quality. In addition, for each sub-region, the extremely low and low ecological security areas were mainly arable and urban lands, which amounted to 305 and 190 km², respectively. Under the current ecological constraints, sub-region 1 cannot continue supporting the population size in Daye City. The present results demonstrate the accuracy of our methodology, and our method may be used by local managers to make effective decisions for regional environment protection and sustainable use of land resources. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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18 pages, 5054 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Monitoring Invasive Plant Species Using Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Data

by Levente Papp, Boudewijn van Leeuwen, Péter Szilassi, Zalán Tobak, József Szatmári, Mátyás Árvai, János Mészáros and László Pásztor

Land 2021, 10(1), 29; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10010029 - 01 Jan 2021

Cited by 43 | Viewed by 6200

Abstract

The species richness and biodiversity of vegetation in Hungary are increasingly threatened by invasive plant species brought in from other continents and foreign ecosystems. These invasive plant species have spread aggressively in the natural and semi-natural habitats of Europe. Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) is one of the species that pose the greatest ecological menace. Therefore, the primary purpose of the present study is to map and monitor the spread of common milkweed, the most common invasive plant species in Europe. Furthermore, the possibilities to detect and validate this special invasive plant by analyzing hyperspectral remote sensing data were investigated. In combination with field reference data, high-resolution hyperspectral aerial images acquired by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform in 138 spectral bands in areas infected by common milkweed were examined. Then, support vector machine (SVM) and artificial neural network (ANN) classification algorithms were applied to the highly accurate field reference data. As a result, common milkweed individuals were distinguished in hyperspectral images, achieving an overall accuracy of 92.95% in the case of supervised SVM classification. Using the ANN model, an overall accuracy of 99.61% was achieved. To evaluate the proposed approach, two experimental tests were conducted, and in both cases, we managed to distinguish the individual specimens within the large variety of spreading invasive species in a study area of 2 ha, based on centimeter spatial resolution hyperspectral UAV imagery. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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Review

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15 pages, 286 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

Strengthening the Scientific Basis of Ecosystem Collapse Risk Assessments

by Adrian C. Newton

Land 2021, 10(11), 1252; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10111252 - 16 Nov 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2236

Abstract

Progress is being made in assessing the conservation status of ecosystems, notably through initiatives such as the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems (RLE) and the NatureServe Conservation Status Assessment (NCS). Both of these approaches consider conservation status in terms of the risk of ecosystem collapse. However, the scientific understanding of ecosystem collapse is still at a relatively early stage. Consequently, concerns have been raised regarding the scientific basis of ecosystem conservation assessments focusing on collapse risk. Here I explore how these concerns might potentially be addressed by considering how the concept is defined, and by briefly reviewing the theoretical basis of ecosystem collapse. I then examine the implications of recent research results for the design of ecosystem collapse risk assessments, and the challenges identified in those assessments conducted to date. Recommendations are made regarding how collapse risk assessments might be strengthened based on current scientific understanding, and how this understanding could be improved by further research. In addition, I examine the potential implications for conservation policy and practice if the scientific basis of collapse risk assessments is not strengthened in this way. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

Other

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13 pages, 1983 KiB

Open AccessBrief Report

Prescribed Burning as A Management Tool to Destroy Dry Seeds of Invasive Conifers in Heathland in Denmark

by Christian Andreasen, Kasper Rossing and Christian Ritz

Land 2020, 9(11), 432; https://doi.org/10.3390/land9110432 - 04 Nov 2020

Viewed by 2070

Abstract

Non-indigenous conifers are considered invasive to the coastal dune heathland in Denmark, and massive clearing is carried out in an attempt to recreate and keep the original heathland. Burning is a common method for managing, but its feasibility to control the seed bank of conifers has not been investigated. This project shows that the burning of logged conifer trees will often eliminate seeds of lodgepole pine, mugo pine and Sitka spruce, even when the seeds were placed into a depth of five centimeters in the soil. The effect on seeds depends on the fuel load and the fire conditions (e.g., dryness, wind, and temperature). If the seeds were exposed to a high temperature, the seeds were not able to germinate afterward. The temperature was about 80 °C for all species. If the sum of temperatures based on temperature records every 30 s exceeded between 12,000 and 14,000 °C no seeds were able to germinate. The relationship between the mean temperature of the burns and the germination rate at seeds placed in various soil depths was modelled. Findings should be interpreted cautiously as each depth-species combinations were not replicated in space or time due to practical constraints. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Identifying Endangered Terrestrial Ecosystems)

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