Climate change, connectivity and conservation decision making: back to basics

1. The challenge of climate change forces us to re-examine the assumptions underlying conservation planning. 2. Increasing 'connectivity' has emerged as the most favoured option for conservation in the face of climate change. 3. We argue that the importance of connectivity is being overemp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of applied ecology 2009-10, Vol.46 (5), p.964-969
Main Authors: Hodgson, Jenny A., Thomas, Chris D., Wintle, Brendan A., Moilanen, Atte
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adaptation
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
anthropogenic activities
Applied ecology
Biodiversity
Biodiversity conservation
Biological and medical sciences
Climate change
Climatology. Bioclimatology. Climate change
Connectivity
Conservation
conservation areas
Conservation biology
Conservation Decision Making
conservation prioritization
Decision making
Earth, ocean, space
Environmental conservation
Exact sciences and technology
External geophysics
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General aspects
Habitat conservation
habitat quality
Habitats
Landscape conservation
landscape planning
Meteorology
planning
spatial ecology
Species
species–area relationship
uncertainty
Wildlife conservation
wildlife habitats
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Summary:1. The challenge of climate change forces us to re-examine the assumptions underlying conservation planning. 2. Increasing 'connectivity' has emerged as the most favoured option for conservation in the face of climate change. 3. We argue that the importance of connectivity is being overemphasized: quantifying the benefits of connectivity per se is plagued with uncertainty, and connectivity can be co-incidentally improved by targeting more concrete metrics: habitat area and habitat quality. 4. Synthesis and applications. Before investing in connectivity projects, conservation practitioners should analyse the benefits expected to arise from increasing connectivity and compare them with alternative investments, to ensure as much biodiversity conservation and resilience to climate change as possible within their budget. Strategies that we expect to remain robust in the face of climate change include maintaining and increasing the area of high quality habitats, prioritizing areas that have high environmental heterogeneity and controlling other anthropogenic threatening processes.
ISSN:0021-8901
1365-2664
DOI:10.1111/j.1365-2664.2009.01695.x