Principles of Landscape Ecology ENVS*3320

Instructors:

Dr. Shelley Hunt (Module 1)

Rm. 2226, Bovey Buildingshunt@uoguelph.cax53065

Dr. Rob Corry (Module 2)

MODULE 1

UNDERSTANDING THE BIOPHYSICAL LANDSCAPE: BASIC PRINCIPLES AND ECOLOGICAL BASES OF LANDSCAPE

ECOLOGY

1. History and basic principles

2. Land(scape) Classification

3. Spatial and temporal dimensions of landscapes

4. Ecological theory and the study of landscapes

5. Pattern and process in landscapes

6. Conserving forest biodiversity: landscape considerations

A current landscape-scale issue in forest ecology:

-the new forest management paradigm of designingforest harvesting practices to emulate natural disturbances such as forest fire…

Forest Management Guide for Natural Disturbance Pattern Emulation

Landscape patterns: clearcutting…

…vs. forest fire

46 m of road per ha harvested15 m of road per ha harvested

What is a landscape?

-Huffaker’s experiments with oranges and mites in 1950s

-Demonstrated that spatial heterogeneity was neededto sustain populations of mites and their predators

-in a ‘patch’ of only oranges, the predators ‘won’

-when spatial variability was introduced (rubber balls,barriers, oranges partially covered in paper), both prey and predator populations were sustained

What is a landscape?

“a kilometres-wide area where a cluster of interacting stands or ecosystems is repeated in similar form”

- R. Forman, 1981

Later simplified to…

“a kilometres-wide mosaic over which local ecosystems recur”- R. Forman, 1995

What is a landscape?

“a landscape is an area that is spatially heterogeneous in at least one factor of interest”

- M. Turner et al., 2001

There are many definitions – common to most is the idea that…

“a landscape is a mosaic of different elements (patches) and that the variety of the elements creates heterogeneity within an area”

- J. Wiens 2002

(patches can be types of habitat, vegetation types, land uses…)

Landscape = mosaic of patches or ecosystems(e.g. conifer forest, mixed forest, wetland, lake)

Region = mosaic of landscapes (agricultural, suburban, natural, etc.)

Landscape components

compositional

vegetation typeshabitatsland-use types

(the kinds of patches making up the landscape)

structural

heterogeneitypatch sizesconnectivity

(physical configuration of patches)

functional

boundary flowsdisturbance spread

(movement of organisms, materials, disturbances through the landscape)

Characterizing landscape structure

Patch measures:

SizeShapePerimeterPerimeter:area ratioCorridor width, length, etc.

Mosaic measures:

Patch numberPatch diversityConnectivityPatch dispersionetc.

What is landscape ecology?

“the study of spatial variation in landscapes at a variety of scales. It includes the biophysical and societal causes and consequences of landscape heterogeneity. Above all, it is broadly interdisciplinary”.

-IALE

“landscape ecology emphasizes the interaction between spatial pattern and ecological processes, that is, thecauses and consequences of spatial heterogeneity across a range of scales”

-M. Turner et al. 2001

What is landscape ecology?

What is landscape ecology?

“the goals of landscape ecology are to describe, understand the causes of, and interpret the ecological implications that arise from landscape pattern”

-J.P. Kimmins

Core themes (from IALE):

“-the spatial pattern or structure of landscapes, ranging from wilderness to cities,

-the relationship between pattern and process in landscapes,

-the relationship of human activity to landscape pattern, process and change,

-the effect of scale and disturbance on the landscape”

What is landscape ecology?

What is ecology?

Ecology oikos (house) + logos (the study of)

-developed as a branch of biological science

1. Growing realization that plants, animals and their environment were interrelated

- much of the early knowledge was developed from practical needs, such as in agriculture

2. Recognition that humans, like any other organism, are not immune from resource limitation (Malthus)

influenced

Darwin…

So…From: natural history (collection, description, classification)

The study of the interactions that determine the distribution and abundance of organisms (Krebs)

To: ecology

The study of the structure and function of nature (Odum)

What is ecology?

…led to more interest in understanding the mechanisms behind observed patterns/phenomena in nature

Ecology:

-a relatively new science

-still developing as an experimental science (vs. purely descriptive)

-different branches include autecology, population ecology, community ecology, ecosystem ecology, landscape ecology

What is ecology?

-the study of the interrelationships between organisms and their biotic and abiotic environment

-concerned with levels of biological organization from the organism upwards

Landscape ecology differs from other branches of ecology by…

-”explicitly addressing the importance of spatial configuration

And…

-often focusing on spatial extents much larger than those traditionally studied in ecology”

-M. Turner et al. 2001

History and development of landscape ecology

European school

(human and cultural dimensions)

North American school

(biophysical dimension)

Unified discipline of landscape ecology?