Habitat fragmentation
[3][failed verification]Studies have demonstrated the impacts of individual species at the landscape level[8] For example, From research the results show that the impact of deer herbivory on forest plant communities can be observed at the landscape level at the Rondeau Provincial park for the period of 1955-1978[8]and also, habitat fragmentation of tropical rainforests in Euramerica 300 million years ago led to a great loss of amphibian diversity, but simultaneously the drier climate spurred on a burst of diversity among reptiles.
[9] After intensive clearing, the separate fragments tend to be very small islands isolated from each other by cropland, pasture, pavement, or even barren land.
[12] Habitat fragmentation consistently reduces biodiversity by 13 to 75% and impairs key ecosystem functions by decreasing biomass and altering nutrient cycles.
[15] A review of empirical studies found that, of the 381 reported significant effect of habitat fragmentation per se on species occurrences, abundances or diversity in the scientific literature, 76% were positive whereas 24% were negative.
Exotic and pest species may establish themselves easily in such disturbed environments, and the proximity of domestic animals often upsets the natural ecology.
The loss and fragmentation of habitats makes it difficult for migratory species to find places to rest and feed along their migration routes.
Understanding the relationship between transient and long-term dynamics is a substantial challenge that ecologists must tackle, and fragmentation experiments will be central for relating observation to theory.
[15][26] The ongoing debate of what size fragments are most relevant for conservation is often referred to as SLOSS (Single Large or Several Small).
Due to the continuous expansion of urban landscapes, current research is looking at green roofs being possible vectors of habitat corridors.
More mobile species, like most birds, do not need connected habitat while some smaller animals, like rodents, may be more exposed to predation in open land.
In these cases, processes that act upon underlying genetic diversity, such as adaptation, have a smaller pool of fitness-maintaining alleles to survive in the face of environmental change.
[35] However, research suggests that some tree species may be resilient to the negative consequences of genetic drift until population size is as small as ten individuals or less.
[47] In addition, when animals happen to venture into unknown areas in between fragmented forests or landscapes, they can supposedly come into contact with humans which puts them at a great risk and further decreases their chances of survival.
[47] This affects the natural predator-prey relationships between animals in a given community [47] and forces them to alter their behaviours and interactions, therefore resetting the so-called "behavioral space race".
Human introduced structures such as roads and pipelines alter these areas by facilitating predator activity in these refuges, increasing predator-prey overlap.
Prey species may adapt to increased risk of predation with strategies such as altering mating tactics or changing behaviours and activities related to food and foraging.
[49] Since their predators can more easily access the caribous' refuge, the females of the species attempt to avoid the area, affecting their reproductive behaviours and offspring produced.
The Larks primarily reside in regions of Spain and are a small passerine bird which uses songs as a means of cultural transmission between members of the species.
[56] Furthermore, edge effects have been shown to result in significantly varied microenvironments compared to interior forest due to variations in light availability, presence of wind, changes in precipitation, and overall moisture content of leaf litter.
[57] These microenvironments are often not conducive to overall forest health as they enable generalist species to thrive at the expense of specialists that depend on specific environments.
[60] Habitat fragmentation has profound effects on ecosystem services, impacting nutrient retention, species richness, and local biophysical conditions.
Fragmentation-mediated processes cause generalizable responses at the population, community, and ecosystem levels, resulting in decreased nutrient retention.
Utility ROWs are of ecological interest because they have become pervasive in many forest communities, spanning areas as large as 5 million acres in the United States.
Some studies have shown that electricity transmission ROWs harbor more plant species than adjoining forest areas,[65] due to alterations in the microclimate in and around the corridor.
[67] Additionally, forest fragmentation affects the native plant species present within the area by dividing large populations into smaller ones.
For example, if a cleared area is reforested or allowed to regenerate, the increasing structural diversity of the vegetation will lessen the isolation of the forest fragments.
Habitat fragmentation is able to formulate persistent outcomes which can also become unexpected such as an abundance of some species and the pattern that long temporal scales are required to discern many strong system responses.
Mitchell et al. (2014), researched on six varying ecosystem factors such as crop production, decomposition, pesticide regulation, carbon storage, soil fertility, and water quality regulation in soybean fields through separate distances by nearby forest fragments which all varied in isolation and size across an agricultural landscape in Quebec, Canada.
[78] However, it must be duly noted that short term decisions regarding forest sector employment and harvest practices can have long-term effects on biodiversity.
[80] Although there have been many difficulties, the implementation of forest certification has been quite prominent in being able to raise effective awareness and disseminating knowledge on a holistic concept, embracing economic, environmental and social issues, worldwide.
