Conservation Biology: Habitat Fragmentation and Restoration

Maintaining Habitat for Conserving Species

Habitat Fragmentation

• Definition: The process of breaking apart a large habitat into smaller, isolated patches
• Causes: Human activities such as deforestation, urbanization, and infrastructure development
• Effects:
  • Reduced population sizes and increased isolation
  • Decreased genetic diversity and increased inbreeding
  • Increased vulnerability to extinction
  • Disrupted species interactions and ecosystem processes

Corridors And Connectivity

• Definition: Corridors are habitat connections between fragmented patches, allowing species to move and interact
• Importance:
  • Maintains genetic diversity and population viability
  • Enables species to adapt to changing environmental conditions
  • Facilitates species migration and range shifts
  • Supports ecosystem resilience and function
• Types of corridors:
  • Wildlife corridors: designed for species movement and habitat connectivity
  • Ecological corridors: focus on maintaining ecosystem processes and services

Ecological Restoration

• Definition: The process of rehabilitating degraded or damaged habitats to their natural state
• Goals:
  • Re-establish ecosystem processes and functions
  • Recover native species and communities
  • Enhance biodiversity and ecosystem resilience
  • Support ecosystem services and human well-being
• Approaches:
  • Passive restoration: allowing natural processes to recover habitats
  • Active restoration: human intervention to restore habitats (e.g., replanting, habitat reconstruction)

Wildlife Corridors

• Definition: Specifically designed corridors to connect isolated habitats and facilitate species movement
• Importance:
  • Maintains population connectivity and genetic diversity
  • Supports species migration and range shifts
  • Enhances ecosystem resilience and function
  • Reduces human-wildlife conflict
• Design considerations:
  • Species-specific requirements and habitat needs
  • Landscape features and barriers to movement
  • Human land-use and infrastructure planning

Invasive Species Management

• Definition: The control and eradication of non-native species that harm native ecosystems and species
• Importance:
  • Prevents biodiversity loss and ecosystem disruption
  • Reduces economic and environmental impacts
  • Supports ecosystem resilience and function
• Management strategies:
  • Prevention: preventing invasive species introductions
  • Early detection and rapid response: quickly identifying and controlling invasive species
  • Control and eradication: managing invasive species populations and habitats
  • Restoration: rehabilitating degraded habitats and ecosystems