Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Martin Palt, Daniel Hering, Jochem Kail
Summary: Woody riparian vegetation (WRV) provides significant benefits to benthic macroinvertebrates in both rural agricultural and urban landscapes, improving ecological status. However, the effects of WRV are context-specific, being more pronounced in rural agricultural catchments and in urban areas with moderate agricultural land use. WRV's beneficial effects are limited in purely urban catchments and in a multiple stressor context.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Jose M. Martinez-Paz, Jose A. Albaladejo-Garcia, Jesus Barreiro-Hurle, Federico Martinez-Carrasco Pleite, Angel Perni
Summary: This study aims to analyze and determine the economic value and acceptability of the restoration project, considering spatial effects. It is found that the distance to project and substitute areas explains WTP and PB, recommending interventions to be targeted at areas with high accessibility and low number of substitutes for maximizing benefits.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Joseph Williamson, Eleanor M. Slade, Sarah H. Luke, Tom Swinfield, Arthur Y. C. Chung, David A. Coomes, Herry Heroin, Tommaso Jucker, Owen T. Lewis, Charles S. Vairappan, Stephen J. Rossiter, Matthew J. Struebig
Summary: Research shows that riparian buffers in tropical agricultural landscapes can serve as microclimate refuges, offering cooler and more humid conditions compared to surrounding oil palm plantations. Wider buffers and high vegetation quality are strongly associated with cooler and more humid microclimates, which are essential for biodiversity conservation.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Pasquale Napoletano, Noureddine Guezgouz, Erika Di Iorio, Claudio Colombo, Giulia Guerriero, Anna De Marco
Summary: The aim of this research was to investigate the impact of urbanization and agriculture on soil quality by studying heavy metal accumulation in the riparian ecosystems of Medjerda river. The study found higher concentrations of heavy metals in urban and peri-urban areas compared to non-urban areas. The results also showed a strong impact of heavy metals on soil quality in urban areas.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Hamidreza Shahradnia, Atefeh Chamani, Mehrdad Zamanpoore
Summary: The study utilized an integrated modeling approach to investigate the linkages between landscape-related features and high arsenic levels in river sediments in central Iran. Results showed that sediment arsenic levels were influenced by the density of agricultural activities near the river outlet and the proportion of silty loam or loamy soils, providing important insights for policy decisions regarding river contamination processes in central Iran.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Michael D. Pashkevich, Sarah H. Luke, Anak Agung Ketut Aryawan, Helen S. Waters, Jean-Pierre Caliman, Nadine Duperre, Mohammad Naim, Anton M. Potapov, Edgar C. Turner
Summary: Expansion of oil palm plantations has led to significant declines in biodiversity and changes in ecosystem functioning. While forested buffers have been shown to benefit oil palm systems, the impacts of mature palm buffers remain uncertain. This study found that mature palm buffers being passively restored can have greater environmental complexity and higher levels of arthropod biodiversity than non-buffer areas, particularly compared to recently replanted oil palm. However, these benefits are not consistent throughout the commercial life cycle of the crop. Active restoration or alternative measures may be required to consistently increase habitat heterogeneity and improve biodiversity in oil palm plantations.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Yi Chen, Haisheng Cai, Yinrong Chen
Summary: The rapid development of new urbanization has put great pressure on the ecological environment. Understanding the interaction mechanism between ecological environment and new urbanization is crucial for sustainable development. This study focused on the Nanchang metropolitan area in China and used comprehensive assessment models to analyze the spatial and temporal heterogeneity, spatial correlation, and interaction strength between ecological quality and new urbanization level. The results showed improvements in ecological quality and urbanization level from 2005 to 2018. The study also identified synergistic and trade-off relationships between land use efficiency and ecological quality, as well as synergistic relationships between economic development and ecological quality. The findings provide insights for urbanization construction and the coordinated development of natural resources and urban construction.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Zhen Shen, Zhonghao Zhang, Lihan Cui, Zheyi Xia, Yusi Zhang
Summary: Landscape heterogeneity is closely related to the spatial differentiation characteristics of PM2.5 concentration in urbanized areas. This study explores the coordinated changes between landscape evolution and PM2.5 concentration in two Chinese cities and shows clear differences in PM2.5 concentrations and coordinated changes with the green landscape between the regions. The findings provide insights for urban planning strategies in mitigating air pollution based on differentiated measures.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Haruki Natsukawa, Hiroki Yuasa, Shizuko Komuro, Fabrizio Sergio
Summary: Preserving biodiversity in urban ecosystems has become an urgent conservation priority, with a focus on the preservation of woody plants due to their ecological roles and benefits to human city dwellers. The study suggests that sites occupied by apex predators can serve as reliable conservation proxies for high plant diversity.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Amin Rastandeh, Meghann Jarchow
Summary: Although the importance of biodiversity conservation in urban landscapes has been recognized in many forest, desert, and coastal biomes, not much research has been done on urbanization in grasslands and its impacts on biodiversity. In this study, we conducted a pilot spatio-temporal study to assess the effects of land-use and vegetation change on grasslands in the Upper Missouri River Basin under different climate-change scenarios. We found that grassland conversion in urban landscapes was higher compared to the whole region, but this trend was not directly related to urban expansion. Additionally, habitat proximity was negatively correlated with urban expansion. This study emphasizes the need to measure changes in habitat composition and configuration to better understand opportunities and limitations for biodiversity conservation in urban landscapes.
URBAN FORESTRY & URBAN GREENING
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Lais Caroline Marianno de Olivera, Gislaine Costa de Mendonca, Renata Cristina Araujo Costa, Regina Aparecida Leite de Camargo, Luis Filipe Sanches Fernandes, Fernando Antonio Leal Pacheco, Teresa Cristina Tarle Pissarra
Summary: The present study investigated the issue of urban expansion in a major city in Brazil, examining the relationship between urbanization over the past 35 years and the loss of agricultural land and its corresponding impacts on production and the economy. In addition, the study also identified significant environmental consequences resulting from urbanization, including water insecurity, destruction of protected vegetation, and the occupation of recharge areas for the Guarani Aquifer. The comprehensive analysis utilized satellite imagery and GIS data, revealing substantial losses of rural areas, economic damage, and negative effects on watercourses and protected areas.
Article
Environmental Studies
Lais Caroline Marianno de Olivera, Gislaine Costa de Mendonca, Renata Cristina Araujo Costa, Regina Aparecida Leite de Camargo, Luis Filipe Sanches Fernandes, Fernando Antonio Leal Pacheco, Teresa Cristina Tarle Pissarra
Summary: This study addresses the issue of urban expansion in a large metropolis in Brazil, exploring the relationship between urbanization over the past 35 years and the loss of agricultural areas and their respective production and economic consequences. The study also examines the environmental impact of urbanization, including water insecurity, destruction of legally protected vegetation, and occupation of recharge areas. The results highlight significant losses in rural areas, economic impacts, and the overlap between impermeable surfaces and recharge areas. The study suggests implementing urban agriculture and landscape planning measures to protect water resources and restore the landscape, which is a novel approach in Brazil.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Thanh Thi Nguyen, Ellen Hoffmann, Andreas Buerkert
Summary: Understanding and governing human settlement patterns is a major challenge of the urban age. This study analyzed the settlement system of the Indian Punjab using a fractal theory framework, combining approaches of land use science, city ranking, and urban planning. The study found self-similarity across scales and that a majority of settlements met fractal geometry rules. However, the spatial distribution of small villages deviated, indicating a scale-related shift in organizing principles.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Andreas Dietzel, Sean R. Connolly, Terry P. Hughes, Michael Bode
Summary: This study found that recent mass coral bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef have larger and more continuous spatial footprints than previous bleaching events, posing an unprecedented threat to coral species resilience. In contrast to the impacts of a severe tropical cyclone, the bleaching events isolated severely affected reefs from the nearest mildly affected reefs by greater distances, highlighting the significant threat to coral species posed by the spatial footprint of these recent bleaching events.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Rong Li, Yu Shi, Chen-Chieh Feng, Luo Guo
Summary: The study found that demand-driven factors have the most significant impact on the scarcity value of ecosystem services in Ningxia, which has increased significantly in the past few decades. The scarcity values of ecosystem services such as air quality, waste treatment, soil retention, biodiversity services, and recreation and culture have shown a significant increase, while the different types of ecosystem services exhibit spatial heterogeneity in their scarcity values.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Narendra Nelli, Diana Francis, Ricardo Fonseca, Olivier Masson, Mamadou Sow, Emmanuel Bosc
Summary: This study investigates the changes in the atmospheric electric field (Ez) during foggy conditions in the hyperarid region of the United Arab Emirates. The results show that as fog persists, Ez becomes more variable due to the absorption and redistribution of charges by the fog, which alters the ion balance and affects electrical conductivity in the atmosphere.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
Article
Ecology
Ezra Hadad, Amir Balaban, Jakub Z. Kosicki, Reuven Yosef
Summary: This study investigated whether the prey of striped hyenas has adapted to the change in the natural environment caused by human activities, particularly artificial light at night (ALAN). The results showed that ALAN had no impact on the diet or den distribution of the hyenas in central Israel. The study also found that domestic animals were the most common prey, and there were also some vegetative species in their diet. Overall, the feeding behavior of striped hyenas is influenced by geographical region, habitat, and human activities.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
Article
Ecology
Rahim Najafi Tireh Shabankareh, Pardis Ziaee, Mohammad Javad Abedini
Summary: This study evaluated the IMERG satellite-based precipitation product in the Fars province of Iran using daily rain gauges as reference data. The results showed that the product tends to overestimate light rainfall and underestimate heavy rainfall, with the best performance in the 40-80 mm/day range. The accuracy of the product varies by month and is less biased in months with milder temperatures. Additionally, there was a higher correlation in mid-elevated areas, positive bias in low-elevated areas, and negative bias in high-elevated areas. Longer time scales showed considerable improvement in the IMERG estimates.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
