Spatial patterns of cultural ecosystem services provision in Southern Patagonia

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

  • Guillermo Martínez Pastur
  • Pablo L. Peri
  • María V. Lencinas
  • Marina García-Llorente
  • Berta Martín-López

Context: Although there is a need to develop a spatially explicit methodological approach that addresses the social importance of cultural ecosystem services for regional planning, few studies have analysed the spatial distribution on the cultural ecosystem services based on social perceptions.Objective: The main objective of this study was to identify cultural ecosystem service hot-spots, and factors that characterize such hot-spots and define the spatial associations between cultural ecosystem services in Southern Patagonia (Argentina). Methods: The study was carried out in Southern Patagonia (243.9 thousand km<sup>2</sup>) located between 46° and 55° SL with the Andes mountains on the western fringe and the Atlantic Ocean on the eastern fringe of the study area. The study region has a range of different vegetation types (grasslands, shrub-lands, peat-lands and forests) though the cold arid steppe is the main vegetation type. We used geo-tagged digital images that local people and visitors posted in the Panoramio web platform to identify hot-spots of four cultural ecosystem services (aesthetic value, existence value, recreation and local identity) and relate these hot-spots with social and biophysical landscape features. Results: Aesthetic value was the main cultural service tagged by people, followed by the existence value for biodiversity conservation, followed by local identity and then recreational activity. The spatial distribution of these cultural ecosystem services are associated with different social and biophysical characteristics, such as the presence of water bodies, vegetation types, marine and terrestrial fauna, protected areas, urbanization, accessibility and tourism offer. The most important factors are the presence of water in Santa Cruz and tourism offer in Tierra del Fuego. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that this methodology is useful for assessing cultural ecosystem services at the regional scale, especially in areas with low data availability and field accessibility, such as Southern Patagonia. We also identify new research challenges that can be addressed in cultural ecosystem services research through the use of this method.

Original languageEnglish
JournalLandscape Ecology
Volume31
Issue number2
Pages (from-to)383-399
Number of pages17
ISSN0921-2973
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.02.2016

    Research areas

  • Sustainability Science - Landscape pictures, spatial distribution, Social perceptions, Aesthetic value, Existence value, Recreation

Recently viewed

Publications

  1. Boxsport im schulischen Feld
  2. Do red herrings swim in circles?
  3. The role of oxytocin in terror management processes
  4. "Véritables parties" et reconnaissance tardive d'un intérêt à agir en défense d'intérêts collectifs
  5. Praktiken des Experimentierens
  6. The Role of Campus, Curriculum, and Community in Higher Education for Sustainable Development
  7. Impacts of a pesticide on pollinator species richness at different spatial scales
  8. Investigating Junior High School Students' Length Estimation Ability and Strategies
  9. Konfiguration der PPS
  10. Biodiversity assessments
  11. Affective startle modulation and psychopathology
  12. Balanced Scorecard
  13. Decision support in the field of online marketing - development of a data landscape
  14. Od Pacmana do Lary Croft. Jak badać postać w grach wideo?
  15. Role of images in constructing public opinion about environmental matters in Malaysia
  16. Management of Biodiversity in Protected Areas with Sustainability Control
  17. Sonstige geldwerte Leistungen
  18. Ecosystem services between sustainability and efficiency
  19. What is the Problem of Gender Inequality Represented to be in Inter-National Development Policy in Burkina Faso?
  20. Controlling consent
  21. Neue Lektürefreuden
  22. Students' conceptions about the sense of smell
  23. The health consequences of child mental health problems and parenting styles
  24. A strategic model of European gas supply (GASMOD)
  25. Sustainability Potential Analysis (SPA) of landfills
  26. Teaching Abilities of Prospective Teachers at the Beginning of the Practical Phase of Teacher Education
  27. PRB technologies in Germany
  28. Ready for take off