The priority value of scrubland habitats for carnivore conservation in Mediterranean ecosystems

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

Carnivores are umbrella species with a key role in ecosystems. In the Mediterranean, they face with several conservation problems, mainly habitat loss or transformation. In this region, scrubland habitats are considered of minor conservation relevance as compared to mature forest formations. Conservation of scrublands in Mediterranean ecosystems is also difficult because to control fires, they are removed over large areas. For carnivores, scrublands may be essential to guarantee shelter and food. Here, we analyzed the importance of scrublands and other habitat variables in determining the richness of medium-sized carnivores in a typical Mediterranean area of central Spain (Monfragüe Natural Park). The Park was divided into plots of 2 × 2 km (n = 30). In each plot, a 2 km-length survey route was walked searching for carnivore scats. We recorded the number of species of carnivores and we related this value to several habitat variables. Habitat variables were summarized by means of Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Habitat models were developed by, using multiple regression models, including PCA factors and the habitat type as predictors. The only variable included in the final model was the first PCA factor. Carnivore richness was positively associated with large tree, shrub, and rock cover areas, which is the typical habitat structure of scrublands. This habitat offers the best available area for shelter and may be considered as a key element for carnivore conservation in the Mediterranean region. To reconciliate carnivore conservation and forestry management, we proposed small-scale clearances as a management alternative to typical large scrubland removals.

Original languageEnglish
JournalBiodiversity and Conservation
Volume17
Issue number1
Pages (from-to)43-51
Number of pages9
ISSN0960-3115
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.2008

Bibliographical note

Cited By :42

Export Date: 27 January 2017

CODEN: BONSE

Correspondence Address: Virgós, E.; Departamento de Ciencias de la Naturaleza Y Física Aplicada, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, C/Tulipán s/n, E-29833 Móstoles, Madrid, Spain; email: emilio.virgos@urjc.es

References: Andelman, Umbrellas and flagships: Efficient conservation surrogates or expensive mistakes? (2000) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 97, pp. 5954-5959; Andelt, Diet bias in scat deposition-rate surveys of coyote density (1984) Wild Soc Bull, 12, pp. 74-77; Camprodon, J., Camprodon, J., Plana, E., Tratamientos forestales y conservación de la fauna vertebrada (2001) Conservación de la Biodiversidad Y Gestión Forestal: Su Aplicación en la Fauna Vertebrada, pp. 135-179. , Publicacions i Edicions Universitat de Barcelona Barcelona; Caro, T.M., Umbrella species critique and lessons from East Africa (2003) Anim Conserv, 6, pp. 171-181; Carrete, M., Donazar, J.A., Application of central-place foraging theory shows the importance of Mediterranean dehesas for the conservation of the Cinereous vulture, Aegypius monachus (2005) Biol Conservs, 126, pp. 582-590; Carroll, C., Zielinski, W.J., Noss, R.F., Using presence-absence data to build and test spatial habitat models for the fisher in the Klamath region, USA (1999) Conserv Biol, 13, pp. 1344-1359; Carroll, C., Noss, R.F., Paquet, P.C., Carnivores as focal species for conservation planning in the Rocky Mountain region (2001) Ecol Appl, 11, pp. 961-980; Cavallini, P., Faeces count as an index of fox abundance (1994) Acta Theriol, 39, pp. 417-424; Clutton-Brock, J., Gittleman, J.L., Competitors, companions,status symbols, or pests: A review of human associations with other carnivores (1996) Carnivore Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution 2, pp. 375-392. , Cornell University Press Ithaca, New York; Coppolillo, P., Gomez, H., Maisels, F., Wallace, R., Selection criteria for suites of landscape species as a basis for site-based conservation (2004) Biol Conserv, 115, pp. 419-430; De Juana, E., Changes in the conservation status of birds in Spain, years 1954 to 2004 (2004) Ardeola, 51, pp. 19-50; Díaz, M., Campos, P., Pulido, F., Pain, D.J., Pienkowski, M.W., The Spanish dehesas: A diversity in land use and wildlife (1997) Farming and Birds in Europe: The Common Agricultural Policy and Its Implications for Bird Conservation, pp. 178-209. , Academic Press London; Ferrer, M., (2001) The Spanish Imperial Eagle, , Editorial Lynx, Barecelona Spain; Font, I., (1983) Climatología de España Y Portugal, , Instituto Nacional de Meteorología Madrid; Gese, E.M., Gittleman, J.L., Funk, S.M., MacDonald, D.W., Wayne, K.R., Monitoring of terrestrial carnivore populations (2001) Carnivore Conservation, pp. 372-396. , Cambridge University Press Ithaca, New York; Ginsberg, J.R., MacDonald, D.W., (1990) Foxes, Wolves, Jackals and Dogs: An Action Plan for the Conservation of Canids, , IUCN, Gland Switzerland; Gittleman, J.L., Funk, S.M., MacDonald, D.W., Wayne, R.K., (2001) Carnivore Conservation. Conservation Biology 5, , Cambridge University Press Cambridge; Graham, M.H., Confronting multicollinearity in ecological multiple regression (2003) Ecology, 84, pp. 2809-2815; Guisan, A., Zimmermann, N.E., Predictive habitat distribution models in ecology (2000) Ecol Modell, 135, pp. 147-186; Gurd, D.B., Nudds, T.D., Rivard, D.H., Conservation of mammals in eastern North American wildlife reserves: How small is too small? (2001) Conserv Biol, 15, pp. 1355-1363; Herrera, C.M., Determinants of plant-animal coevolution - The case of mutualistic dispersal of seeds by vertebrates (1985) Oikos, 44, pp. 132-141; James, F.C., McCullough, C.E., Multivariate analysis in ecology and systematics: Panacea or Pandora's box? (1990) Annu Rev Ecol Syst, 21, pp. 129-166; Linnell, J.D.C., Swenson, J.E., Andersen, R., Conservation of biodiversity in Scandinavian boreal forests: Large carnivores as flagships, umbrellas, indicators, or keystones? (2000) Biodiv Conserv, 9, pp. 857-868; Lozano, J., Virgós, E., Malo, A., Huertas, D.L., Casanovas, J.G., Importance of scrub-pastureland mosaics on wild-living cats occurrence in a Mediterranean area: Implications for the conservation of the wildcat (Felis silvestris) (2003) Biodiv Conserv, 12, pp. 921-935; MacNally, R., Regression and model building in conservation biology, biogeography and ecology: The distinction between and reconciliation of 'predictive' and 'explanatory' models (2000) Biodiv Conserv, 9, pp. 655-671; Manel, S., Dias, J.M., Buckton, S.T., Ormerod, S.J., Alternative methods for predicting species distribution: An illustration with Himalayan river birds (1999) J Appl Ecol, 36, pp. 734-747; Médail, F., Quezel, P., Hot-spots analysis for conservation of plant biodiversity in the Mediterranean basin (1997) Ann Mo Bot Gard, 84, pp. 112-127; (2002) Plan Forestal Español, , MIMAM Dirección General de Conservación de la Naturaleza, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Madrid; Mladenoff, D.J., Sickley, T.A., Wydeven, A.P., Predicting gray wolf landscape recolonization: Logistic regression models vs. new field data (1999) Ecol Appl, 9, pp. 37-44; Noss, R.F., Quigley, H.B., Hornocker, M.G., Merrill, T., Paquet, P.C., Conservation biology and carnivore conservation in the Rocky Mountains (1996) Conserv Biol, 10, pp. 949-963; Ozenda, P., (1982) Les Vegetaux Dans Le Biosphère, , Doin Editeurs Paris; Peinado, M., Rivas-Martínez, S., (1986) La Vegetación de España, , Universidad De Alcalá De Henares, Madrid; Pons, P., Camprodon, Consecuencias de los incendios forestales sobre los vertebrados y aspectos de su gestión en regiones mediterráneas (2001) Conservación de la Biodiversidad Y Gestión Forestal: Su Aplicación en la Fauna Vertebrada, pp. 197-211. , Publicacions i Edicions Universitat de Barcelona Barcelona; Prodon, R., Fire, bird conservation and land management in the north-Mediterranean area (1987) Ecol Mediterr, 13, pp. 127-133; Prodon, R., Fons, R., Peter, A.M., L'impact du feu sur la végetation, les oiseaux et les micromammifères dans diverses formations méditerranéennes des Pyrénées-Orientales: Premiers résultats (1984) Rev Écol (Terre Vie), 39, pp. 130-158; Revilla, E., Palomares, F., Fernández, N., Characteristics, location, and selection of diurnal resting dens by Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) in a low density area (2001) J Zool, 255, pp. 291-299; Scott, J.M., Heglund, P.J., Morrison, M.L., (2002) Predicting Species Occurrences. Issues of Accuracy and Scale, , Island Press Washington; Tellería, J.L., Passerine bird communities of Iberian dehesas: A review (2001) Anim Biodivers Conserv, 24, pp. 67-78; Tellería, J.L., Sáez-Royuela, C., The large mammals of Central Spain (1984) An Introduct View. Mammal Rev, 14, pp. 51-56; Terradas, J., Mesures específiques de gestió per a la prevenció d'incendis (1996) Ecologia del Foc. Proa, pp. 209-225. , Terradas J (ed); Travaini, A., Delibes, M., Ferreras, P., Palomares, F., Diversity, abundance or rare species as a target for the conservation of mammalian carnivores: A case study in Southern Spain (1997) Biodiv Conserv, 6, pp. 529-535; Tuyttens, F.A.M., Long, B., Fawcett, T., Skinner, A., Brown, J.A., Cheeseman, C.L., Roddam, A.W., MacDonald, D.W., Estimating group size and population density of Eurasian badgers Meles meles by quantifying latrine use (2001) J Appl Ecol, 38, pp. 1114-1121; Virgós, E., Relative value of riparian woodlands in landscapes with different forest cover for the conservation of medium-sized Iberian carnivores (2001) Biodiv Conserv, 10, pp. 1039-1049; Virgós, E., Casanovas, J.G., Habitat selection of genet Genetta genetta in the mountains of central Spain (1997) Acta Theriol, 42, pp. 169-177; Virgós, E., Travaini, A., Relationship between small-game hunting and carnivore diversity in central Spain (2005) Biodiv Consev, 14, pp. 3475-3486; Virgós, E., Tellería, J.L., Santos, T., Effects of geographic location, vegetation type, isolation and fragment features on the richness and occurrence of medium-sized mammals in forest fragments of central Spain (2002) Biodiv Conserv, 11, pp. 1063-1079; Webbon, C., Baker, P.J., Harris, S., Faecal counting for monitoring changes in red fox numbers in rural Britain (2004) J Appl Ecol, 41, pp. 768-779; Wilcox, B., In situ conservation of genetic resources: Determinants of minimum area requirements (1984) Proceedings World Congress on National Parks, pp. 639-647. , McNeely JA, Miller KR (eds) National parks, conservation, and development: the role of protecting areas in sustaining society Smithsonian Institution Press. Washington, DC; Wilson, G.J., Delahay, R.J., A review of the methods to estimate the abundance of terrestrial carnivores using field signs and observation (2001) Wildl Res, 28, pp. 151-164; Zielinski, W.J., Kucera, T.E., (1995) American Marten, Fisher, Lynx and Wolverine: Survey Methods for Their Detection, , General Technical Report PSW-157. US Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Berkeley, California, USA; Zielinski, W.J., Monitoring mesocarnivore population status (1997) Mesocarnivores of Northern California: Biology, Management, and Survey Techniques, pp. 119-127. , Harris J, Ogan C (eds) Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA. The Wildlife Society, California North Coast Chapter, Arcata, CA

    Research areas

  • Felis silvestris, Fire management, Forestry, Martes foina, Mediterranean, Meles meles, Scrublands, Vulpes vulpes, carnivore, conservation management, ecological modeling, fire management, forest clearance, habitat loss, habitat structure, habitat type, Mediterranean environment, principal component analysis, protected area, scrub, species richness, Eurasia, Europe, Southern Europe, Spain
  • Biology
  • Sustainability Science
  • Environmental planning