The biogeographical assignment of a west Kenyan rain forest remnant: further evidence from analysis of its reptile fauna

Aim The Kakamega Forest, western Kenya, has been biogeographically assigned to both lowland and montane forest biomes, or has even been considered to be unique. Most frequently it has been linked with the Guineo‐Congolian rain forest block. The present paper aims to test six alternative hypotheses of the zoogeographical relationships between this forest remnant and other African forests using reptiles as a model group. Reptiles are relatively slow dispersers, compared with flying organisms (Aves and Odonata) on which former hypotheses have been based, and may thus result in a more conservative biogeographical analysis. Location Kakamega Forest, Kenya, Sub‐Saharan Africa. Methods The reptile diversity of Kakamega Forest was evaluated by field surveys and data from literature resources. Faunal comparisons of Kakamega Forest with 16 other African forests were conducted by the use of the ‘coefficient of biogeographic resemblance’ using the reptile communities as zoogeographic indicators. Parsimony Analysis of Endemism and Neighbour Joining Analysis of Endemism were used to generate relationship trees based on an occurrence matrix with paup *. Results The analysis clearly supports the hypothesis that the Kakamega Forest is the easternmost fragment of the Guineo‐Congolian rain forest belt, and thus more closely related to the forests of that Central–West African complex than to any forest further east, such as the Kenyan coastal forests. Many Kenyan reptile species occur exclusively in the Kakamega Forest and its associated forest fragments. Main conclusions The Kakamega Forest is the only remnant of the Guineo‐Congolian rain forest in the general area. We assume that the low degree of resemblance identified for the Guineo‐Congolian forest and the East African coastal forest reflect the long history of isolation of the two forest types from each other. Kenyan coastal forests may have been historically connected through forest ‘bridges’ of the southern highlands with the Congo forest belt, allowing reptile species to migrate between them. The probability of a second ‘bridge’ located in the region of southern Tanzanian inselbergs is discussed. Although not particularly rich in reptile species, the area should be considered of high national priority for conservation measures.     

Developing a disturbance index for five East African forests using GIS to analyse historical forest use as an important driver of current land use/cover

A means of deriving a disturbance index reflecting forest use history is demonstrated here to establish a disturbance gradient and enable comparison of different forest areas within and across individual forests. Detailed reference is made to Kakamega Forest in western Kenya for which a long‐term time series has been established, although the study is spread to four further forests in Kenya and Uganda. A wide variety of sources are drawn upon for spatially resolved data that are integrated in a geographic information system. Three indices are derived: for commercial disturbance, local disturbance, and forest cover change. Results show a wide range of disturbance values (from low to heavy) for the research sites within Kakamega Forest, while results for Budongo and Mabira Forest sites show low and moderate levels, respectively. Correlations of low disturbance levels with nature or national reserves appear to be marked, while a correlation of disturbance with differing management authority is also suggested with Kenya Wildlife Service achieving the lowest disturbance levels. Results from the index are reviewed against other means of estimating disturbance with the conclusion that disturbance evaluations should be both spatially resolved and long‐term in nature.     

Assessing simulated land use/cover maps using similarity and fragmentation indices

Land use/cover changes (LUCC) are significant to a range of issues central to the study of global environmental change. Over the last decades, a variety of models of LUCC have been developed to predict the location and patterns of land use/cover dynamics. The simulation procedures of most computational LUCC models can be sub-divided into three basic steps: (1) a non-spatial procedure which calculates the quantity of each transition; (2) a spatial procedure that allocates changes to the more likely locations and eventually replicates the patterns of the landscape and; (3) an evaluation procedure to compare a simulated land use/cover map with the true map for the same date. Most of the evaluation techniques are focused on assessing the location of the simulated changes in comparison to the true locations and do not assess the ability of the model to simulate the overall landscape pattern (e.g. size, shape and distribution of patches). This study aims at evaluating simulated land use/cover map patterns obtained using two models (DINAMICA and Land Change Modeler). Simulated maps were evaluated using a fuzzy similarity index which takes into account the fuzziness of locations within a cell neighborhood with fragmentation indices. Results show that more realistic simulated landscapes are often obtained at the expense of the location coincidence. When aggregate patterns of a landscape are important (e.g. when considering fragmentation impacts on biodiversity), it is important to incorporate indices that take into account not merely location, but also the spatial patterns during the model assessment procedure.     

Decomposition of tissue baits and termite density along a gradient of human land‐use intensification in Western Kenya

Termites are important decomposers and ‘ecosystem engineers’ in tropical ecosystems. Furthermore, termite assemblages are sensitive to human land‐use intensification and often termite density and the importance of soil‐feeding termites decrease with land‐use intensification. These changes in termite assemblages may also lead to a decrease in termite‐mediated ecosystem processes (e.g. soil formation, cellulose decomposition). We compared density and functional composition of termites with cellulose removal from undisturbed primary forests to farmlands (Kakamega Forest, Western Kenya). In contrast to the expectation, we found no response of termite abundance along the gradient of land‐use intensification. However, as expected, the relative abundance of soil‐feeders decreased from primary forests to farmlands. In contrast, frequency of attack on tissue paper baits and removal of tissue showed a clear hump‐shaped relationship to land‐use intensification with high values in secondary forests. These nonconcordant patterns of density and functional composition of termite assemblages with cellulose removal by termites suggest that it may be misleading to infer changes in a process by the characteristics of the assemblage of organisms that mediate that process.     

Richer histories for more relevant policies: 42 years of tree cover loss and gain in Southeast Sulawesi,Indonesia

Understandings of contemporary forest cover loss are critical for policy but have come at the expense of long‐term, multidirectional analyses of land cover change. This is a critical gap given (i) profound reconfigurations in land use and land control over the past several decades and (ii) evidence of widespread ‘woodland resurgence’ throughout the tropics. In this study, we argue that recent advancements within the field of land change science provide new opportunities to address this gap. In turn, we suggest that multidecadal and multidirectional analyses of land cover change can facilitate richer social analyses of land cover change and more relevant conservation policies and practice. Our argument is grounded in a case study from Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. Using a novel analytical platform, Google Earth Engine, and open access to high‐quality Landsat data, we map land cover change in Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia, from 1972 to 2014. We find that tree cover loss constitutes the single largest net change over the period 1972–2014 but that gross rates of tree cover gain were three times higher than gross loss rates from 1972 to 1995 and equivalent to loss rates from 1995 to 2014. We suggest the smallholder tree crop economy likely produced both forest loss and Imperata grassland restoration in this region. This case points to the need to expand rather than collapse the baselines used to study carbon and biodiversity change in tropical regions. It also demonstrates the possible utility of applying such methods to other regions.     

Assessment of Threat Status and Management Effectiveness in Kakamega Forest, Kenya

To counteract an increasing biodiversity decline, parks and protected areas have been established worldwide. However, many parks lack adequate management to address environmental degradation. To improve management strategies simple tools are needed for an assessment of human impact and management effectiveness of protected areas. This study quantifies the current threats in the heavily fragmented and degraded tropical rainforest of Kakamega, western Kenya. We recorded seven disturbance parameters at 22 sites in differently managed and protected areas of Kakamega Forest. Our data indicate a high level of human impact throughout the forest with illegal logging being most widespread. Furthermore, logging levels appear to reflect management history and effectiveness. From 1933 to 1986, Kakamega Forest was under management by the Forest Department and the number of trees logged more than 20 years ago was equally high at all sites. Since 1986, management of Kakamega Forest has been under two different organizations, i.e. Forest Department and Kenya Wildlife Service. The number of trees logged illegally in the last 20 years was significantly lower at sites managed by the Kenya Wildlife Service. Finally, logging was lower within highly protected National and Nature Reserves as compared to high logging within the less protected Forest Reserves. Reflecting management effectiveness as well as protection status in Kakamega Forest, logging might therefore provide a valuable quantitative indicator for human disturbance and thus an important tool for conservation managers. Logging might be a valuable indicator for other protected areas, too, however, other human impact such as e.g. hunting might also prove to be a potential indicator.     

Impact of LUCC on landscape pattern in the Yangtze River Basin during 2001–2019

Evaluating the influences of LUCC (Land Use/Land Cover Change) on landscape pattern is significant for understanding and improving ecological environment system management. This study used landscape pattern as an important indicator to estimate the impacts of the LUCC in the Yangtze River Basin from 2001 to 2019. Based on the remote sensing images of LULC (Land Use/Land Cover) in the Yangtze River Basin in 2001–2019, the dynamic attitude and transfer matrix of LULC, and landscape pattern indices were employed to analyze the LUCC and the impact of LULC on the landscape pattern of the Yangtze River Basin. The results of LUCC show that the main LUCC in the Yangtze River Basin during 2001–2019 is mainly manifested by the increase of water body, forest, wetland, crop/natural vegetation mosaic (NVM) and urban, among which the forest increased the most by 62,635 km². The areas of grassland and cropland are decreasing, with the grassland decreasing the most. Forest, crop/NVM and cropland are transformed into grassland, which complements the lack of grassland to some extent. LUCC in the Yangtze River Basin is most intense between grassland and forest. Landscape pattern shows: Grassland occupies an important advantage in the whole landscape structure. Forest, grassland and urban landscapes are seriously fragmented, and their LSI (Landscape Shape Index) is more complex than others. The connectivity between various landscape types is weakened, and the degree of landscape fragmentation is increased, but the LULC structure is becoming more and more abundant. The areas with high landscape fragmentation value have richer landscape diversity and diverse LULC types. There is a strong correlation between grassland and the four landscape pattern indices. The change of landscape pattern in the Yangtze River Basin is influenced by natural factors and LUCC in the Yangtze River Basin, and the change caused by human activities is the main driving factor of LUCC.     

Characterizing a tropical deforestation wave: a dynamic spatial analysis of a deforestation hotspot in the Colombian Amazon

Tropical deforestation is the major contemporary threat to global biodiversity, because a diminishing extent of tropical forests supports the majority of the Earth's biodiversity. Forest clearing is often spatially concentrated in regions where human land use pressures, either planned or unplanned, increase the likelihood of deforestation. However, it is not a random process, but often moves in waves originating from settled areas. We investigate the spatial dynamics of land cover change in a tropical deforestation hotspot in the Colombian Amazon. We apply a forest cover zoning approach which permitted: calculation of colonization speed; comparative spatial analysis of patterns of deforestation and regeneration; analysis of spatial patterns of mature and recently regenerated forests; and the identification of local‐level hotspots experiencing the fastest deforestation or regeneration. The colonization frontline moved at an average of 0.84 km yr^?1 from 1989 to 2002, resulting in the clearing of 3400 ha yr^?1 of forests beyond the 90% forest cover line. The dynamics of forest clearing varied across the colonization front according to the amount of forest in the landscape, but was spatially concentrated in well‐defined ‘local hotspots’ of deforestation and forest regeneration. Behind the deforestation front, the transformed landscape mosaic is composed of cropping and grazing lands interspersed with mature forest fragments and patches of recently regenerated forests. We discuss the implications of the patterns of forest loss and fragmentation for biodiversity conservation within a framework of dynamic conservation planning.     

Breeding bird species diversity across gradients of land use from forest to agriculture in Europe

Loss, fragmentation and decreasing quality of habitats have been proposed as major threats to biodiversity world‐wide, but relatively little is known about biodiversity responses to multiple pressures, particularly at very large spatial scales. We evaluated the relative contributions of four landscape variables (habitat cover, diversity, fragmentation and productivity) in determining different components of avian diversity across Europe. We sampled breeding birds in multiple 1‐km² landscapes, from high forest cover to intensive agricultural land, in eight countries during 2001?2002. We predicted that the total diversity would peak at intermediate levels of forest cover and fragmentation, and respond positively to increasing habitat diversity and productivity; forest and open‐habitat specialists would show threshold conditions along gradients of forest cover and fragmentation, and respond positively to increasing habitat diversity and productivity; resident species would be more strongly impacted by forest cover and fragmentation than migratory species; and generalists and urban species would show weak responses. Measures of total diversity did not peak at intermediate levels of forest cover or fragmentation. Rarefaction‐standardized species richness decreased marginally and linearly with increasing forest cover and increased non‐linearly with productivity, whereas all measures increased linearly with increasing fragmentation and landscape diversity. Forest and open‐habitat specialists responded approximately linearly to forest cover and also weakly to habitat diversity, fragmentation and productivity. Generalists and urban species responded weakly to the landscape variables, but some groups responded non‐linearly to productivity and marginally to habitat diversity. Resident species were not consistently more sensitive than migratory species to any of the landscape variables. These findings are relevant to landscapes with relatively long histories of human land‐use, and they highlight that habitat loss, fragmentation and habitat‐type diversity must all be considered in land‐use planning and landscape modeling of avian communities.     

Mountain vegetation change quantification using surface landscape metrics in Lancang watershed,China

Land cover and vegetation change are among the most important aspects of environmental change. Vegetation change can be quantified by landscape pattern indices (LPI). Landscape indices are routinely calculated using planar land use/land cover (LU/LC) maps, obtained by the projection of a non-flat landscape surface into a two-dimensional Cartesian space. Especially in mountainous areas, quantification on planar maps can lead to underestimation of vegetation and land cover changes. Hoechstetter et al. (2008) developed a method to compute LPIs in a surface structure by calculating landscape patch surface area and surface perimeter from digital elevation models (DEM). As yet there have been no applications of these surface landscape indices on land use/land cover and vegetation change quantification. The objectives of this study are to (1) choose a LPI method (surface metrics pattern analysis or common planimetric metrics pattern analysis) for vegetation change quantification; and (2) employ the selected surface LPI method to assess vegetation pattern change in two mountainous areas of the Lancang watershed, Yunnan Province, China. The results show that the surface approach to estimate changes of class area (CA), mean patch area (MPA), and mean Euclidean Near-Neighbor distance (MENN) may obtain more accurate results for quantifying vegetation change in steep mountain areas. Forest fragmentation increased significantly over time in the two different mountainous study areas. The patches of two land cover classes, (i) agricultural land and (ii) low density forest and tall shrubs, became more aggregated in the northern (temperate) study area. In the southern (tropical) study area, rubber plantations increased considerably in size and became more aggregated.     

Relationships between land use, spatial scale and stream macroinvertebrate communities

1. The structure of lotic macroinvertebrate communities may be strongly influenced by land‐use practices within catchments. However, the relative magnitude of influence on the benthos may depend upon the spatial arrangement of different land uses in the catchment. 2. We examined the influence of land‐cover patterns on in‐stream physico‐chemical features and macroinvertebrate assemblages in nine southern Appalachian headwater basins characterized by a mixture of land‐use practices. Using a geographical information system (GIS)/remote sensing approach, we quantified land‐cover at five spatial scales; the entire catchment, the riparian corridor, and three riparian ‘sub‐corridors’ extending 200, 1000 and 2000 m upstream of sampling reaches. 3. Stream water chemistry was generally related to features at the catchment scale. Conversely, stream temperature and substratum characteristics were strongly influenced by land‐cover patterns at the riparian corridor and sub‐corridor scales. 4. Macroinvertebrate assemblage structure was quantified using the slope of rank‐abundance plots, and further described using diversity and evenness indices. Taxon richness ranged from 24 to 54 among sites, and the analysis of rank‐abundance curves defined three distinct groups with high, medium and low diversity. In general, other macroinvertebrate indices were in accord with rank‐abundance groups, with richness and evenness decreasing among sites with maximum stream temperature. 5. Macroinvertebrate indices were most closely related to land‐cover patterns evaluated at the 200 m sub‐corridor scale, suggesting that local, streamside development effectively alters assemblage structure. 6. Results suggest that differences in macroinvertebrate assemblage structure can be explained by land‐cover patterns when appropriate spatial scales are employed. In addition, the influence of riparian forest patches on in‐stream habitat features (e.g. the thermal regime) may be critical to the distribution of many taxa in headwater streams draining catchments with mixed land‐use practices.     

Differential effects of anthropogenic edges and gaps on the reproduction of a forest‐dwelling plant: The role of plant reproductive effort and nectar robbing by bumblebees

Forest fragmentation produces sharp changes in the spatial configuration of remnant forest patches, which include the increasing influence of patch edges on the interior of forest patches (‘edge effects’). Human activities responsible for forest fragmentation tend also to change the internal characteristics of remnant patches, for example, through the creation of gaps by selective logging. While edges and gaps can be expected to cause comparable changes in the micro‐environmental conditions of the forest, their effects on forest‐dwelling species and their interactions are not necessarily comparable. This study compares the effect of forest edges and anthropogenic gaps on the reproductive success of a self‐incompatible epiphytic plant (Mitraria coccinea), mediated by changes in its relationship with mutualists (pollinators) and antagonists (flower larcenists). Mitraria coccinea's flowers are pollinated by hummingbirds and robbed by the bumblebee Bombus dahlbomii. Edges and gaps had comparable positive effects on flower production and fruit set; however, nectar robbing was up to sevenfold higher in patches with numerous gaps and resulted in lower reproductive success (fruit set and total fruit crop). Forest fragmentation studies should therefore avoid treating forest remnants as homogeneous units (i.e. focusing exclusively on their characteristics and connectivity), without taking into account the internal heterogeneity caused by anthropogenic pressures (e.g. gaps and edge effects).     

Assessing the impacts of fragmentation on plant communities in New Zealand: scaling from survey plots to landscapes

Aim Few studies have attempted to assess the overall impact of fragmentation at the landscape scale. We quantify the impacts of fragmentation on plant diversity by assessing patterns of community composition in relation to a range of fragmentation measures. Location The investigation was undertaken in two regions of New Zealand – a relatively unfragmented area of lowland rain forest in south Westland and a highly fragmented montane forest on the eastern slopes of the Southern Alps. Methods We calculated an index of community similarity (Bray–Curtis) between forest plots we regarded as potentially affected by fragmentation and control forest plots located deep inside continuous forest areas. Using a multiple nonlinear regression technique that incorporates spatial autocorrelation effects, we analysed plant community composition in relation to measures of fragmentation at the patch and landscape levels. From the resulting regression equation, we predicted community composition for every forest pixel on land‐cover maps of the study areas and used these maps to calculate a landscape‐level estimate of compositional change, which we term ‘BioFrag’. BioFrag has a value of one if fragmentation has no detectable effect on communities within a landscape, and tends towards zero if fragmentation has a strong effect. Results We detected a weak, but significant, impact of fragmentation metrics operating at both the patch and landscape levels. Observed values of BioFrag ranged from 0.68 to 0.90, suggesting that patterns of fragmentation have medium to weak impacts on forest plant communities in New Zealand. BioFrag values varied in meaningful ways among landscapes and between the ground‐cover and tree and shrub communities. Main conclusions BioFrag advances methods that describe spatial patterns of forest cover by incorporating the exact spatial patterns of observed species responses to fragmentation operating at multiple spatial scales. BioFrag can be applied to any landscape and ecological community across the globe and represents a significant step towards developing a biologically relevant, landscape‐scale index of habitat fragmentation.     

Land-Use History in Ecosystem Restoration: A 40-Year Study in the Prairie-Forest Ecotone

Land‐use history, recent management, and landscape position influence vegetation at the Rockefeller Experimental Tract (RET), a 40‐year‐old restoration experiment in northeast Kansas. RET is representative of the prairie‐forest ecotone, containing native tallgrass prairie and oak‐hickory forest, but unique in having tracts of replanted prairie, seeded in 1957, that have undergone long‐term restoration treatments: burned, grazed, mowed, or untreated. A land‐use history database for RET was compiled using a geographic information system to integrate historic and contemporary sources of information. Restoration management on the reseeded prairie has had a profound effect on forest development: mowing or burning precluded forest establishment (<3% forest cover), whereas portions of untreated or grazed areas became heavily forested (>97% forest cover). Forest colonization depends upon biotic and edaphic conditions at the time restoration was initiated: for areas replanted to prairie and managed by grazing, forestation was 6% on land in cultivation prior to replanting, 20% on former pastureland, and 98% on land deforested just before replanting. Patterns of forest colonization were also significantly associated with three landscape positions: near existing forest, along water courses, and along ridge tops. Additionally, land‐use history analyses showed that the presence of various prairie and forest species resulted from persistence and not from colonization following restoration. Because of the lasting imprint of historic land use on the landscape, our results indicate that it is essential that restoration studies be evaluated within a site‐specific historical context.     

Classifying the Neotropical savannas of Belize using remote sensing and ground survey

Aim This paper evaluates a method of combining data from GPS ground survey with classifications of medium spatial resolution LANDSAT imagery to distinguish variations within Neotropical savannas and to characterize the boundaries between savanna areas and the associated gallery forests, seasonally dry forests and wetland communities. Location Rio Bravo Conservation Area, Orange Walk District, Belize, Central America. Methods Dry season LANDSAT data for 10 April 1993 and 9 March 2001 covering a conservation area of 240,000 acres (97,459 ha), were rectified to sub‐pixel accuracy using ground control points positioned by GPS ground survey. The 1993 image was used to assess the accuracy with which the boundaries between the savanna matrix and gallery forests, high forests, wetlands and water bodies could be discriminated. The image was classified by a maximum likelihood (ML) classifier and the shapes and areas of forest and wetland classes were compared with an interpretation of these land cover types from 1 : 24,000 aerial photography, mapped at 1 : 50,000 scale in 1993. The 2001 image was used to assess whether different subtypes of savanna could be distinguished from LANDSAT data. This required the creation of a reference (‘ground truth’) data set for testing classifications of the image. One hundred and sixty sample patches (650 ha, distributed over an area of 7000 ha) of ten sub‐types of savanna vegetation and associates identified using a physiognomic classification scheme, were delineated on the ground by GPS and divided into two subsets for training and testing. Continuous classifications of LANDSAT data covering the savannas were developed that estimated potential contributions from up to five sub‐types of land cover (grassland, wetland, pine woodland, gallery forest and palmetto). The accuracy of each classification was assessed by comparison against ground data. An ML classification was also produced for the 2001 image using the same areas for training. This allowed a comparison of the relative accuracy of both continuous and Boolean ML methods for classifying savanna areas. Results The boundary between savannas and evergreen forests, gallery forests and open water in the study region could be delineated by the ML classifier to within 2 pixels (60 m) using LANDSAT imagery. However, the constituent sub‐types within the savanna were poorly discriminated. Whilst the shape and extent of closed canopy forest, gallery forest, wetlands and water bodies agreed closely with the distributions interpreted from aerial photography, classes such as ‘open pine savanna’ or ‘grassland’ were only 45–65% accurate when tested against ground data. A continuous classification, estimating the proportions of three savanna vegetation subtypes (grassland, marshland and woodland) present in each pixel, correctly classified more of the ground data for these cover types than the comparable ML result. Proportional mixtures of the land cover estimated by the continuous classifier also compared realistically with the vegetation formations observed along ground transects. Main conclusions By using GPS, a ground survey of vegetation cover was accurately matched to remotely sensed imagery and the accuracy of delineating boundaries and classifying areas of savanna was assessed directly. This showed that ML classification techniques can reliably delineate the boundaries of savannas, but continuous classifiers more accurately and realistically represent the distribution of the subtypes comprising savanna land cover. By combining these ground survey and image classification methods, medium spatial resolution satellite sensor data can provide an affordable means for land managers to assess the nature, extent and distribution of savanna formations. Over time, using the archives of LANDSAT (and SPOT) data together with marker sites surveyed in the field, quantitative changes in the extents and boundaries of savannas in response to both natural (e.g. fire, hurricane and drought) and anthropogenic (e.g. cutting and disturbance) factors can be assessed.     

Discerning Fragmentation Dynamics of Tropical Forest and Wetland during Reforestation,Urban Sprawl,and Policy Shifts

Despite the overall trend of worldwide deforestation over recent decades, reforestation has also been found and is expected in developing countries undergoing fast urbanization and agriculture abandonment. The consequences of reforestation on landscape patterns are seldom addressed in the literature, despite their importance in evaluating biodiversity and ecosystem functions. By analyzing long-term land cover changes in Puerto Rico, a rapidly reforested (6 to 42% during 1940–2000) and urbanized tropical island, we detected significantly different patterns of fragmentation and underlying mechanisms among forests, urban areas, and wetlands. Forest fragmentation is often associated with deforestation. However, we also found significant fragmentation during reforestation. Urban sprawl and suburb development have a dominant impact on forest fragmentation. Reforestation mostly occurs along forest edges, while significant deforestation occurs in forest interiors. The deforestation process has a much stronger impact on forest fragmentation than the reforestation process due to their different spatial configurations. In contrast, despite the strong interference of coastal urbanization, wetland aggregation has occurred due to the effective implementation of laws/regulations for wetland protection. The peak forest fragmentation shifted toward rural areas, indicating progressively more fragmentation in forest interiors. This shift is synchronous with the accelerated urban sprawl as indicated by the accelerated shift of the peak fragmentation index of urban cover toward rural areas, i.e., 1.37% yr⁻¹ in 1977–1991 versus 2.17% yr⁻¹ in 1991–2000. Based on the expected global urbanization and the regional forest transition from deforested to reforested, the fragmented forests and aggregated wetlands in this study highlight possible forest fragmentation processes during reforestation in an assessment of biodiversity and functions and suggest effective laws/regulations in land planning to reduce future fragmentation.     

Does Forest Fragmentation and Selective Logging Affect Seed Predators and Seed Predation Rates of Prunus africana (Rosaceae)?

Forest fragmentation and selective logging can influence the life cycle of tropical tree species at several levels, e.g. , by lowering pollination, by limiting seed dispersal, and by increasing seed predation. Understanding human-induced modifications in ecosystem processes such as seed predation is essential for conservation management of threatened species. We studied the impact of forest fragmentation and selective logging on seed predation of the endangered tree Prunus africana in the tropical rain forest of Kakamega, Kenya. We quantified the activity of seed predators in the main forest, forest fragments, and in sites of different logging intensity in the dry and rainy seasons of 2003 and 2006. Further, we performed predation experiments with single and groups of P. africana seeds in the same sites. We recorded a tendency toward higher activity of seed predators in the main forest compared to fragmented sites. Single seeds, in contrast to groups of seeds, had marginally significantly higher predation rates in intensively logged compared to moderately logged sites. Overall, predation rates showed little relationship to seed predator activity and were highly variable among years and seasons. Additional studies on seedling establishment and survival are needed to predict whether the endangered tree is able to maintain sustainable populations in Kakamega Forest. Only by studying all processes in the life cycle is it possible to develop sound management strategies for the species.     

Forest Loss in Protected Areas and Intact Forest Landscapes: A Global Analysis

In spite of the high importance of forests, global forest loss has remained alarmingly high during the last decades. Forest loss at a global scale has been unveiled with increasingly finer spatial resolution, but the forest extent and loss in protected areas (PAs) and in large intact forest landscapes (IFLs) have not so far been systematically assessed. Moreover, the impact of protection on preserving the IFLs is not well understood. In this study we conducted a consistent assessment of the global forest loss in PAs and IFLs over the period 2000–2012. We used recently published global remote sensing based spatial forest cover change data, being a uniform and consistent dataset over space and time, together with global datasets on PAs’ and IFLs’ locations. Our analyses revealed that on a global scale 3% of the protected forest, 2.5% of the intact forest, and 1.5% of the protected intact forest were lost during the study period. These forest loss rates are relatively high compared to global total forest loss of 5% for the same time period. The variation in forest losses and in protection effect was large among geographical regions and countries. In some regions the loss in protected forests exceeded 5% (e.g. in Australia and Oceania, and North America) and the relative forest loss was higher inside protected areas than outside those areas (e.g. in Mongolia and parts of Africa, Central Asia, and Europe). At the same time, protection was found to prevent forest loss in several countries (e.g. in South America and Southeast Asia). Globally, high area-weighted forest loss rates of protected and intact forests were associated with high gross domestic product and in the case of protected forests also with high proportions of agricultural land. Our findings reinforce the need for improved understanding of the reasons for the high forest losses in PAs and IFLs and strategies to prevent further losses.     

A global assessment of primate responses to landscape structure

Land‐use change modifies the spatial structure of terrestrial landscapes, potentially shaping the distribution, abundance and diversity of remaining species assemblages. Non‐human primates can be particularly vulnerable to landscape disturbances, but our understanding of this topic is far from complete. Here we reviewed all available studies on primates' responses to landscape structure. We found 34 studies of 71 primate species (24 genera and 10 families) that used a landscape approach. Most studies (82%) were from Neotropical forests, with howler monkeys being the most frequently studied taxon (56% of studies). All studies but one used a site‐landscape or a patch‐landscape study design, and frequently (34% of studies) measured landscape variables within a given radius from the edge of focal patches. Altogether, the 34 studies reported 188 responses to 17 landscape‐scale metrics. However, the majority of the studies (62%) quantified landscape predictors within a single spatial scale, potentially missing significant primate–landscape responses. To assess such responses accurately, landscape metrics need to be measured at the optimal scale, i.e. the spatial extent at which the primate–landscape relationship is strongest (so‐called ‘scale of effect’). Only 21% of studies calculated the scale of effect through multiscale approaches. Interestingly, the vast majority of studies that do not assess the scale of effect mainly reported null effects of landscape structure on primates, while most of the studies based on optimal scales found significant responses. These significant responses were primarily to landscape composition variables rather than landscape configuration variables. In particular, primates generally show positive responses to increasing forest cover, landscape quality indices and matrix permeability. By contrast, primates show weak responses to landscape configuration. In addition, half of the studies showing significant responses to landscape configuration metrics did not control for the effect of forest cover. As configuration metrics are often correlated with forest cover, this means that documented configuration effects may simply be driven by landscape‐scale forest loss. Our findings suggest that forest loss (not fragmentation) is a major threat to primates, and thus, preventing deforestation (e.g. through creation of reserves) and increasing forest cover through restoration is critically needed to mitigate the impact of land‐use change on our closest relatives. Increasing matrix functionality can also be critical, for instance by promoting anthropogenic land covers that are similar to primates' habitat.