Habitat Connectivity in Conservation Biology. Ecological Connection and Continuity of Animal Communities and Populations

It is an established fact that wildlife, especially vertebrates, is suffering in an era where the erosion and degradation of natural habitats are fatal for conservation. Beyond this, the progressive warming of the planet, combined with the rapid numerical growth of the human species, leads to the conservation of natural habitats and fauna becoming increasingly problematic. In this scenario, a possible approach to prevent, or at least contain the extinction of evident animal species, often charismatic or keystone species, is the development and increase of the connection zones between protected areas; in any case, this is important ecologically for the vertebrate fauna. Vertebrates, and many other groups, benefit from ecological connection, i.e., the management of the landscape and of protected areas or areas subjected to some preserving management. Actions aimed to improve the connectivity span, by enlarging habitat fragments, reducing its degradation induced by the surrounding landscape matrix, improving connectivity by reducing isolation induced by barriers, managing and improving habitat quality inside the isolated habitats, and so on. 

To achieve this, it is necessary to reduce the fragmentation of protected areas and/or important for the conservation of animal species and communities, with particular emphasis on those species that migrate or move more or less periodically, or that tend to expand their range, as almost always happens.

An often-underestimated aspect of these operations, which involve legislative acts and complex social and economic actions, is the participation and involvement of the local populations who live together in the territories involved. Therefore, the creation of connecting areas and their conservation, at various levels, must also be compatible with human activities and development. The careful management of these networks and ecological connection areas, often referred to as ecological corridors, is therefore essential. Moreover, landscape and environmental planning can be useful in this regard. For example, ecological network planning is a wide arena, in which a large number of concepts and tools are available (e.g., individuation and management of core areas, buffers, corridors, steppingstones; selection of focal sensitive species for monitoring, etc.).

This Special Issue of Land aims to be a container of high-level contributions, both of a general and/or theoretical type (as metanalyses or review), and of an applicative nature, with case studies in which examples are analyzed, where targeted interventions on connectivity have improved wildlife conservation.

The purpose of this special volume of Land is to present new data and deepen the discussion of the connection between protected areas, and therefore of the related habitats present. In particular, we want to address the issue of the importance, through different points of view, of these environmental conservation operations, as indispensable and lasting means for the conservation of animal communities, with particular reference to all vertebrates, including large mammals. The aspect of the management of these ecological connection areas should also be a topic of discussion in this Special Issue, with particular reference to the involvement of the human populations that inhabit the areas subject to conservation, planning and management.

All contributions must fall within the principles and aims of Land—topics, purpose and ethics.

Prof. Dr. Francesco M. Angelici
Dr. Corrado Battisti

Guest Editors

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• fragmentation
• connectivity
• habitat corridors
• protected areas
• wildlife conservation
• mammals
• birds
• reptiles
• migrations
• biodiversity conservation
• positive effects
• human involvement and coexistence