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Habitat connectivity improves diversity
Fragmentation of ecosystems results in loss of biodiversity in the remaining habitat patches, but maintaining communication corridors can reduce these losses. Using long-term data from a vast replicated experiment, Damschen et al. show quantitatively how these losses are reduced. In their pine savanna system, corridors reduced the probability of plant extinction in plots by about 2% per year and increased the probability of colonization of plots by about 5% per year. . These benefits have continued to accumulate over 18 years of experience. At the end of monitoring, connected plots accounted for 14% more species than unconnected plots. Restoring habitat connectivity can therefore be a powerful technique for conserving biodiversity, and investments in connections should increase the benefits for conservation.
Science, this number p. 1478
Abstract
The deleterious effects of habitat fragmentation and the benefits of linker fragments could be significantly underestimated as changes in colonization and extinction rates that result in changes in biodiversity may take decades . In a large and well replicated habitat fragmentation experiment, we find that annual colonization rates of 239 plant species in connected fragments are 5% higher and annual extinction rates 2% lower than those of unconnected fragments. This resulted in a constant and non-asymptotic increase in diversity, with nearly 14% more species in the connected fragments after almost two decades. Our results show that connectivity has a much greater value than previously estimated, that it can not be evaluated effectively in the short term and that it can be maximized by connecting the habitat to the community. as soon as possible.
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