Search results for "Nature and Landscape Conservation"
showing 9 items of 779 documents
Comparing Conservation Value Maps and Mapping Methods in a Rural Landscape in Southern Finland
2015
We tested to what extent conservation value maps are different if the valuation and mapping method is changed. We compared 66 different conservation value and 4 different ecosystem service maps. Using remote sensing and other georeferenced data, we produced 2 different habitat type maps, which were 50 % similar. We valued each mapped habitat type based on rarity corrected potential number of vascular plant species and naturalness using 6 different valuation alternatives. We mapped habitat type connectivity and complementarity using 2 main approaches. The habitat type valuation alternatives were quite similar, but if the habitat type naturalness was taken into account, differences were large…
Verifying the predicted risk of extinction based on ecological characteristics
2021
Red List status of species should reflect species extinction risk. Because data are limited and species response has a time lag, species may be threatened by extinction even if they are not Red‐Listed. The ability to predict species risk of extinction from ecological characteristics holds promises for proactively targeting conservation measures to species at high risk. In 2005, the risk of extinction from ecological characteristics was predicted for 81 species of Finnish butterflies. Now, after 15 years and two additional national Red List assessments, these predictions are verified. Species with a higher risk of extinction according to the original ecological extinction risk rank (EERR) ha…
Diversification in evolutionary arenas - assessment and synthesis
2019
Abstract Understanding how and why rates of evolutionary diversification vary is a central issue in evolutionary biology and ecology. The concept of adaptive radiation has attracted much interest, but is metaphorical and verbal in nature, making it difficult to quantitatively compare different evolutionary lineages or geographic regions. In addition, the causes of evolutionary stasis are relatively neglected. Here we review the central concepts in the evolutionary diversification literature and bring these together by proposing a general framework for estimating rates of diversification and quantifying their underlying dynamics, which can be applied across clades and regions and across spat…
The impact of regional demographics on Higher Education Policy. An example from Silesia, Poland
2021
Abstract The determinants of higher education policy have their sources in various spheres, such as economic, social, educational, national policy, administrative, and demographic. Problems for the development of higher education also stem from these spheres. One of them is the challenging demographic situation that is a significant element of developing higher education in southern Poland (particuarly in the Silesia region). Given this context, this article aims to indicate the policies of the universities in the region which respond to the existing demographic threats. This relationship is to confront student opinions regarding their vision for their education and future career within the…
From Analysis to Formulation of Strategies for Farm Advisory Services (Case Study: Valencia – Spain). an Application through Swot and Qspm Matrix
2019
Abstract European agriculture should meet new increasing internal and contextual challenges. For example, the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy in 2003 introduced the cross-compliance, among other novelties, as compulsory for farmers. To better meet this and other requirements, Member States had to set up the so-called Farm Advisory System, operational across the European Union in 2007. From a sample of actors involved in the provision of farm advisory services in the region of Valencia (Spain), the present study aimed to identify the most appropriate strategies to implement such services. SWOT method has been applied to examine the internal and external environment. Based on this di…
Regional Farmers’ Perception and Societal Issues in Vineyards Affected by High Erosion Rates
2021
We explore the current situation in a viticultural region in Eastern Spain from a holistic and multifaceted research approach, which allowed us to understand the biophysical conditions, economic cost, social impact, and perception of the farmers’ community to the use of catch crops. A survey of the perception of the farmers, and an assessment of the biophysical impact of catch crops (CC) and tillage (C = Control plot) on soil organic matter, bulk density, infiltration capacity (single ring infiltrometer), and runoff generation and soil erosion (rainfall simulation experiments) was carried out. Two representative fields as study sites were selected in Les Alcusses valley, within Els Alforins…
The relationships between urbanization and bird functional traits across the streetscape
2023
Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors The urbanization process leads to changes in bird communities’ taxonomic and functional compositions. Highly urbanized areas generally exhibit a reduced number of bird species sharing few functional traits. However, most urban bird studies focused on vegetation patches in temperate cities. In this study, we investigate how urban environmental attributes – noise, height of buildings, and urban vegetation characteristics – modulate species occurrences and the distribution of functional traits across the streetscape of a tropical metropolis. We predicted diverse trait-environment relationships, but that highly urbanized contexts (e.g., noisy streets with…
Sysmä Community Currency: An Analysis of its Success from the Perspectives of Purposes, Stakeholders and Promotion
2019
Artikkeli on tapaustutkimus paikallisrahajärjestelmästä, jota kokeiltiin äskettäin maalaisympäristössä Sysmän kunnassa. Paikallisraha on yksi innovaatiivisista aloitteista, joita kunta on tehnyt tällä vuosituhannella torjuakseen jo 1960-luvulta alkaen käynnissä ollutta väestökatoa. Tässä artikkelissa tutkitaan paikallisrahan käynnistysvaihetta siihen sisältyneiden ristiriitojen näkökulmasta. Artikkelissa todetaan, että järjestelmä kärsi epäselvästä tavoitteenasettelusta, ja että eri osallisilla oli tavoittesta vaihtelevia ja ristiriitaisia käsityksiä. Paikallisrahan sosiaalista hyväksyntää heikensivät päätös rajoittaa rahaa vastaanottavien yritysten joukko kunnassa kirjoilla oleviin yrityks…
The “genetic erosion” of the soil ecosystem
2013
Abstract This paper takes into consideration the influence of human activities on the loss of pedodiversity in a Mediterranean area due to large scale farming. In particular it examines the quantitative and qualitative soil changes in a period of 53 years (from 1955 to 2008) evaluating the loss of soil diversity at soil subgroups level of the USDA Soil Taxonomy system. The following indices were used: richness; Shannon’s diversity index; Simpson diversity index; Shannon’s evenness index; Simpson’s evenness index. In this case study, considering what we observed in time, the human intervention in soil transformation could increase the diversity in the landscape in an initial phase, but forwa…