RT Journal Article
T1 Fragmentation and Connectivity of Island Forests in Agricultural Mediterranean Environments: A Comparative Study between the Guadalquivir Valley (Spain) and the Apulia Region (Italy)
A1 Hidalgo Fernández, Pablo José
A1 Hernández, Helena
A1 Sánchez Almendro, Antonio José
A1 López Tirado, Javier
A1 Vessella, Federico
A1 Porras, Rafael
AB Habitat loss and fragmentation are considered some the main threats to biodiversity.Original forests have suffered an accentuated fragmentation and agricultural homogenization, leavingonly some areas of natural vegetation, relegated to strongly anthropized disconnected patches (islandforests, IFs) in a hostile matrix. These patches of original vegetation could be the key for the design andmanagement of ecological corridors to promote species migration, an essential strategy for meetingthe consequences of Global Change. This study proposes a comparative analysis of the fragmentationand connectivity of IFs of Quercus in two typically Mediterranean areas of predominantly agriculturaluse: the Guadalquivir valley (Spain) and the Apulia region (Italy). A retrospective comparison isalso carried out in the Guadalquivir valley. The aim is to develop an objective new methodology tolocate the patches of most interest using quantitative and qualitative data. Reference cartography ofcurrent island forests of Quercus species was developed from several digital sources and validatedwith orthoimages and field observations. Fragmentation analysis was based on graph structuresusing the software Conefor 2.6, a reliable tool for assessment of the role of patches in the landscape.Area and distance were used as node and connector values. Dispersion distance was established as500 m, based on the maximum dispersion of acorns. Results indicate that the Guadalquivir valleyhas suffered an intensive fragmentation in recent decades. Both the Guadalquivir and Apulia regionshost some IFs with the relevant potential to contribute as core habitats in the creation of connectionsto other natural protected sites. Many residual IFs in the landscape could contribute as steppingstones in the design and management of ecological corridors. Our methodology highlights thevalue of IFs to develop assessment strategies using homogenized available digital cartography andcommon criteria for the dispersion distances in graph theory analysis. The application of this newmethodology could help in the management of protected sites using highly fragmented areas toallow the species movement through inhospitable landscapes in a unique opportunity to connect thedifferent protected areas
PB MDPI
SN 1999-4907 (electrónico)
YR 2021
FD 2021
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10272/20271
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10272/20271
LA eng
NO Hidalgo, P. J., Hernández, H., Sánchez-Almendro, A. J., López-Tirado, J., Vessella, F., & Porras, R. (2021). Fragmentation and Connectivity of Island Forests in Agricultural Mediterranean Environments: A Comparative Study between the Guadalquivir Valley (Spain) and the Apulia Region (Italy). In Forests (Vol. 12, Issue 9, p. 1201). MDPI AG. https://doi.org/10.3390/f12091201
NO This research was funded by the Council of Economy, Innovation, Science and Employmentof the Andalusian Government in the framework of the Project “Modelo espacial de distribuciónde las quercíneas y otras formaciones forestales de Andalucía: una herramienta para la gestión y laconservación del patrimonio natural” (Code P10-RNM-6013) and by FEDER, Junta de Andalucía—Consejería de Economía y Conocimiento. Proyecto UHU-1262837
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
RD 30 may 2026