PARENT SESSION
Symposium 12: Bridging the divide: Bringing theory into practice in forest biodiversity conservation
Organized by: LA Schulte, R Mitchell , ML Hunter, J Franklin, RK McIntyre, and B Palik
Wednesday, August 10, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 517 C, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Theories, tests, applications: How do we get from here to there?
Schulte, Lisa*,1, Mitchell, Robert2, Hunter, Malcolm 3, Franklin, Jerry 4, McIntyre, Kevin2, Palik, Brian5, 1 Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Ames, IA, USA2 Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway, Newton, GA, USA3 Department of Wildlife Ecology, Orono, ME, USA4 College of Forest Resources, Seattle, WA, USA5 USDA Forest Service North Central Research Station, Grand Rapids, MN, USA
ABSTRACT- While much has been written describing biodiversity, its global decline, and the need for action, the scientific underpinnings of concepts that guide conservation practice have received little attention. We surveyed ten broad-scale conservation projects to determine which concepts are commonly used to guide conservation of forest biodiversity and the relative importance of these concepts in forest management planning. We then reviewed the scientific literature to evaluate the degree to which these concepts are founded in antecedent theory, the extent to which they have been tested, and the limits of those tests. The concepts of Reserves, Matrix Management, Filters (Fine, Meso, and Coarse), Hotspots, Using Nature's Template, Diversity Begets Diversity, Patchworks, Networks, and Gradients are extensively employed in the forest planning efforts we surveyed. While most of these concepts received high utility scores, Coarse Filter was most commonly used, closely followed by Matrix Management and Fine Filter. Our review of the scientific literature suggests that all of these concepts have both direct and indirect relationships with foundational ecological theories, such as niches, natural selection, and island biogeography. All of the concepts have some empirical support and most have received some testing in an experimental framework; however, these tests are far from comprehensive as, among other reasons, many species are yet unknown and are difficult to measure. Although we document wide use of these concepts, significant constraints, scientific and otherwise, hinder further incorporation into forest planning including lack of empirical support at the spatial and temporal scales over which forest management is implemented. Practical ways to advance these concepts include implementing effective, efficient monitoring protocols and establishing experimental tests in an operational context.
Key words: biodiversity, scientific theory, conservation planning, landscape designs