Human development and biodiversity conservation in Brazilian Cerrado (original) (raw)
Related papers
AimTo analyse spatial trade-offs in conservation of mammals, considering benefits of biodiversity conservation and socioeconomic costs.To analyse spatial trade-offs in conservation of mammals, considering benefits of biodiversity conservation and socioeconomic costs.LocationCerrado Biodiversity Hotspot, Brazil.Cerrado Biodiversity Hotspot, Brazil.MethodsWe built ecological niche models (ENMs) for 154 mammals inhabiting the cerrado. We combined model projections to produce consensus maps of species' distributions for three types of models (envelope, statistical and machine-learning models). We used these range summaries as input data in spatial prioritization analyses. We compared six conservation scenarios, considering human population density, land cost, anthropogenic land use, political willingness to act and the distribution of species using trade-off analyses. We complemented the current network of protected areas, aiming to achieve a target of 17% of land protection in the cerrado.We built ecological niche models (ENMs) for 154 mammals inhabiting the cerrado. We combined model projections to produce consensus maps of species' distributions for three types of models (envelope, statistical and machine-learning models). We used these range summaries as input data in spatial prioritization analyses. We compared six conservation scenarios, considering human population density, land cost, anthropogenic land use, political willingness to act and the distribution of species using trade-off analyses. We complemented the current network of protected areas, aiming to achieve a target of 17% of land protection in the cerrado.ResultsSpecies-rich sites coincide with regions with high human population, high land cost, high anthropogenic land use and diverse levels of political willingness to act. We found a significant change in spatial priorities when we included socioeconomic and political dimensions in analyses: top-priority sites moved north, reduced by 68% potential conservation conflicts with human population, reduced by 72% the total monetary cost of actions and reduced by 68% conflict with other anthropogenic land uses. It also increased by 80% the beneficial effect of political willingness to act.Species-rich sites coincide with regions with high human population, high land cost, high anthropogenic land use and diverse levels of political willingness to act. We found a significant change in spatial priorities when we included socioeconomic and political dimensions in analyses: top-priority sites moved north, reduced by 68% potential conservation conflicts with human population, reduced by 72% the total monetary cost of actions and reduced by 68% conflict with other anthropogenic land uses. It also increased by 80% the beneficial effect of political willingness to act.Main conclusionsOur results reinforce the idea that using only biological criteria for proposing spatial conservation priorities can undermine conservation plans given increases in socioeconomic and political conflicts.Our results reinforce the idea that using only biological criteria for proposing spatial conservation priorities can undermine conservation plans given increases in socioeconomic and political conflicts.
Spatial heterogeneity, land use and conservation in the cerrado region of Brazil
Aim This paper presents a spatial classification of the environmental and ecological diversity of the cerrado region of Brazil, as well as an appraisal of the levels of conversion to agriculture and of the extent of land protection. Location The cerrado region of Brazil, located in the centre of Brazil, occupies c. 2.5 million square kilometres. Our study area represents roughly 85% of the total. This ecologically heterogeneous region is dominated by savannas, but also contains several types of forests and xerophytic communities that often form mosaics with the savannas. Its high biodiversity is seriously threatened by the accelerated process of conversion to agriculture and a deficiency in the extent and the representativeness of protected areas. Methods We selected 124 land systems from a previous study of the lowlands of South America. The maps were digitized and 41 parameters, where environmental information was available, were used to build a matrix. A cluster analysis was then performed and the results used to classify the land systems into units at two scales. The larger units, characterized by the dominant landform and vegetation, were considered as landscape units. Within each of these, smaller units called ecological units were defined by the physiognomy and phenology of the dominant vegetation, topography and drainage. Using GIS, we mapped the resulting ecological units and incorporated the information on land use from the municipal agricultural census of 1996. In addition, data on the extent of protected land units was used to assess the status of land protection in each ecological unit. Results Five landscape units and 15 ecological units were identified, mapped and explained. These units were not continuous but were represented by disjunct patches located in different parts of the study region. Brief descriptions are given including the geographical locations and dominant ecological features. They also include the extent of land conversion to agriculture (1996 census figures) in each of the various patches as well as the number and area of units of conservation. Main conclusions The high level of land conversion to agriculture is a major threat to the conservation of the remarkable biodiversity of the cerrado region. This, together with the poor status of land protection, represents the major environmental problem facing this region. However, the fact that areas with similar general ecological conditions have a disjunct distribution is important for conservation purposes, even though the details of floristic similarities and biogeographic influences have still to be worked out. Our detailed spatial classification has made this disjunction clearly apparent and has allowed us to map ecologically similar areas accurately. This allows the evaluation of the status of these areas in terms of land use and land protection and may be used in the design of conservation strategies.
Anuran species richness, complementarity and conservation conflicts in Brazilian Cerrado
Acta Oecologica-international Journal of Ecology, 2006
Broad-scale correlations between species richness and human population suggest that processes driving species richness, mainly related to high ecological productivity, may also drive human populations. However, it is still under debate if this coincidence implies conflicts between biodiversity conservation and human development. In this paper, we analyzed the relationships among human population size, species richness and irreplaceability in Brazilian Cerrado. We analyzed a dataset with 131 species of anurans distributed in 181 cells with 1°of spatial resolution covering the biome. We found a positive correlation between human population size and anuran species richness (r = 0.46; P = 0.033 with 19.5 geographically effective degrees of freedom, v*), but the irreplaceability of each cell was poorly correlated with human population size (r = 0.075; P = 0.323; v* = 173.9). The 17 cells in the 97 optimal reserve networks contained a total human population ranging from 2942,195 to 4319,845 people, representing on average 11.8% of the human population in the entire Cerrado grid. The comparison of these observed values with 10,000 values from randomly generated networks suggests a relatively high flexibility in optimal complementarity sets for reserve selection. Our results indicated that correlation between richness and human population does not necessarily result in conflicts, given the opportunities for conciliating conservation and development. However, the analyses performed here are initial explorations within the framework of conservation biogeography, so more detailed studies are necessary to establish conservation planning at regional and local scales.
Protected areas form a quintessential component of the global strategy to perpetuate tropical biodiversity within relatively undisturbed wildlands, but they are becoming increasingly isolated by rapid agricultural encroachment. Here we consider a network of 788 forest protected areas (PAs) in the world's largest tropical country to examine the degree to which they remain intact, and their responses to multiple biophysical and socioeconomic variables potentially affecting natural habitat loss under varying contexts of rural development. PAs within the complex Brazilian National System of Conservation Units (SNUC) are broken down into two main classes—strictly protected and sustainable use. Collectively, these account for 22.6% of the forest biomes within Brazil's national territory, primarily within the Amazon and the Atlantic Forest, but are widely variable in size, ecoregional representation, management strategy, and the degree to which they are threatened by human activities both within and outside reserve boundaries. In particular, we examine the variation in habitat conversion rates in both strictly protected and sustainable use reserves as a function of the internal and external human population density, and levels of land-use revenue in adjacent human-dominated landscapes. Our results show that PAs surrounded by heavily settled agro-pastoral landscapes face much greater challenges in retaining their natural vegetation , and that strictly protected areas are considerably less degraded than sustainable use reserves, which can rival levels of habitat degradation within adjacent 10-km buffer areas outside.
Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
The Cerrado domain and its biodiversity has suffered several anthropogenic influences. Our objective was to evaluate the influence of biotic and anthropic variables on the mammal community in a protected area in the Cerrado-Caatinga ecotone. For this we sampled the mammals using camera traps (4,072 days/trap) for 16 months. We used generalized mixed linear models (GLMM) with model selection via Akaike's Information Criteria corrected for small sample size (AICc) to assess the influence of variables on richness, abundance and functional groups of mammals. We made a total of 663 photographic records of 16 species of medium and large mammals. The richness and number of mammals was negatively influenced by the distance to human settlements while carnivores were not affected by any of the variables evaluated, herbivores and generalists were more common in areas closer from human habitation. Despite the presence of large areas of native vegetation, our results show that there is a dominance of common and generalist species. The protected area is vulnerable to different sources of human pressure and the design and implementation of a management plan can be a key tool for protecting biodiversity and regulating the use of natural resources by local communities.
Revista Brasileira de Estudos Regionais e Urbanos
This paper investigates the relationship between socioeconomic development and deforestation in the Cerrado biome, mainly focusing on the current Brazilian agricultural frontier of Matopiba. More specifically, we search for spatial interactions, heterogeneity, and spatial clusters among the municipalities using the exploratory analysis of spatial data (ESDA). Due to the many possible socioeconomic variables related to deforestation decisions, we create a Socioeconomic Development Index (SDI) that synthesizes all possible influences using factorial analysis from multivariate statistics. We also grouped cluster analysis municipalities with dissimilar deforestation and economic development patterns. The results show that the biome’s economic development and deforestation are spatially concentrated and heterogeneous and are negatively associated for the majority of Cerrado municipalities both in the spatial and cluster analysis, indicating that socioeconomic development may be an inhibi...
Ecological Economics, 2008
Biodiversity policies are suffering an implementation crisis; the roots are deeply entrenched in the unfair competition between the public and private interests for suitable versus available land. In this article we propose a value-based equivalence method for compensation for the 20% compulsory reserves in the Taquari River sub-catchments, as legally required for central savannas of Brazil. Using regression techniques we analyzed 106 land deals in the Pantanal's watershed and identified the most significant variables influencing land value. We argue that the commonly used area-for-area, compensation mechanism, where 1 ha of compulsory reserve is missing, requires another hectare protected in the same catchments, instead of counteract habitat loss, is in fact harmful to biodiversity, stimulating progressive habitat destruction. We identified the economic forces behind deforestation and habitat fragmentation in the central savannahs of Brazil and proposed a market-based approach to counteract these forces using tools already available in environmental economics. We suggest that a dollar-for-dollar reference to determine land equivalence and compensation can better counter-balance the incremental losses from habitat destruction, while providing objectivity and transparency for trading alternatives.
Agriculture, habitat loss and spatial patterns of human occupation in a biodiversity hotspot
Scientia Agricola, 2009
The Cerrado biome, the second largest biome in Neotropical region, consists of a mosaic of different habitat types, ranging from open grasslands to dense woodlands and dry forests. An intensive recent occupation process has transformed it into the most important region for cattle ranching and intensive commodity crops in Brazil. In this study, a macroecological approach was used to evaluate broad-scale spatial patterns of habitat loss in the Brazilian Cerrado, applying a series of spatial autocorrelation and partial regression analyses to understand how the proportion of remaining natural habitats is correlated with socio-economic variables, expressing different dimensions of human occupation and climatic variation. On average, 59% of the area is occupied by natural remnants at the spatial scale analyzed, although patterns of habitat loss are strongly spatially structured, with a Moran's I spatial autocorrelation coefficient equal to 0.825 ± 0.055 (p < 0.001). The partial reg...
Habitat loss and natural vegetation fragmentation are significant causes of global biodiversity decline, impacting plant and animal species negatively. This issue is worrisome in the private areas of Cerrado in Brazil, which is the second-largest biome, considered a hotspot for biodiversity conservation, and a provider of ecosystem services. Herein, we present a novel integrated approach to define priority areas for biodiversity conservation and environmental compensation in Cerrado, using multicriteria analysis. Our approach combines variables like deforestation projection, integral connectivity index, threatened species occurrence, and environmental information of rural properties, ranking the importance of remaining native vegetation for biodiversity conservation and forest certificate issuance. Landscape metrics were used to observe and predict land use and land cover changes from 1988 to 2038. We found a loss of native vegetation in the Cerrado superior to 20% between 1988 and ...
Oryx, 2008
TÔ rres and R o g É r i o P e r e i r a B a s t o s Abstract Increasing rates of habitat loss and human occupation are creating demands for optimum strategies that maximize conservation efforts, despite the lack of detailed data required for implementation. Broad scale biogeographical data may furnish initial guidelines for conservation planning in a hierarchical framework for establishing conservation priorities and helping guide future research programmes. This approach may be critical in regions for which few detailed data on diversity, abundance and distribution are available, such as in the Cerrado biome of central Brazil. We used a macroecological approach, based on the extent of occurrence of 127 species of terrestrial vertebrates endemic to the Cerrado, to design a regional network of potential areas that represent all species at least once. The final network has a total of 24 regions widely distributed throughout the biome. We also evaluated these regions in terms of their human occupation by adding a cost for each cell based on 23 variables expressing variation in agricultural, demographic and cattle-ranching patterns on the Cerrado. Our analyses showed that conservation efforts should be concentrated in the south and south-east of the biome. This macroecological approach can provide broad guidelines for conservation and define the focus for more local and realistic conservation efforts.