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Abstract
In times of economical crisis, rewilding can be a less costly conservation management approach, able to generate economic value from wild lands and to rural communities. Simultaneously, improvement of connectivity between protected areas was identified as a global priority for conservation. Allying the rewilding concept and connectivity concern, a model for identification of less disturbed corridors for wildlife was designed. Less disturbed corridors can be serious candidates become rewilding areas due to their already low human pressure for wildlife. Accordingly, it was asked of experts from different areas such as nature conservation, environmental and land planning to answer an inquiry to evaluate some variables representing human disturbance. The 51 expert answers obtained were used to create a single spatial gradient of human disturbance to wildlife. Between three Portuguese conservation areas, the least disturbance corridors to wildlife were designed and analyzed. Location of each corridor was compared with Iberian Wolf (Canis lupus signatus) distribution, a top predator known by its sensitivity to human presence and disturbance. When spatially compared, the obtained corridors fit the wolf confirmed presence distribution. This is a promising result for the model fitness to human pressure and to optimize a future network of rewilding corridors between protected areas.
Parent Publication
Keywords
wilderness,
rewilding,
restoration,
private lands,
biodiversity,
conservation,
protected areas,
economics,
community involvement,
policy,
stewardship,
education,
spiritual values
Citation
Nunes, Lara; Gomes, Ana Luisa; Fonseca, Alexandra. 2015. Wildlife corridors based on the spatial modeling of the human pressure: A Portuguese case study. In: Watson, Alan; Carver, Stephen; Krenova, Zdenka; McBride, Brooke, comps. Science and stewardship to protect and sustain wilderness values: Tenth World Wilderness Congress symposium; 2013, 4-10 October, Salamanca, Spain. Proceedings RMRS-P-74. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 5-13.
