29 results on '"Keppel, Gunnar"'
Search Results
2. Refugial capacity defines holdouts, microrefugia and stepping-stones: a response to Hannah et al.
- Author
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Keppel G and Wardell-Johnson GW
- Subjects
- Animal Distribution, Climate Change, Conservation of Natural Resources, Microclimate, Plant Dispersal
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
3. Rapid characterisation of vegetation structure to predict refugia and climate change impacts across a global biodiversity hotspot.
- Author
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Schut AG, Wardell-Johnson GW, Yates CJ, Keppel G, Baran I, Franklin SE, Hopper SD, Van Niel KP, Mucina L, and Byrne M
- Subjects
- Australia, Geography, Geologic Sediments, Linear Models, Rain, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Plant Physiological Phenomena
- Abstract
Identification of refugia is an increasingly important adaptation strategy in conservation planning under rapid anthropogenic climate change. Granite outcrops (GOs) provide extraordinary diversity, including a wide range of taxa, vegetation types and habitats in the Southwest Australian Floristic Region (SWAFR). However, poor characterization of GOs limits the capacity of conservation planning for refugia under climate change. A novel means for the rapid identification of potential refugia is presented, based on the assessment of local-scale environment and vegetation structure in a wider region. This approach was tested on GOs across the SWAFR. Airborne discrete return Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) data and Red Green and Blue (RGB) imagery were acquired. Vertical vegetation profiles were used to derive 54 structural classes. Structural vegetation types were described in three areas for supervised classification of a further 13 GOs across the region. Habitat descriptions based on 494 vegetation plots on and around these GOs were used to quantify relationships between environmental variables, ground cover and canopy height. The vegetation surrounding GOs is strongly related to structural vegetation types (Kappa = 0.8) and to its spatial context. Water gaining sites around GOs are characterized by taller and denser vegetation in all areas. The strong relationship between rainfall, soil-depth, and vegetation structure (R(2) of 0.8-0.9) allowed comparisons of vegetation structure between current and future climate. Significant shifts in vegetation structural types were predicted and mapped for future climates. Water gaining areas below granite outcrops were identified as important putative refugia. A reduction in rainfall may be offset by the occurrence of deeper soil elsewhere on the outcrop. However, climate change interactions with fire and water table declines may render our conclusions conservative. The LiDAR-based mapping approach presented enables the integration of site-based biotic assessment with structural vegetation types for the rapid delineation and prioritization of key refugia.
- Published
- 2014
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
4. Anthropogenic disturbances alter the conservation value of karst dolines
- Author
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Bátori, Zoltán, Vojtkó, András, Keppel, Gunnar, Tölgyesi, Csaba, Čarni, Andraž, Zorn, Matija, Farkas, Tünde, Erdős, László, Kiss, Péter János, Módra, Gábor, and Breg Valjavec, Mateja
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
5. Understorey vegetation moderates climate in open forests: The role of the skirt‐forming grass tree Xanthorrhoea semiplana F.Muell.
- Author
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Kok, Xiangning, Bruns, Liene, Guerin, Greg, and Keppel, Gunnar
- Subjects
UNDERSTORY plants ,FOREST microclimatology ,EXTREME weather ,EFFECT of human beings on climate change ,GLOBAL warming ,EUCALYPTUS - Abstract
Microsites are created by abiotic and biotic features of the landscape and may provide essential habitats for the persistence of biota. Forest canopies and understorey plants may moderate wind and solar radiation to create microclimatic conditions that differ considerably from regional climates. Skirt‐forming plants, where senescent leaves create hut‐like cavities around the stem, create microsites that are sheltered from ambient conditions and extreme weather events, constituting potential refuges for wildlife. We investigate day and night temperatures and humidity for four locations (grass tree cavities, soil, 20 cm above‐ground, 1 m above‐ground) in a South Australian forest with relatively open canopy of stringybark eucalypts (Eucalyptus baxteri, E. obliqua) and an understorey of skirt‐forming grass trees (Xanthorrhoea semiplana) at 5, 10, 20, and 40 m from the forest edge. We also measured the percentage of canopy and understorey covers. Generally, temperature and humidity differed significantly between more sheltered (grass tree cavities, soil) and open‐air microsites, with the former being cooler during the day and warmer and more humid during the night. Furthermore, our results suggest that canopy cover tends to decrease, and understorey cover tends to increase, the temperature of microsites. Distance to the edge was not significantly related to temperature for any microsite, suggesting that the edge effect did not extend beyond 10 m from the edge. Overall, grass trees influenced microclimatic conditions by forming a dense understorey and providing cavities that are relatively insulated. The capacity of grass tree cavities to buffer external conditions increased linearly with ambient temperatures, by 0.46°C per degree increase in maximum and 0.25°C per degree decrease in minimum temperatures, potentially offsetting climate warming and enabling persistence of fauna within their thermal limits. These climate moderation properties will make grass trees increasingly important refuges as extreme weather events become more common under anthropogenic climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
6. The capacity of refugia for conservation planning under climate change
- Author
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Keppel, Gunnar, Mokany, Karel, Wardell-Johnson, Grant W, Phillips, Ben L, Welbergen, Justin A, and Reside, April E
- Published
- 2015
7. Refugia: identifying and understanding safe havens for biodiversity under climate change
- Author
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Keppel, Gunnar, Van Niel, Kimberly P., Wardell-Johnson, Grant W., Yates, Colin J., Byrne, Margaret, Mucina, Ladislav, Schut, Antonius G. T., Hopper, Stephen D., and Franklin, Steven E.
- Published
- 2012
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
8. Globally consistent impact of tropical cyclones on the structure of tropical and subtropical forests.
- Author
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Ibanez, Thomas, Keppel, Gunnar, Menkes, Christophe, Gillespie, Thomas W., Lengaigne, Matthieu, Mangeas, Morgan, Rivas-Torres, Gonzalo, Birnbaum, Philippe, and Lines, Emily
- Subjects
- *
TROPICAL cyclones , *TROPICAL forests , *TYPHOONS , *DEFOLIATION , *CLIMATE change - Abstract
Tropical cyclones (TCs) are large‐scale disturbances that regularly impact tropical forests. Although long‐term impacts of TCs on forest structure have been proposed, a global test of the relationship between forest structure and TC frequency and intensity is lacking. We test on a pantropical scale whether TCs shape the structure of tropical and subtropical forests in the long term.We compiled forest structural features (stem density, basal area, mean canopy height and maximum tree size) for plants ≥10 cm in diameter at breast height from published forest inventory data (438 plots ≥0.1 ha, pooled into 250 1 × 1‐degree grid cells) located in dry and humid forests. We computed maps of cyclone frequency and energy released by cyclones per unit area (power dissipation index, PDI) using a high‐resolution historical database of TCs trajectories and intensities. We then tested the relationship between PDI and forest structural features using multivariate linear models, controlling for climate (mean annual temperature and water availability) and human disturbance (human foot print).Forests subject to frequent cyclones (at least one TCs per decade) and high PDI exhibited higher stem density and basal area, and lower canopy heights. However, the relationships between PDI and basal area or canopy height were partially masked by lower water availability and higher human foot print in tropical dry forests.Synthesis. Our results provide the first evidence that tropical cyclones have a long‐term impact on the structure of tropical and subtropical forests in a globally consistent way. The strong relationship between power dissipation index and stem density suggests that frequent and intense tropical cyclones reduce canopy cover through defoliation and tree mortality, encouraging higher regeneration and turnover of biomass. The projected increase in intensity and poleward extension of tropical cyclones due to anthropogenic climate change may therefore have important and lasting impacts on the structure and dynamics of forests in the future. We show that tropical cyclones have a long‐term impact on the structure of tropical and subtropical forests in a globally consistent way. Forests subject to frequent and intense cyclones exhibit higher stem density and lower canopy heights. The projected changes in tropical cyclone regime may therefore have important and lasting impacts on the structure of forests in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
9. Clarifying the concept of climate change refugia for coral reefs.
- Author
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Kavousi, Javid and Keppel, Gunnar
- Subjects
- *
CLIMATE change , *CORAL reefs & islands , *WILDLIFE rescue , *ENVIRONMENTAL protection , *ENVIRONMENTAL impact analysis - Abstract
Refugia can facilitate the persistence of biodiversity under changing environmental conditions, such as anthropogenic climate change, and therefore constitute the best chance of survival for many coral species in the wild. Despite an increasing amount of literature, the concept of coral reef refugia remains poorly defined; so that climate change refugia have been confused with other phenomena, including temporal refuges, pristine habitats and physiological processes such as adaptation and acclimatization. We propose six criteria that determine the capacity of refugia to facilitate species persistence, including long-term buffering, protection from multiple climatic stressors, accessibility, microclimatic heterogeneity, size, and low exposure to non-climate disturbances. Any effective, high-capacity coral reef refugium should be characterized by long-term buffering of environmental conditions (for several decades) and multi-stressor buffering (provision of suitable environmental conditions with respect to climatic change, particularly ocean warming and acidification). Although not always essential, the remaining criteria are important for quantifying the capacity of potential refugia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
10. Microhabitats and canopy cover moderate high summer temperatures in a fragmented Mediterranean landscape.
- Author
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Keppel, Gunnar, Anderson, Sharolyn, Williams, Craig, Kleindorfer, Sonia, and O’Connell, Christopher
- Subjects
- *
PLANT canopies , *ECOLOGICAL niche , *TEMPERATURE effect , *LANDSCAPES , *ANTHROPOGENIC effects on nature , *CLIMATE change - Abstract
Extreme heat events will become more frequent under anthropogenic climate change, especially in Mediterranean ecosystems. Microhabitats can considerably moderate (buffer) the effects of extreme weather events and hence facilitate the persistence of some components of the biodiversity. We investigate the microclimatic moderation provided by two important microhabitats (cavities formed by the leaves of the grass-tree Xanthorrhoea semiplana F.Muell., Xanthorrhoeaceae; and inside the leaf-litter) during the summer of 2015/16 on the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. We placed microsensors inside and outside these microhabitats, as well as above the ground below the forest canopy. Grass-tree and leaf-litter microhabitats significantly buffered against high temperatures and low relative humidity, compared to ground-below-canopy sensors. There was no significant difference between grass-tree and leaf-litter temperatures: in both microhabitats, daily temperature variation was reduced, day temperatures were 1–5°C cooler, night temperatures were 0.5–3°C warmer, and maximum temperatures were up to 14.4°C lower, compared to ground-below-canopy sensors. Grass-tree and leaf-litter microhabitats moderated heat increase at an average rate of 0.24°C temperature per 1°C increase of ambient temperature in the ground-below-canopy microhabitat. The average daily variation in temperature was determined by the type (grass-tree and leaf-litter versus ground-below-canopy) of microhabitat (explaining 67%), the amount of canopy cover and the area of the vegetation fragment (together explaining almost 10% of the variation). Greater canopy cover increased the amount of microclimatic moderation provided, especially in the leaf-litter. Our study highlights the importance of microhabitats in moderating macroclimatic conditions. However, this moderating effect is currently not considered in species distribution modelling under anthropogenic climate change nor in the management of vegetation. This shortcoming will have to be addressed to obtain realistic forecasts of future species distributions and to achieve effective management of biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2017
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
11. Past, present and future refugia for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora.
- Author
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Mokany, Karel, Jordan, Greg J., Harwood, Thomas D., Harrison, Peter A., Keppel, Gunnar, Gilfedder, Louise, Carter, Oberon, and Ferrier, Simon
- Subjects
BOTANY ,BIOCOMPLEXITY ,BIOLOGICAL classification ,BIOLOGY - Abstract
Aim Refugia under past climates have been important in structuring current patterns in diversity, while refugia under anthropogenic climate change will likely be important in retaining this diversity and shaping new patterns. However, few studies have examined the congruence of past, present and future refugia, or the spatiotemporal connectivity of these refugia. Our aim was to test the extent of overlap of refugia under Last Glacial Maximum ( LGM), present (2015) and likely future climates (2100), for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora. We then aimed to identify areas of high spatiotemporal refugia connectivity, as priority areas for conservation and management. Location Tasmania, Australia. Methods We developed and applied a new community-level approach to identifying refugia, based on generalized dissimilarity modelling of compositional turnover and a set of reference sites with known biodiversity value. Using these projections of palaeoendemic plant refugia for past, present and future climates, we developed and applied a second approach to quantify the level of connectivity of these refugia over space and time. Results Although there was large overlap (85%) between current and future climates in the distribution of the highest value palaeoendemic refugia, the small congruence of these areas with refugia at the LGM resulted in only a small area ( c. 9 km
2 ) of persistent high value refugia over all three time periods. Despite this, our spatiotemporal analysis identified several areas of high connectivity in refugial environments for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora over time. Main conclusions The community-level approaches we demonstrate here to quantify refugia and their spatiotemporal connectivity have the potential to advance our understanding of biodiversity dynamics, particularly for taxonomic groups that are species-rich, poorly studied or comprised of many rare species, where species-level approaches are less suitable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2017
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
12. Deep tree hollows: important refuges from extreme temperatures.
- Author
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O'Connell, Chris and Keppel, Gunnar
- Subjects
- *
TREE cavities , *HABITATS , *CLIMATE change , *EUCALYPTUS , *ARID regions - Abstract
Tree hollows constitute crucial habitats for fauna and can buffer ambient environmental conditions. The latter property should be especially relevant during extreme weather conditions, which are forecast to increase under anthropogenic climate change. We investigated the buffering capacity of Eucalyptus oleosa F.Muell. ex Miq. subsp. oleosa tree hollows in semi-arid southern Australia for 28 days under a wide range of ambient temperatures. Tree hollows provided more stable microclimates than ambient conditions, maintaining lower temperatures and higher humidity during the day and higher temperatures and lower humidity during the night. Daytime buffering capacity increased slightly with depth and we recorded a maximum buffering of 15.1°C below ambient temperatures. Maximum day time buffering capacity increased at a rate of approximately 0.6°C per 1°C increase in ambient temperature, meaning that maximum buffering capacity was reached during the hottest periods. The high buffering capacity of tree hollows suggests that old trees with deep hollows are important in facilitating the persistence of fauna during extreme weather events. Therefore, protecting old-growth forests and vegetation remnants that are rich in tree hollows is an important strategy for mitigating the impact of climate change on fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
13. Characteristics of climate change refugia for Australian biodiversity.
- Author
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Reside, April E., Welbergen, Justin A., Phillips, Ben L., Wardell‐Johnson, Grant W., Keppel, Gunnar, Ferrier, Simon, Williams, Stephen E., and VanDerWal, Jeremy
- Subjects
CLIMATE change ,BIODIVERSITY conservation ,BIOTIC communities ,ECOLOGY ,PHYSIOLOGICAL stress - Abstract
Identifying refugia is a critical component of effective conservation of biodiversity under anthropogenic climate change. However, despite a surge in conceptual and practical interest, identifying refugia remains a significant challenge across diverse continental landscapes. We provide an overview of the key properties of refugia that promote species' persistence under climate change, including their capacity to (i) buffer species from climate change; (ii) sustain long-term population viability and evolutionary processes; (iii) minimize the potential for deleterious species interactions, provided that the refugia are (iv) available and accessible to species under threat. Further, we classify refugia in terms of the environmental and biotic stressors that they provide protection from (i.e. thermal, hydric, cyclonic, pyric and biotic refugia), but ideally refugia should provide protection from a multitude of stressors. Our systematic characterization of refugia facilitates the identification of refugia in the Australian landscape. Challenges remain, however, specifically with respect to how to assess the quality of refugia at the level of individual species and whole species assemblages. It is essential that these challenges are overcome before refugia can live up to their acclaim as useful targets for conservation and management in the context of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2014
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
14. Prolonged isolation and persistence of a common endemic on granite outcrops in both mesic and semi-arid environments in south-western Australia.
- Author
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Tapper, Sarah‐Louise, Byrne, Margaret, Yates, Colin J., Keppel, Gunnar, Hopper, Stephen D., Van Niel, Kimberly, Schut, Antonius G. T., Mucina, Laco, Wardell‐Johnson, Grant W., and Comes, Hans‐Peter
- Subjects
ARID regions ,PHYLOGEOGRAPHY ,HABITATS ,CLIMATE change ,ENVIRONMENTAL geology - Abstract
Aim Granite outcrops may be able to act as refugia for species during adverse climate change, owing to their topographic complexity. We assessed this hypothesis by examining phylogeographical patterns in a common, geographically widespread granite endemic, Stypandra glauca (Hemerocallidaceae). Location Granite outcrops of the Southwest Australian Floristic Region, Western Australia. Methods Twenty-four tetraploid individuals of the granite endemic Stypandra glauca were sampled from each of 12 granite outcrops: 7 from a mesic environment and 5 from the semi-arid region. Phylogenetic reconstruction and divergence-dating was achieved using Bayesian and parsimony analyses of chloroplast haplotypes from 90 individuals. Nuclear diversity and population differentiation were analysed across all individuals using 10 microsatellite loci. Results Stypandra glauca exhibited high (chloroplast) or moderate (nuclear) levels of divergence among, and low diversity within, outcrops. Haplotype diversity was high in both sampling regions, and each haplotype was unique to one outcrop. There was little correlation between geographical and genetic distance. Both nuclear and chloroplast diversity were higher in southern (mesic) outcrops than in northern (semi-arid) outcrops, although the level of chloroplast divergence among outcrops was similar for both climatic regions. Main conclusions The levels of divergence and low diversity revealed in S. glauca support a scenario of prolonged isolation and persistence on granite outcrops in both mesic and semi-arid climatic regions, with no evidence of contraction-expansion dynamics across the outcrop network. The higher levels of diversity in the southern populations may result from the maintenance of a larger effective population size in southern regions, which retained more mesic climates during drier glacial periods. Although the climatic conditions differ between outcrops in this study, our results indicate that outcrops in both regions have harboured S. glauca throughout climatic changes, accentuating the value of these habitats to biodiversity conservation under future changing climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2014
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
15. Climate change impacts on the terrestrial biodiversity and carbon stocks of Oceania.
- Author
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Wardell-Johnson, Grant W., Keppel, Gunnar, and Sander, Juliane
- Subjects
- *
CLIMATE change , *BIODIVERSITY , *CARBON sequestration , *HABITATS , *HABITAT conservation - Abstract
We review the threats from anthropogenic climate change to the terrestrial biodiversity of Oceania, and quantify decline in carbon stocks. Oceania's rich terrestrial biodiversity is facing unprecedented threats through the interaction of pervasive environmental threats (deforestation and degradation; introduced and invasive species; fragmentation) and the effects of anthropogenic climate change (sea level rise; altered rainfall patterns and increased fire frequency; temperature rises and increased storm severity, extreme weather events and abrupt system changes). All nine of Oceania's terrestrial biomes harbour ecosystems and habitat types that are highly vulnerable under climate change, posing an immense conservation challenge. Current policies and management practices are inadequate and the need for new legislation and economic mechanisms is clear, despite powerful interests committed to limiting progress. Mitigation can be achieved by increasing the effectiveness of the protected area network, by maintaining and effectively managing existing carbon stocks and biodiversity, and by reforestation to sequester atmospheric carbon. A price on carbon emissions may encourage less carbon-intensive energy use while simultaneously encouraging reforestation on long-cleared land, and reducing degradation of native forests. However, realizing these changes will require societal change, and depend on input and collaboration from multiple stakeholders to devise and engage in shared, responsible management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2011
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
16. Refugia: keys to climate change management.
- Author
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Keppel, Gunnar and Wardell-Johnson, Grant W.
- Subjects
- *
LETTERS to the editor , *HABITATS , *CLIMATE change - Abstract
A letter to the editor is presented regarding the refugia as a key to climatic change management.
- Published
- 2012
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
17. Dieback of stringybark eucalypt forests in the Mount Lofty Ranges
- Author
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Gregory R. Guerin, Gunnar Keppel, Stefan Peters, Amelia Hurren, Guerin, Gregory R., Keppel, Gunnar, Peters, Stefan, and Hurren, Amelia
- Subjects
climate change ,heathy forest ,Anthropology ,tree mortality ,Paleontology ,drought ,General Agricultural and Biological Sciences ,dry sclerophyll ,longicorn beetles ,General Environmental Science - Abstract
Canopy dieback and concerning rates of tree mortality have been noted in iconic forests of the Mount Lofty Ranges (MLR), South Australia, dominated by the stringybark eucalypt speciesEucalyptus baxteri(Brown Stringybark) andE. obliqua(Messmate Stringybark). The extent and causes of stringybark forest decline are not yet fully understood, prohibiting evidence-based management strategies. Here, we explore the distribution of MLR populations of the two species and their position in climate space relative to eastern populations. We also conducted field assessments to investigate stand health and dieback aetiology, and analysed existing tree monitoring data. Stringybarks in the MLR are disjunct from eastern populations and occupy a more summer-arid niche. The species are also susceptible to summer water stress andPhytophthora. Periods of drought during 2006–2009 and 2018–2019 may have contributed to observed dieback. However, field assessments suggest a complex landscape syndrome that includes borer infestations and fire impacts among other factors, rather than solely hydraulic failure. Messmate Stringybark has suffered widespread but patchy stand collapse. There is no obvious common pattern of collapsed sites with respect to topography or local water availability (e.g., swamps and ridges equally affected), although northern range-edge sites are heavily affected. Brown Stringybark is less affected but has notable collapse sites. We hope these studies establish a springboard for future investigations and more widespread sampling of MLR stringybark forests. Further investigations should include regional surveys of stringybark sites to record spatial and temporal patterns of tree mortality combined with multi- or hyperspectral analysis of remotely sensed imagery and visual inspection of dieback from very high resolution aerial images and ground-truthing. Our findings confirm the susceptibility of stringybark forests in the MLR to ecosystem collapse and highlight the urgent need to understand the causes and aetiology of the observed dieback.
- Published
- 2023
18. Anthropogenic disturbances alter the conservation value of karst dolines
- Author
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Andraž Čarni, Mateja Breg Valjavec, András Vojtkó, Csaba Tölgyesi, Gunnar Keppel, Tünde Farkas, Matija Zorn, Zoltán Bátori, Gábor Módra, Péter János Kiss, László Erdős, Bátori, Zoltán, Vojtkó, András, Keppel, Gunnar, Tölgyesi, Csaba, Čarni, Andraž, Zorn, Matija, Farkas, Tünde, Erdős, László, Kiss, Péter János, Módra, Gábor, and Breg Valjavec, Mateja
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Microclimate ,Biodiversity ,Context (language use) ,safe haven ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,logging ,vegetation ,Vulnerable species ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Nature and Landscape Conservation ,geography ,vulnerable species ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Ecology ,Global warming ,Vegetation ,Karst ,climate change ,Habitat ,karst depression ,Environmental science ,microrefugia - Abstract
Dolines are depressions in karst landscapes that are of high value for conservation, providing habitats and supporting species not found in the surrounding landscape. This is due to their high microhabitat diversity and ability to decouple microclimate from regional climate changes, making them potential refugia for biodiversity. Nevertheless, local anthropogenic disturbances have had considerable impact on the species composition and vegetation structure of many dolines. Here we investigate the conservation value of dolines in three European karst areas, where different levels and types of anthropogenic disturbances have been shaping the vegetation for centuries, using the number of plant species that are cool-adapted, moist-adapted and of high conservation importance (i.e. vulnerable species) as indicators. We found that anthropogenic disturbances generally have a negative impact, reducing the number of vulnerable species supported by dolines. However, more cool-adapted and moist-adapted species were found in some dolines planted with non-native Picea abies than in less disturbed dolines, indicating that anthropogenic disturbances can also have positive consequences for biodiversity. We conclude that anthropogenic disturbances alter the capacity of dolines to support vulnerable species, and that this will impact survival of species in landscapes under global warming. In this context, the effects of various disturbances on species composition and diversity need to carefully considered to determine the best conservation and/or management options.
- Published
- 2020
19. Clarifying the concept of climate change refugia for coral reefs
- Author
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Javid Kavousi, Gunnar Keppel, Kavousi, Javid, and Keppel, Gunnar
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Ecology ,Resilience of coral reefs ,climate change refugia ,fungi ,refugial capacity ,Climate change ,ocean acidification ,Coral reef ,Aquatic Science ,global warming ,Oceanography ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Environmental science ,coral reefs ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences - Abstract
Refugia can facilitate the persistence of biodiversity under changing environmental conditions, such as anthropogenic climate change, and therefore constitute the best chance of survival for many coral species in the wild. Despite an increasing amount of literature, the concept of coral reef refugia remains poorly defined; so that climate change refugia have been confused with other phenomena, including temporal refuges, pristine habitats and physiological processes such as adaptation and acclimatization. We propose six criteria that determine the capacity of refugia to facilitate species persistence, including long-term buffering, protection from multiple climatic stressors, accessibility, microclimatic heterogeneity, size, and low exposure to non-climate disturbances. Any effective, high-capacity coral reef refugium should be characterized by long-term buffering of environmental conditions (for several decades) and multi-stressor buffering (provision of suitable environmental conditions with respect to climatic change, particularly ocean warming and acidification). Although not always essential, the remaining criteria are important for quantifying the capacity of potential refugia.
- Published
- 2017
20. Past, present and future refugia for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora
- Author
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Peter A. Harrison, Oberon Carter, Tom Harwood, Louise Gilfedder, Simon Ferrier, Gunnar Keppel, Karel Mokany, Greg J. Jordan, Mokany, Karel, Jordan, Greg J, Harwood, Thomas D, Harrison, Peter A, Keppel, Gunnar, Gilfedder, Louise, Carter, Oberon, and Ferrier, Simon
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Flora ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Rare species ,Biodiversity ,Climate change ,plant ,phylogeny ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,rarity ,Taxonomic rank ,Endemism ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,biodiversity ,Ecology ,Global warming ,Last Glacial Maximum ,Geography ,climate change ,dissimilarity ,composition ,connectivity ,endemism ,community - Abstract
Aim: Refugia under past climates have been important in structuring current patterns in diversity, while refugia under anthropogenic climate change will likely be important in retaining this diversity and shaping new patterns. However, few studies have examined the congruence of past, present and future refugia, or the spatiotemporal connectivity of these refugia. Our aim was to test the extent of overlap of refugia under Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), present (2015) and likely future climates (2100), for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora. We then aimed to identify areas of high spatiotemporal refugia connectivity, as priority areas for conservation and management. Location: Tasmania, Australia. Methods: We developed and applied a new community-level approach to identifying refugia, based on generalized dissimilarity modelling of compositional turnover and a set of reference sites with known biodiversity value. Using these projections of palaeoendemic plant refugia for past, present and future climates, we developed and applied a second approach to quantify the level of connectivity of these refugia over space and time. Results: Although there was large overlap (85%) between current and future climates in the distribution of the highest value palaeoendemic refugia, the small congruence of these areas with refugia at the LGM resulted in only a small area ( c. km 2 ) of persistent high value refugia over all three time periods. Despite this, our spatiotemporal analysis identified several areas of high connectivity in refugial environments for Tasmania's palaeoendemic flora over time. Main conclusions: The community-level approaches we demonstrate here to quantify refugia and their spatiotemporal connectivity have the potential to advance our understanding of biodiversity dynamics, particularly for taxonomic groups that are species-rich, poorly studied or comprised of many rare species, where species-level approaches are less suitable.
- Published
- 2017
21. Microhabitats and canopy cover moderate high summer temperatures in a fragmented Mediterranean landscape
- Author
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Christopher O'Connell, Sharolyn Anderson, Gunnar Keppel, Craig R. Williams, Sonia Kleindorfer, Keppel, Gunnar, Anderson, Sharolyn, Williams, Craig, Kleindorfer, Sonia, and O'Connell, Christopher
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Canopy ,Mediterranean climate ,summer temperatures ,Atmospheric Science ,Leaves ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Microclimate ,lcsh:Medicine ,Plant Science ,Atmospheric sciences ,01 natural sciences ,Trees ,anthropogenic climate change ,lcsh:Science ,Climatology ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Geography ,Ecology ,Mediterranean Region ,Plant Anatomy ,Physics ,Electromagnetic Radiation ,Temperature ,Vegetation ,Biodiversity ,Plants ,Physical Sciences ,Solar Radiation ,Seasons ,ecosystems ,Research Article ,heat wave ,Climate Change ,Summer ,Climate change ,010603 evolutionary biology ,Meteorology ,Grasses ,Xanthorrhoea semiplana ,Ecosystem ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,canopy ,Tree canopy ,Microhabitats ,Extreme heat events ,Ecology and Environmental Sciences ,lcsh:R ,Organisms ,Humidity ,Biology and Life Sciences ,biology.organism_classification ,Mediterranean ecosystems ,Linear Models ,Earth Sciences ,Environmental science ,lcsh:Q - Abstract
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited., Extreme heat events will become more frequent under anthropogenic climate change, especially in Mediterranean ecosystems. Microhabitats can considerably moderate (buffer) the effects of extreme weather events and hence facilitate the persistence of some components of the biodiversity. We investigate the microclimatic moderation provided by two important microhabitats (cavities formed by the leaves of the grass-tree Xanthorrhoea semiplana F.Muell., Xanthorrhoeaceae; and inside the leaf-litter) during the summer of 2015/16 on the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. We placed microsensors inside and outside these microhabitats, as well as above the ground below the forest canopy. Grass-tree and leaf-litter microhabitats significantly buffered against high temperatures and low relative humidity, compared to ground-below-canopy sensors. There was no significant difference between grass-tree and leaf-litter temperatures: in both microhabitats, daily temperature variation was reduced, day temperatures were 1–5°C cooler, night temperatures were 0.5–3°C warmer, and maximum temperatures were up to 14.4°C lower, compared to ground-below-canopy sensors. Grass-tree and leaf-litter microhabitats moderated heat increase at an average rate of 0.24°C temperature per 1°C increase of ambient temperature in the ground-below-canopy microhabitat. The average daily variation in temperature was determined by the type (grass-tree and leaf-litter versus ground-below-canopy) of microhabitat (explaining 67%), the amount of canopy cover and the area of the vegetation fragment (together explaining almost 10% of the variation). Greater canopy cover increased the amount of microclimatic moderation provided, especially in the leaf-litter. Our study highlights the importance of microhabitats in moderating macroclimatic conditions. However, this moderating effect is currently not considered in species distribution modelling under anthropogenic climate change nor in the management of vegetation. This shortcoming will have to be addressed to obtain realistic forecasts of future species distributions and to achieve effective management of biodiversity.
- Published
- 2017
22. Large- and small-scale environmental factors drive distributions of cool-adapted plants in karstic microrefugia
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András Vojtkó, Anna Szabó, Viktória Cseh, Tünde Farkas, István Maák, Zoltán Bátori, Krisztina Havadtői, László Erdős, Gunnar Keppel, Csaba Tölgyesi, Anna E. Vojtkó, Bátori, Zoltán, Vojtkó, András, Farkas, Tünde, Szabó, Anna E, Havadtὃi, Krisztina, Vojtkó, Anna E, Tölgyesi, Csaba, Cseh, Viktória, Erdὃs, László, Maák, István Elek, and Keppel, Gunnar
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0106 biological sciences ,environmental gradient ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,karst dolines ,migration processes ,Climate Change ,Climate change ,high-mountain plants ,Plant Science ,Biology ,Spatial distribution ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,refugia ,Effects of global warming ,Vegetation type ,Ecosystem ,relicts ,Plant Physiological Phenomena ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Environmental gradient ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,capacity of refugia ,Global warming ,slope aspect ,Original Articles ,Karst ,Cold Temperature ,Refugium ,East-Central Europe ,Physical geography - Abstract
Background and aims: Dolines are small- to large-sized bowl-shaped depressions of karst surfaces. They may constitute important microrefugia, as thermal inversion often maintains cooler conditions within them. This study aimed to identify the effects of large- (macroclimate) and small-scale (slope aspect and vegetation type) environmental factors on cool-adapted plants in karst dolines of East-Central Europe. We also evaluated the potential of these dolines to be microrefugia that mitigate the effects of climate change on cool-adapted plants in both forest and grassland ecosystems. • Methods: We compared surveys of plant species composition that were made between 2007 and 2015 in 21 dolines distributed across four mountain ranges (sites) in Hungary and Romania. We examined the effects of environmental factors on the distribution and number of cool-adapted plants on three scales: (1) regional (all sites); (2) within sites and; (3) within dolines. Generalized linear models and non-parametric tests were used for the analyses. • Key Results: Macroclimate, vegetation type and aspect were all significant predictors of the diversity of cool-adapted plants. More cool-adapted plants were recorded in the coolest site, with only few found in the warmest site. At the warmest site, the distribution of cool-adapted plants was restricted to the deepest parts of dolines. Within sites of intermediate temperature and humidity, the effect of vegetation type and aspect on the diversity of cool-adapted plants was often significant, with more taxa being found in grasslands (versus forests) and on north-facing slopes (versus south-facing slopes). • Conclusions: There is large variation in the number and spatial distribution of cool-adapted plants in karst dolines, which is related to large- and small-scale environmental factors. Both macro- and microrefugia are therefore likely to play important roles in facilitating the persistence of cool-adapted plants under global warming. Refereed/Peer-reviewed
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- 2016
23. A low-altitude mountain range as an important refugium for two narrow endemics in the Southwest Australian Floristic Region biodiversity hotspot
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Colin J. Yates, Grant Wardell-Johnson, Kimberly P. Van Niel, Antonius G. T. Schut, Gunnar Keppel, Todd Robinson, Margaret Byrne, Keppel, Gunnar, Robinson, Todd P, Wardell-Johnson, Grant W, Yates, Colin J, Van Niel, Kimberly P, Byrne, Margaret, and Schut, Antonius GT
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0106 biological sciences ,010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences ,Climate Change ,Climate change ,Interspecific interactions ,Plant Science ,Refugia ,Biology ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Ornduffia marchantii ,Altitude ,Refugium (population biology) ,Abundance (ecology) ,Anthropogenic climate change ,Species distribution modelling ,Localized endemic ,Plant Physiological Phenomena ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,Low-altitude mountain ,Ecology ,Elevation ,Australia ,Edaphic ,Original Articles ,Biodiversity ,Extinction ,Microclimate ,Plants ,PE&RC ,Biodiversity hotspot ,Environmental niche modelling ,Ornduffia calthifolia ,Plant Production Systems ,Refugium ,Plantaardige Productiesystemen ,Physical geography ,Southwest Australian Floristic Region (SWAFR) - Abstract
Background and Aims: Low-altitude mountains constitute important centres of diversity in landscapes with little topographic variation, such as the Southwest Australian Floristic Region (SWAFR). They also provide unique climatic and edaphic conditions that may allow them to function as refugia. We investigate whether the Porongurups (altitude 655 m) in the SWAFR will provide a refugium for the endemic Ornduffia calthifolia and O. marchantii under forecast climate change. Methods: We used species distribution modelling based on WorldClim climatic data, 30-m elevation data and a 2-m-resolution LiDAR-derived digital elevation model (DEM) to predict current and future distributions of the Ornduffia species at local and regional scales based on 605 field-based abundance estimates. Future distributions were forecast using RCP2.6 and RCP4.5 projections. To determine whether local edaphic and biotic factors impact these forecasts, we tested whether soil depth and vegetation height were significant predictors of abundance using generalized additive models (GAMs). Key Results: Species distribution modelling revealed the importance of elevation and topographic variables at the local scale for determining distributions of both species, which also preferred shadier locations and higher slopes. However, O. calthifolia occurred at higher (cooler) elevations with rugged, concave topography, while O. marchantii occurred in disturbed sites at lower locations with less rugged, convex topography. Under future climates both species are likely to severely contract under the milder RCP2.6 projection (approx. 2 °C of global warming), but are unlikely to persist if warming is more severe (RCP4.5). GAMs showed that soil depth and vegetation height are important predictors of O. calthifolia and O. marchantii distributions, respectively. Conclusions: The Porongurups constitute an important refugium for O. calthifolia and O. marchantii, but limits to this capacity may be reached if global warming exceeds 2 °C. This capacity is moderated at local scales by biotic and edaphic factors. Refereed/Peer-reviewed
- Published
- 2016
24. Effective climate change refugia for coral reefs
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Javid Kavousi, Gunnar Keppel, Keppel, Gunnar, and Kavousi, Javid
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Global and Planetary Change ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Ecology ,Resilience of coral reefs ,Coral Reefs ,Climate Change ,Climate change ,Coral reef ,Refugium (population biology) ,Refugium ,Environmental Chemistry ,Environmental science ,Animals ,Aquaculture of coral ,Environmental issues with coral reefs ,Coral reef protection ,General Environmental Science - Published
- 2015
25. Refugia: keys to climate change management
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Grant Wardell-Johnson, Gunnar Keppel, Keppel, Gunnar, and Wardell-Johnson, Grant W
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remnants ,Global and Planetary Change ,Herbivore ,Ecology ,Global warming ,Biodiversity ,Climate change ,Context (language use) ,refuges ,reserves ,Geography ,Disturbance (ecology) ,Habitat ,anthropogenic climate change ,Environmental Chemistry ,conservation planning ,resilience ,Exploitation of natural resources ,biodiversity ,General Environmental Science - Abstract
IntroductionRefugia are habitats that components of biodiversityretreat to, persist in and can potentially expand fromunder changing environmental conditions (Keppelet al., 2012), facilitating the survival of organisms dur-ing extreme climatic changes (Me´dail & Diadema,2009). They may thus maintain favourable climatic con-ditions now absent in the surrounding landscape. Thisis enabled by higher local heterogeneity of micro-climates and the decoupling of local from regionalclimates (Dobrowski, 2011; Keppel et al., 2012).Because refugia potentially safeguard the persistenceof components of biodiversity over millennia, they mayact as safe havens under projected anthropogenic cli-mate change (Me´dail & Diadema, 2009; Keppel et al.,2012). This capacity makes them critical components inclimate change management. As a result, the identifica-tion and protection of refugia has increased in priorityin conservation planning (Noss, 2001; Game et al.,2011). However, refugia are currently loosely definedand their study is often based on ad hoc, descriptivedata sources (Ashcroft, 2010). We therefore clarify theconcept of refugia and related terms. We then argue foran increased focus on understanding how refugia willrespond to climate change. In the context of rapidanthropogenic climate change, we suggest that thisfocus will lead to prioritization of conservation actionstowards those habitats offering the greatest potential assafe havens for biodiversity.What are refugia and what are not?Despite an exponential increase in the use of the termsrefugia and refuges in literature (Fig. 1), refugia are stillconfused with refuges, remnants and reserves. Most cur-rent uses of refugia are to places providing environmen-tal conditions not available in the surroundinglandscapeoverlongperiodsoftime(e.g.,Ashcroft,2010;Dobrowski,2011),withanincreasinginterestinidentify-ing future refugia under projected anthropogenic cli-matechange.However,thetermisalsousedtorefertoavariety of other concepts. For example, in Global ChangeBiology refugia have recently been used to refer totemporary shelter from predation or disturbance (e.g.,Ledger et al., 2011) and to remnant patches of suitablehabitat (e.g., Rittenhouse et al., 2010). The term refugiahas also been used in reference to reserves (see Fig. 1).While thetermrefugiahas onlyrecently beeneffectivelydefined (see Keppel et al., 2012), use of the other threeR-terms has long been widely established. We thereforeadvocatethecorrectuseoftherelevantjargon.Refuges are places that through structures or pro-cesses provide shelter from disturbances, predation,herbivory or competition. They are therefore defined aslocations providing spatial and/or temporal protectionor advantages in biotic interactions over ecological timeperiods (i.e., within the life span of the relevant organ-ism). Remnants are patches of suitable habitats for spe-cies intolerant of changed or modified landscapes thatprevail in landscapes highly modified by human popu-lations and resource exploitation. Reserves are areaslegally or customarily protected from particular anthro-pogenic activities and may vary in size from remnantsto portions of large ‘intact’ landscapes or so-calledwilderness areas.Refugia and anthropogenic climate changeWhile refuges, remnants and reserves continue toreceive considerable research attention, refugia are anarea of rapid recent growth (Fig. 1). The ability of refu-gia to locally mitigate the effects of regional climatechange is increasingly considered important for climatechange adaptation planning (Ashcroft, 2010; Gameet al., 2011). This is because they are potential safehavens for biota and may offer the only hope for in-situpersistence of poorly dispersed species. Protecting suchclimate change refugia could allow some species to
- Published
- 2012
26. Prolonged isolation and persistence of a common endemic on granite outcrops in both mesic and semi-arid environments in south-western Australia
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Sarah‐Louise Tapper, Gunnar Keppel, Grant Wardell-Johnson, Antonius G. T. Schut, Stephen D. Hopper, Margaret Byrne, Kimberly P. Van Niel, Laco Mucina, Colin J. Yates, Tapper, Sarah-Louise, Byrne, Margaret, Yates, Colin J, Keppel, Gunnar, Hopper, Stephen D, Van Niel, Kimberly, Schut, Antonius GT, Mucina, Laco, and Wardell-Johnson, Grant W
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geoecology ,Ecology ,Stypandra glauca ,biology ,nuclear diversity ,Outcrop ,Population size ,fungi ,Biodiversity ,Climate change ,Western Australia ,chloroplast divergence ,phylogeography ,biology.organism_classification ,Pleistocene refugia ,Arid ,Phylogeography ,Stypandra glaauca ,edaphic endemism ,Persistence (discontinuity) ,evolutionary history ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics - Abstract
Aim Granite outcrops may be able to act as refugia for species during adverse climate change, owing to their topographic complexity. We assessed this hypothesis by examining phylogeographical patterns in a common, geographically widespread granite endemic, Stypandra glauca (Hemerocallidaceae). Location Granite outcrops of the Southwest Australian Floristic Region, Western Australia. Main conclusions The levels of divergence and low diversity revealed in S. glauca support a scenario of prolonged isolation and persistence on granite outcrops may result from the maintenance of a larger effective population size in southern regions, which retained more mesic climates during drier glacial periods. Although the climatic conditions differ between outcrops in this study, our results indicate that outcrops in both regions have harboured S. glauca throughout climatic changes, accentuating the value of these habitats to biodiversity conservation under future changing climate. Methods Twenty-four tetraploid individuals of the granite endemic Stypandraglauca were sampled from each of 12 granite outcrops: 7 from a mesic environment and 5 from the semi-arid region. Phylogenetic reconstruction and divergence-dating was achieved using Bayesian and parsimony analyses of chloroplast haplotypes from 90 individuals. Nuclear diversity and population differentiation were analysed across all individuals using 10 microsatellite loci. Results Stypandra glauca exhibited high (chloroplast) or moderate (nuclear)levels of divergence among, and low diversity within, outcrops. Haplotype diversity was high in both sampling regions, and each haplotype was unique to one outcrop. There was little correlation between geographical and genetic distance.Both nuclear and chloroplast diversity were higher in southern (mesic)outcrops than in northern (semi-arid) outcrops, although the level of chloroplast divergence among outcrops was similar for both climatic regions. Refereed/Peer-reviewed
- Published
- 2014
27. Rapid characterisation of vegetation structure to predict refugia and climate change impacts across a global biodiversity hotspot
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Antonius G. T. Schut, Margaret Byrne, Stephen D. Hopper, Gunnar Keppel, Ireneusz Baran, Steven E. Franklin, Colin J. Yates, Kimberley P. Van Niel, Ladislav Mucina, Grant Wardell-Johnson, Schut, Antonius GT, Wardell-Johnson, Grant W, Yates, Colin J, Keppel, Gunnar, Baran, Ireneusz, Franklin, Steven E, Hopper, Stephen D, Van Niel, Kimberley P, Mucina, Ladislav, and Byrne, Margaret
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Canopy ,Geologic Sediments ,Atmospheric Science ,Outcrop ,Water table ,Rain ,distributions ,Biodiversity ,lcsh:Medicine ,geography ,inselbergs ,forest ,Environmental Geography ,Geoinformatics ,Spatial and Landscape Ecology ,lcsh:Science ,biodiversity ,Conservation Science ,Climatology ,Multidisciplinary ,Remote Sensing Imagery ,Geography ,Ecology ,conservation ,PE&RC ,Terrestrial Environments ,climate change ,Habitat ,Plant Production Systems ,Agrosystems ,western-australia ,fire ,Research Article ,future ,Climate Change ,Climate change ,geologic sediments ,PRI Agrosysteemkunde ,scale ,rain ,Terrestrial Ecology ,australian floristic region ,Biology ,Plant Physiological Phenomena ,lcsh:R ,Global warming ,Australia ,Plantaardige Productiesystemen ,Linear Models ,Earth Sciences ,Environmental science ,lcsh:Q ,Physical geography ,linear models ,microrefugia ,plant physiological phenomena ,Environmental Sciences ,Global biodiversity ,Ecological Environments - Abstract
Identification of refugia is an increasingly important adaptation strategy in conservation planning under rapid anthropogenic climate change. Granite outcrops (GOs) provide extraordinary diversity, including a wide range of taxa, vegetation types and habitats in the Southwest Australian Floristic Region (SWAFR). However, poor characterization of GOs limits the capacity of conservation planning for refugia under climate change. A novel means for the rapid identification of potential refugia is presented, based on the assessment of local-scale environment and vegetation structure in a wider region. This approach was tested on GOs across the SWAFR. Airborne discrete return Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) data and Red Green and Blue (RGB) imagery were acquired. Vertical vegetation profiles were used to derive 54 structural classes. Structural vegetation types were described in three areas for supervised classification of a further 13 GOs across the region. Habitat descriptions based on 494 vegetation plots on and around these GOs were used to quantify relationships between environmental variables, ground cover and canopy height. The vegetation surrounding GOs is strongly related to structural vegetation types (Kappa = 0.8) and to its spatial context. Water gaining sites around GOs are characterized by taller and denser vegetation in all areas. The strong relationship between rainfall, soil-depth, and vegetation structure (R2 of 0.8-0.9) allowed comparisons of vegetation structure between current and future climate. Significant shifts in vegetation structural types were predicted and mapped for future climates. Water gaining areas below granite outcrops were identified as important putative refugia. A reduction in rainfall may be offset by the occurrence of deeper soil elsewhere on the outcrop. However, climate change interactions with fire and water table declines may render our conclusions conservative. The LiDAR-based mapping approach presented enables the integration of site-based biotic assessment with structural vegetation types for the rapid delineation and prioritization of key refugia. Refereed/Peer-reviewed
- Published
- 2014
28. Characteristics of climate change refugia for Australian biodiversity
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Reside, April E, Welbergen, Justin A, Phillips, Ben L, Wardell-Johnson, Grant W, Keppel, Gunnar, Ferrier, S, Williams, Stephen E, and VanDerWal, Jeremy
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terrestrial biodiversity ,synergies ,climate change ,refugia ,conservation - Abstract
Identifying refugia is a critical component of effective conservation of biodiversity under anthropogenic climate change. However, despite a surge in conceptual and practical interest, identifying refugia remains a significant challenge across diverse continental landscapes. We provide an overview of the key properties of refugia that promote species' persistence under climate change, including their capacity to (i) buffer species from climate change; (ii) sustain long-term population viability and evolutionary processes; (iii) minimize the potential for deleterious species interactions, provided that the refugia are (iv) available and accessible to species under threat. Further, we classify refugia in terms of the environmental and biotic stressors that they provide protection from (i.e. thermal, hydric, cyclonic, pyric and biotic refugia), but ideally refugia should provide protection from a multitude of stressors. Our systematic characterization of refugia facilitates the identification of refugia in the Australian landscape. Challenges remain, however, specifically with respect to how to assess the quality of refugia at the level of individual species and whole species assemblages. It is essential that these challenges are overcome before refugia can live up to their acclaim as useful targets for conservation and management in the context of climate change. Refereed/Peer-reviewed
- Published
- 2014
29. Refugial capacity defines holdouts, microrefugia and stepping-stones: a response to Hannah et al
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Grant Wardell-Johnson, Gunnar Keppel, Keppel, Gunnar, and Wardell-Johnson, Grant W
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Conservation planning ,Geography ,Habitat ,Ecology ,Global warming ,Microclimate ,Climate change ,Plant Dispersal ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics - Abstract
Refugia are habitats that populations can retreat to as prevailing climates become inhospitable, and potentially expand from should climates again become favourable [1]. They therefore potentially facilitate the long-term persistence of populations, despite changes in the regional climate. The importance of refugia for the survival of populations under anthropogenic climate change is increasingly recognised [1,2]. As a result, they are now considered keys to conservation planning under climate change [3,4].
- Published
- 2015
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