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Evaluation of landscape connectivity at community level using satellite-derived NDVI

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Abstract

Landscape connectivity, defined as the degree to which the landscape facilitates or impedes movement among resource patches, has been considered to be a key issue for biodiversity conservation. However, the use of landscape connectivity measurements has been strongly criticised due to uncertainties in the methods used and the lack of validation. Moreover, measurements are typically restricted to the population level, whereas management is generally carried out at the community level. Here, we used satellite imagery and network metrics to predict the landscape connectivity at community level for semi-natural herbaceous patches in an urban area near Paris (France). We tested different measurement methods, both taking into account and ignoring the spatial heterogeneity of matrix resistance estimated by the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI), and quantifying the link strength between patches with the shortest path and flow metrics. We assessed the fit of these connectivity predictions with empirical data on plant communities embedded in an urban matrix. Our results indicate that the best fit with the empirical data is obtained when the connectivity is estimated with the flow metric and takes into account the matrix heterogeneity. Overall, our study helps to estimate the landscape connectivity of urban areas and makes recommendations for ways in which we might optimise landscape planning with respect to conservation of urban biodiversity.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Sébastien Filoche of the CBNBP, who carried out the floristic inventories and the habitat mapping in the territory studied. This study was financially supported by the Observatoire Départemental de la Biodiversité Urbaine (ODBU) from the Seine-Saint-Denis district. We thank Antoine Roulet of the ODBU to its participation at the data analysis and habitat mapping. We finally thank the Institute for Planning and Development of the Paris Ile-de-France Region (IAU) to give us an access to the NDVI.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. ODBU, Observatoire Départemental de la Biodiversité Urbaine, Direction de la Nature, des Paysages et de la Biodiversité, Conseil Général de la Seine-Saint-Denis, Hôtel du Département, 93006, Bobigny Cedex, France

    Audrey Muratet

  2. UMR 7204 CNRS-MNHN-UPMC, Conservation des Espèces, Restauration et Suivi des Populations, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, 61 Rue Buffon, 75005, Paris, France

    Romain Lorrillière, Philippe Clergeau & Colin Fontaine

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  1. Audrey Muratet
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Correspondence to Audrey Muratet.

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Muratet, A., Lorrillière, R., Clergeau, P. et al. Evaluation of landscape connectivity at community level using satellite-derived NDVI. Landscape Ecol 28, 95–105 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-012-9817-1

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