Exploring the performance of protected areas in alleviating future human pressure

Protected areas (PAs) are effective in mitigating human pressures, yet their future pressure alleviating effects remain unclear. In this study, we employed the ConvLSTM model to forecast the future human footprint and analyzed human pressure trends using Theil-Sen median and Mann-Kendall tests. We further evaluated the mitigating effects of PAs within their buffer zones (1-10 km) and the contributions of different IUCN categories of PAs to mitigating human pressure using linear regression models. The results indicate that by 2035, the average human pressure value is expected to increase by 11%, with trends exhibiting a polarized pattern. Furthermore, PAs also effectively mitigate human pressure within their 1 km buffer zones. Different categories of PAs vary in their effectiveness in mitigating human pressure, and stricter conservation areas are not always the most effective. This study can offer insights for evaluating the effectiveness of PAs in reducing human pressure and advocate for their targeted management in urban areas.

Examining the co-occurrences of human threats within terrestrial protected areas

Human threats to biodiversity are prevalent within protected areas (PAs), undermining their effectiveness in halting biodiversity loss. Certain threats tend to co-occur, resulting in amplified cumulative impact through synergistic effects. However, it remains unclear which threats are related the most. We analyzed a dataset of 71 human threats in 18 013 terrestrial PAs of the European Union's Natura 2000 network, using a Joint Species Distribution Modelling approach, to assess the threats' co-occurrence patterns and potential drivers. Overall, threats were more frequently correlated positively than negatively. Threats related to agriculture and urbanization were correlated strongly with most other threats. Approximately 70% of the variance in our model was explained by country-specific factors, indicating the importance of local drivers. Minimizing the negative impact of key threats can likely reduce the impact of related threats. However, more research is needed to understand better the relationships among threats and, importantly, their combined impact on biodiversity.

The effects of cities on quail (Coturnix coturnix) migration: a disturbing story of population connectivity, health, and ecography

The increasing impact of human activities on ecosystems is provoking a profound and dangerous effect, particularly in wildlife. Examining the historical migration patterns of quail (Coturnix coturnix) offers a compelling case study to demonstrate the repercussions of human actions on biodiversity. Urbanization trends, where people gravitate toward mega-urban areas, amplify this effect. The proliferation of artificial urban ecosystems extends its influence across every biome, as human reliance on infrastructure and food sources alters ecological dynamics extensively. We examine European quail migrations pre- and post-World War II and in the present day. Our study concentrates on the Italian peninsula, investigating the historical and contemporary recovery of ringed quail populations. To comprehend changes in quail migration, we utilize trajectory analysis, open statistical data, and linear generalized models. We found that while human population and economic growth have shown a linear increase, quail recovery rates exhibit a U-shaped trajectory, and cereal and legume production displays an inverse U-shaped pattern. Generalized linear models have unveiled the significant influence of several key factors-time periods, cereal and legume production, and human demographics-on quail recovery rates. These factors closely correlate with the levels of urbanization observed across these timeframes. These insights underscore the profound impact of expanding human populations and the rise of mega-urbanization on ecosystem dynamics and services. As our planet becomes more urbanized, the pressure on ecosystems intensifies, highlighting the urgent need for concerted efforts directed toward conserving and revitalizing ecosystem integrity. Simultaneously, manage the needs and demands of burgeoning mega-urban areas. Achieving this balance is pivotal to ensuring sustainable coexistence between urban improvement and the preservation of our natural environment.

More than two-fifths of the protected land in a global biodiversity hotspot in southwest China is under intense human pressure

Habitat loss is the main threat to global biodiversity in the Anthropocene. To prevent this, protected areas are the most effective means for safeguarding biodiversity. However, extensive habitat protection under human pressure can undermine its effectiveness. Using the Hengduan Mountains, a global biodiversity hotspot in southwest China as an indicator, we assessed the extent and intensity of human pressure to highlight how these pressures have changed over time. We found that most ecoregions had high levels of intact habitat loss relative to areal protection by national nature reserves (NNRs). More than two-fifths of protected land is under intense human pressure, and lower elevation or smaller NNRs were subject to higher pressure. These increases have predominantly occurred in lower elevation NNRs, showing that elevation gradients correlate with increasing pressure. While protected areas are increasingly established, they are experiencing intense human pressure. Our findings provide useful insights for assessing resilience of protected areas and to prioritize areas where future conservation plans and actions should be focused in a changing world.

How do urbanization and alien species affect the plant taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity in different types of urban green areas?

Human pressure on urban landscapes has serious consequences for urban plant species. Therefore, environmental and anthropogenic factors affect the assembly of urban wildlife in plant communities. For biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services in urban areas, it is crucial to understand the impacts of urbanization as well as the introduction of alien plant species on urban plant communities. On 47 sites in Poznań (W Poland), we studied variation within and between three management greenery habitats, i.e., urban parks, greenery associated with housing estates, and urban grasslands, as they relate to taxonomical, functional, and phylogenetic alpha and beta diversity. We also examined how urbanization (measured by ISA) and alien plant species relate to vegetation compositional differences. We found that both urbanization and alien plant species cover decreased alpha diversity, while urbanization had various impacts on beta diversity within each studied habitat. Our results suggest that human pressure leads to similarities in the urban flora, where plant species with specific functional traits adapted to the urban environment. To achieve sustainable urbanization, urban planners should not only create diverse green spaces but also eliminate alien plants, increasing the role of urban land management in promoting the wildness of plant biodiversity in cities.

The prevalence of anthropogenic nest materials differs between two distinct populations of migratory birds in Europe

A major impact of human development is the transformation of natural habitats into farming lands and the expansion of built-up areas. Also, plastic pollution is affecting wildlife on a global scale. Discarded plastic is ubiquitous and accessible for birds, which can incorporate them into the nest structure. Here, we describe the differences in type, prevalence, and the amount of anthropogenic nest materials between two populations of terrestrial, mainly farmland bird, the white stork Ciconia ciconia, on a broad geographical scale, from two migratory divides-eastern in Poland and western in Spain (in total 303 nests). In the two populations, we detected significant differences in the incorporation of anthropogenic nest material, as measured by the Human Footprint Index (HFI) and the Impervious Surface Areas (ISA). We found that ISA was positively related to anthropogenic nest material incorporation in the Spanish population, and HFI was positively related to anthropogenic nest material, in contrast to the Polish population, in which the relationships were not significant. Moreover, we showed that the prevalence of nests with anthropogenic nest material was two times higher in Spanish than in the Polish white stork population. This study demonstrates that the behavior of incorporation of the anthropogenic nest material differs between two distinct populations of a single bird species.

Monitoring riverine traffic from space: The untapped potential of remote sensing for measuring human footprint on inland waterways

Mass urbanisation and intensive agricultural development across river deltas have driven ecosystem degradation, impacting deltaic socio-ecological systems and reducing their resilience to climate change. Assessments of the drivers of these changes have so far been focused on human activity on the subaerial delta plains. However, the fragile nature of deltaic ecosystems and the need for biodiversity conservation on a global scale require more accurate quantification of the footprint of anthropogenic activity across delta waterways. To address this need, we investigated the potential of deep learning and high spatiotemporal resolution satellite imagery to identify river vessels, using the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) as a focus area. We trained the Faster R-CNN Resnet101 model to detect two classes of objects: (i) vessels and (ii) clusters of vessels, and achieved high detection accuracies for both classes (f-score = 0.84-0.85). The model was subsequently applied to available PlanetScope imagery across 2018-2021; the resultant detections were used to generate monthly, seasonal and annual products mapping the riverine activity, termed here the Human Waterway Footprint (HWF), with which we showed how waterborne activity has increased in the VMD (from approx. 1650 active vessels in 2018 to 2070 in 2021 - a 25 % increase). Whilst HWF values correlated well with population density estimates (R² = 0.59-0.61, p < 0.001), many riverine activity hotspots were located away from population centres and varied spatially across the investigated period, highlighting that more detailed information is needed to fully evaluate the extent, and type, of human footprint on waterways. High spatiotemporal resolution satellite imagery in combination with deep learning methods offers great promise for such monitoring, which can subsequently enable local and regional assessment of environmental impacts of anthropogenic activities on delta ecosystems around the globe.

Geographic pattern of phytoplankton community and their drivers in lakes of middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River floodplain, China

Disentangling the relative contributions of deterministic and stochastic processes was critical to compressive understanding of underlying mechanism governing geographic pattern and assembly of phytoplankton community, while it was seldom performed in connected lakes under human pressure. Here, we investigated phytoplankton community pattern in relation to environmental and spatial factors over 81 lakes located in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River (MLYR) floodplain, where many lakes suffered from eutrophication and cyanobacterial blooms. A majority of MLYR lakes had higher phytoplankton abundance surpassing 10⁷ cells/L and were dominated by common bloom-forming cyanobacterial genera, including Pseudanabaena, Microcystis, Merismopedia, Dolichospermum, Limnothrix, and Raphidiopsis. Phytoplankton community exhibited a striking geographical pattern both for taxonomic and functional compositions, while functional groups were less sensitive, and dissimilarity in communities displayed no significant increases with increasing geographical distance. Further, species richness explained much higher percentage of community variations than species turnover, indicating a reduced effect of environmental filtering of phytoplankton species with tolerance to similar environments in connected MLYR lakes. Both deterministic and stochastic processes governed assembly and biogeographic of phytoplankton community. Variation partition analysis showed that spatial factors exhibited greater influence on phytoplankton community compared to environmental variables. The stronger influence of spatial factors was further demonstrated by Mantel test and neutral community model. These findings indicate that deterministic and stochastic processes exhibited similar biogeographic patterns for phytoplankton community in MLYR lakes, but stochastic process was overwhelmingly dominated. Moreover, a large proportion of unexplained variation implies that complex interactions exist to shape assembly mechanism of phytoplankton community in MLYR lakes.

Macroecological drivers of vascular plant species composition in semi-natural grasslands: A regional study from Lower Silesia (Poland)

In agricultural landscapes of Europe, species-rich semi-natural grasslands provide numerous ecosystem services, such as forage production, ground and surface water regulation, and carbon sequestration. In the face of the declining area of grasslands, information about the macroecological drivers of grasslands diversity is an important element of studies on their ecology and management. Here, we tested the effect of factors representing environmental gradients, landscape structure, human pressure, habitat continuity in time, and spatial structure on species composition of vascular plants in semi-natural grasslands. The analysis was performed using a multivariate approach for 689 vegetation plots distributed across ~20,000 km² in the Lower Silesia region (Poland, Central Europe). We found that species composition was significantly influenced by factors representing all studied groups. The most influential factors were temperature, long-term habitat continuity, and topography. Moreover, we captured the correlation between habitat conditions and habitat continuity. Old grasslands (existing since the 1940s) usually occurred in wet habitats, and medium grasslands (existing since the 1980s) existed in highlands in most cases. We highlighted the potential of freely available environmental databases, as well as historical topographic maps, in the exploration of patterns of species composition at a large spatial extent. The result show also the usefulness of vegetation databases in recognition of grassland complexes contributing the regional biodiversity.

Spectrum of artificial light at night drives impact of a diurnal species in insect food web

Artificial light at night (ALAN) has become a profound form of global anthropogenic environmental change differing in from natural light regimes in intensity, duration, distribution and spectra. It is clear that ALAN impacts individual organisms, however, population level effects, particularly of spectral changes, remain poorly understood. Here we exposed experimental multigenerational aphid-parasitoid communities in the field to seven different light spectra at night ranging from 385 to 630 nm and compared responses to a natural day-night light regime. We found that while aphid population growth was initially unaffected by ALAN, parasitoid efficiency declined under most ALAN spectra, leading to reduced top-down control and higher aphid densities. These results differ from those previously found for white light, showing a strong impact on species' daytime performance. This highlights the importance of ALAN spectra when considering their environmental impact. ALAN can have large impacts on the wider ecological community by influencing diurnal species.

Taxonomic and functional nematode diversity in Maldivian coral degradation zones: patterns across reef typologies and depths

The intensification of dredging and infilling activities in lagoons and on coral reefs are common practices in the Maldivian archipelago, and these activities alter the biodiversity of the bioconstructors and the functioning of the ecosystem. The alteration of environmental factors can also affect inconspicuous fauna, such as free-living nematodes. The implications of a reduction in biodiversity may transcend decreased taxonomic diversity, resulting in changes in functional diversity and redundancy; however, how the environmental conditions and human pressure affects the functionality of nematodes in Maldivian coral degradation zones (CDZs) remain poorly understood. In this paper, we examined changes in the taxonomic and functional diversity and the functional redundancy in nematode communities regarding the geographic location (atolls with various levels of human pressure), the exposure and topography of the reef (lagoon and ocean), the slope of the reef, and the depth. The functional diversity and redundancy were evaluated by considering two main biological traits of nematodes: i) the trophic strategy, and ii) the life strategy. The extremely high number of nematode genera observed in the Maldives is supported by the high complexity of the carbonate sediments. The reef exposure and depth were the most relevant environmental factors that influenced the taxonomic and functional diversity. The functional diversity, according to the trophic strategies, mirrored the taxonomic diversity because the adaptive plasticity of nematode buccal cavity structures is closely associated with the high biodiversity of the phylum. The high abundance of k-strategists in ocean reefs may indicate a higher ecological quality when compared to lagoon reefs; however, the absence of significant differences in life strategy functional diversity and functional redundancy indicates that a recovery process is underway. Analyses of nematode communities should be combined with standard investigations of reef bioconstructors during monitoring activities to assess the vulnerability of CDZ systems to future disturbances and facilitate the adoption of the most appropriate preventative actions.

Built-up areas within and around protected areas: Global patterns and 40-year trends

Protected areas (PAs) are a key strategy in global efforts to conserve biodiversity and ecosystem services that are critical for human well-being. Most PAs have some built-up structures within their boundaries or in surrounding areas, ranging from individual buildings to villages, towns and cities. These structures, and the associated human activities, can exert direct and indirect pressures on PAs. Here we present the first global analysis of current patterns and observed long-term trends in built-up areas within terrestrial PAs and their immediate surroundings. We calculate for each PA larger than 5 km² and for its 10-km unprotected buffer zone the percentage of land area covered by built-up areas in 1975, 1990, 2000 and 2014. We find that globally built-up areas cover only 0.12% of PA extent and a much higher 2.71% of the unprotected buffers as of 2014, compared to 0.6% of all land (protected or unprotected). Built-up extent in and around PAs is highest in Europe and Asia, and lowest in Africa and Oceania. Built-up area percentage is higher in coastal and small PAs, and lower in older PAs and in PAs with stricter management categories. From 1975 to 2014, the increase in built-up area was 23 times larger in the 10-km unprotected buffers than within PAs. Our findings show that the development of built-up structures remains limited within the boundaries of PAs but highlight the need to carefully manage the considerable pressure that PAs face from their immediate surroundings.

•

We globally assess the extent of built-up areas (buildings) in protected areas (PAs) and their 10-km unprotected buffers.

•

Buildings cover 0.12% of PAs and 2.71% of their buffers globally.

•

Small, coastal, less strictly managed or recent PAs have much higher built-up pressure.

•

From 1975 to 2014, built-up areas increased 23 times more in PA buffers than within PAs.

•

PAs are effective in limiting building construction, but face considerable pressure from their surroundings.

Assessing national human footprint and implications for biodiversity conservation in Iran

Recent global-scale studies have revealed intense levels of human activities within many protected areas worldwide. However, these analyses rely on coarse global-scale data, making their utility for informing local-scale conservation action limited. We developed a spatially explicit national human footprint index for Iran, a biologically diverse country in west Asia, based on the latest high-resolution datasets available for human pressures. We assessed the extent and intensity of human pressure within Iranian protected areas, and across the biomes and ecoregions of Iran. We found that almost one-quarter (22%) of officially protected land was under intense human pressure, mostly located in north-west and west of the country. Protected areas within temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands are most impacted, with two-third of their area under intense pressure. The findings provide valuable information for targeting management strategies to alleviate human pressures within protected areas, and also act as a comprehensive database to track the state of protected areas through time.

Distance to landfill and human activities affects the debris incorporation into the white stork nests in urbanized landscape in central Spain

Human's activities dominates many aspects of the Earth's environment; thus animals are forced to adapt and respond to the resulting changes in habitat structure and functioning due to anthropogenic pressure. Along with the growing human population and the associated amount of waste produced, the amount of different type of physical contamination component in environment is increasing. Incorporation of debris in nests may be a mounting avian response to anthropogenic pollution. In this research, we quantified the constituent pieces and total mass of human-derived materials incorporated in white stork nests. The study was conducted on four locations in central Spain where white storks nest along a urbanization gradient. In total, we examined 49 nests. This study demonstrates that the incorporation of debris by white storks into their nests is related to human activity, measured by the Human Footprint Index (HFI). Moreover, the distance between these nests and landfills predicts the occurrence of debris incorporated into nests. Our study shows that birds nest building behaviour is impacted by human activities and pollution in environment.

Assessing the effectiveness of sustainable land management policies for combating desertification: A data mining approach

This study investigates the relationship between fine resolution, local-scale biophysical and socioeconomic contexts within which land degradation occurs, and the human responses to it. The research draws on experimental data collected under different territorial and socioeconomic conditions at 586 field sites in five Mediterranean countries (Spain, Greece, Turkey, Tunisia and Morocco). We assess the level of desertification risk under various land management practices (terracing, grazing control, prevention of wildland fires, soil erosion control measures, soil water conservation measures, sustainable farming practices, land protection measures and financial subsidies) taken as possible responses to land degradation. A data mining approach, incorporating principal component analysis, non-parametric correlations, multiple regression and canonical analysis, was developed to identify the spatial relationship between land management conditions, the socioeconomic and environmental context (described using 40 biophysical and socioeconomic indicators) and desertification risk. Our analysis identified a number of distinct relationships between the level of desertification experienced and the underlying socioeconomic context, suggesting that the effectiveness of responses to land degradation is strictly dependent on the local biophysical and socioeconomic context. Assessing the latent relationship between land management practices and the biophysical/socioeconomic attributes characterizing areas exposed to different levels of desertification risk proved to be an indirect measure of the effectiveness of field actions contrasting land degradation.

Presence of pharmaceuticals and heavy metals in the waters of a Mediterranean coastal wetland: Potential interactions and the influence of the environment

The occurrence of 17 relevant pharmaceuticals and 7 heavy metals in the waters of the Pego-Oliva Marsh Natural Park (Valencia Community, Spain) were monitored. Thirty four zones (including the lagoon and the most important irrigation channels), covering the main land uses and water sources, were selected for sampling. Thirty three of them were contaminated with at least one pharmaceutical. Ibuprofen and codeine were the pharmaceuticals more frequently detected, in concentrations between 4.8 and 1.2 ng/L and a maximum of 59 ng/L and 63 ng/L, respectively. Regarding metals, Zn showed values under the detection limit in all the samples, while Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni and Pb were detected at concentrations lower than the WHO and EU maximum levels for drinking waters. Ni showed significant direct correlations with diazepam, norfloxacin, ofloxacin and fenofibrate, and inverse relationships with ibuprofen, at 99 and 95% of significance. Cu, Co and Cr also showed significant correlations with some of the pharmaceuticals. These interactions could favor the synergistic/antagonistic interactions among pharmaceuticals and metals in the marsh, which can affect its aquatic fauna and flora or even human health. The influences of the water sources, land uses and spatial distribution of both types of contaminants were also studied.

Unexpected abundance and long-term relative stability of the brown alga Cystoseira amentacea, hitherto regarded as a threatened species, in the north-western Mediterranean Sea

Cystoseira amentacea is a Mediterranean endemic alga thriving on very shallow rocky substrates. It has been considered as a threatened species, having experienced a steady decline and is therefore protected by international conventions. The historical distribution of the species has been assessed along the French Mediterranean coast, on the basis of 467 articles and herbarium vouchers. We have produced an accurate map of its current distribution and abundance along 1832 km of coastline, through in situ surveys. C. amentacea was observed along 1125 km of shoreline, including 33% of almost continuous or continuous belt. In most of its range, there is no evidence of loss, except in 4 areas of Provence, French Riviera and Corsica. A significant relation was found between the absence or low abundance of C. amentacea and the vicinity of ports and large sewage outfalls. The status of conservation of the species should therefore be reassessed.