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Sustainability
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Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes
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Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainability, Biodiversity and Conservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 February 2025) | Viewed by 6704

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Francesco Lami

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Bologna, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Interests: entomology; landscape ecology; ecosystem services; functional biodiversity; network analysis
Dr. Serena Magagnoli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Bologna, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Interests: methods and techniques for conservation; enhancement of functional biodiversity in agro-environments; ecosystem services; biological control and pollination

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Agriculture and other human activities are dramatically reshaping landscapes around the world, leading to habitat destruction and fragmentation, frequent biological invasions, and other environmental alterations that deeply impact biodiversity. This, in turn, can have profound effects on vital ecosystem services provided by wildlife, including pollination, soil quality conservation, and biological control.

In this scenario, it becomes pivotal to devise and apply landscape-level management plans aimed at harmonizing anthropic land use with biological diversity and ecosystem service preservation, all while countering the spread of pests and invasive species. This can only be achieved through a deep understanding of the complex multilevel relationships between different species, local habitat features, and landscape features.

In this Special Issue, we welcome original research articles and reviews which cover all aspects of biodiversity conservation in agricultural and natural landscapes, including (but not limited to) ecosystem service enhancement, invasive species management, ecological intensification in agriculture and conservation biology for rare species, with a particular focus on landscape-level approaches. In this context, we equally welcome papers which advance our knowledge of biodiversity–landscape interactions and ecological functions, as well as applied research on wildlife and landscape management strategies and their outcomes.

We look forward to receiving your innovative contributions.

Dr. Francesco Lami
Dr. Serena Magagnoli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biodiversity
  • conservation biology
  • landscape ecology
  • land use change
  • ecosystem services
  • agroecology
  • invasive species

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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26 pages, 5980 KiB  
Article
Spatiotemporal Analysis of Habitat Quality and Connectivity in Response to Land Use/Cover Change: A Case Study of İzmir
by Nurdan Erdoğan
Sustainability 2025, 17(6), 2407; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17062407 - 10 Mar 2025
Viewed by 651
Abstract
Understanding the impacts of land use/land cover (LULC) changes on ecological processes is essential for addressing biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation, and climate change. This study analyzes the effects of LULC changes on habitat quality and landscape connectivity in İzmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, using [...] Read more.
Understanding the impacts of land use/land cover (LULC) changes on ecological processes is essential for addressing biodiversity loss, habitat fragmentation, and climate change. This study analyzes the effects of LULC changes on habitat quality and landscape connectivity in İzmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs Habitat Quality (InVEST HQ) model, Conefor 2.6 connectivity analysis, and Circuitscape 4.0 resistance-based modeling. This study relies on Coordination of Information on the Environment (CORINE) Land Cover data from 1990 to 2018. Findings indicate that artificial surfaces increased by 82.5% (from 19,418 ha in 1990 to 35,443 ha in 2018), primarily replacing agricultural land (11,721 ha converted). Despite this expansion, high quality habitat areas remained relatively stable, though habitat fragmentation intensified, with the number of patches rising from 469 in 1990 to 606 in 2018, and the average patch size decreasing from 394.31 ha to 297.39 ha. Connectivity analysis highlighted Mount Nif and the Urla–Çeşme–Karaburun Peninsula as critical ecological corridors. However, resistance to movement increased, reducing the likelihood of connectivity-supporting corridors. These findings emphasize the importance of integrating spatial modeling approaches into urban planning and conservation strategies to mitigate future habitat loss and fragmentation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes)
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24 pages, 16241 KiB  
Article
The Evolution of Forest Landscape Connectivity and Ecological Network Construction: A Case Study of Zhejiang’s Ecological Corridors
by Yuhan Bai, Jiajia Zhao, Hangrui Shen, Xinyao Li and Bo Wen
Sustainability 2024, 16(14), 5868; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16145868 - 10 Jul 2024
Viewed by 1730
Abstract
As main components of terrestrial ecosystems, forests play irreplaceable roles in maintaining ecological balance and protecting the basic environment for human survival and development. In this study, the dynamic changes in the forest landscape connectivity in Zhejiang province in 2000, 2010, and 2020 [...] Read more.
As main components of terrestrial ecosystems, forests play irreplaceable roles in maintaining ecological balance and protecting the basic environment for human survival and development. In this study, the dynamic changes in the forest landscape connectivity in Zhejiang province in 2000, 2010, and 2020 were detected by identifying ecological sources and evaluating connectivity indexes based on morphological spatial analysis (MSPA) and a minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model. The results are as follows: (1) The forest area of Zhejiang increased by 64.88% from 2000 to 2020, indicating that the overall habitat quality has improved and that ecological risks have decreased, which are attributed to Zhejiang’s adherence to comprehensive environmental management. (2) Regions with low connectivity are distributed mainly in the north, where human activities are intensive. The overall pattern of high connectivity in the middle of the region and low connectivity elsewhere demonstrates the uneven distribution of forest landscape connectivity across the province. (3) The extracted ecological corridors have a mesh-like structure that is dense in the middle and slack in the north. Important corridors have disappeared over time, indicating potential issues in maintaining connectivity for species migration. (4) These results can provide optimization strategies for ecological infrastructure planning in Zhejiang province and offer a theoretical reference for the optimization of the ecological network system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes)
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13 pages, 1558 KiB  
Article
Biodiversity-Centric Habitat Networks for Green Infrastructure Planning: A Case Study in Northern Italy
by Francesco Lami, Francesco Boscutti, Elisabetta Peccol, Lucia Piani, Matteo De Luca, Pietro Zandigiacomo and Maurizia Sigura
Sustainability 2024, 16(9), 3604; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16093604 - 25 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1941
Abstract
Green infrastructure (GI) networks comprising multiple natural and artificial habitats are important tools for the management of ecosystem services. However, even though ecosystem services are deeply linked with the state of biodiversity, many approaches to GI network planning do not explicitly consider the [...] Read more.
Green infrastructure (GI) networks comprising multiple natural and artificial habitats are important tools for the management of ecosystem services. However, even though ecosystem services are deeply linked with the state of biodiversity, many approaches to GI network planning do not explicitly consider the ecological needs of biotic communities, which are often threatened by anthropic activities even in presence of protected areas. Here, to contribute in fill this gap, we describe an easy-to-apply, biodiversity-centric approach to model an ecological network as a backbone for a GI network, based on the ecological needs of a range of representative species. For each species, ideal habitats (nodes) were identified, and crossing costs were assigned to other habitat types depending on their compatibility with the species ecology. Corridors linking the nodes were then mapped, minimizing overall habitat crossing costs. We applied the method to the Isonzo–Vipacco river area in Northern Italy, highlighting a potential ecological network where nodes and corridors occupied 27% and 11.8% of the study area, respectively. The prospective of its conflicts with anthropic activities and possible solutions for its implementation was also discussed. Our method could be applied to a variety of situations and geographic contexts, being equally useful for supporting the protection of entire biocenoses or of specific sensitive species, as well as enhancing the ecosystem services they provide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes)
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Review

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26 pages, 7059 KiB  
Review
Toward Understanding Research Evolution on Indirect Drivers of Ecosystem Change along the Interface of Protected and Non-Protected Lands
by Trace Gale and Andrea Báez Montenegro
Sustainability 2024, 16(17), 7572; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16177572 - 1 Sep 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1470
Abstract
Against a backdrop of rapid environmental degradation and increasing pressures on natural resources, a broad list of innovations has emerged to support the vision of the post-2020 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and strengthen regional and country-level biodiversity strategies along the interface of protected [...] Read more.
Against a backdrop of rapid environmental degradation and increasing pressures on natural resources, a broad list of innovations has emerged to support the vision of the post-2020 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and strengthen regional and country-level biodiversity strategies along the interface of protected areas and non-protected lands. The success of these strategies depends in large part on science-informed consideration and approaches to the underlying and indirect drivers of change for natural systems and ecosystem services. This paper aims to inform future strategies and action plans for conservation efforts and sustainable practices globally and regionally, with a specific focus on Latin America’s environmental challenges. Bibliometric analysis, covering two decades from 2003 to 2023, focused on global and Latin American research trends related to the indirect drivers of change for natural systems and ecosystem services at the interface of protected and non-protected lands. Through structured analysis, key opportunities for increased collaboration, impact, and research focus are identified, highlighting the need to expand research collaboration strategies and reach, enhance research dissemination through open and equitable innovations, and strengthen capacity to the complex and interrelated challenges underlying accelerated change in natural systems, which affects biodiversity and ecosystem services. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biodiversity Management in Sustainable Landscapes)
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