Applying Nature's Design: Corridors as a Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation

by Anthony B. Anderson, Clinton N. Jenkins

Overview

The fragmenting of habitats is endangering animal populations and degrading or destroying many plant populations throughout the world. To address this problem, conservationists have increasingly turned to biological corridors, areas of land set aside to facilitate the movement of species and ecological processes. However, while hundreds of corridor initiatives are under way worldwide, there is little practical information to guide their design, location, and management. "Applying Nature's Design" offers a comprehensive overview of current knowledge on corridors, their design, and their implementation. Anthony B. Anderson and Clinton N. Jenkins examine a variety of conceptual and practical issues associated with corridors and provide detailed case studies from around the world. Their work considers how to manage and govern corridors, how to build support among various interest groups for corridors, and the obstacles to implementation. In addition to assessing various environmental and ecological challenges, the authors are the first to consider the importance of socioeconomic and political issues in creating and maintaining corridors.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231508674
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	06/19/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Anthony B. Anderson is an independent conservation consultant. He is the editor of Alternatives to Deforestation (Columbia) and the coauthor (with Peter May and Michael Balick) of The Subsidy from Nature: Palm Forests, Peasantry, and Development of the Amazon Frontier (Columbia).

Clinton N. Jenkins is a conservation ecologist at the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences at Duke University.

Table of Contents

List of Figures     vii
Acknowledgments     ix
Introduction     1
Landscape Connectivity and Corridors     2
Contents of the Book     6
The Book in Context     10
Conceptual Foundations of Corridors     11
Conceptual Foundations     11
Terminology and Types of Corridors     18
Corridor Controversy     21
Corridor Design     27
Corridor Context     28
Corridor Objectives as a Basis for Design     29
Corridor Design Elements     35
Steps in Corridor Design     45
Corridor Implementation     51
How Do You Manage Corridors?     51
What Are the Obstacles to Implementing Corridors?     55
How Do You Build Support for Corridors?     61
What Are Effective Incentives for Corridors?     66
How Should Corridors Be Governed?     73
An Integrated Implementation Strategy     77
Case Studies     81
Methodology     81
Forest Corridors for Lion Tamarins in the Atlantic Forest     83
The Talamanca-Caribbean Corridor, Costa Rica     95
A Corridor Network for Wildlife in Florida, USA     106
The Y2Y Corridor in the U.S. and Canadian Rocky Mountains     124
Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument: A "Wildlife Highway" for the Klamath-Siskiyou Ecoregion     143
The Lower Kinabatangan River Corridor, Malaysia     157
The Terai Arc Landscape of India and Nepal     169
Restoring Landscape Linkages in the Veluwe Region, the Netherlands     184
Notes     197
References     203
Index     215

What People are Saying About This

Charles M. Peters

This is a thorough treatment of an important conservation tool used to counter habitat fragmentation. It is notable—and exemplary—that the authors also include considerations of ecological as well as economic and sociopolitical issues.

Mary Pearl

Given that habitat fragmentation is arguably the single most important human impact on the environment, a book that examines the most touted yet underexplored remediation method is long overdue, and in fact very important at a moment when so many corridors are in the planning phase.

Editorial Reviews

[A] valuable book... Highly recommended.

Choice

This small volume is packed with ideas, concepts, and references. It should be on the bookshelves of conservationists.

Quarterly Review of Biology - Terry L. Erwin

This book presents an opportunity for a diverse readership to gain a new perspective about corridors and to spark new ideas of how their disciplines can participate.

Landscape Ecology - Stephen N. Matthews

This small volume is packed with ideas, concepts, and references. It should be on the bookshelves of conservationists.

— Terry L. Erwin

Quarterly Review of Biology

This book presents an opportunity for a diverse readership to gain a new perspective about corridors and to spark new ideas of how their disciplines can participate.

— Stephen N. Matthews

Landscape Ecology