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We asked how the concept of landscape extent is used in conservation planning. To narrow the scope of our review, we focused on four iconic species depicted on Canadian currency: the beaver (Castor canadensis), the caribou (Rangifer tarandus), the common loon (Gavia immer), and the polar bear (Ursus maritimus). Landscape ecology research suggests that a landscape is a species-specific construct arising from the spatial scales over which ecological processes occur. Species traits can be correlated with the scales of important effects and thus can identify relevant landscape extents for research and conservation. It is unclear, however, how the theoretical concept of landscape extent is applied in conservation practice. For the four iconic species in our study, we found an inconsistent use of species-specific traits in definitions of landscape extent for conservation planning. For two species, the caribou and the polar bear, species-specific traits were used to define conservation units, for defining either Designatable Units for assessment of at-risk status or for defining herds or subpopulations for management actions. No species-specific traits were identified in spatial frameworks used in loon or beaver conservation planning, as both were included in multi-species management approaches. Our review suggests a type of research implementation gap. Conservation units are often defined based on political or administrative boundaries rather than by species-specific processes. We suggest that landscape extent be implemented as a hypothesis in an adaptive management framework when possible. Additionally, we encourage research approaches that explicitly incorporate policy considerations into research design. |
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