Mercredi 22 Mai à 13H30, Salle -107M

Species’ ecological responses to landscape features at broad-scales

Human activities have transformed natural landscapes into human-dominated areas worldwide at unprecedented rates in the last centuries. Land cover transformation is associated with loss of natural habitat, thus a threat to biodiversity. Because habitat loss will likely continue in the future due to population growth and increase demand for natural resources, an important question in ecological studies is whether land cover features (i.e. amount, variety, shape, configuration) can be used as predictors to estimate species loss from habitat modification. Most studies in landscape ecology look at these issues at the site-level (e.g. patch scale) and regionally (e.g. < 10-100km2). Hence, extrapolations on the role of landscapes characteristics outside of the studied area are, in general, limited. My studies investigate the predictive ability of landscape features in predicting species’ ecological responses at the landscape level and across large extents (e.g., provincial level, globally). I test several predictions from classic hypotheses such as the species-area relationship and habitat fragmentation, utilizing a macroecological approach. Working with large databases and different modelling techniques, I have found ways to improve predictions of how bird species respond to land cover types, amount and fragmentation in Eastern North America. For future projects, I would like to continue testing predictions on species’ ecological responses to human modified land covers and human pressures at the landscape-scale across the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. In times of environmental changes, the outcome of my research might offer some clues on how biodiversity respond to landscape changes, adding conceptual value to the ecology and conservation biology literature.