Data_Sheet_2_Incorporating Established Conservation Networks into Freshwater Conservation Planning Results in More Workable Prioritizations.PDF

Resources for addressing stream fish conservation issues are often limited and the stressors impacting fish continue to increase, so decision makers often rely on tools to prioritize locations for conservation actions. Because conservation networks already exist in many areas, incorporating these into the planning process can increase the ability of decision makers to carry out management actions. In this study we aim to identify priority areas within established networks to provide an approach which allows managers to focus efforts on the most valuable areas they control, while identifying areas outside of the network, which support species with minimal representation within the network, for acquisition or conservation partnerships. The goal of this approach is to prioritize sites to achieve high levels of species representation while also developing workable solutions. We applied a methodology incorporating established networks into a systematic conservation planning process for fish in temperate wadeable streams located in Missouri, USA. We compared how well species were represented in our approach with two commonly used alternatives: A blank slate approach which used the same systematic conservation planning technique but did not incorporate established networks, and a habitat integrity approach based solely on anthropogenic threat data. Relative to the blank slate approach, our approach required 210% more segments for representation of all species, and contained an average of 0.5 additional occurrences for the least well-represented species. Although the blank slate solution was more efficient in achieving species representation, 77% of segments in this solution were not already protected. This would likely pose a challenge for implementing conservation actions. Relative to habitat integrity-based priorities, our approach required only 38% of the number of stream segments to achieve representation of all species and contained an average of 5 additional occurrences of the least represented species, representing a substantial gain in representation. Incorporating established networks may allow managers to focus resources on areas with the greatest conservation value within established networks and to identify the most valuable areas complementary to the established networks, resulting in priorities which may be more actionable and effective than those developed by alternative approaches.

针对解决河流鱼类保护问题的资源往往有限，且影响鱼类的压力因素持续增加，因此决策者常常依赖工具来优先考虑保护行动的地点。鉴于许多地区的保护网络已经存在，将这些网络纳入规划流程可以增强决策者实施管理行动的能力。在本研究中，我们的目标是在既定的网络内识别优先区域，提供一种允许管理者集中精力在他们所控制的最具价值的区域进行努力的方法，同时确定网络之外的区域，这些区域支持网络中代表性极低的物种，以便进行收购或保护伙伴关系。本方法的目标是在实现高水平的物种代表性同时，开发可行的解决方案。我们采用了一种将既定网络纳入美国密苏里州温带涉水溪流鱼类系统性保护规划流程的方法。我们比较了我们的方法在物种代表性方面的表现与两种常用替代方案：一种空白石板方法，它使用了相同的系统性保护规划技术，但没有纳入既定网络；以及一种仅基于人为威胁数据的栖息地完整性方法。与空白石板方法相比，我们的方法需要代表所有物种的210%更多的段落，并且对于代表性最差的物种平均增加了0.5个出现次数。尽管空白石板解决方案在实现物种代表性方面更为高效，但该方案中有77%的段落尚未得到保护，这可能会对实施保护行动构成挑战。与基于栖息地完整性的优先级相比，我们的方法只需要38%的溪流段落数量就能实现所有物种的代表性，并且对于代表性最差的物种平均增加了5个出现次数，这代表了代表性方面的显著提升。纳入既定网络可能允许管理者将资源集中在既定网络内最具保护价值的区域，并确定与既定网络相辅相成的最具价值的区域，从而产生比其他方法更具可操作性和有效性的优先级。