This month I’ll be focusing on one part of a very big issue- habitat fragmentation, in all of its forms, is a huge problem for species around the world and the ecosystem services they provide. Some species require a certain amount of territory for their home ranges, and habitat fragmentation may leave them unable to meet their needs in the space they have. Other species need a certain type of habitat, for example the vegetation deep within forests, and cutting up the forest into smaller blocks reduces the amount of deep forest, leaving them to make do with less favorable areas.
It’s an interesting patchwork of habitats to look at and a challenge for dispersal
And sometimes the fragmentation issue has to do with finding new territory or others of your species– if you’re a juvenile animal ready to strike out on your own, what happens when you have to cross human-dominated landscapes to reach the next patch of suitable habitat? It’s hard enough to learn the dangers and resources of a new place (think of all of those freshmen who started college this fall…), but adding roads to cross and neighborhoods to go around makes the process even more difficult. The challenges can be just as great if you are an adult male looking for a mate- getting to where potential partners are could be more than half of the challenge (and after all of your efforts, you may still have to impress her). This is the type of habitat fragmentation I’ll be looking at in my posts this month- the barriers to movement that are created on local (and larger) levels by changes in the environment, many of which are the result of human activity.
And I’ll be bringing in my field experiences relating to this issue- I have been both saddened by the isolation of some animals I’ve worked with and amazed by the obstacles that others have overcome. So stick with me as I trace the impact of habitat fragmentation on animal dispersal (at the very least, I have some good pictures…).