IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v14y2022i3p1562-d737213.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Habitat Suitability for Small Mammals in Mediterranean Landscapes: How and Why Shrubs Matter

Author

Listed:
  • Ignasi Torre

    (BiBio Research Group, Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers, C/Francesc Macià 51, E-08402 Granollers, Spain)

  • Carlos Jaime-González

    (Independent Researcher, E-03749 Denia, Spain)

  • Mario Díaz

    (National Museum of Natural Sciences, BGC-MNCN-CSIC, C/Serrano 115 Bis, E-28006 Madrid, Spain)

Abstract

Fires are usually seen as a threat for biodiversity conservation in the Mediterranean, but natural afforestation after abandonment of traditional land uses is leading to the disappearance of open spaces that benefit many species of conservation interest. Fires create open habitats in which small mammals can live under more favourable conditions, such as lower predation, interspecific competition, and higher food availability. We analysed the role of changes in shrub cover and shrub preference by small mammals along the Mediterranean post-fire succession. We used data (period 2008–2018) from 17 plots woodlands and post-fire shrublands present in the study area (Barcelona’s Natural Parks, Catalonia, NE Spain), and vegetation structure was assessed by LiDAR technology for modelling ground-dwelling small mammal preferences. The diversity, abundance, and stability of Mediterranean small mammal communities negatively responded to vegetation structural complexity, which resulted from the combined effects of land abandonment and recovery after wildfires. We suggest that biotic factors such as vegetation profiles (providing food and shelter) and their interaction with predators and competitors could be responsible for the observed patterns. Considering the keystone role of small mammals in the sustainability of Mediterranean forest, our results could be useful for management under the current global change conditions.

Suggested Citation

  • Ignasi Torre & Carlos Jaime-González & Mario Díaz, 2022. "Habitat Suitability for Small Mammals in Mediterranean Landscapes: How and Why Shrubs Matter," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-13, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:3:p:1562-:d:737213
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/3/1562/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/3/1562/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Juli Pausas & Santiago Fernández-Muñoz, 2012. "Fire regime changes in the Western Mediterranean Basin: from fuel-limited to drought-driven fire regime," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 110(1), pages 215-226, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Huan Xie & Fang Wang & Yali Gong & Xiaohua Tong & Yanmin Jin & Ang Zhao & Chao Wei & Xinyi Zhang & Shicheng Liao, 2022. "Spatially Balanced Sampling for Validation of GlobeLand30 Using Landscape Pattern-Based Inclusion Probability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-19, February.
    2. Linas Balčiauskas, 2022. "Mammal Status: Diversity, Abundance and Dynamics: An Editorial," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-3, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Morán-Ordóñez, Alejandra & Ameztegui, Aitor & De Cáceres, Miquel & de-Miguel, Sergio & Lefèvre, François & Brotons, Lluís & Coll, Lluís, 2020. "Future trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services in Mediterranean forests under global change scenarios," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    2. Bruno Gianmarco Carra & Giuseppe Bombino & Manuel Esteban Lucas-Borja & Pietro Denisi & Pedro Antonio Plaza-Álvarez & Demetrio Antonio Zema, 2021. "Modelling the Event-Based Hydrological Response of Mediterranean Forests to Prescribed Fire and Soil Mulching with Fern Using the Curve Number, Horton and USLE-Family (Universal Soil Loss Equation) Mo," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-31, October.
    3. Nives Grasso & Andrea Maria Lingua & Maria Angela Musci & Francesca Noardo & Marco Piras, 2018. "An INSPIRE-compliant open-source GIS for fire-fighting management," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 90(2), pages 623-637, January.
    4. Marull, Joan & Cattaneo, Claudio & Gingrich, Simone & de Molina, Manuel González & Guzmán, Gloria I. & Watson, Andrew & MacFadyen, Joshua & Pons, Manel & Tello, Enric, 2019. "Comparative Energy-Landscape Integrated Analysis (ELIA) of past and present agroecosystems in North America and Europe from the 1830s to the 2010s," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 46-57.
    5. Marcos Rodrigues & Adrián Jiménez & Juan de la Riva, 2016. "Analysis of recent spatial–temporal evolution of human driving factors of wildfires in Spain," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 84(3), pages 2049-2070, December.
    6. Thibaut Fréjaville & Thomas Curt, 2015. "Spatiotemporal patterns of changes in fire regime and climate: defining the pyroclimates of south-eastern France (Mediterranean Basin)," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 129(1), pages 239-251, March.
    7. Bruno A. Aparício & João A. Santos & Teresa R. Freitas & Ana C. L. Sá & José M. C. Pereira & Paulo M. Fernandes, 2022. "Unravelling the effect of climate change on fire danger and fire behaviour in the Transboundary Biosphere Reserve of Meseta Ibérica (Portugal-Spain)," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 173(1), pages 1-20, July.
    8. Michele Salis & Liliana Del Giudice & Roghayeh Jahdi & Fermin Alcasena-Urdiroz & Carla Scarpa & Grazia Pellizzaro & Valentina Bacciu & Matilde Schirru & Andrea Ventura & Marcello Casula & Fabrizio Ped, 2022. "Spatial Patterns and Intensity of Land Abandonment Drive Wildfire Hazard and Likelihood in Mediterranean Agropastoral Areas," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-22, October.
    9. Taboada, Angela & García-Llamas, Paula & Fernández-Guisuraga, José Manuel & Calvo, Leonor, 2021. "Wildfires impact on ecosystem service delivery in fire-prone maritime pine-dominated forests," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    10. Rodríguez Fernández-Blanco, Carmen & Górriz-Mifsud, Elena & Prokofieva, Irina & Muys, Bart & Parra, Constanza, 2022. "Blazing the trail: Social innovation supporting wildfire-resilient territories in Catalonia (Spain)," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    11. Rafaello Bergonse & Sandra Oliveira & Ana Gonçalves & Sílvia Nunes & Carlos Câmara & José Luis Zêzere, 2021. "A combined structural and seasonal approach to assess wildfire susceptibility and hazard in summertime," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 106(3), pages 2545-2573, April.
    12. Thomas Curt & Thibaut Frejaville, 2018. "Wildfire Policy in Mediterranean France: How Far is it Efficient and Sustainable?," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(3), pages 472-488, March.
    13. Delgado-Artés, Rafael & Garófano-Gómez, Virginia & Oliver-Villanueva, José-Vicente & Rojas-Briales, Eduardo, 2022. "Land use/cover change analysis in the Mediterranean region: a regional case study of forest evolution in Castelló (Spain) over 50 years," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    14. Burton, Kati & Becker, Douglas & Hovardas, Tasos & Wardropper, Chloe B. & Maas, Alexander, 2024. "Assessing policy preferences for preventing and managing wildfire in Greece," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    15. Bérangère Leys & Christopher Carcaillet, 2016. "Subalpine fires: the roles of vegetation, climate and, ultimately, land uses," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 135(3), pages 683-697, April.
    16. Aretano, Roberta & Semeraro, Teodoro & Petrosillo, Irene & De Marco, Antonella & Pasimeni, Maria Rita & Zurlini, Giovanni, 2015. "Mapping ecological vulnerability to fire for effective conservation management of natural protected areas," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 295(C), pages 163-175.
    17. Utku Balaban & Albert S Fu, 2014. "Politics of Urban Development and Wildfires in California and Turkey," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 46(4), pages 820-836, April.
    18. Melania Michetti & Mehmet Pinar, 2019. "Forest Fires Across Italian Regions and Implications for Climate Change: A Panel Data Analysis," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 72(1), pages 207-246, January.
    19. Rodríguez-Soler, Rocío & Uribe-Toril, Juan & De Pablo Valenciano, Jaime, 2020. "Worldwide trends in the scientific production on rural depopulation, a bibliometric analysis using bibliometrix R-tool," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    20. Lasanta, Teodoro & Cortijos-López, Melani & Errea, M. Paz & Khorchani, Makki & Nadal-Romero, Estela, 2022. "An environmental management experience to control wildfires in the mid-mountain mediterranean area: Shrub clearing to generate mosaic landscapes," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:3:p:1562-:d:737213. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.