Alternative vegetation trajectories through passive habitat rewilding: opposite efects for animal conservation

Abstract

Context Passive habitat rewilding after rural abandonment can afect wildlife diferently depending on the type of habitats that it generates. Objective Evaluate and compare the efects of two alternative vegetation trajectories that occur through passive habitat rewilding in Mediterranean ecotone areas (crop-scrub and crop-pine forest transitions) on the long-term population dynamics of animal species. Methods We used the spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca), a characteristic long-lived species of cultural landscapes, as study species. We applied a spatially explicit and individual-based model (STEPLAND) to simulate the movement and demographic processes in a long-term period, by comparing an “impact scenario” (i.e., historical land-use changes) to a “control scenario” (no land-use changes). Results The two landscape scenarios resulted in different population trends. In the crop-scrub scenarios (control and impact), population densities increased similarly over time. However, the crop-pine forest scenario negatively afected population density throughout the simulation period, and showed a timelag response of three decades. The extinction risk was 55% with a time-lag response of approximately 110 years. Conclusions Our study highlights the need to analyse the legacy efects on long-lived ectotherms, using them as a proxy to understand the future efects of dynamic landscapes created by “passive habitat rewilding”. Our results showed how traditional agriculture in Mediterranean ecotone areas may generate “ecotone efects” (i.e. increase in demographical parameters), but also population extinction on longlived ectotherms. Therefore, we consider it relevant to maintain traditional agricultural areas in Mediterranean landscapes, especially in ecotone areas associated with pine forests (generating mosaics with open habitats).