COS 227-3 - The Importance and Design of Biodiversity Islands in Terrestrial Landscapes

Abstract: The goal of biodiversity restoration at the landscape level is to provide additional habitat, buffer areas, and corridors that connect fragments. This can be achieved using a combination of strategies with objectives of both production and conservation. Here we are conceptualizing, identifying and promoting the implementation of the framing tool we term Biodiversity Islands (BI): areas of land with greater diversity than the surrounding areas, where plant and animal species can thrive without major interference from human activity. BI constitute genetic, cultural, carbon and nutrient “banks” in the fragmented landscape, hosting a diversity of plants, animals, microorganisms, ecosystems, landscapes and water resources according to their scale. BI are ecological refuges for flora and fauna, serving as sources of propagules and protecting resources from fires, pests and other forms of stress, thereby providing ecological, economic, and social benefits at the ecosystem, landscape, and global levels. Design strategies for BI depend on their purpose, as well as on the spatial distribution of reserves throughout the landscape, degree of landscape degradation, species present, and location within the urban-rural spectrum. BI can exist in a range of human dominated landscapes (e.g., agricultural, wetland, urban) and can range from square meters to many square kilometers in size. We provide examples from throughout the world and discuss potential difficulties with their use, including case studies of BI for both conservation and production purposes such as tree and vegetation islands, riparian forests, regenerative agriculture and agroforestry systems (AFS). As components of BI, more complex systems, such as multistrata AFS and intensive silvopastoral systems (ISPS) have higher conservation values and can constitute BI in themselves, while less complex AFS can form part of a buffer area. In all cases, the inclusion of diverse systems within a BI design provides greater biodiversity than conventional agriculture or degraded areas. Other BI can be relicts from previous land uses (e.g. resiliency islands) and/or have been kept by human populations for other purposes while serving a BI objective as well (e.g. sacred forests and groves). In promoting BI, we encourage the application of integrated landscape management and inclusive community led action. BI can be a valuable framing tool for practitioners and policy makers. Motivations may be inherent, learned, and/or re-learned within cultures. Many non-profit allies exist to help empower the development of community led action. Innovative for-profit organizations and models hold power for further development of community led action for biodiversity conservation.