Contrasting ecology and culture in Mediterranean ecosystems of Portugal and California

Oak woodland persistence in Portugal and California may only be possible through the integration of both human and natural components. In this study we assessed how socio-economic systems (SES) and ecological requirements of wildlife species are linked to oak woodlands of Portugal and California. More specifically, we (1) applied the SES framework to four resources provided by oak woodlands: forestry, rangeland, agriculture and natural areas; (2) spatialized SES information into predictive models of wildlife presence using remote sensing data; and (3) analyzed how sensitive these resources are to future changes in land use and climate. We found that in both regions the sustainability of extractable resources may be threatened by replacement rate, land-use history, and interdependence with other resources. The non-extractable resources (natural areas themselves) are more susceptible and sustainable management is dependent on the voluntary nature of collective-choice rules. Inclusion of the SES spatial context of all four resources into models of wildlife presence produced the most parsimonious models, as the wildlife species responded to the heterogeneity of resource availability rather than to one resource alone. In addition, inclusion of productivity and stress parameters further improved the predictions of wildlife presence. These results demonstrate that the persistence of oak woodland SES’s is tightly linked with the persistence of current land use and productivity patterns, and changes in any of these parameters is likely to affect natural and human communities depending on them.

Oak woodland persistence in Portugal and California may only be possible through the integration of both human and natural components. In this study we assessed how socio-economic systems (SES) and ecological requirements of wildlife species are linked to oak woodlands of Portugal and California. More specifically, we (1) applied the SES framework to four resources provided by oak woodlands: forestry, rangeland, agriculture and natural areas; (2) spatialized SES information into predictive models of wildlife presence using remote sensing data; and (3) analyzed how sensitive these resources are to future changes in land use and climate. We found that in both regions the sustainability of extractable resources may be threatened by replacement rate, land-use history, and interdependence with other resources. The non-extractable resources (natural areas themselves) are more susceptible and sustainable management is dependent on the voluntary nature of collective-choice rules. Inclusion of the SES spatial context of all four resources into models of wildlife presence produced the most parsimonious models, as the wildlife species responded to the heterogeneity of resource availability rather than to one resource alone. In addition, inclusion of productivity and stress parameters further improved the predictions of wildlife presence. These results demonstrate that the persistence of oak woodland SES’s is tightly linked with the persistence of current land use and productivity patterns, and changes in any of these parameters is likely to affect natural and human communities depending on them.