66
Many of these monitoring procedures have allowed retrospective analysis to
show trends, changes and even relationships that reflect human impact. This reflects
the broad consensus that long term monitoring programs are essential in addressing
global change effects and in implementing decision-making (Inouye 2017;
Lindenmayer et al. 2015; Magurran et al. 2010; Navarrete et al. 2010; Willig and
Walker 2016).
In 2002, the Doñana Biological Station (EBD), a research centre of the Spanish
Research Council (CSIC), together with the Doñana National Park Officers, proposed an integrated Long-Term Ecological Monitoring (LTEM) program. Almost a
hundred monitoring protocols were defined, some to assess the status of threatened
or flagship species and habitats of interest and others to track natural processes and
the effects of conservation management actions (Díaz-Delgado 2010). After
15 years of implementation, the program has contributed data to provide evidence
of spatial patterns and temporal trends of the target species and habitats: these have
been reported in many publications. Consequently, quite a few research projects
have been proposed and initiated to seek the scientific causes of the observed trends
and their relationships with a range of environmental factors. Furthermore, the
different management agencies have had uninterrupted access to the monitoring
data and used these for decision-making in several conservation success stories at
Doñana (Díaz-Delgado et al. 2016b).
The integration of the program into the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER)
network in 2008 allowed us to enhance the results and their outreach. Since then, the
monitoring program and the research associated with it have benefited from the
advances provided by the collaboration with the LTER networks, through participation in different research projects.
On the other hand, the program has largely benefited the available remote sensing applications by providing a full set of protocols and assisting in the interpretation of other monitoring results. All across the planet we find different conservation
agencies and research projects using remote sensing tools to monitor ecosystems
state and trends. Recent advances are also achieving good successes in biodiversity
monitoring (Nagendra et al. 2013; Paganini et al. 2016; Pettorelli et al. 2016;
Vihervaara et al. 2017; Wulder 2011).
I present an overview of some of the results obtained from the treatment, analysis
and interpretation of the information collected through the monitoring program at a
landscape scale. Most of these have contributed to conservation management in the
Doñana protected area.
Long-Term Ecological Monitoring at Landscape Scale
in the Doñana Protected Area
The landscape-scale approach integrated into the LTEM program is implemented in
the Doñana Natural Space (END), south-west Spain. The approach has greatly
contributed to improving our knowledge of different, ecologically relevant, natural
R. Díaz-Delgado
Many of these monitoring procedures have allowed retrospective analysis to
show trends, changes and even relationships that reflect human impact. This reflects
the broad consensus that long term monitoring programs are essential in addressing
global change effects and in implementing decision-making (Inouye 2017;
Lindenmayer et al. 2015; Magurran et al. 2010; Navarrete et al. 2010; Willig and
Walker 2016).
In 2002, the Doñana Biological Station (EBD), a research centre of the Spanish
Research Council (CSIC), together with the Doñana National Park Officers, proposed an integrated Long-Term Ecological Monitoring (LTEM) program. Almost a
hundred monitoring protocols were defined, some to assess the status of threatened
or flagship species and habitats of interest and others to track natural processes and
the effects of conservation management actions (Díaz-Delgado 2010). After
15 years of implementation, the program has contributed data to provide evidence
of spatial patterns and temporal trends of the target species and habitats: these have
been reported in many publications. Consequently, quite a few research projects
have been proposed and initiated to seek the scientific causes of the observed trends
and their relationships with a range of environmental factors. Furthermore, the
different management agencies have had uninterrupted access to the monitoring
data and used these for decision-making in several conservation success stories at
Doñana (Díaz-Delgado et al. 2016b).
The integration of the program into the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER)
network in 2008 allowed us to enhance the results and their outreach. Since then, the
monitoring program and the research associated with it have benefited from the
advances provided by the collaboration with the LTER networks, through participation in different research projects.
On the other hand, the program has largely benefited the available remote sensing applications by providing a full set of protocols and assisting in the interpretation of other monitoring results. All across the planet we find different conservation
agencies and research projects using remote sensing tools to monitor ecosystems
state and trends. Recent advances are also achieving good successes in biodiversity
monitoring (Nagendra et al. 2013; Paganini et al. 2016; Pettorelli et al. 2016;
Vihervaara et al. 2017; Wulder 2011).
I present an overview of some of the results obtained from the treatment, analysis
and interpretation of the information collected through the monitoring program at a
landscape scale. Most of these have contributed to conservation management in the
Doñana protected area.
Long-Term Ecological Monitoring at Landscape Scale
in the Doñana Protected Area
The landscape-scale approach integrated into the LTEM program is implemented in
the Doñana Natural Space (END), south-west Spain. The approach has greatly
contributed to improving our knowledge of different, ecologically relevant, natural
R. Díaz-Delgado