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ARS Home » Plains Area » Las Cruces, New Mexico » Range Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #314212
Title: Connectivity in dryland landscapes: shifting concepts of spatial interactions

Author
item OKIN, GREGORY - University Of California
item MORENO-DELAS HERAS, MARIANO - University Of Durham
item SACO, PATRICIA - Non ARS Employee
item THROOP, HEATHER - New Mexico State University
item VIVONI, ENRIQUE - Arizona State University
item PARSONS, ANTHONY - University Of Sheffield
item WAINWRIGHT, JOHN - University Of Durham
item Peters, Debra

Submitted to: Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/2/2014
Publication Date: 2/2/2015
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/60334
Citation: Okin, G.S., Moreno-Delas Heras, M., Saco, P.M., Throop, H.L., Vivoni, E., Parsons, A.J., Wainwright, J., Peters, D.C. 2015. Connectivity in dryland landscapes: shifting concepts of spatial interactions. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 13:20-27.

Interpretive Summary: Drylands are characterized by their patchy vegetation and exposed soil that allow transport of soil resources and propagules through the ecosystem (primarily by wind and water but also by animals). This connectivity for the flow of these materials is a key component of ecosystem function in drylands. We argue that the concept of connectivity explains many phenomena observed in drylands, and serves as an organizing principle to understand dryland form and function at scales from the plant-interspace to the landscape. The concept also serves to structure thinking about interactions of processes occurring at different scales. The connectivity framework has practical implications for land management, especially with respect to decision-making concerning the scale and location of production or restoration in the world’s drylands.

Technical Abstract: Drylands are often characterized by their patchy vegetation and exposed soil. This structure allows transport of soil resources and propagules through the ecosystem (primarily by wind and water but also by animals), thus making the connectivity for the flow of these materials a key component of ecosystem function in drylands. We argue that, as the fertile island concept before it, the concept of connectivity explains many phenomena observed in drylands. Further, it serves as an organizing principle to understand dryland form and function at scales from the plant-interspace to the landscape. The concept also serves to structure thinking about interactions of processes occurring at different scales, such as when processes occurring at one scale are overridden by processes occurring at another scale. The connectivity framework has practical implications for land management, especially with respect to decision-making concerning the scale and location of production or restoration in the world’s drylands.