Landscapes for Energy and Wildlife: Conservation Prioritization for Golden Eagles across Large Spatial Scales
نویسندگان
چکیده
Proactive conservation planning for species requires the identification of important spatial attributes across ecologically relevant scales in a model-based framework. However, it is often difficult to develop predictive models, as the explanatory data required for model development across regional management scales is rarely available. Golden eagles are a large-ranging predator of conservation concern in the United States that may be negatively affected by wind energy development. Thus, identifying landscapes least likely to pose conflict between eagles and wind development via shared space prior to development will be critical for conserving populations in the face of imposing development. We used publically available data on golden eagle nests to generate predictive models of golden eagle nesting sites in Wyoming, USA, using a suite of environmental and anthropogenic variables. By overlaying predictive models of golden eagle nesting habitat with wind energy resource maps, we highlight areas of potential conflict among eagle nesting habitat and wind development. However, our results suggest that wind potential and the relative probability of golden eagle nesting are not necessarily spatially correlated. Indeed, the majority of our sample frame includes areas with disparate predictions between suitable nesting habitat and potential for developing wind energy resources. Map predictions cannot replace on-the-ground monitoring for potential risk of wind turbines on wildlife populations, though they provide industry and managers a useful framework to first assess potential development.
منابع مشابه
Modeling Late-Summer Distribution of Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) in the Western United States
Increasing development across the western United States (USA) elevates concerns about effects on wildlife resources; the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is of special concern in this regard. Knowledge of golden eagle abundance and distribution across the western USA must be improved to help identify and conserve areas of major importance to the species. We used distance sampling and visual mar...
متن کاملGolden Eagle fatalities and the continental-scale consequences of local wind-energy generation.
Renewable energy production is expanding rapidly despite mostly unknown environmental effects on wildlife and habitats. We used genetic and stable isotope data collected from Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) killed at the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area (APWRA) in California in demographic models to test hypotheses about the geographic extent and demographic consequences of fatalities caused ...
متن کاملPrioritizing multiple-use landscapes for conservation: methods for large multi-species planning problems.
Across large parts of the world, wildlife has to coexist with human activity in highly modified and fragmented landscapes. Combining concepts from population viability analysis and spatial reserve design, this study develops efficient quantitative methods for identifying conservation core areas at large, even national or continental scales. The proposed methods emphasize long-term population pe...
متن کاملThe impacts of forest management strategies for woodland caribou vary across biogeographic gradients
Loss or alteration of forest ecosystems due to anthropogenic activities has prompted the need for mitigation measures aimed at protecting habitat for forest-dependent wildlife. Understanding how wildlife respond to such management efforts is essential for achieving conservation targets. Boreal caribou are a species of conservation concern due to the impacts of human induced habitat alteration; ...
متن کاملChoosing the Appropriate Scale of Reserves for Conservation
■ Abstract Over the past ten years the scientific basis for reserve selection and design have rapidly developed. This period has also been characterized by a shift in emphasis toward large spatial and organizational scales of conservation efforts. I discuss the evidence in support of this shift toward larger scale conservation by contrasting the success of fine-filter (genes, populations, speci...
متن کامل