Species distribution modelling (SDM) can help conservation by providing information on the ecological requirements of species at risk. We developed habitat suitability models at multiple spatial scales for a threatened freshwater turtle, Emydoidea blandingii, in Ontario as a case study. We also explored the effect of background data selection and modelling algorithm selection on habitat suitability predictions. We used sighting records, high-resolution land cover data (25m), and two SDM techniques: boosted regression trees; and maximum entropy modelling.

The composition and configuration of landscape elements as well as their size and shape co-determine the character of the flows and processes in the landscape. Using remote sensing data and landscape metrics, this article sets out to analyse changes in the landscape structure at two different spatial scales, focusing on two study areas in the Czech Republic in the latter half of the twentieth century.

Due to the progressive forest expansion in European mountain areas triggered by agricultural abandonment, semi-natural meadows and pastures of great ecological and aesthetic value are disappearing. The aim of this study is to predict and analyse the future evolution of land use and land cover (LULC) in the Stubai Valley, Central Alps. We propose a computational Population Dynamics P system (PDP) model that incorporates the main LULC change processes like plant production, grazing, abandonment and reforestation.

Europe is characterized not only by large geomorphological variability but also by a long history of land use. This resulted in a highly variegated landscape. Based on the IGBP‐transect initiative, a north south transect was established across Europe ranging from north Sweden to central Italy in order to study effects of global change. Mainly process oriented studies were established on plots along the transect, and these were used to establish functional relationships as basis for landscape integration.

Quantifying landscape‐scale methane (CH₄) fluxes from boreal and arctic regions, and determining how they are controlled, is critical for predicting the magnitude of any CH₄ emission feedback to climate change. Furthermore, there remains uncertainty regarding the relative importance of small areas of strong methanogenic activity, vs. larger areas with net CH₄ uptake, in controlling landscape‐level fluxes.

The fundamental land use/land cover change (LUCC) of Naoli River (NLR) Basin in Sanjiang Plain since 1954 is characterized with a very significant shrink of wetland area, primarily due to agricultural reclamation, especially farm construction. In this paper, LUCC data of six periods were generated to explore the process of LUCC in NLR; the driving factors were discovered and the regression analysis of these driving factors was realized using the Dyna-CLUE model; and the land use pattern of 2020 in NLR Basin was projected under six scenarios.

Land is one of the prime natural resources. A city grows not only by population but also by changes in spatial dimensions. Urban population growth and urban sprawl induced land use changes and land transformation. The land transformation is a natural process and cannot be stopped but it can be regulated. Many geographical changes at the urban periphery are associated with the transfer of land from rural to urban purpose. There is an urgent need for fast growing areas like Delhi, which can be easily done by high-resolution remote sensing data.

More than three-quarters of Mexico's coffee is grown on small plots shaded by the existing forest. Because they preserve forest cover, shade coffee farms provide vital ecological services including harboring biodiversity and preventing soil erosion. Unfortunately, tree cover in Mexico's shade coffee areas is increasingly being cleared to make way for subsistence agriculture, a direct result of the unprecedented decline of international coffee prices over the past decade.

Little is known about the habitat and ecology of suburban Barred Owls (Strix varia), a species sometimes considered the nocturnal equivalent of Red-shouldered Hawks (Buteo lineatus). We compared nesting habitat of Barred Owls to that of Red-shouldered Hawks nesting in suburban and urban areas, in and near the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, to determine whether any features distinguished owl nest sites from hawk nest sites.

Human activities in many parts of the world have greatly changed the natural land cover. This study has been conducted on Pichavaram forest, south east coast of India, famous for its unique mangrove bio-diversity. The main objectives of this study were focused on monitoring land cover changes particularly for the mangrove forest in the Pichavaram area using multi-temporal Landsat images captured in the 1991, 2000, and 2009.

The wintering Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor was censused in Poland more than two decades ago (during the winters of 1988/89 and 1989/90). Single censuses were made during each winter on sample plots varying from 4.1 to 35.1 km² (mean: 16.4 km²). Altogether, data from 404 plots, covering in total more than 6.6 thousands km² were used for the analysis. Based on this data and environmental information gathered in GIS databases (Corine land cover ““CLC1990”” database, digital elevation model ““GTOPO30”” dataset) we modelled habitat- and spatial-related variation in shrike distribution.

The land surface models used in numerical weather forecasts and hydrological applications rely on the accuracy of land cover maps available from satellite remote sensing to simulate the energy and water balance at the surface of the Earth. While the impact of classification accuracy on land surface simulations has already been reported, little attention has been paid on the consequences of land cover map uncertainty driven by geolocation accuracy.