Search

Restoring wild communities of large herbivores is critical for the conservation of biodiverse ecosystems, but environmental changes in the twenty-first century could drastically affect the availability of habitats. We projected future habitat dynamics for 18 wild large herbivores in Europe and the relative future potential patterns of species richness and assemblage mean body weight considering four alternative scenarios of socioeconomic development in human society and greenhouse gas emissions (SSP1–RCP2.6, SSP2–RCP4.5, SSP3–RCP7.0, SSP5–RCP8.5). Under SSP1–RCP2.6, corresponding to a transition towards sustainable development, we found stable habitat suitability for most species and overall stable assemblage mean body weight compared to the present, with an average increase in species richness (in 2100: 3.03 ± 1.55 compared to today′s 2.25 ± 1.31 species/area). The other scenarios are generally unfavourable for the conservation of wild large herbivores, although under the SSP5–RCP8.5 scenario there would be increase in species richness and assemblage mean body weight in some southern regions (e.g. + 62.86 kg mean body weight in Balkans/Greece). Our results suggest that a shift towards a sustainable socioeconomic development would overall provide the best prospect of our maintaining or even increasing the diversity of wild herbivore assemblages in Europe, thereby promoting trophic complexity and the potential to restore functioning and self-regulating ecosystems. This article is part of the theme issue 'Ecological novelty and planetary stewardship: biodiversity dynamics in a transforming biosphere'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Reconstructing megafauna diversity in the past before anthropogenic impacts is crucial for developing targeted restoration strategies. We estimated the diversity and functional decline of European megafauna in the present compared with the nearest in‐time climate period analogue to the present but prior to the worldwide diffusion of Homo sapiens. Location: Europe. Time Period: Last Interglacial (LIG; ca. 127,000 years ago) to present. Major Taxa Studied: Wild, large (≥10 kg) terrestrial mammals. Methods: We assessed the distribution of 48 European megafauna species during the LIG using hindcasting modelling and fossil records. Then, we estimated the decline in megafauna community diversity and potential trait‐based functional effects from the LIG to the present, accounting for climate differences between the two periods. Results: Species richness and community biomass dropped by 70.8% (±11.7%) and by 94.5% (±9.9%). Functional diversity dropped by 80.3% (±15.3%) for herbivores and by 64.9% (±29.1%) for carnivores, while trait‐informed potential vegetation and meat consumptions dropped by 82.3% (±13.4%) and 60.5% (±26.0%). The loss in megafauna diversity and associated ecological processes were high everywhere, but particularly in western Europe for carnivores and in the East European Plain for herbivores. Potential megafauna richness in the two periods was similar if only climate‐driven differences were considered. Main Conclusions: Severe, size‐biased defaunation has degraded megafauna assemblages and megafauna‐mediated ecological processes across Europe from the LIG to the present. These patterns cannot be explained by climate differences between the two periods, thus were likely driven by prehistoric Homo sapiens. The results suggest that the structure of wild ecosystems of the present strongly deviates from the evolutionary norm, with decreased functional heterogeneity and decreased fluxes of biogeochemical compounds across the trophic networks, highlighting the importance of ambitious policies of megafauna community restoration to support ecosystem functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We review palaeoenvironmental proxies and combinations of these relevant for understanding hunter-gatherer niche construction activities in pre-agricultural Europe. Our approach consists of two steps: (1) identify the possible range of hunter-gatherer impacts on landscapes based on ethnographic studies; (2) evaluate proxies possibly reflecting these impacts for both the Eemian (Last Interglacial, Middle Palaeolithic) and the Early–Middle Holocene (Mesolithic). We found these paleoenvironmental proxies were not able to unequivocally establish clear-cut differences between specific anthropogenic, climatic and megafaunal impacts for either time period in this area. We discuss case studies for both periods and show that published evidence for Mesolithic manipulation of landscapes is based on the interpretation of comparable data as available for the Last Interglacial. If one applies the 'Mesolithic' interpretation schemes to the Neanderthal record, three common niche construction activities can be hypothesised: vegetation burning, plant manipulation and impact on animal species presence and abundance. Our review suggests that as strong a case can be made for a Neanderthal impact on landscapes as for anthropogenic landscape changes during the Mesolithic, even though the Neanderthal evidence comes from only one high-resolution site complex. Further research should include attempts (e.g. by means of modelling studies) to establish whether hunter-gatherer impact on landscapes played out at a local level only versus at a larger scale during both time periods, while we also need to obtain comparative data on the population sizes of Last Interglacial and Holocene hunter-gatherers, as these are usually inferred to have differed significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological processes and biodiversity patterns are strongly affected by how animals move through the landscape. However, it remains challenging to predict animal movement and space use. Here we present our new r package enerscape to quantify and predict animal movement in real landscapes based on energy expenditure.enerscape integrates a general locomotory model for terrestrial animals with GIS tools in order to map energy costs of movement in a given environment, resulting in energy landscapes that reflect how energy expenditures may shape habitat use. enerscape only requires topographic data (elevation) and the body mass of the studied animal. To illustrate the potential of enerscape, we analyse the energy landscape for the Marsican bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus) in a protected area in central Italy in order to identify least‐cost paths and high‐connectivity areas with low energy costs of travel.enerscape allowed us to identify travel routes for the bear that minimize energy costs of movement and regions that have high landscape connectivity based on movement efficiency, highlighting potential corridors. It also identifies areas where high energy costs may prevent movement and dispersal, potentially exacerbating human–wildlife conflicts in the park. A major strength of enerscape is that it requires only widely available topographic and body size data. As such, enerscape permits a first cost‐effective way to estimate landscape use and movement corridors even when telemetry data are not readily available, such as for the example with the bear.enerscape is built in a modular way and other movement modes and ecosystem types can be implemented when appropriate locomotory models are available. In summary, enerscape is a new general tool that quantifies, using minimal and widely available data, the energy costs of moving through a landscape. This can clarify how and why animals move in real landscapes and inform practical conservation and restoration decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]