The Decline, Fall, and Rise of a Large Urban Colonising Bird

ContextThe process of urbanisation results in dramatic landscape changes with long-lasting and sometimes irreversible consequences for the biota. Urban sensitive species can be eliminated from the landscape, while urban tolerant species can persist in or colonise the changed environment. ObjectivesHere we used historical atlas data to examine the changing distribution of the Australian Brush-turkey, a recent urban colonising species, at continental and city scales, and the changing land use in urban areas occupied by the species. MethodsWe assessed changes at the continental scale from 1839-2019. We then assessed colonisation of the cities of Sydney and Brisbane, located 900 km apart, over the period 1960-2019. At the city scale, we quantified the changing land use within Brush-turkey occupied areas over time using classification of satellite imagery. ResultsThe Brush-turkey range has shifted over the last century, with the species receding from the western and southwestern proportions of their range, while expanding in the northwest. Areas occupied in both cities have expanded, with recently colonised areas containing less vegetation and more developed land. ConclusionsOur results confirm that Brush-turkeys are successfully colonising urban areas, including major cities, and are likely to continue moving into urban areas, despite declines elsewhere in their natural range. This study highlights that species which were locally extirpated from urban areas and thought to be an unlikely candidate for recolonisation can adapt to human modified habitats; successful expansion is likely to be associated with urban greening and legal protection from human persecution.

DISTRIBUTION OF RESTORATION SUCCESSIONS IN TAIGA AND FOREST-STEPPE LANDSCAPES OF THE PERMSKY PRIKAMYE (ON THE EXAMPLE OF AGRICULTURAL LANDS)

The research of forest cover development on agricultural lands in the Perm Prikamye was carried the example of taiga and forest-steppe types of landscapes. The Babkinsko-Yugovskoy and Irensko-Kungursky landscapes were select for research. Received information about the geosystem condition in different years using remote sensing data. All landscape changes were record during the formed stable snow cover. As a result, was divide into two classes - forested and treeless areas. Established, the main natural factors of land differentiation by an areas and a pace of withdrawal from agricultural use are the small contours of agricultural land and differences in soil fertility. The growth pace of forest geosystems within the forest-steppe landscape was 2.5 times higher than of the taiga. The research of the dynamics of forest cover showed that in the Perm Prikamye in the forest-steppe landscape substitution of anthropogenic geosystems with natural-anthropogenic ("wild") accompanied by the development of forest biogeocenosis, not steppe.

Spatial Analysis for Landscape Changes

Landscape is the backcloth over which environmental and anthropic events occur, and recent increasing trends of natural and anthropic processes, such as urbanization, land-use changes, and extreme climate events, have a strong impact on landscape modification [...]

Parametric Definition of Slow Tourism Itineraries for Experiencing Seasonal Landscapes. Application of Sentinel-2 Imagery to the Rural Paddy-Rice Landscape in Northern Italy

Slow tourism is a growing phenomenon in Italy; it is assuming a key role in the definition of new strategies for sustainable tourism for the enhancement of landscape and cultural heritage, but also as a driver for the revitalization of marginalized and inner areas of the country. In this framework, the aesthetical phenomena related to seasonal landscape changes (e.g., autumn coloring foliage, spring blooming, controlled paddy-rice fields flooding) that occur in specific environments are emerging as new tourist destinations and are of major interest for the experiential tourism sector. This research shows a GIS-based method to draw up parametric slow tourism itineraries, which are defined according to seasonal landscape changes, by exploiting the high frequency of Sentinel-2 data acquisition. The algorithm defines parametric itineraries within the network of existing local roads by detecting the current landscape conditions through NDVI. The algorithm has been tested in the study area, within the historical agricultural landscape of paddy-rice fields in between Turin and Milan, where high scenic conditions related to the flooding occur over the spring season. This tool can support a range of end users’ decisions for the creation of a widespread tourist destination offer year-round, with the aim to promote more sustainable and balanced use of the places and reduce overpressures in the most frequented places.

Rural Landscape Changes in the Piedmont Region (Italy). A Method for the Interpretation of Possible Effects of CAP

As a result of various regulatory reforms, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has gradually achieved value and environmental awareness. However, the most recent studies carried out in the fields of environmental assessment and spatial planning seem to indicate that agricultural policies have not been very effective in achieving landscape aims. Understanding how the CAP affects the landscape can help us to improve its effectiveness and foster a more efficient territorial and targeted approach. This paper aims to show a replicable method for evaluating rural landscape changes and understanding the possible role of CAP as one of the main driving forces. The analysis was conducted in the Piedmont Region (Italy) at the supra-local and local scales by observing land use changes and landscape changes. The main results show that the CAP seems quite effective in maintaining the territorial presence on rural landscapes and in preventing the spread of forests. However, it seems less effective in limiting urban and peri-urban sprawl. The research also shows that in areas with high CAP support, factors that produce negative effects on landscape have increased. In conclusion, the author shows a possible way for the CAP to achieve the landscape purposes.