| Do Hedgerow Corridors Increase the Population Viability
of Woodland Species? |
What is the aim
of the review?
To systematically collate and synthesise published and unpublished
evidence in order to address the following questions:
- "Do hedgerows increase the population viability
of target species occupying otherwise isolated fragments of
woodland habitat?”
- "Do hedgerows increase biodiversity within
otherwise isolated fragments of woodland habitat?”
Who's in the review team?
At what stage is the review?
This review is now complete.
What is the rationale?
To mitigate the effects of habitat fragmentation
in the modern landscape, conservation biologists commonly advocate
interventions that increase habitat connectivity in order to sustain,
and enhance, the population viability of target species. The use
of habitat corridors as a conservation tool to mediate such effects
has been an area of considerable debate over the past two decades.
Conservationists frequently advocate the corridor value of strips
of vegetation, but are seldom able to support these assertions
with strong evidence.
Natural England (formerly English
Nature) established the need for a systematic review to evaluate
the effectiveness of habitat corridors in promoting population
viability of target species and biodiversity within fragments
of remnant habitat: iterative discussion between the CEBC, Natural
England and 25 stakeholder organisations allowed identification
of the specific question to be addressed.
How were the results
obtained?
A number of electronic databases were searched for information
using a range of search terms. Internet searches were conducted
in order to retrieve any relevant grey literature. In addition,
the bibliographies of relevant articles were examined for useful
references. The websites of several major UK conservation organisations
were also searched for useful publications. 2537 unique references
were identified through the search strategy; 51 of these were
accepted into the final review having met all inclusion criteria.
What
did the review find?
To read more about this review, its findings, and the implications for conservationists and researchers, please see the Summary or Full Report.
Comments?
If you would like to comment on any aspect of this review, please email us. Your feedback is appreciated.
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