Abstract
Spatial constraints on the topology of complex networks are just beginning to be appreciated, both theoretically and in concrete examples like the Internet and global air transportation network. Ecological networks, composed of habitat patches connected by species dispersal, are intrinsically spatial and show promise as a tool for conservation planning; but while habitat-loss effects on ecological networks have been simulated, such effects have not been directly measured in ecological networks varying over time. In this study, I used satellite remote sensing to study ecological networks composed of wetland habitat in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North America. I find power-law scaling of important topological properties as a function of dispersal ability and as wetland density varies with climate. Prairie wetland networks are 'meso-worlds' with mean topological distance increasing faster with network size than small-world networks, but slower than regular lattices. While similar dynamics have been shown in random spatial networks, these results emphasize the importance of processes determining locations of nodes in a spatial network, with possible implications in other areas like wireless communication networks or disease transmission networks. Wetland networks establish a climate envelope for landscape connectivity in the PPR, and I show that wetland-dependent species face a 'crisis of connectivity' with climate change. The global biodiversity crisis requires that conservation planners act quickly over large areas using limited resources; a network-based approach to coarse-filter conservation planning in dynamic landscapes should be broadly applicable to this problem.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wright, C. Spatiotemporal dynamics of complex ecological networks: Power-law scaling and implications for conservation planning. Nat Prec (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/npre.2008.2532.2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/npre.2008.2532.2