Effects of landscape design of forest reserves on Saproxylic beetle diversity

Increasing the density of natural reserves in the forest landscape may provide conservation benefits for biodiversity within and beyond reserve borders. We used 2 French data sets on saproxylic beetles and landscape cover of forest reserves (LCFR) to test this hypothesis: national standardized data derived from 252 assessment plots in managed and reserve stands in 9 lowland and 5 highland forests and data from the lowland Rambouillet forest, a forested landscape where a pioneer conservation policy led to creation of a dense network of reserves. Abundance of rare and common saproxylic species and total saproxylic species richness were higher in forest reserves than in adjacent managed stands only in highland forests. In the lowland regional case study, as LCFR increased total species richness and common species abundance in reserves increased. In this case study, when there were two or more reserve patches, rare species abundance inside reserves was higher and common species richness in managed stands was higher than when there was a single large reserve. Spillover and habitat amount affected ecological processes underlying these landscape reserve effects. When LCFR positively affected species richness and abundance in reserves or managed stands, >12‐20% reserve cover led to the highest species diversity and abundance. This result is consistent with the target of 17% forested land area in reserves set at the Nagoya biodiversity summit in 2010. Therefore, to preserve biodiversity we recommend at least doubling the current proportion of forest reserves in European forested landscapes.     

Effects of seascape connectivity on reserve performance along exposed coastlines

Seascape connectivity (landscape connectivity in the sea) can modify reserve performance in low-energy marine ecosystems (e.g., coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass), but it is not clear whether similar spatial linkages also shape reserve effectiveness on high-energy, exposed coastlines. We used the surf zones of ocean beaches in eastern Australia as a model system to test how seascape connectivity and reserve attributes combine to shape conservation outcomes. Spatial patterns in fish assemblages were measured using baited remote underwater video stations in 12 marine reserves and 15 fished beaches across 2000 km of exposed coastline. Reserve performance was shaped by both the characteristics of reserves and the spatial properties of the coastal seascapes in which reserves were embedded. Number of fish species and abundance of harvested fishes were highest in surf-zone reserves that encompassed >1.5 km of the surf zone; were located < 100 m to rocky headlands; and included pocket beaches in a heterogeneous seascape. Conservation outcomes for exposed coastlines may, therefore, be enhanced by prioritizing sufficiently large areas of seascapes that are strongly linked to abutting complementary habitats. Our findings have broader implications for coastal conservation planning. Empirical data to describe how the ecological features of high-energy shorelines influence conservation outcomes are lacking, and we suggest that seascape connectivity may have similar ecological effects on reserve performance on both sheltered and exposed coastlines.     

Identifying Conservation Areas on the Basis of Alternative Distribution Data Sets

Abstract:  Distribution data on biodiversity features is a major component of conservation planning that are often inaccurate; thus, the true distribution of each feature is commonly over- or underrepresented. The selection of distribution data sets may therefore lead to variability in the spatial configuration and size of proposed reserve networks and uncertainty regarding the extent to which these networks actually contain the biodiversity features they were identified to protect. Our goals were to investigate the impact on reserve selection of choosing different distribution data sets and to propose novel methods to minimize uncertainty about target attainment within reserves. To do so, we used common prioritization methods (richness mapping, systematic reserve design, and a novel approach that integrates multiple types of distribution data) and three types of data on the distribution of mammals (predicted distribution models, occurrence records, and a novel combination of the two) to simulate the establishment of regional biodiversity reserves for the state of Arizona (U.S.A.). Using the results of these simulations, we explored variability in reserve placement and size as a function of the distribution data set. Spatial overlap of reserve networks identified with only predicted distribution data or only occurrence distribution data never exceeded 16%. In pairwise comparisons between reserves created with all three types of distribution data, overlap never achieved 50%. The reserve size required to meet conservation targets also varied with the type of distribution data used and the conservation goal; the largest reserve system was 10 times the smallest. Our results highlight the impact of employing different types of distribution data and identify novel tools for application to existing distribution data sets that can minimize uncertainty about target attainment.     

Large-scale biodiversity patterns in freshwater phytoplankton

Our planet shows striking gradients in the species richness of plants and animals, from high biodiversity in the tropics to low biodiversity in polar and high-mountain regions. Recently, similar patterns have been described for some groups of microorganisms, but the large-scale biogeographical distribution of freshwater phytoplankton diversity is still largely unknown. We examined the species diversity of freshwater phytoplankton sampled from 540 lakes and reservoirs distributed across the continental United States and found strong latitudinal, longitudinal, and altitudinal gradients in phytoplankton biodiversity, demonstrating that microorganisms can show substantial geographic variation in biodiversity. Detailed analysis using structural equation models indicated that these large-scale biodiversity gradients in freshwater phytoplankton diversity were mainly driven by local environmental factors, although there were residual direct effects of latitude, longitude, and altitude as well. Specifically, we found that phytoplankton species richness was an increasing saturating function of lake chlorophyll a concentration, increased with lake surface area and possibly increased with water temperature, resembling effects of productivity, habitat area, and temperature on diversity patterns commonly observed for macroorganisms. In turn, these local environmental factors varied along latitudinal, longitudinal, and altitudinal gradients. These results imply that changes in land use or climate that affect these local environmental factors are likely to have major impacts on large-scale biodiversity patterns of freshwater phytoplankton.     

Sensitivity of Marine-Reserve Design to the Spatial Resolution of Socioeconomic Data

Abstract:  Socioeconomic considerations should have an important place in reserve design. Systematic reserve-selection tools allow simultaneous optimization for ecological objectives while minimizing costs but are seldom used to incorporate socioeconomic costs in the reserve-design process. The sensitivity of this process to biodiversity data resolution has been studied widely but the issue of socioeconomic data resolution has not previously been considered. We therefore designed marine reserves for biodiversity conservation with the constraint of minimizing commercial fishing revenue losses and investigated how economic data resolution affected the results. Incorporating coarse-resolution economic data from official statistics generated reserves that were only marginally less costly to the fishery than those designed with no attempt to minimize economic impacts. An intensive survey yielded fine-resolution data that, when incorporated in the design process, substantially reduced predicted fishery losses. Such an approach could help minimize fisher displacement because the least profitable grounds are selected for the reserve. Other work has shown that low-resolution biodiversity data can lead to underestimation of the conservation value of some sites, and a risk of overlooking the most valuable areas, and we have similarly shown that low-resolution economic data can cause underestimation of the profitability of some sites and a risk of inadvertently including these in the reserve. Detailed socioeconomic data are therefore an essential input for the design of cost-effective reserve networks.     

Representativeness and Efficiency of Bird and Insect Conservation in Norwegian Boreal Forest Reserves

I quantified local species richness of birds in different forest types and of beetles in spruce forests at different altitudes. In both cases I quantified timber production as a measure of land acquisition cost and used the ratio between the species richness and timber production as a measure of conservation cost-efficiency. I found a positive correlation between timber production and local species richness of birds as well as beetles, indicating that the forests most valuable for forestry are also the ones most valuable for biodiversity conservation. I used different selection procedures for combining sites in a reserve network to find the minimum set of sites that included all vulnerable species. The minimum set of sites for birds was 30% spruce forest, 30% pine forest, and 40% broad-leaved forest (the three main forest types). The minimum set of sites for the beetles was uniformly distributed along the altitudinal gradient. Both minimum sets were most cost-efficient for species conservation. I suggest that equal coverage of different productivity classes is more efficient for optimizing biodiversity conservation than over-representing low productivity sites. Less than 1% of Norwegian boreal forests have been protected as nature reserves. The reserve network is fairly representative with respect to altitude, but it is seriously skewed toward low productivity sites. The current network is suboptimal with respect to forest type representativeness, species protection, and cost-efficiency. This is a result of an inefficient strategy of selecting reserve sites and an unfortunate combination of selection criteria.     

Mitigating the impact of oil‐palm monoculture on freshwater fishes in Southeast Asia

Anthropogenic land‐cover change is driving biodiversity loss worldwide. At the epicenter of this crisis lies Southeast Asia, where biodiversity‐rich forests are being converted to oil‐palm monocultures. As demand for palm oil increases, there is an urgent need to find strategies that maintain biodiversity in plantations. Previous studies found that retaining forest patches within plantations benefited some terrestrial taxa but not others. However, no study has focused on aquatic taxa such as fishes, despite their importance to human well‐being. We assessed the efficacy of forested riparian reserves in conserving freshwater fish biodiversity in oil‐palm monoculture by sampling stream fish communities in an oil‐palm plantation in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Forested riparian reserves maintained preconversion local fish species richness and functional diversity. In contrast, local and total species richness, biomass, and functional diversity declined markedly in streams without riparian reserves. Mechanistically, riparian reserves appeared to increase local species richness by increasing leaf litter cover and maintaining coarse substrate. The loss of fishes specializing in leaf litter and coarse substrate decreased functional diversity and altered community composition in oil‐palm plantation streams that lacked riparian reserves. Thus, a land‐sharing strategy that incorporates the retention of forested riparian reserves may maintain the ecological integrity of fish communities in oil‐palm plantations. We urge policy makers and growers to make retention of riparian reserves in oil‐palm plantations standard practice, and we encourage palm‐oil purchasers to source only palm oil from plantations that employ this practice.     

Incorporation of Recreational Fishing Effort into Design of Marine Protected Areas

Abstract:  Theoretical models of marine protected areas (MPAs) that explore benefits to fisheries or biodiversity conservation often assume a dynamic pool of fishing effort. For instance, effort is homogenously distributed over areas from which subsets of reserves are chosen. I tested this and other model assumptions with a case study of the multiple-use Jervis Bay Marine Park. Prior to zoning of the park I conducted 166 surveys of the park's recreational fisheries, plotting the location of 16,009 anglers. I converted these plots into diagrams of fishing effort and analyzed correlates between fishing and habitat and the effect of two reserve designs—the draft and final zoning plans of the park—on the 15 fisheries observed. Fisheries were strongly correlated with particular habitats and had negatively skewed and often bimodal spatial distribution. The second mode of intensely fished habitat could be 6 SD greater than the fishery's mean allocation of effort by area. In the draft-zoning plan, sanctuary zone (no-take) area and potential subduction of fishing effort were similar. In the final plan, which was altered in response to public comment, the area of sanctuary zone increased, and the impact on fishing effort decreased. In only one case was a fishery's most intensely targeted location closed to fishing. Because of the discriminating manner with which fishers target habitats, if simple percentage targets are used for planning, sanctuary location can be adjusted to avoid existing fishing effort. According to modeled outcomes, the implication of this may be diminished reserve effectiveness. To address this, reserve area should be implicitly linked to subducted fishing effort when promoting or modeling MPAs.     

Implementation of a marine reserve has a rapid but short-lived effect on recreational angler use

Changes in human behavior are a precursor to measurable impacts of no-take marine reserves. We investigated changes in recreational fishing site selection in response to the 2005 announcement of enforcement in a marine reserve in the Gulf of California, Mexico. We used a novel data set of daily self-reported boating destinations from emergency rescue logbooks for a recreational angling community from 2000 to 2008. Because the reserve system has no experimental control, we modeled the data two ways to test for robustness to model specification. We tested for changes in human fishing behavior with regression and fit a fleet-level discrete choice model to project a. counterfactual scenario. The counterfactual is the statistically constructed ex post expectation of the human behavior we would have observed if the reserve never existed. We included month and year fixed effects in our models to account for seasonal and interannual fluctuations in fishing behavior and catch rates. We detected a decrease in reserve use compared to the counterfactual, indicating that the reserve rapidly experienced a decrease in visitation. However, the reserve's effect to reduce trips diminished with time. These results indicate that the reserve is unlikely to meet its ecological goals without institutional changes that enhance compliance. This illustrates the value of human use data to understanding the processes underlying marine reserve function. We suggest that managers should consider human use with the same frequency, rigor, and tools as they do fishery stocks. Marine reserves directly affect people, and understanding human behavioral responses to marine reserves is an important step in marine reserve management.     

Species Richness, Endemism, and the Choice of Areas for Conservation

Although large reserve networks will be integral components in successful biodiversity conservation, implementation of such systems is hindered by the confusion over the relative importance of endemism and species richness. There is evidence (  Prendergast et al. 1993) that regions with high richness for a taxon tend to be different from those with high endemism. I tested this finding using distribution and richness data for 368 species from Mammalia, Lasioglossum, Plusiinae, and Papilionidae. The study area, subdivided into 336 quadrats, was the continuous area of North America north of Mexico. I also tested the hypothesis that the study taxa exhibit similar diversity patterns in North America. I found that endemism and richness patterns within taxa were generally similar. Therefore, the controversy over the relative importance of endemism and species richness may not be necessary if an individual taxon were the target of conservation efforts. I also found, however, that richness and endemism patterns were not generally similar between taxa. Therefore, centering nature reserves around areas that are important for mammal diversity (the umbrella species concept) may lead to large gaps in the overall protection of biodiversity because the diversity and endemism of other taxa tend to be concentrated elsewhere. I investigated this further by selecting four regions in North America that might form the basis of a hypothetical reserve system for Carnivora. I analyzed the distribution of the invertebrate taxa relative to these regions and found that this preliminary carnivore reserve system did not provide significantly different protection for these invertebrates than randomly selected quadrats. I conclude that the use of Carnivora as an umbrella taxon is an unreliable method for invertebrate conservation.     

Importance of Reserve Size and Landscape Context to Urban Bird Conservation

Abstract:  We tested whether reserve size, landscape surrounding the reserve, and their interaction affect forest songbirds in the metropolitan area of Seattle, Washington (U.S.A.), by studying 29 reserves of varying size (small, medium, large) and surrounding urbanization intensity (urban, suburban, exurban). Larger reserves contained richer and less even bird communities than smaller reserves. These size effects disappeared when we removed the positive correlation of shrub diversity with reserve size, suggesting that greater habitat diversity in large reserves supported additional species, some of which were rare. Standardizing the number of individuals detected among all reserve size classes reversed the effect of size on richness in exurban landscapes and reduced the magnitude of the effect in suburban or urban landscapes. The latter change suggested that richness increased with reserve size in most landscapes because larger areas also supported larger samples from the regional bird species pool. Most bird species associated with native forest habitat (native forest species) and with human activity (synanthropic species) were present in reserves larger than 42 ha and surrounded by >40% urban land cover, respectively. Thus, we recommend these thresholds as means for conserving the composition of native bird communities in this mostly forested region. Native forest species were least abundant and synanthropic species most abundant in urban landscapes, where exotic ground and shrub vegetation was most common. Therefore, control of exotic vegetation may benefit native songbird populations. Bird nests in shrubs were most dense in medium (suburban) and large reserves (urban) and tended to be most successful in medium (suburban) and large reserves (exurban), potentially supplying another mechanism by which reserve size increased retention of native forest species.     

Biodiversity consequences of alternative future land use scenarios in Greater Yellowstone.

Land use is rapidly expanding in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, primarily from growth in the number of rural homes. There is a need to project possible future land use and assess impacts on nature reserves as a guide to future management. We assessed the potential biodiversity impacts of alternative future land use scenarios in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. An existing regression-based simulation model was used to project three alternative scenarios of future rural home development. The spatial patterns of forecasted development were then compared to several biodiversity response variables that included cover types, species habitats, and biodiversity indices. We identified the four biodiversity responses most at risk of exurban development, designed growth management policies to protect these areas, and tested their effectiveness in two alternative future scenarios. We found that the measured biodiversity responses, including riparian habitat, elk winter range, migration corridors, and eight other land cover, habitat, and biodiversity indices, are likely to undergo substantial conversion (between 5% and 40%) to exurban development by 2020. Future habitat conversion to exurban development outside the region's nature reserves is likely to impact wildlife populations within the reserves. Existing growth management policies will provide minimal protection to biodiversity in this region. We identified specific growth management policies, including incentives to cluster future growth near towns, that can protect "at risk" habitat types without limiting overall growth in housing.     

Implications of Intratropical Migration on Reserve Design: A Case Study Using Pharomachrus mocinno

As habitat loss continues, natural protected areas will become islands in human-modified landscapes; maintenance of functional communities and ecosystems will depend on properly designed protected areas. We demonstrate that incorporating regional habitat linkages that allow for seasonal migrations of intratropical resident species must be a major design criterion for establishing protected areas. Using radiotelemetry, we monitored the seasonal movements of one such migrant, the Resplendent Quetzal ( Pharomachrus mocinno ), a large, frugivorous bird, one of many tropical residents known to migrate altitudinally within Mesoamerica. Based on three years of data we determined that quetzals followed a complicated local migration that linked four montane life zones. Using this species as an indicator revealed that the configuration of the Monteverde reserve complex in the Tilaran Mountains in west-central Costa Rica lacked sufficient habitat distribution to conserve montane biodiversity. On the basis of these results, we propose that the three-step process proposed by Soulé and Simberloff (1986) for estimating minimum sizes of reserves be amended to include a fourth step: The critical habitats used throughout the annual cycles of target or keystone species must be identified and adequately protected. Natural protected areas can be considered adequately designed only when sufficient area with a full complement of ecologically linked habitats is included.     

Temporal changes in giant panda habitat connectivity across boundaries of Wolong Nature Reserve, China.

Global biodiversity loss is largely driven by human activities such as the conversion of natural to human-dominated landscapes. A popular approach to mitigating land cover change is the designation of protected areas (e.g., nature reserves). Nature reserves are traditionally perceived as strongholds of biodiversity conservation. However, many reserves are affected by land cover changes not only within their boundaries, but also in their surrounding areas. This study analyzed the changes in habitat for the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) inside Wolong Nature Reserve, Sichuan, China, and in a 3-km buffer area outside its boundaries, through a time series of classified satellite imagery and field observations. Habitat connectivity between the inside and the outside of the reserve diminished between 1965 and 2001 because panda habitat was steadily lost both inside and outside the reserve. However, habitat connectivity slightly increased between 1997 and 2001 due to the stabilization of some panda habitat inside and outside the reserve. This stabilization most likely occurred as a response to changes in socioeconomic activities (e.g., shifts from agricultural to nonagricultural economies). Recently implemented government policies could further mitigate the impacts of land cover change on panda habitat. The results suggest that Wolong Nature Reserve, and perhaps other nature reserves in other parts of the world, cannot be managed as an isolated entity because habitat connectivity declines with land cover changes outside the reserve even if the area inside the reserve is well protected. The findings and approaches presented in this paper may also have important implications for the management of other nature reserves across the world.     

Evaluating Rapid Participatory Rural Appraisal as an Assessment of Ethnoecological Knowledge and Local Biodiversity Patterns

Abstract:  There is a pressing need to find both locally and globally relevant tools to measure and compare biodiversity patterns. Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is important to biodiversity monitoring, but has a contested role in preliminary biodiversity assessments. We examined rapid participatory rural appraisal (rPRA) (a tool commonly used for local needs assessments) as an alternative to surveys of vascular plants conducted by people with local knowledge. We used rPRA to determine the local-knowledge consensus on the average richness, diversity, and height of local grasses and trees in three habitats surrounding Boumba, Niger, bordering Park-W. We then conducted our own vascular plant surveys to collect information on plant richness, abundance, and structure. Using a qualitative ranking, we compared TEK-based assessments of diversity patterns with our survey-based assessments. The TEK-based assessments matched survey-based assessments on measures of height and density for grasses and trees and tree richness. The two assessments correlated poorly on herb richness and Simpson's D value for both trees and grasses. Plant life form and gender of the participant affected the way diversity patterns were described, which highlights the usefulness of TEK in explaining local realities and indicates limitations of using TEK as a large-scale assessment tool. Our results demonstrate that rPRA can serve to combine local-knowledge inquiry with scientific study at a cost lower than vascular plant surveys and demonstrates a useful blunt tool for preliminary biodiversity assessment.     

Poverty issues in a national wildlife reserve in China

The increasing interest in environmental conservation is a global phenomenon. In many countries, natural reserves or protected areas (PAs) have been established to restrict human activities and to enhance natural ecosystems, which potentially benefit the planet as a whole. However, this often demands some sacrifices from local residents who may have to give up resources they rely on or suffer losses caused by wildlife. This issue potentially becomes aggravated in densely populated areas where many people and economic activities are impacted. This paper presents research findings on poverty issues in a newly established national natural reserve in China, Hengshui Lake Natural Reserve. The paper addresses the characteristics of poor households in the reserve and the interaction between these families and the reserve. In addition, poverty alleviation measures are analysed and additional measures to reduce poverty and conflicts between the reserve and local residents are recommended.     

Predicting the effects of habitat homogenization on marine biodiversity.

Seafloor habitats throughout the world's oceans are being homogenized by physical disturbance. Even though seafloor sediments are commonly considered to be simple and unstructured ecosystems, the negative impacts of habitat homogenization are widespread because resident organisms create much of their habitat's structure. We combine the insight gained from remote sensing of seafloor habitats with recently developed analytical techniques to estimate species richness and assess the potential for change with habitat homogenization. Using habitat-dependent species-area relationships we show that realistic scenarios of habitat homogenization predict biodiversity losses when biogenic habitats in soft sediments are homogenized. We develop a simple model that highlights the degree to which the reductions in the number of species and functional diversity are related to the distribution across habitats of habitat-specific and generalist species. Our results suggest that, by using habitat-dependent species-area relationships, we can better predict variation in biodiversity across seafloor landscapes and contribute to improved management and conservation.     

Determinants of local extinction and turnover rates in urban bird communities.

Studying the effects of urbanization on the dynamics of communities has become a priority for biodiversity conservation. The consequences of urbanization are mainly an increased fragmentation of the original landscapes associated with a decrease in the amount of favorable habitats and an increased pressure of human activities on the remaining patches suitable for wildlife. Patterns of bird species richness have been studied at different levels of urbanization, but little is known about the temporal dynamics of animal communities in urban landscapes. In particular, urbanization is expected to have stronger negative effects on migratory breeding bird communities than on sedentary ones, which should lead to different patterns of change in composition. Using an estimation method accounting for heterogeneity in species detection probability and data collected between 2001 and 2003 within a suburban area near the city of Paris, France, we tested whether these communities differ in their local extinction and turnover rates. We considered the potential effects of patch size and distance to Paris' center as a measure of the degree of urbanization around the patches. As expected, local rates of extinction and turnover were higher for migratory than for sedentary species, and they were negatively related to patch size for migratory species. Mean species richness of the sedentary species increased during the study period and their local turnover rate was negatively related to the distance to the urban core, showing a trend to colonize the most urban patches. These results highlight the very dynamic nature of the composition of some local bird communities in fragmented habitats and help to identify factors affecting colonization and extinction.     

Response Time of Wetland Biodiversity to Road Construction on Adjacent Lands

Abstract: Road construction may result in significant loss of biodiversity at both local and regional scales due to restricted movement between populations, increased mortality, habitat fragmentation and edge effects, invasion by exotic species, or increased human access to wildlife habitats, all of which are expected to increase local extinction rates or decrease local recolonization rates. Species loss is unlikely to occur immediately, however. Rather, populations of susceptible species are expected to decline gradually after road construction, with local extinction occurring sometime later. We document lags in wetland biodiversity loss in response to road construction by fitting regression models that express species richness of different taxa ( birds, mammals, plants, and herptiles) as a function of both current and historical road densities on adjacent lands. The proportion of variation in herptile and bird richness explained by road densities increased significantly when past densities were substituted for more current densities in multiple regression models. Moreover, for vascular plants, birds, and herptiles, there were significant negative effects of historical road densities when the most current densities were controlled statistically. Our results provide evidence that the full effects of road construction on wetland biodiversity may be undetectable in some taxa for decades. Such lags in response to changes in anthropogenic stress have important implications for land-use planning and environmental impact assessment.     

Effectiveness of Vegetation Surrogates for Parasitoid Wasps in Reserve Selection

Abstract:  Selecting suitable nature reserves is a continuing challenge in conservation, particularly for target groups that are time-consuming to survey, species rich, and extinction prone. One such group is the parasitoid Hymenoptera, which have been excluded from conservation planning. If basic characteristics of habitats or vegetation could be used as reliable surrogates of specific target taxa, this would greatly facilitate appropriate reserve selection. We identified a range of potential habitat indicators of the species richness of pimpline parasitoid communities (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae, Diacritinae, Poemeniinae) and tested their efficiency at capturing the observed diversity in a group of small woodlands in the agricultural landscape of the Vale of York (United Kingdom). Eight of the 18 vegetation-based reserve-selection strategies were significantly better at parasitoid species inclusion than random selection of areas. The best strategy maximized richness of tree species over the entire reserve network through complementarity. This strategy omitted only 2–3 species more (out of 38 captured in the landscape as a whole) than selections derived from the parasitoid survey data. In general, strategies worked equally well at capturing species richness and rarity. Our results suggest that vegetation data as a surrogate for species richness could prove an informative tool in parasitoid conservation, but further work is needed to test how broadly applicable these indicators may be.