A regime is a persistent organization of mutually reinforcing structures and processes. Translating regime shifts in shallow lakes into changes in. Pdf regime shifts, resilience and biodiversity in ecosystem. Regimes are considered persistent relative to the time period over which the shift occurs. In theory, a multitude of interacting regime shifts is possible, ranging from a single regime shift confined to a particular domain and a single scale to regime shifts. Firm size diversity, functional richness and resilience. Assessing legal flexibility, ecological resilience, and adaptive governance in u. Human action is transforming the biota, chemistry and temperature of the worlds oceans at unprecedented rates. Regime shifts in ecosystems are increasingly common as a consequence of human activities that erode resilience, for example, through resource exploitation, pollution, landuse change, possible climatic impact and altered disturbance regimes. Assessing whether continued global change will lead to further regime shifts, or has the potential to trigger cascading regime shifts has been a central question in global change policy. The evidence reveals that the likelihood of regime shifts may increase when humans reduce resilience by such actions as removing response diversity, removing whole functional groups of species, or removing whole trophic levels. The likelihood of cascading effects depends on crossscale interactions but differs for each type. Biodiversity and the resilience of ecosystem services. Droughts are increasing in severity and frequency, yet the mechanisms that strengthen ecosystem resilience to this stress remain poorly understood.
Regime shifts of this type will be referred to as interacting regime shifts or cascading regime shifts. Using the theories of resilience, sustainability, and vulnerability, this book focuses on ecosystem management and governance. A regime is a characteristic behaviour of a system which is maintained by mutually reinforced processes or feedbacks. Alternative states are characterized as substantially different in form and function from pre. The evidence reveals that the likelihood of regime shifts may increase when humans reduce resilience by such actions as removing response diversity, removing whole functional groups of species. Adaptive management of the great barrier reef and the grand canyon world heritage areas. The potential for their prediction in the ocean and possible management depends upon the characteristics of the regime shifts. Across the globe, conservation efforts have not managed to alleviate biodiversity loss, and this will ultimately impact many functions delivered by ecosystems 2, 3.
Regional water systems experiencing climate change regime shifts and panarchies in regional scale socialecological water systems. Under the cichlid dominated regime, lake victoria was an ecosystem with high species diversity. Regime shifts are abrupt changes between contrasting, persistent states of any complex system. Regime shifts represent fundamental, sudden changes in ecosystem state, and are usually driven by changes to keyvariables that are linked to ecological resilience the capacity of the system to absorb disturbance and reorganize so as to retain essentially the same function, structure, identity and feedbacks. Resilience and regime shifts in a marine biodiversity hotspot paraskevas vasilakopoulos1,2, dionysios e. Regime shifts and resilience of the lake taihu social. Regime shifts in ecosystems can result in large, abrupt, and persistent changes in the provision of ecosystem services, and can therefore have significant impacts on human wellbeing millennium ecosystem assessment ma, 2005, stern, 2006.
Regime shifts are difficult to predict, but theoretical. Regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem management authors. Biodiversity and resilience of ecosystem functions tom 2 h. Walker and marten scheffer and thomas elmqvist and lance gunderson and crawford s. Critical transitions or regime shifts regime shifts are substantial, persistent, reorganizations. Much ecosystem monitoring and management is focused on the provision of ecosystem functions and services under current environmental conditions, yet this could lead to inappropriate management guidance and undervaluation of the importance of. Trustbuilding, knowledge generation and organizational innovations. The rsdb systematically compiles examples of regime shifts in socialecological systems that have large consequences for ecosystem services and human wellbeing in order to provide novel empirical and theoretical syntheses that can inform and support the emerging resilience and sustainability science fields, and initiatives such as future earth. Such regime shifts may be triggered by habitat fragmentation, loss of species, nutrient inputs. For this there is no substitute for sitespecific knowledge and experiments combined with models. Human activities that adversely affect ecosystem resilience such as reduction of biodiversity, exploitation of natural resources, pollution, land use, and anthropogenic climate change are increasingly causing regime shifts in ecosystems, often to less desirable and degraded conditions. To aid 47 environmental management in the face of conflicting land use pressures, there is an urgent 48 need to quantify and predict the spatial and temporal distribution of ecosystem. Regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem.
In theory, a multitude of interacting regime shifts is possible, ranging from a single regime shift confined to a particular domain and a single scale to regime shifts that trigger others in cascading fashion until regime shifts in all nine, i. Read regime shifts and resilience of the lake taihu social. Management of regime shifts should account for potential connections. Regime shifts pose several difficult challenges for management. Regime shifts and resilience in chinas coastal ecosystems. A keystone mutualism underpins resilience of a coastal. Ecosystem management decision support searching for ecosystem management 225 found 299 total alternate case. Active adaptive management and governance of resilience will be required to sustain desired ecosystem states and transform degraded ecosystems into. Addressing this issue has, however, been hampered by the focus of regime.
Regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem management. The accumulation of regime shifts in chinas coastal ecosystems suggests that the desired system resilience has been profoundly eroded, increasing the potential of abrupt shifts to undesirable. Multiple stablestates have been experimentally demonstrated in a. Overcoming undesirable resilience in the global food. Maravelias1 complex natural systems, spanning from individuals and populations to ecosystems and social. Carl folke, steve carpenter, brian walker, marten scheffer, thomas elmqvist, lance gunderson and c.
In ecology, regime shifts are large, abrupt, persistent changes in the structure and function of a system. Consider the state of biodiversity and ecosystem resilience of monmouthshire and identify relevant habitats and species of principal importance for nature conservation. Resilience and regime shifts in a marine biodiversity. Consider the ways in which monmouthshire county council can influence biodiversity and ecosystem resilience when exercising its functions as a public authority. Accelerating rates of environmental change and the continued loss of global biodiversity threaten functions and services delivered by ecosystems. Implications of fisheries impacts to seabed biodiversity.
Managing resilience for ecosystem restoration in a. The shift from submerged to floating plants in aquatic ecosystems such as ponds, canals, ditches or tropical lakes generates a loss of ecosystem services such as freshwater, fisheries and biodiversity. While these changes are often gradual, in some cases they can lead to regime shifts. Implications of fisheries impacts to seabed biodiversity and ecosystembased management. Shifts between the two states also affect drinkingwater quality and the recreational value of lakes, leading to conflicting management measures and potentially deteriorating natural functions. Biodiversity and resilience of ecosystem functions. Biodiversity essential for ecosystem functioning, providing resilience and services for human. Resilience for human development title in the anthropocene. We call for more comprehensive studies on the effects of regime shifts on ecosystem functions in shallow lakes to guide their sustainable management. Resilience and regime shifts in a marine biodiversity hotspot article pdf available in scientific reports 71 december 2017 with 272 reads how we measure reads. Regime shifts often have substantial impacts on ecosystem services and human wellbeing 6,7, but are typically difficult to predict and costly to reverse 8,9. Assessing whether continued global change will lead to further regime shifts, or has the potential to trigger cascading regime shifts has been a. Using 30 regime shifts described as networks, we show that 45% of regime shift pairwise combinations present at least one plausible structural interdependence. By eating basically everything in the lake these cichlids performed tight internal recycling kaufman 1992 and the pelagic planktivorous and detritivorous cichlids occupied a significant role in protecting the system against the excess production of phytoplankton goldschmidt et al.
To aid environmental management in the face of conflicting landuse pressures, there is an urgent need to quantify and predict the spatial and temporal distribution of ecosystem functions and services. These spatial statistics signaled declining ecosystem resilience in the experimental lake. Resilience and regime shifts in a marine biodiversity hotspot. In particular, we focus on the role of biodiversity in the renewal and reorganization of ecosystems after disturbancewhat has been referred to as the backloop of the adaptive cycle of ecosystem development holling 1986. Socialecological systems contain various tipping points or. Our definition is hence more practical for marine management purposes and.
Persistence in the face of change, buffer capacity, withstand shocks 2. Regime shifts, resilience and biodiversity in ecosystem management. Resiliencebased natural resource management in a changing world. Find link is a tool written by edward betts longer titles found. Synthesis, part of a special feature on practicing panarchy.
Better understanding of regime shifts is needed as they pose major challenges for ecosystem management and governance. Pdf regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem. Cascading regime shifts within and across scales science. Pdf regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in. Regime shifts between alternative stable ecosystem states are becoming commonplace due to the combined effects of local stressors and global climate change. This regime shift is primarily driven by nutrient enrichment in the water body, as. A regime shift thus does not simply involve a large change in an ecosystem, but. Similar shifts linked to ecosystems have been docu mented in social.
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