Vulnerability assessments of moorland plant communities to global environmental changes

2012 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23710278
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Resource conservation science
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo (2012); Tohoku University (2011)
• Principal Investigator: SASAKI Takehiro 東京大学, 大学院・新領域創成科学研究科, 助教 (60550077)
• Project Period (FY): 2011 – 2012
• Keywords: 生物多様性保全 / 脆弱性評価 / 地球環境変化 / 希少種 / 生態系サービス

Research Abstract

I demonstrated the nested subset pattern of moorland plant communities in the study area. Selective environmental tolerances imposed by environmental harshness and selective extinction caused by declines in the carrying capacities of sites probably accounted for the nested pattern. The nested rank of species in the nestedness matrix can therefore be translated into a potential scenario of species loss under future environmental changes. Finally, I provided the fine-scale assessments of vulnerability of moorland plant communities to species loss which is likely to occur under future environmental changes by simulating the consequences of realistic species loss for functional diversity. The knowledge from this study is precautionary but urgently needed information supporting prioritization and decision-making when we act to conserve ecosystems in the face of global biodiversity loss.

Research Products

• [Journal Article] Variations inspecies composition of moorland plant communities along environmental gradients within a subalpine zone in northern Japan (2013)
  • Author(s): Sasaki, T., Katabuchi, M., Kamiyama, C., Shimazaki, M., Nakashizuka, T. & Hikosaka, K.
  • Journal Title: Wetlands Volume: 33 Pages: 269-277
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Nestedness and niche-based species loss in moorland plant communities (2012)
  • Author(s): Sasaki, T., Katabuchi, M., Kamiyama, C., Shimazaki, M., Nakashizuka, T. & Hikosaka, K.
  • Journal Title: Oikos Volume: 121 Pages: 1783-1790
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Diversitypartitioning of moorland plant communities across hierarchical spatial scales (2012)
  • Author(s): Sasaki, T., Katabuchi, M., Kamiyama, C., Shimazaki, M., Nakashizuka, T. & Hikosaka, K.
  • Journal Title: Biodiversity and Conservation Volume: 21 Pages: 1577-1588
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Environmental dependence of population dynamics and height growthof a subalpine conifer across its vertical distribution: an approach using high-resolution aerial photographs (2011)
  • Author(s): Shimazaki, M., Sasaki, T., Hikosaka, K.& Nakashizuka, T.
  • Journal Title: Global Change Biology Volume: 17 Pages: 3431-3438
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Presentation] 湿原の縮小を決める局所的な要因とそのメカニズム (2013)
  • Author(s): 山口紘史・佐々木雄大・彦坂幸毅・中静透
  • Organizer: 第60回日本生態学会大会
  • Place of Presentation: 静岡、グランシップ静岡
  • Year and Date: 2013-03-06
• [Presentation] 環境傾度に沿った機能的多様性と群集集合の変化:湿原草本群集を例に (2012)
  • Author(s): 片渕正紀・佐々木雄大・神山千穂・嶋崎仁哉・中静透・彦坂幸毅
  • Organizer: 第59回日本生態学会大会
  • Place of Presentation: 大津、龍谷大学
  • Year and Date: 2012-03-18
• [Book] 生態系の適応力.In:東北大学生態適応グローバルCOE『生態適応科学:自然のしくみを活かし、持続可能な未来を拓く』 (2013)
  • Author(s): 黒川紘子・佐々木雄大・牧野能士・加藤広海
  • Total Pages: 16-54
  • Publisher: 日経BP社
• [Book] 生態系の非線形な変化-生態学的閾値の概念に基づくマネジメント-.森章(編)『エコシステムマネジメント-包括的な生態系の保全と管理へ-』 (2012)
  • Author(s): 佐々木雄大
  • Total Pages: 126-146
  • Publisher: 共立出版