An Ecological Definition and Objective Threshold for Differentiating Small Fragments.

ABSTRACT: In an increasingly fragmented natural world, understanding how different ecological phenomena vary with patch size has many motivations. Examples include the assembly of biodiversity, ecosystem service provision and the suitability of fragments for habitat specialist species. A common approach to such questions divides fragments into small and large size classes for separate analysis. However, lack of an objective definition and means to differentiate 'small' from 'large' patches limits our ability to compare findings across studies, arguably impeding progress toward any unified views. Because larger and smaller fragments tend, on average, to respectively over-represent narrow- and wide-range species, an 'area for unbiased species representation' (A_USR) can be defined at some in

SUBMITTER: Deane DC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12865510 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature