Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

National assessment of the evolution of forest fragmentation in Mexico

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Forestry Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper presents assessments of the fragmentation of the temperate and tropical forests in Mexico at the national level for two dates 1993 and 2002. The study was based on land use and vegetation cover data sets scale 1:250,000. Two broad forest types (Temperate Forests and Tropical Forests) and five more specific forest types (Broadleaf Forests, and Coniferous Forests; Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests, Tropical Sub-evergreen Forests, and Tropical Evergreen Forests) were defined to conduct the analyses. FragStats 3.3 was used to estimate nine metrics of the spatial pattern of the forests for each forest type and date considered. The results indicate that the land cover transitions that have occurred between 1993 and 2002 have resulted in more isolated forest patches with simpler shapes in both the Temperate and Tropical Forests. The remaining Tropical Forest patches have become smaller and more numerous. In contrast, the remaining Temperate Forest patches are fewer and on average larger. Of the more specific forest types defined in this study, the Broadleaf Forests have the highest indicators of fragmentation. However these forests are usually embedded or adjacent to Coniferous Forests. Of more concern for conservation purposes are the high values of fragmentation metrics found for the Tropical Evergreen Forests and Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests, because these forest types are usually surrounded by non-forest land covers or anthropogenic land uses.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achard F, Eva HD, Stibig H-J, Mayaux P, Gallego J, Richards T, Malingreau J-P. 2002. Determination of deforestation rates of the world’s humid tropical forests. Science, 297: 999–1002.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Andersen E. 2003. Effect of forest fragmentation on dung beetle communities and functional consequences for plant regeneration. Ecography, 26: 87–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Apan, AA, Raine, SR, Patterson, MS. 2002. Mapping and analysis of changes in the riparian landscape structure of the Lockyer Valley catchment, Queensland, Australia. Landscape and Urban Planning, 59: 43–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arroyo-Rodriguez V, Pineda E, Escobar F, Benitez-Malvido J. 2009. Value of small patches in the conservation of plant species diversity in highlyfragmented rainforest. Conservation Biology, 23: 729–739.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boutin S, Hebert D. 2002. Landscape ecology and forest management: Developing and effective partnership. Ecological Applications, 12: 390–397.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cayuela L, Rey-Benayas JM, Echeverria C. 2006. Clearance and fragmentation of tropical Montane Forests in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico (1975–2000). Forest Ecology and Management, 226: 208–218.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chambers JQ, Higuchi N, Tribuzy ES, Trumbore SE. 2001. Carbon sink for a century. Nature, 410: 429–432.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chomitz KM, Gray DA. 1996. Roads, land Use, and deforestation: A spatial model applied to Belize. World Bank Economic Review, 10: 487–512

    Google Scholar 

  • Debinski DM, Holt RD. 2000. A survey and overview of habitat fragmentation experiments. Conservation Biology, 14: 342–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Donovan TM, Flather CH 2002. Relationship among North American songbird trends, habitat fragmentation, and landscape occupancy. Ecological Applications, 12: 364–374.

    Google Scholar 

  • Estrada A, Coates-Estrada R. 1996. Tropical rain forest fragmentation and wild populations of primates at Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. International Journal of Primatology, 17: 759–783.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Estrada A, Coates-Estrada R. 2002. Bats in continuous forest, forest fragments and in an agricultural mosaic habitat-island at Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. Biological Conservation, 2: 237–245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Estrada A, Anzures DA, Coates-Estrada R. 1999. Tropical rain forest fragmentation, howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata), and dung beetles at Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. American Journal of Primatology, 48: 253–262.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Estrada A, Coates-Estrada R, Meritt D. 2006. Bat species richness and abundance in tropical rain forest fragments and in agricultural habitats at Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. Ecography, 16: 309–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fahrig L. 2003. Effects of habitat fragmentation on biodiversity. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics, 34: 487–515.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO (United Nations Food and Agriculture Programme). 2010. Forest Resources Assessment Mexico country report 2010. FRA2010/132. Rome, Italy: FAO Forestry Department, p.98.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farley KA, Jobbagy EG, Jackson RB. 2005. Effects of afforestation on water yield: a global synthesis with implications for policy. Global Change Biology, 11: 1565–1576.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fazey I, Fischer J, Lindenmayer DB. 2005. What do conservation biologists publish? Biological Conservation, 124: 63–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foley JA, DeFries R, Asner GP, Barford C, Bonan G, Carpenter SR, Chapin FS, Coe MT, Daily GC, Gibbs HK, Helkowski JH, Holloway T, Howard EA, Kucharik CJ, Monfreda C, Patz JA, Prentice IC, Ramankutty N, Snyder PK. 2005. Global consequences of land use. Science, 22: 570–574.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Galicia L, Zarco-Arista AE, Mendoza-Robles KI, Palacio-Prieto JL, García-Romero A. 2008. A land use/cover, landforms and fragmentation patterns in a tropical dry forest in the southern Pacific region of Mexico. Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography, 29: 137–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia-Gigorro S, Saura S. 2005. Forest fragmentation estimated from remotely sensed data: is comparison across scales possible? Forest Science, 51: 51–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Groom MJ, Meffe GK, Ronald C. 2005. Principles of Conservation Biology. 3rd Edition. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, p.779.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harrison S, Bruna E. 1999. Habitat fragmentation and large-scale conservation: what do we know for sure? Ecography, 22: 225–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haila Y. 1999. Islands and fragments. In: Hunter MLJ (editor), Maintaining biodiversity in forest ecosystems. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 234–264.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Haila Y. 2002. A Conceptual genealogy of fragmentation research: From island biogeography to landscape ecology. Ecological Applications, 12: 321–334

    Google Scholar 

  • Hargis CD, Bissonette JA, David JL. 1998. The behavior of landscape metrics commonly used in the study of habitat fragmentation. Landscape Ecology, 13: 167–186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heilman Jr. GE, Strittholt JR, Slosser NC, Dellasala DA. 2002. Forest fragmentation of the conterminous United States: Assessing forest intactness through road density and spatial Characteristics. BioScience, 52: 411–422.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Honnay O, Verheyen K, Butaye J, Jacquemyn H, Bossuyt B, Hermy M. 2002. Possible effects of habitat fragmentation and climate change on the range of forest plant species. Ecology Letters, 5: 525–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • INEGI (Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas, Geografía e Informática) (2005) Metadata for the vector data set of the land use and vegetation cover scale 1:250,000 Series III (continuous national coverage). 1st edition. Aguascalientes, México: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas, Geografía e Informática (INEGI).

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenkins M. 2003. Prospects for Biodiversity. Science 302: 1175–1177.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Joao, E. 1998. Causes and consequences of map generalization. Boca Raton, Florida, USA: CRC Press, p.266.

    Google Scholar 

  • Joao E. 2001. Measuring scale effects caused by map generalization and the importance of displacement. In: N.J. Tate and P.M. Atkinson (Eds), Modeling scale in geographic information science. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, p.292.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kupfer JA. 2006. National assessment of forest fragmentation in the US. Global Environmental Change, 16: 72–82.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laurance WF. 2000. Mega-development trends in the Amazon: implications for global change. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 61: 113–122.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Laurance WF, Williamson GB. 2002. Positive Feedbacks among Forest Fragmentation, Drought, and Climate Change in the Amazon. Conservation Biology, 15: 1529–1535.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li Z, Li X, Wang Y, Ma A, Wang J. 2004. Land-use change analysis in Yulin prefecture, northwestern China using remote sensing and GIS. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 20: 5691–5703.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindenmayer DB, Cunnigham RB, Donelly CF, Lesslie R. 2002. On the use of landscape surrogates as ecological indicators in fragmented forests. Forest Ecology and Management, 159: 203–216.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindenmayer, DB, Fisher J. 2006. Tackling the habitat fragmentation panchreston. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 22: 127–132

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lord JM, Norton DA. 1990. Scale and the spatial concept of fragmentation. Conservation Biology, 4: 197–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mas J.-F, Velazquez A, Diaz-Gallegos JR, Mayorga-Saucedo R, Alcantara C, Castro R, Fernandez T, Perez-Vega A. 2004. Assessing land use/cover changes: a nationwide multidate spatial database for Mexico. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 5: 249–261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGarigal K, Cushman SA. 2002. Comparative evaluation of experimental approaches to the study of habitat fragmentation effects. Ecological Applications, 12: 335–345.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mackaness WA, Chaudhry O. 2008. Symbolization and generalization. In S. Shekhar and H. Xiong (Eds). Encyclopedia of Geographical Information Science. New York: Springer. Pp. 330–339.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mas J-F, Perez-Vega A, Correa-Sandoval J, Alba-Bocanegra A, Zamora P. 2000. Habitat fragmentation and biodiversity in the region “Los Petenes”, Campeche, Southeast Mexico. ASPRS Annual Meeting. Washington D.C., USA May 22–26.

  • Mas J-F, Velazquez A, Diaz-Gallegos JR, Mayorga-Saucedo R, Alcantara C, Castro R, Fernandez T, Perez-Vega A. 2003. Assessing Land Use/Cover Changes in Mexico: A Wall-to-Wall Multidate GIS Database. Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, IGARSS’ 03. Proceedings. 2003 IEEE International.

  • Mas J-F, Velazquez A, Diaz-Gallegos JR, Mayorga-Saucedo R, Alcantara C, Castro R, Fernandez T, Perez-Vega A. 2004. Assessing land use/cover changes: a nationwide multidate spatial database for Mexico. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation 5: 249–261

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matthews E, Payne R, Rohweder M, Murray S. 2000. Pilot analysis of global ecosystems (PAGE): forest ecosystems. World Resources Institute, Washington, DC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Matthews E. 2001. Understanding the Forest Resources Assessment 2000. World Resources Institute, Washington, DC. p.12.

    Google Scholar 

  • McAlpine CA, Eyre TJ. 2002. Testing landscape metrics as indicators of habitat loss and fragmentation in continuous eucalypt forests (Queensland, Australia). Landscape Ecology, 17: 711–728.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGarigal K, Cushman SA. 2002. Comparative evaluation of experimental approaches to the study of habitat fragmentation effects. Ecological Applications, 12: 335–345.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer WB, Turner BLII (Editors). 1994. Changes in land use and land cover: a global perspective. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p549.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muller JC, Lagrange JP, Weibel R (Editors). 1995. GIS and generalization: methodology and practice. 1st edition. Boca Raton, Florida, USA: CRC Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murcia C. 1995. Edge effects in fragmented forests: implications for conservation. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 10: 58–62

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ochoa-Gaona S. 2001. Traditional land-use systems and patterns of forest fragmentation in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico. Environmental Management, 27: 571–586.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ochoa-Gaona S, Gonzalez-Espinoza M, Meave JA, Sorani V. 2004. Effect of forest fragmentation on the woody flora of the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico. Biodiversity and Conservation, 13: 867–884.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Portillo-Quintero CA, Sanchez-Azofeifa G.A. 2009. Extent and conservation of tropical dry forests in the Americas. Biological Conservation, 143:144–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riitters KH, Coulston JW. 2005. Hot spots of perforated forest in the eastern United States. Environmental Management, 35: 483–492.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Riitters KH, O’Neill RV, Hunsaker CT. 1995. A factor analysis of landscape pattern and structure metrics. Landscape Ecology, 10: 23–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riitters KH, Wickham J, O’Neill R, Jones B, Smith E. 2000 Global-Scale Patterns of Forest Fragmentation. Ecology and Society 4 Available online at: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol4/iss2/art3/

  • Riitters KH, Wickham J, Coulston JW. 2004. A preliminary assessment of Montreal process indicators of the forest fragmentation for the United States. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 91: 257–276.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rutledge D. 2003. Landscape measures as indices of the effects of fragmentation: can pattern reflect process?. Doc Science Internal Series 98, New Zealand Department of Conservation. Available online at: http://sof.eomf.on.ca/Biological_Diversity/Ecosystem/Fragmentation/Indicators/Shape/Documents/Landscape_fragmentation_%20process.pdf

  • Sala OE, Chapin FS, Armesto JJ, Berlow E, Broomfield J, Dirzo R, Huber-Sandwald E, Huenneke LF, Jackson RB, Kinzig A, Leemans R, Lodge DM, Mooney HA, Oesterhel M, Poff NL, Sykes MT, Walker BH, Walker M, Wall DA. 2000. Global Biodiversity Scenarios for the Year 2100. Science, 10: 1770–1774

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Santiago S, Martinez-Millan J. 2001. Sensitivity of landscape pattern metrics to map spatial extent. Photogrammetric engineering and remote sensing 67: 1027–1036.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schmiegelow FKA, Mönkkönen M. 2002. Habitat loss and fragmentation in dynamic landscapes: Avian perspectives from the boreal forest. Ecological Applications, 12: 375–389

    Google Scholar 

  • Semazzi FHM, Yi S. 2001. A GCM study of climate change induced by deforestation in Africa. Climate Research, 17: 169–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shugart H, Smith TM. 1996. A reive of forest path models and their application to global change research. Climatic Change, 34: 131–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tscharntke T, Steffan-Dewenter I, Kruess A, Thies C. 2002. Contribution of small habital fragmentes to conservation of insect communities of grassland-cropland landscapes. Ecological Applications, 12: 354–363.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner BLII, Clark WC, Kates RW, Richards JF, Mathews JT, Meyer WB (Editors). 1990. The Earth as transformed by human action: global and regional changes in the biosphere over the past 300 years. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, p.729.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner IM. 1996. Species loss in fragments of tropical rain forest: A review of the evidence. Journal of Applied Ecology, 33: 200–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trejo I, Dirzo R. 2000. Deforestation of seasonally dry tropical forest a national and local analysis in Mexico. Biological Conservation, 94: 133–142.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wade TG, Ritters KH, Wickham JD, Jones KB. 2003. Distribution and causes of global forest fragmentation. Conservation Ecology, 7: 7–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winjum JK, Dixon RK, Schroeder PE. 1992. Estimating the global potential of forest and agroforest management practices to sequester carbon. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, 64: 213–227.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • World Resources Institute. 2000. World resources 2000–2001: People and ecosystems: the fraying web of life. Washington, D.C.: World Resources Institute. 358 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Velázquez A, Mas J-F, Diaz-Gallegos R, Mayorga-Saucedo R, Alcantara PC, Castro R, Fernandez T, Bocco G, Ezcurra E, Palacio JL. 2005. Patrones y tasas de cambio de uso del suelo en Mexico. Instituto Nacional de Ecologia, Gaceta 62 Available online at: http://www.ine.gob.mx/ueajei/publicaciones/gacetas/62/velasquez.html

  • Villard M-A. 2002. Habitat fragmentation: Major conservation issue or intellectual attractor? Ecological Applications, 12: 319–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang H, Henderson-Sellers A, McGuffie K. 2001. The compounding effects of tropical deforestation and greenhouse warming on climate. Climatic Change, 49: 309–338.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zipkin, EF, DeWan A. Royle AJ. 2009. Impacts of forest fragmentation on species richness: a hierarchical approach to community modeling. Journal of Applied Ecology, 46: 815–822.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado Denver, Campus Box 172 P.O. Box 173364, Denver, CO, 80217-3364, USA

    Rafael Moreno-Sanchez

  2. Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias (INIFAP), Av Progreso #5, Coyoacán, México D.F., 04100, México

    Francisco Moreno-Sanchez

  3. Carretera México-Toluca 3655, Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE), Col. Lomas de Santa Fe, México, D.F., 01210, México

    Juan Manuel Torres-Rojo

Authors
  1. Rafael Moreno-Sanchez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Francisco Moreno-Sanchez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Juan Manuel Torres-Rojo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rafael Moreno-Sanchez.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Moreno-Sanchez, R., Moreno-Sanchez, F. & Torres-Rojo, J.M. National assessment of the evolution of forest fragmentation in Mexico. Journal of Forestry Research 22, 167–174 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-011-0145-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-011-0145-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation