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Questioning the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 Special Areas of Conservation strategy: the case of Crete
Author(s) -
Dimitrakopoulos Panayiotis G.,
Memtsas Dimitris,
Troumbis Andreas Y.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
global ecology and biogeography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.164
H-Index - 152
eISSN - 1466-8238
pISSN - 1466-822X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1466-822x.2004.00086.x
Subject(s) - natura 2000 , representativeness heuristic , biodiversity , geography , biodiversity hotspot , plant diversity , nature conservation , environmental resource management , complementarity (molecular biology) , mediterranean basin , biodiversity conservation , mediterranean climate , ecology , environmental science , biology , archaeology , mathematics , statistics , genetics
Aim This study examines the effectiveness of the selected ‘network’ of Natura 2000 Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) at a regional scale in Greece, in terms of its representativeness of plant biodiversity. Location The island of Crete is used as a case study because it is considered to be one of the 10 hotspots for biodiversity in the Mediterranean Basin. Methods Hotspot analysis and complementarity algorithms are used to define priority areas for conservation and calculate their spatial overlap with the Natura 2000 SACs in Crete. Results The various categories of hotspots contain subsamples of plant categories, used for their definition. Spatial overlap among different categories of hotspots, areas of complementary diversity and Natura 2000 SCAs is low. Main conclusions The results show that the Natura 2000 SACs ‘network’ in Crete seems insufficient to ensure satisfactory representation of the regional plant biodiversity elements.