Potential impact of invasive alien species on ecosystem services provided by a tropical forested ecosystem: a case study from Montserrat
Potential impact of invasive alien species on ecosystem services provided by a tropical forested ecosystem: a case study from Montserrat
Local stakeholders at the important but vulnerable Centre Hills on Montserrat consider that the continued presence of feral livestock (particularly goats and pigs) may lead to widespread replacement of the reserve’s native vegetation by invasive alien trees (Java plum and guava), and consequent negative impacts on native animal species. Since 2009, a hunting programme to control the feral livestock has been in operation. However long-term funding is not assured. Here, we estimate the effect of feral livestock control on ecosystem services provided by the forest to evaluate whether the biodiversity conservation rationale for continuation of the control programme is supported by an economic case. A new practical tool (Toolkit for Ecosystem Service Site-based Assessment) was employed to measure and compare ecosystem service provision between two states of the reserve (i.e. presence and absence of feral livestock control) to estimate the net consequences of the hunting programme on ecosystem services provided by the forest. Based on this we estimate that cessation of feral livestock management would substantially reduce the net benefits provided by the site, including a 46 % reduction in nature-based tourism (from $419,000 to $228,000) and 36 % reduction in harvested wild meat (from $205,000 to $132,000). The overall net benefit generated from annual ecosystem service flows associated with livestock control in the reserve, minus the management cost, was $214,000 per year. We conclude that continued feral livestock control is important for maintaining the current level of ecosystem services provided by the reserve
461-475
Peh, Kelvin S.-H.
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Balmford, Andrew
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Birch, Jennifer C.
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Brown, Claire
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Butchart, Stuart H.M.
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Daley, James
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Dawson, Jeffrey
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Gray, Gerard
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Hughes, Francine M.R.
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Mendes, Stephen
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Millett, James
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Stattersfield, Alison J.
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Thomas, David H.L.
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Walpole, Matt
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Bradbury, Richard B.
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1 January 2015
Peh, Kelvin S.-H.
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Balmford, Andrew
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Birch, Jennifer C.
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Brown, Claire
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Butchart, Stuart H.M.
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Daley, James
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Dawson, Jeffrey
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Gray, Gerard
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Hughes, Francine M.R.
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Mendes, Stephen
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Millett, James
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Stattersfield, Alison J.
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Thomas, David H.L.
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Walpole, Matt
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Bradbury, Richard B.
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Peh, Kelvin S.-H., Balmford, Andrew, Birch, Jennifer C., Brown, Claire, Butchart, Stuart H.M., Daley, James, Dawson, Jeffrey, Gray, Gerard, Hughes, Francine M.R., Mendes, Stephen, Millett, James, Stattersfield, Alison J., Thomas, David H.L., Walpole, Matt and Bradbury, Richard B.
(2015)
Potential impact of invasive alien species on ecosystem services provided by a tropical forested ecosystem: a case study from Montserrat.
Biological Invasions, 17 (1), .
(doi:10.1007/s10530-014-0743-9).
Abstract
Local stakeholders at the important but vulnerable Centre Hills on Montserrat consider that the continued presence of feral livestock (particularly goats and pigs) may lead to widespread replacement of the reserve’s native vegetation by invasive alien trees (Java plum and guava), and consequent negative impacts on native animal species. Since 2009, a hunting programme to control the feral livestock has been in operation. However long-term funding is not assured. Here, we estimate the effect of feral livestock control on ecosystem services provided by the forest to evaluate whether the biodiversity conservation rationale for continuation of the control programme is supported by an economic case. A new practical tool (Toolkit for Ecosystem Service Site-based Assessment) was employed to measure and compare ecosystem service provision between two states of the reserve (i.e. presence and absence of feral livestock control) to estimate the net consequences of the hunting programme on ecosystem services provided by the forest. Based on this we estimate that cessation of feral livestock management would substantially reduce the net benefits provided by the site, including a 46 % reduction in nature-based tourism (from $419,000 to $228,000) and 36 % reduction in harvested wild meat (from $205,000 to $132,000). The overall net benefit generated from annual ecosystem service flows associated with livestock control in the reserve, minus the management cost, was $214,000 per year. We conclude that continued feral livestock control is important for maintaining the current level of ecosystem services provided by the reserve
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Accepted/In Press date: 24 June 2014
Published date: 1 January 2015
Organisations:
Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences
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Local EPrints ID: 377497
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/377497
ISSN: 1387-3547
PURE UUID: 6ad73d22-50b4-4229-b623-802bcce45b87
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Date deposited: 11 Jun 2015 13:39
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:44
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Contributors
Author:
Andrew Balmford
Author:
Jennifer C. Birch
Author:
Claire Brown
Author:
Stuart H.M. Butchart
Author:
James Daley
Author:
Jeffrey Dawson
Author:
Gerard Gray
Author:
Francine M.R. Hughes
Author:
Stephen Mendes
Author:
James Millett
Author:
Alison J. Stattersfield
Author:
David H.L. Thomas
Author:
Matt Walpole
Author:
Richard B. Bradbury
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