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Causes of Landscape Pattern

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Landscape Ecology in Theory and Practice

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Abstract

When we view a landscape, we look at its composition and spatial configuration—that is, what elements are present and in what relative amount, and how these elements are arranged. In an agricultural landscape, we may observe forests occurring along streams and on steep ridges, whereas croplands and pastures occupy upland areas of gentler slope. In a fire-dominated boreal forest landscape, we may see expanses of old forest, young forest, and early successional vegetation. In a deciduous forest, we may observe small gaps in an otherwise continuous canopy of trees, and we may detect boundaries between forests dominated by different species of trees. In landscapes of small extent (e.g., 100 m by 100 m), we may observe complex patterns of vegetated and unvegetated surfaces. Observations of landscape patterns can trigger a number of general questions: How do all these different patterns develop? What is the relative importance of different causes? Do similar patterns emerge from similar processes? How do landscape patterns change through time? What conditions produce gradual vs. abrupt changes in landscape patterns? Can future patterns be predicted? For how long are patterns discernible after the processes creating the patterns have ceased?

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA

    Monica G. Turner

  2. Center for Environmental Science, University of Maryland, Frostburg, MD, USA

    Robert H. Gardner

Authors
  1. Monica G. Turner
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  2. Robert H. Gardner
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Further Reading

Further Reading

  • Black AE, Morgan P, Hessburg PF (2003) Social and biophysical correlates of change in forest landscapes of the interior Columbia Basin, USA. Ecol Appl 13:51–67

  • Jackson ST (2006) Vegetation, environment and time: the origination and termination of ecosystems. J Veg Sci 17:547–557

  • Kramer MG, Hansen AJ, Taper ML, Kissinger EJ (2001) Abiotic controls on long-term windthrow disturbance and temperate rain forest dynamics in southeast Alaska. Ecology 82:2749–2768

  • Lindborg R, Eriksson O (2004) Historical landscape connectivity affects present plant species diversity. Ecology 85:1840–1845

  • Phillips JD (2007) The perfect landscape. Geomorphology 84:159–169

  • Plue J, Hermy M, Verheyen K, Thuiller P, Saguez R, Decocq G (2008) Persistent changes in forest vegetation and seed bank 1,600 years after human occupation. Landsc Ecol 23:673–688

  • Wright JP, Jones CG, Flecker AS (2002) An ecosystem engineer, the beaver, increases species richness at the landscape scale. Oecologia 132:96–101

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Turner, M.G., Gardner, R.H. (2015). Causes of Landscape Pattern. In: Landscape Ecology in Theory and Practice. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-2794-4_2

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