Cahill, S., Llimona, F. y Tenés, A. Predicting fragmentation effects on wildlife habitats of future planned infrastructure in protected metropolitan green space. The case of Collserola Park in Barcelona. Habitat Fragmentation due to Transport Infrastructure & Presentation of COST action 341 products. Bruselas: Infra Eco Network Europe (IENE). 2003.
Collserola Park is situated within the greater metropolitan area of Barcelona,
close to the Mediterranean coastline. The park occupies some 8,000 ha of
predominantly Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis) and Holm oak (Quercus ilex)
woodlands with a high diversity of wildlife habitats. Despite its overall
metropolitan context, the park contains a surprisingly high diversity of fauna,
and is an important area for birds such as raptors, as well as amphibians,
reptiles and mammals.
Over the past few decades there has been a rapid growth in urban and
industrial development in the Barcelona metropolitan area. As a consequence,
many wildlife habitats in Collserola park are now effectively isolated from
those of other nearby natural areas by a ring of major transportation
infrastructures and urbanised ground. A series of roads, including a fenced
motorway and a railway, also cross the park within its boundaries leading to
internal habitat fragmentation and limiting wildlife movements to certain areas.
There is also a network of limited-access forest roads and tracks which lead to
increased disturbance in sensitive areas and may further intensify habitat
fragmentation for certain species.
The General Metropolitan Plan for the Barcelona area envisages the
development of further new infrastructure within and around the park in the
future. Existing data obtained from routine monitoring and specific studies
carried out on several species of fauna in the park over recent years has
provided abundant information on wildlife requirements in Collserola. Data has
also been compiled on roadkills in the park on a day to day basis for more
than a decade. Consideration of these all data, in combination with detalied
GIS analyses of future scenarios which simulate the planned infrastructures
foreseen, has allowed for a prediction of likely habitat fragmentation effects
and other impacts on certain wildlife species in Collserola Park.
If undertaken in the future, certain planned new infrastructures could seriously
jeopardise the long-term viability of certain wildlife populations in Collserola
park and undermine its overall ecological integrity. The possibility of this
occurring is increased by the fact that exchange with outlying natural areas is
extremely limited. Urbanisation processes beyond the park’s boundaries,
facilitated by infrastructure development, are also leading to significant habitat
loss and alteration in remaining metropolitan green space, thus lowering
threshold levels for sensitive species within the park.
Palabras clave: Connectivity, Forest, Habitat fragmentation, Infrastructure planning
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