Habitat fragmentation & diversity

Habitat loss threatens the maintenance of biological diversity. When destroying or restoring habitat we are faced with choices about how much (amount) & where remnant or reinstated habitat should be relocated (spatial configuration). Our research has focused on understanding which aspects of habitat loss (amount vs configuration) most strongly influences diversity & persistence of wildlife.

Paris Goodsell, was an inspiration to the application of this theory to kelp fotests.  She has since moved to a post-doctoral fellowship, The University of Sydney.

• Goodsell, PJ & Connell, SD (2002) Can habitat loss be treated independently of habitat configuration? Implications for rare & common taxa in fragmented landscapes. Marine Ecology Prog. Series 239: p37-44
• Goodsell, PJ & Connell, SD (2008) Complexity in the relationship between matrix composition & inter-patch distance in fragmented habitats. Marine Biology 154:117-125.