Abstract
Biodiversity corridors can promote wildlife conservation by facilitating movement between habitat patches if carefully planned. The biodiversity corridors in the Central Annamite Landscape, Vietnam, were established in 2018. However, there has been no detailed modeling or surface analysis undertaken to assess their effectiveness. Moreover, current species distributions are influenced by historic habitat patterns and interactions with competing or predating species, as well as human activities. If biodiversity corridors are not well planned, they could lead to human-wildlife conflicts and increased predator-prey interactions. Here we assessed the effectiveness of biodiversity corridors between the five protected areas in Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue provinces with the aim of identifying opportunities for improving connectivity via forest restoration. The Linkage Mapper toolset in ArcGIS was used for the connectivity modeling process using cost-weighted distances. We used expert opinion for parameterizing resistance values in a resistance surface because there is no available data on wildlife movement to develop empirical resistance estimates. Several areas where habitat restoration could disproportionately improve landscape connectivity occurred along roads that bisected corridors. A total of 152,200 ha was identified as effective connectivity of existing biodiversity corridors, including natural forests without roads and 56,800 ha which had higher resistance due to natural topography. Barrier areas are places where high resistance values contribute to rapid accumulation of cost-weighted distance and thus can highlight locations where conservation activities may provide the greatest benefit for broader scale connectivity. Our results provide a quantitative assessment of corridor effectiveness in the Central Annamite Landscape. Subsequent assessment using species-specific empirical data remains a critical future step to improve our understanding of functional connectivity in the Central Annamite.
Biography
Dr. Nguyen Van Tri Tin is an environmental scientist with over 25 years of experience leading biodiversity conservation, natural resource management, and climate resilience initiatives across Southeast Asia. He has worked extensively in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Australia, guiding multidisciplinary teams and building partnerships with governments, NGOs, and research institutions. Currently serving as the Biodiversity Conservation Lead at WWF-Viet Nam and a visiting researcher at Southern Cross University, Dr. Tin focuses on connectivity conservation and strategies to mitigate wildlife threats in Central Vietnam. He holds a master’s degree in environmental science (USA) and a PhD in Connectivity Conservation (Australia). Dr. Tin is recognized for his regional leadership in conservation planning, grant and program management, and strengthening civil society and institutional capacity.