1. History of Landscape Ecology
Precursors…
-phytosociology (Europe) and gradient analysis (N. America)
-studies of distribution patterns of plant communities and relationships to spatial variation in environment
-biogeography (island): study of spatial impacts on population size…influenced habitat fragmentation research

2. History of Landscape Ecology
-as a formal discipline, originated in Central and Eastern Europe
-the term ‘landscape ecology’ coined by
Carl Troll, a German geographer, in late 1930s
-influenced by the ecosystem concept
originated by Tansley in 1935
-also influenced by the advent of
aerial photography

3. History of Landscape Ecology
-European perspective of ‘landscape’ was human-oriented; human living space as a spatial entity
-in Europe, Landscape Ecology emphasized land evaluation, classification, mapping
-land-use planning and
landscape architecture
were the major applications
-’applied’ science

4. History of Landscape Ecology
-Landscape Ecology “arrived” in North America in the early 1980s, after formation of IALE
-Richard Forman was the N. Am.
‘pioneer’ of a formal Landscape Ecology
discipline in the U.S.
-’Allerton Park’ workshop in 1983 brought
together N. Am. researchers working on
the landscape scale

5. History of Landscape Ecology
-Example of early ‘landscape scale’ ecological research in N. Am.:
Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (Bormann and Likens)
-long-term ecological study
-does vegetation regulate ecological processes?
-experimented with harvesting whole watersheds
-found that removal of the vegetation on land affected water and nutrient fluxes in the stream

11. History of Landscape Ecology
-emphasis on quantifying ecological structure and function
on landscape scale
-North American work less oriented towards human landscapes; more emphasis on biology
-more hypothesis-driven
(question–driven) than
European counterpart
-‘basic’ science

12. Problems with Landscape Ecology and its unification as a discipline?

13. Land(scape) Classification
Why classify landscapes? (i.e. units of land)
-prioritize land units for different land uses
-create a common language for describing and organizing land units, i.e. an information system
-allow generalizations to be made within a class of land units

14. Land(scape) Classification
Why classify landscapes? (i.e. units of land)
-early purpose: to assess potential of land for agriculture (e.g. CLI – Canada Land Inventory – 1960s) 1
Soils in this class have no significant limitations in use for crops. 2
Soils in this class have moderate limitations that restrict the range of crops or require moderate conservation practices. 3
Soils in this class have moderately severe limitations that restrict the range of crops or require special conservation practices. 4
Soils in this class have severe limitations that restrict the range of crops or require special conservation practices. 5
Soils in this class gave very severe limitations that restrict their capability in producing perennial forage crops, and improvement practices are feasible. 6
Soils in this class are capable only of producing perennial forage crops, and improvement practices are not feasible. 7
Soils in this class have no capacity for arable culture or permanent pasture.
Organic Soils (not placed in capability classes).

15. Land(scape) Classification
Why classify landscapes? (i.e. units of land)
-recent focus on biodiversity conservation
-prioritizing land units for reserve areas
-need to consider the whole land unit (i.e. ecosystem)
rather than its individual parts

16. natural landscape patterns
e.g. caribou habitat

17. Land(scape) Classification In Canada:
- began with Angus Hills in Ontario and V.J. Krajina in B.C.
-soil scientist
-classified land based on physiography
-botanist
-classification based on plant associations

18. G. A. Hills:
“ if you want to know to what use to put the land, ask the land-type and the vegetation which has grown on it”

19. Land(scape) Classification
In Canada:
-J.S. Rowe’s Forest Regions of Canada in 1970s

20. Land(scape) Classification
In Canada:
-Ecological Land Classification system (Ecozones, etc.)
-spatially hierarchical
-divisions based on climate, regional landforms

25. Land(scape) Classification
In Canada:
-Forest Ecosystem Classification systems developed province by province for management purposes (1980s to present)
-New effort to create standardized national ecosystem classification underway…

26. Land(scape) Classification
In Canada:
-New effort to create standardized national ecosystem classification underway…
-Canadian Vegetation Classification System
based on physiognomy, species composition, and community associations
7 levels (I – VII), progressively more detailed

27. Physiognomy???
-general architecture or growth form of vegetation
e.g. deciduous forest,
short-grass prairie
-can also include morphological/life strategy distinctions such as evergreen or deciduous growth habit