The 10 Australian ecosystems most vulnerable to tipping points

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Laurance, William F
Dell, Bernard
Turton, Stephen M
Lawes, Michael J
Hutley, Lindsay B
McCallum, Hamish
Dale, Patricia
Bird, Michael
Hardy, Giles
Prideaux, Gavin
Gawne, Ben
McMahon, Clive R
Yu, Richard
Hero, Jean-Marc
Schwarzkop, Lin
Krockenberger, Andrew
Douglas, Michael
Silvester, Ewen
Mahony, Michael
Vella, Karen
Saikia, Udoy
Wahren, Carl-Henrik
Xu, Zhihong
Smith, Bradley
Cocklin, Chris
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2011
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Abstract

We identify the 10 major terrestrial and marine ecosystems in Australia most vulnerable to tipping points, in which modest environmental changes can cause disproportionately large changes in ecosystem properties. To accomplish this we independently surveyed the coauthors of this paper to produce a list of candidate ecosystems, and then refined this list during a 2-day workshop. The list includes (1) elevationally restricted mountain ecosystems, (2) tropical savannas, (3) coastal floodplains and wetlands, (4) coral reefs, (5) drier rainforests, (6) wetlands and floodplains in the Murray-Darling Basin, (7) the Mediterranean ecosystems of southwestern Australia, (8) offshore islands, (9) temperate eucalypt forests, and (10) salt marshes and mangroves. Some of these ecosystems are vulnerable to widespread phase-changes that could fundamentally alter ecosystem properties such as habitat structure, species composition, fire regimes, or carbon storage. Others appear susceptible to major changes across only part of their geographic range, whereas yet others are susceptible to a large-scale decline of key biotic components, such as small mammals or stream-dwelling amphibians. For each ecosystem we consider the intrinsic features and external drivers that render it susceptible to tipping points, and identify subtypes of the ecosystem that we deem to be especially vulnerable.

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Biological Conservation

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144

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5

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Environmental sciences

Biological sciences

Agricultural, veterinary and food sciences

Urban and regional planning not elsewhere classified

Ecology

Zoology

Environmental management

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