RPT-IV Connectivity

Modelling the connectivity of ecological infrastructure

This research project contributed to the wider project to strengthen the ecological infrastructure of the Canton of Geneva (IE-GE 2022–2024) by carrying out the following activities:

• the development of a transferable methodology to identify and prioritise wildlife movement corridors, with field validation to assess their level of functionality;
• the development of a methodology to generate a web service for managers, enabling them to easily use the model in land-use planning or species conservation activities.

The approach is structured in five phases:

1. the definition of nodal areas where a target species group is able to carry out all its vital behaviours;
2. the assignment of permeability levels, which may or may not favour the probability of animal movement, to the various habitats present within a landscape;
3. the creation of two complementary connectivity models, one focusing on the probability of movement and the other on the vulnerability of corridors;
4. the identification of conflict zones or structures hindering movement;
5. the prioritisation model, the final model which identifies which corridors are currently the most vulnerable or which ones should be protected.

This approach was applied to several guilds of animal species, groups of species with the same movement requirements.

^{Map showing the locations of two female roe deer (red and blue dots) overlaid with the fence map (blue, green, orange and red polygons) and the previously assessed model of potential biological corridors (gradient from red – areas with the highest probability of crossing – to yellow).}