Improving biodiversity monitoring using satellite remote sensing to provide solutions towards the 2020 conservation targets

Kurzfassung

The preservation of biodiversity has become a major challenge for sustainable development at national, European (Natura 2000 and Habitats Directive) and international levels (Convention on Biological Diversity, 2011–2020). To address the current conservation needs, there is a need to operationalise methods to assess the distribution of natural resources while integrating information on habitat condition; inform conservation planning and support the assessment of ecosystem services. Increased access to satellite imagery and new developments in data analyses can support progress towards biodiversity conservation targets by stepping up monitoring processes at various spatial and temporal scales. Satellite imagery is indeed increasingly being made accessible to all, while analytical techniques to capitalise on the information contained in spatially explicit species data, such as Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), are constantly developing, and offering a plurality of options for application. Free and open data policy is having a dramatic impact on our ability to understand how biodiversity is being affected by anthropogenic pressures, leading to increased opportunities to predict the consequences of changes in drivers at different scales and plan for more efficient mitigation measures. Satellite remote sensing is however no panacea, and little can be achieved without a robust understanding of the socioecological system considered. Similarly, access to relevant field based information is the key to satellite imagery to be properly calibrated, analysed and validated. This need for close collaboration between ecologists, modellers and remote sensing experts to derive meaningful information can represent a serious challenge (Pettorelli, Safi, & Turner, 2014). With this special feature, we aim to illustrate why tackling this challenge is worth doing, by demonstrating how the coupling of satellite remote sensing data with ground observations and adequate modelling can provide tangible operational solutions towards a better understanding and management of natural systems. The contributions featured in this special feature result from targeted invitations to prominent satellite remote sensing experts, who have a known interest in applied ecology and are currently working on innovative applications and methodological development to improve environmental management outcomes. These contributions focus on three key conservation challenges, namely (1) the monitoring of biodiversity; (2) the development of an improved understanding of biodiversity patterns; (3) the assessment of biodiversity’s vulnerability to climate change.