How many trees should we plant and where? Modelling the landscape-level benefits and biodiversity consequences of woodland creation.

这项建议是关于研究翻译奖学金的。林地创造可以带来许多好处。它可以帮助从大气中吸收和储存碳，它可以帮助减少洪水，它可以为我们提供娱乐的机会。然而，林地的创造对生物多样性也有很大的影响，但这些并不总是积极的。虽然林地物种可以从植树带来的栖息地和连通性的增加中受益，但依赖草原、沼泽地和其他生境提供的广阔空地的其他物种将受到负面影响。林地无法提供这些开放栖息地物种所需的资源；它实际上可能会增加它们的捕食者的栖息地，并导致这些物种失去连通性。因此，林地栖息地对一些物种是有益的，而对另一些物种是不利的。我国政府已承诺增加植树，迫切需要工具来告知这些树木应该在哪里种植。至关重要的是，这些工具必须让我们能够确定林地创造将使人类的生态系统效益最大化的地点(例如碳储存、水分保持、作物授粉)，同时仍能平衡具有不同栖息地要求的物种的需求。这需要将水/碳储存模型与生物多样性模型结合起来--这是很少做到的--并建立现实的生物多样性模型，反映具有不同栖息地要求的多种物种在景观中移动的方式。现有的生物多样性指标过于简单化，无法反映这一点。这个项目将建立一个最先进的生物多样性模型，模拟六个受保护的代表性物种群体(包括林地鸟类、农田鸟类、刺猬、两栖动物、大黄蜂)的日常觅食活动。总的来说，这些选定的群体涵盖了一系列栖息地/流动性要求和对林地创造的反应。生物多样性模型将使用文献和公民科学数据集进行参数化和验证，并与两个非政府组织物种倡导者(英国鸟类学信托基金；英国两栖和爬行动物组织)共同开发，以确保它真实地代表物种的需求。然后，这一生物多样性模型将与生态和水文学中心开发的水和碳储存模型相结合。综合模型将能够评估四个生态系统服务(水分产量、碳储存、授粉和自然病虫害防治)之间的协同/权衡，以及六个高度保护关切的不同物种组的需求。该模型将用于评估在真实景观中创建林地的好处和生物多样性后果。项目利益攸关方将选择他们目前正在与地方当局、组织和土地所有者合作的五个案例研究领域，以提供自然恢复网络和生态系统服务。该模型将用于虚拟试验不同的林地创建方案，并确定为人类和野生动物带来最大利益的选择。这将为这些研究区提供具体的林地创造建议。然后，将应用新的数学技术，从研究区试验中得出总体最大林地创建指南，该指南可应用于其他类似情况。与项目利益攸关方和一名传播专家密切合作，将确保将这些文件转化为决策者和从业人员可使用的格式。最后，将与项目利益攸关方共同制作该模型的用户友好的在线版本，从而使这些利益攸关方(和其他利益攸关方)能够在项目结束后继续使用该工具支持决策。

This proposal is for a Research Translation Fellowship. Woodland creation can bring many benefits. It can help draw down and store carbon from the atmosphere, it can help reduce flooding and it can provide us with opportunities for recreation. However, woodland creation also has big consequences for biodiversity and these are not always positive. While woodland species can benefit from the increase in habitat and connectivity that tree planting brings, other species that rely on the wide open spaces provided by grasslands, moorlands and other habitats will be negatively affected. Woodland cannot provide the resources these open-habitat species need; it may in fact increase habitat for their predators and cause loss of connectivity for such species. Woodland habitat is therefore beneficial for some species and not for others. Our government has pledged to increase tree planting and there is an urgent need for tools to inform where these trees should be planted. Crucially, such tools must allow us to identify locations where woodland creation will maximise ecosystem benefits to people (e.g. carbon storage, water retention, crop pollination) while still balancing the needs of species with different habitat requirements. This requires coupling water/carbon storage models to biodiversity models - something which is rarely done - and building realistic biodiversity models that reflect the way multiple species with different habitat requirements move around the landscape. Existing biodiversity metrics are too simplistic and cannot capture this. This project will build a state-of-the-art biodiversity model that simulates the daily foraging movements of six representative species groups of conservation concern (including woodland birds, farmland birds, hedgehogs, amphibians, bumblebees). Together, these chosen groups span a range of habitat/mobility requirements and responses to woodland creation. The biodiversity model will be parameterised and validated using literature and citizen science datasets, and co-developed alongside two NGO species advocates (British Trust for Ornithology; Amphibian and Reptile Groups of the UK), to ensure that it realistically represents the needs of species. This biodiversity model will then be coupled to water and carbon storage models developed at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. The combined model will be capable of assessing synergies/trade-offs between four ecosystem services (water yield, carbon storage, pollination and natural pest control) alongside the needs of six contrasting species groups of high conservation concern. The model will be used to assess the benefits and biodiversity consequences of woodland creation in real landscapes. Project stakeholders will select five case study areas where they are currently working with local authorities, organisations and landowners to deliver Nature Recovery Networks and ecosystem service provision. The model will be used to virtually trial different woodland creation scenarios and identify options which maximise benefits for people and wildlife. This will provide specific woodland creation recommendations for these study areas. Novel mathematical techniques will then be applied to derive general overarching woodland creation guidelines from the study area trials, which can be applied in other similar situations. Close working alongside project stakeholders and a communications expert will ensure these are translated into accessible formats for decision-makers and practitioners. Finally, a user-friendly online version of the model will be co-produced with project stakeholders, so enabling these stakeholders (and others) to continue using the tool to support decision-making after the project finishes.