Ecological network planning – from paradigms to design and back: a cautionary note

Ecological network (EN) planning bases conservation actions on a strong theoretical skeleton offered by disciplines such as population and landscape ecology, insular biogeography, community ecology and population genetics. Nevertheless, a lack of precise definitions and of a body of practical information regarding implementation has hindered many EN projects whose effectiveness for species conservation appears to be dubious. For example, current policy responses to human-induced habitat fragmentation are often based on simplified spatial assumptions (‘putting a pattern on a map’) that lack a sound understanding of ecosystem functionality. In this opinion article, I would like to stimulate discussion on the problematic aspects of EN discipline. The ‘road map’ of this article includes a close examination of (1) the EN approach (site-based or target-oriented?); (2) the multidisciplinary debate; (3) how to select target species; (4) the ENs as networks of territorial objects (what about functional connectivity or structural contiguity?); (5) the role of Natura 2000 network; and (6) the weakness of the EN approach as a persuasive tool or an alibi.