Landskapsberoende

Landskapsberoende is a concept used in ecology, geography and landscape planning to describe the extent to which ecological processes, species distributions or ecosystem services depend on the landscape context. It emphasizes the influence of landscape structure, land use and spatial configuration across scales, rather than focusing solely on local site conditions or species traits.

In practice, landskapsberoende is used to study how habitat availability, connectivity and fragmentation affect wildlife movement and colonization; how hydrological and nutrient processes respond to land cover patterns; and how pollination, seed dispersal and pest dynamics vary with landscape composition. The concept informs habitat restoration, conservation planning, agricultural planning and urban development by highlighting the role of landscape context in outcomes.

Methodologically, landskapsberoende is analyzed with GIS and landscape metrics such as connectivity, edge density, and patch size distribution, often within landscape-scale models. Data sources include remote sensing, land-cover maps and field surveys. The approach encourages multi-scale analysis and the integration of landscape context into process-based understanding.

Limitations include sensitivity to scale and landscape heterogeneity, which may limit generalization from one landscape to another. Researchers stress the need for explicit specification of spatial and temporal scales and for robust cross-landscape comparisons to discern general patterns from local particularities.

In Swedish usage, landskapsberoende appears alongside related concepts in landskapsökologi and landscape planning, serving as a bridge between pattern-based and process-based approaches and highlighting the role of landscape context in ecological and environmental outcomes.