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A least-cost network neutral landscape model of human sites and routes

T. Etherington,David O’Sullivan,George L. W. Perry,Daniel R. Richards,John Wainwright

Published 2024 in Landscape Ecology

ABSTRACT

Neutral landscape models generate virtual landscapes that enable computer-based exploration of the effects of spatial patterns on ecological processes free from the restrictions of real-world experimentation. For some questions in landscape ecology it is critical to incorporate human landscape features, such as networks, that are an integral part of human-influenced landscapes. This paper outlines an approach to produce a neutral landscape model that uses the human geography principle of least-cost movement to create a network of human sites (buildings, camps, mines, settlements, farms, factories, etc.) and routes (trails, roads, railways, canals, powerlines, etc.). We used a least-cost modelling framework to create sites prioritised on least-cost catchment areas and routes based on least-cost paths. The location of sites and routes is determined by an underlying cost-surface that defines how movement costs vary across the landscape. The range of possible network patterns was quantified via raster network metrics and was compared to real-world network data. The proposed neutral landscape model produces networks with a wide range of possible patterns, and using real-world data can guide the selection of parameters that mimic human activity in a variety of land cover classes in real-world landscapes. This network neutral landscape model extends the potential of neutral landscape models for research into human-influenced landscapes. We provide the code used to generate our examples under a permissive open-source licence.

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