Reduce the size of surface features when prospecting for or extracting underground products

Overall effectiveness category Awaiting assessment
Number of studies: 1
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

not assessed
Certainty

not assessed
Harms

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Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

Prospecting for underground products, such as oil and gas, can require the destruction of habitat on the surface. Minimizing the footprint of these operations may reduce the disturbance to sensitive species. Note that smaller individual disturbances may require more patches of disturbance across the landscape, and therefore may not reduce the total area disturbed (Riva et al. 2018).

^{Riva F., Acorn J.H. & Nielsen S.E. (2018) Localized disturbances from oil sands developments increase butterfly diversity and abundance in Alberta's boreal forests. Biological Conservation, 217, 173–180.}

Study locations

Key messages

One study evaluated the effects on butterflies and moths of reducing the size of surface features when prospecting for or extracting underground products. This study was in Canada.

COMMUNITY RESPONSE (1 STUDY)

Richness/diversity (1 study): One replicated, site comparison study in Canada found that narrow corridors used for prospecting for oil had a lower species richness of butterflies than wide corridors, but were similar to undisturbed forest.

POPULATION RESPONSE (1 STUDY)

Abundance (1 study): One replicated, site comparison study in Canada found that narrow corridors used for prospecting for oil had a lower abundance of butterflies than wide corridors, but were similar to undisturbed forest.

BEHAVIOUR (0 STUDIES)

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A replicated, site comparison study in 2015 in a boreal forest in Alberta, Canada (Riva et al. 2018) found that narrow corridors used for prospecting for oil had a lower abundance and species richness of butterflies than wide corridors, but were more similar to undisturbed forest. In narrow, 3-m-wide corridors, the abundance (31 individuals/site) and species richness (8 species/site) of butterflies was lower than in 9-m-wide corridors (abundance: 95 individuals/site; richness: 15 species/site). However, narrow corridors were similar to undisturbed forest (abundance: 21 individuals/site; richness: 7 species/site). From 2000–2005, corridors (3 or 9 m wide) were cleared of trees to prospect for oil in a 25-km² area of previously undisturbed forest. From June–August 2015, butterflies were surveyed 11 times on five 200-m transects in corridors of each width, and in undisturbed forest patches which had received no wildfire or anthropogenic disturbance within 50 m for >80 years.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Riva F., Acorn J.H. & Nielsen S.E. (2018) Localized disturbances from oil sands developments increase butterfly diversity and abundance in Alberta's boreal forests. Biological Conservation, 217, 173-180.

Please cite as:

Bladon A.J., Bladon, E. K., Smith R.K. & Sutherland W.J. (2023) Butterfly and Moth Conservation: Global Evidence for the Effects of Interventions for butterflies and moths. Conservation Evidence Series Synopsis. University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Butterfly and Moth Conservation

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