Reserve design

As commonly recommended, an ideal nature reserve should obtain a shape of a perfect circle to reduce dispersal distances[8] avoid detrimental edge effects. However, this is practically very hard to achieve, due to land use for agriculture, human settlements and natural resource extraction. Buffer zones are often suggested as a way of providing protection from human threat, promoting succession and reforestation, and reducing edge effects.[9] English government guide to nature reserves mentions buffer zones as being useful, but not essential for biodiversity protection.[3]

Contrasting evidence suggests that shape plays little to no part in the effectiveness of the reserve. A study in 1985 explored the effects of shape and size on islands, and determined that area, rather than shape was the major factor.[10]

A complicated debate among conservation biologists (also known as the SLOSS debate) focused on whether it is better to create one large or several small reserves. The species area relationship ${\displaystyle S=cA^{z}}$ states that the number of species in a habitat is directly proportional to its size. So theoretically if several small reserves have a greater total area than a single large reserve, the small reserves will contain a greater total number of species. This, combined with assumptions of island biogeography theory, lead Jared Diamond to state that a single large reserve is the best method of conservation,[8] and it is still commonly recommended. For example, a review by Ovaskainen[11] determined that a single large reserve site is best at maximising long-term survival of the species and deferring extinction in a closed population.

The nested subset theory disagrees with Diamond's conclusion. It states that several small reserves will mostly share the same species, because certain species are better adapted to living in smaller habitats and many other species only exist in larger habitats A study conducted in Illinois had shown that two small forest reserves contained a larger number of bird species than one large forest patch, but the large reserve contained a larger number of migratory birds.[7] Ovaskainen[11] and Fukamachi[12] argued that several small reserve fragments are better at maximising species richness. However, it will most likely only applies to common species, as the rarest, least abundant species are found only in single large sites.[12]

As the debate had mixed evidence supporting both Single Large and Several Small reserves,[13][14] some scientists questioned the practical applicability of island biogeography theory to conservation in general.[9] However, its applicability and its role in stimulating the study of habitat fragmentation is now largely accepted. The scientific findings emerging from habitat fragmentation research are considered to be a key element of conservation biology and applicable to reserve design. Similarly, the suggestion that scientific evidence was lacking to support the hypothesis that subdividing habitat increases extinction rates (fundamentally the problem addressed by the SLOSS debate) was refuted.[15]

The science of reserve design has faced some recent controversy regarding species-area relationship, when it was shown that habitat heterogeneity is likely a stronger factor in determining species richness than area. The study decoupled area and habitat complexity to show that small, but heterogeneous habitats have more arthropod species than large, but homogeneous ones.[16]

Habitat diversity and quality have also been shown to influence biodiversity. It was discovered that plant species richness in Norwegian meadows is correlated with habitat diversity.[17] Another study has found that butterfly population persistence was found to correlate with habitat quality, rather than area.[18]

Empathetic Architecture - How can we produces buildings in a reserve to allow empathy within the physical environment of the structure? The term empathy is understood primarily from sociology referring to an interrelation with another person. By Association, whether positive or negative, it is subjective to some extent. In architectural terms, empathy is understood as a positive bond with the built environment.  The more people can associate with the built environment the better they are able to understand the world they live in and we as architects must interpret such techniques and by application when used effectively, can achieve breakthrough designs in potentially shorter cycles to create spaces of greater use.

Protecting species in a confined area sometimes isn’t enough to protect the biodiversity of an entire region. Life within a nature reserve does not function as an isolated unit, separate from its surroundings. Many animals engage in migration and are not guaranteed to stay within fixed reserve boundaries. So, to protect biodiversity over wide geographic ranges, reserve systems are established. Reserve systems are a series of strategically placed reserves designed to connect habitats. This allows animals to travel between protected areas through wildlife corridors. A wildlife corridor is a protected passageway where it is known that fauna migrate. The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative is an excellent example of this type of conservation effort. Studies showed that reserve networks are extremely valuable for conservation,[19] and can help increase migration between patches up to 50%.[20]

According to Conservation International, the term biodiversity hotspot refers to "the richest and most threatened reservoirs of plant and animal life on Earth... To qualify as a hotspot, a region must meet two strict criteria: it must contain at least 1,500 species of vascular plants (> 0.5 percent of the world’s total) as endemics, and it has to have lost at least 70 percent of its original habitat." These hotspots are rapidly disappearing due to human activities, but they still have a chance of being saved if conservation measures are enacted. Biodiversity hotspots could be considered the most important places to put reserves.