Step carefully, there is an elephant in the room: Human trampling as threat or treat in conservation

Abstract

The impact from tourism, e.g. trampling, may be a real concern in nature reserves. Conradi et al. (2015, this issue) studied disturbance effects on grassland vegetation along paths in a nature reserve and found only small negative effects, in good accordance with the local history. Our understanding of disturbances has changed over history and I advocate an evolutionary perspective. The impact from tourism, e.g. trampling, may be a real concern in nature reserves. Conradi et al. (2015, this issue) studied disturbance effects on grassland vegetation along paths in a nature reserve and found only small negative effects. It is suggested that human disturbances may even be beneficial when mimicking natural processes. Left image shows elephant shaped open woodland (photo Rasmus Ejrnæs), right image shows human-shaped Estonian wooded meadow (photo Meelis Pärtel).