The DOI matches its Crossref record; 106 of the 106 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 11 of the 56 sources its claims cite were checked for support.
Circuit‐theory applications to connectivity science and conservation
Open accessAbstract
Conservation practitioners have long recognized ecological connectivity as a global priority for preserving biodiversity and ecosystem function. In the early years of conservation science, ecologists extended principles of island biogeography to assess connectivity based on source patch proximity and other metrics derived from binary maps of habitat. From 2006 to 2008, the late Brad McRae introduced circuit theory as an alternative approach to model gene flow and the dispersal or movement routes of organisms. He posited concepts and metrics from electrical circuit theory as a robust way to quantify movement across multiple possible paths in a landscape, not just a single least-cost path or corridor. Circuit theory offers many theoretical, conceptual, and practical linkages to conservation science. We reviewed 459 recent studies citing circuit theory or the open-source software Circuitscape. We focused on applications of circuit theory to the science and practice of connectivity conservation, including topics in landscape and population genetics, movement and dispersal paths of organisms, anthropogenic barriers to connectivity, fire behavior, water flow, and ecosystem services. Circuit theory is likely to have an effect on conservation science and practitioners through improved insights into landscape dynamics, animal movement, and habitat-use studies and through the development of new software tools for data analysis and visualization. The influence of circuit theory on conservation comes from the theoretical basis and elegance of the approach and the powerful collaborations and active user community that have emerged. Circuit theory provides a springboard for ecological understanding and will remain an important conservation tool for researchers and practitioners around the globe.
Overview
AI snapshot
Written from the paper’s full text.
TL;DR
This review synthesizes how circuit theory, introduced to ecology and conservation biology by Brad McRae in 2006–2008, has been applied to model gene flow, organismal movement, corridors, and other connectivity processes. Drawing on 459 citing papers, it surveys applications from landscape genetics to fire spread, water flow, and ecosystem services, and outlines future opportunities and caveats.
Key findings
- Of 459 papers identified via Web of Science or Google Scholar citing McRae et al. (2008) or the Circuitscape user guide, 277 directly used the software; applications spanned every continent (including off Antarctica) and disciplines from conservation to epidemiology.
- McRae & Beier (2007) found isolation by resistance explained genetic patterns of wolverine (*Gulo gulo*) and bigleaf mahogany (*Swietenia macrophylla*) about 50–200% better than isolation by distance and least-cost paths, even though both species were undergoing rapid human-caused demographic change.
- Among reviewed studies, the vast majority addressed animals (n = 228), with 10 on plants and one on protists; mammals were the most common vertebrates, followed by birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish, with arthropods studied almost as frequently as birds.
- Circuitscape-derived regional flow maps underpin The Nature Conservancy's Conserving Nature's Stage approach, which to date has helped guide decisions on US$38 million in land protection funding; in India, national tiger-reserve policy has been informed by Circuitscape models.
Methods
- Narrative review and synthesis of circuit-theory applications, structured around foundations of the theory, a synthesis of recent publications across geographies, and future directions.
- Literature search identified 459 papers citing McRae et al. (2008) or the Circuitscape user guide (McRae & Shah 2009; McRae et al. 2013); 277 of these directly used the software.
- Applications are organized thematically: landscape and population genetics, animal movement pathways and corridors, anthropogenic barriers, climate change, and non-traditional uses (fire spread, water flow, ecosystem services).
Limitations
- Stated by the paper: isolation by resistance may not perform as well as other frameworks (e.g., isolation by distance) in less fragmented landscapes, or when assessing migration rather than dispersal pathways; assumptions and utility should be assessed project-by-project.
- Stated by the paper: unresolved caveats include modeling long-distance dispersal events and asymmetric migration, and future work could account for temporal variation in dispersal rates and patterns at adaptive loci.
- Stated by the paper: early statistical approaches comparing inter-individual genetic distances with resistance distances (e.g., Mantel tests) often led to faulty inferences by assuming linearity, ignoring spatial structure, and failing to account for variable local population density; Marrotte et al. (2017) found current density was not usually a good predictor of gene flow for four terrestrial mammal species in Ontario, especially where habitat amount was high or pinch points were observed.
- Evident from the text: this is a narrative review without a stated systematic search protocol or quantitative meta-analysis, so the synthesis reflects the authors' selection and interpretation of examples.
Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.
Integrity signals
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Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
11 of 56 cited sources checked · 6 supported · 1 flagged · accuracy not yet measured
At least one cited source doesn’t support this claim or points to a different paper, and none confirmed it — see the verdicts below.
In the paper
“For example, circuit theory and least-cost path models have been shown to perform comparably in predicting seasonal ungulate migration routes (Poor et al. 2012; McClure et al. 2016).”
What the sources say
- Disputedcites Poor et al. 2012 sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The Results (Connectivity Models, spring and fall) report that least-cost corridors generally captured more pronghorn locations than Circuitscape corridors. The paper explicitly concludes that least-cost modeling outperformed circuit theory on this measure, rather than presenting the methods as comparably effective for predicting seasonal migration routes. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Checked by a reasoning model — may be wrong.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McClure et al. 2016 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passes- Disputed
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“The second foundational paper (McRae & Beier 2007) demonstrated that IBR explained genetic patterns of mammal (wolverine, Gulo gulo) and plant (bigleaf mahogany, Swetenia macrophylla) populations about 50–200% better than two conventional approaches, namely isolation by distance and least-cost paths.”
What the sources say
- Partly supportedcites McRae & Beier 2007 sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The Results (Model Performance) report that IBR improved model fit over isolation by distance by 37–73% for mahogany and 188% for wolverines. They also say IBR outperformed least-cost paths, but do not give a 50–200% improvement over that approach. The claimed percentage range also rounds the mahogany result upward. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Partly supported
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“Specifically, Doyle & Snell (1984) demonstrated that resistance distances from circuit theory are directly proportional to the movements of Markovian random walkers on graphs, and Chandra et al. (1996) related resistance distances to “commute times,” or the time it takes a random walker to travel from one point to another and back again.”
What the sources say
- Partly supportedcites Doyle & Snell (1984) sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
Section 1.3.1 connects random walks on graphs with resistor networks and reversible Markov chains, and §1.3.4 relates effective resistance to a walker's probability of reaching one vertex before returning to another. But §1.3.4 gives that probability as proportional to effective conductance—the reciprocal of resistance—not as directly proportional to resistance. The claimed direct proportionality to the walker's “movements” is therefore not established. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Partly supported
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“Still, circuit theory has been found suitable for characterizing relative frequency of routine movements along multiple potential paths through urban and other fragmented landscapes (e.g., Braaker et al. 2014; Rödder et al. 2016; Grafius et al. 2017).”
What the sources say
- Supportedcites Braaker et al. 2014 source
The Habitat connectivity analysis section explains that circuit-theory current represents expected movement probability and accounts for multiple alternative paths. The Best model selection and Habitat connectivity and animal movement models sections show that the authors tested current flow against GPS-recorded hedgehog locations in an urban landscape and found it useful for predicting movement. The paper also describes the approach as suited to complex, fragmented landscapes. (LLM, conf=0.88)
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Rödder et al. 2016 source
- Partly supportedcites Grafius et al. 2017 sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The Introduction says circuit theory considers multiple alternative pathways, and Methods > Connectivity and circuit theory describes cumulative current as a representation of wildlife-flow intensity in an urban landscape. But the Discussion says the study used bird abundance as a proxy rather than direct movement data, and Results > Comparison with observed bird abundance data reports mostly weak or nonsignificant relationships. The paper therefore supports modelling relative movement intensity, not a finding that the model accurately characterizes the frequency of routine movements across urban and other fragmented landscapes. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Supported
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“Even greater generality can result from ‘species-agnostic’ approaches to estimating ecological flows that base landscape resistance on the degree to which habitats are unaltered or otherwise modified by humans (e.g., Bennie et al. 2014; Dickson et al. 2017).”
What the sources say
- Partly supportedcites Bennie et al. 2014 sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The ‘Application of model to an ecological system’ section models ecological connectivity using landscape resistance, supporting that part of the claim. But it sets resistance proportional to artificial light intensity for a hypothetical light-avoiding bat, not to overall human modification in a species-agnostic approach. The indexed passages provide no page number. (LLM, conf=0.86)
- Not matchedcites Dickson et al. 2017
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passes- Partly supported
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Because Circuitscape is the principal tool that researchers and practitioners use to apply the method, we reviewed 459 papers identified by either Web of Science or Google Scholar that cited McRae et al. (2008) or the Circuitscape user guide (McRae & Shah 2009; McRae et al. 2013).”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesA result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Of these studies, 277 directly used the software.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesThe paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“For example, in IBR (but not least-cost models) increasing the number of paths always decreases the total resistance and genetic distance among subpopulations, and habitat degradation increases genetic distance, even outside the least-cost path.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesA conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“This robustness suggested that circuit theory could be applied to the variety of other landscapes experiencing human-caused changes.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIn the paper
“The approach accommodates important stochastic properties of wildfire by modeling probabilistic spread between adjacent neighbors in a landscape network (Gray & Dickson 2015).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Gray & Dickson 2015
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passes- Not matched
- Probably not a substantial claim. 33
- It may state two separate claims as one. 11
Every source the paper cites for this claim was checked and supports it.
In the paper
“The vast majority of studies addressed animals (n = 228), but ten focused on plants, and one on protists (Dong et al. 2016).”
What the sources say
- Supportedcites Dong et al. 2016 source
The Methods section (‘Diatom sampling and identification’; page not provided) describes sampling and identifying benthic diatoms, and the Results (‘Community composition patterns’; page not provided) report 149 diatom species across 63 sites. The citation identifies this as the study of protists; the counts of animal and plant studies are the citing authors’ review totals, not claims attributed to Dong et al. (LLM, conf=0.91)
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedSingle caseTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Supported
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“Increasingly, circuit theory-based analyses are being conducted on larger and more complex datasets through recent advances in open-source software (e.g., gflow; Leonard et al. 2017b), programming (e.g., the Julia numerical computing language; Bezanson et al. 2017), and cluster- or cloud-based computing resources.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Leonard et al. 2017b
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Supportedcites Bezanson et al. 2017 source
The citation identifies Julia as an example of a programming advance, rather than as evidence about circuit-theory analyses specifically. Section 2.3 describes Julia as an open-source, general-purpose language used for numerical computing, which supports that identification. (LLM, conf=0.93)
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
The sources with a verdict support this claim; the rest weren’t checked yet, have no full text we could read, or their verdicts aren’t rated yet.
In the paper
“‘Omnidirectional’ or ‘wall-to-wall’ approaches (e.g., Walpole et al. 2012; Koen et al. 2014; Pelletier et al. 2014; Anderson et al. 2016; McRae et al. 2016; Supporting Information) avoid the need to arbitrarily define and delineate discrete areas to connect (e.g., habitat cores or patches), revealing important areas for connectivity over continuous landscape gradients.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Walpole et al. 2012 source
- Supportedcites Koen et al. 2014 source
The Introduction describes modelling connectivity across the landscape as a whole. The Discussion explains that this method estimates connectivity even where there are no distinct habitat blocks to connect, using randomly placed nodes around a buffered study area instead. (LLM, conf=0.90)
- Supportedcites Pelletier et al. 2014 source
The Methods describe passing current between strips at opposite edges of tiles, rather than between delineated habitat cores or patches. The Abstract and Discussion say the assembled mosaics provide a continuous, full-resolution view of connectivity across the study area and identify important movement pathways. (LLM, conf=0.90)
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
The sources with a verdict support this claim; the rest weren’t checked yet, have no full text we could read, or their verdicts aren’t rated yet.
In the paper
“In addition, circuit theory can be used to identify key places for mitigating or restoring connectivity (e.g., McRae et al. 2012; Torrubia et al. 2014) in areas where new investments in transportation infrastructure might prioritize crossing structures for wildlife.”
What the sources say
- Supportedcites McRae et al. 2012 source
The Discussion section, “Application in other connectivity modeling frameworks,” says barrier analysis using circuit theory can identify opportunities for valuable connections. The “Method for Detecting Barriers and Restoration Opportunities” section explains that the identified areas are candidates for restoration because making them permeable would increase connectivity. (LLM, conf=0.93)
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Torrubia et al. 2014 source
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
- Supported
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Whatever the geographic or conservation context, Circuitscape has been most frequently applied to single, focal species, though studies of two or more species are becoming more common (Fig. 2).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The vast majority of studies addressed animals (n = 228), but ten focused on plants, and one on protists (Dong et al. 2016).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedn = 228Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The vast majority of studies addressed animals (n = 228), but ten focused on plants, and one on protists (Dong et al. 2016).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
In the paper
“Circuitscape has been applied on every continent (including off the coast of Antarctica; Dambach et al. 2016), and several applications spanned multiple continents (e.g., Lawler et al. 2013, Tassi et al. 2015; Fig. 1).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Dambach et al. 2016 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Mammals were by far the most common vertebrates studied, followed by birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish, though arthropods have been studied almost as frequently as birds (Fig. 3).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“At least five mammal-focused studies addressed human genomics or movement patterns.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“Ecological connectivity is a global priority for preserving biodiversity and ecosystem function (UNEP 2015; IUCN 2017) and has long been of interest to conservation biologists (Harris 1984).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites UNEP 2015
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites IUCN 2017
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
In the paper
“Specifically, Doyle & Snell (1984) demonstrated that resistance distances from circuit theory are directly proportional to the movements of Markovian random walkers on graphs, and Chandra et al. (1996) related resistance distances to “commute times,” or the time it takes a random walker to travel from one point to another and back again.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Chandra et al. (1996) source
Strength:boosted· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“For example, in IBR (but not least-cost models) increasing the number of paths always decreases the total resistance and genetic distance among subpopulations, and habitat degradation increases genetic distance, even outside the least-cost path.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds. It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“McRae et al. (2008) illustrated how circuit theory could be used to identify multiple (i.e., redundant) movement pathways or habitat corridors and reveal, for example, critical ‘pinch points’ constraining potential flow between focal areas.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McRae et al. (2008) source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“McRae (2006) described the concept that the genetic distance among subpopulations of interest can be estimated by representing the landscape as a circuit board, where each pixel in a raster depiction of the landscape is a resistor, and gene flow between any two subpopulations occurs via all possible chains of resistors linking them, not just along the single chain with the lowest sum of resistanc”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites McRae (2006)
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
- Not matched
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“However, least-cost paths often have clear limitations, including an assumption that individuals have perfect knowledge of the landscape and therefore select a single optimal route.”
Load-bearingStrength:boosted· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
In the paper
“The findings were striking because the species were undergoing rapid human-caused demographic changes, violating the IBR model assumption that all populations are in genetic equilibrium (i.e., based on the response variable, FST).”
What the sources say
- Not checked yetcites McRae & Beier 2007 source
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Because circuit theory uses the same underlying landscape resistance data used by least-cost and other connectivity models, it could readily be added to the toolkits of conservation planners.”
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✗ Checkable: fails✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“The development of accompanying software, such as the open-source program Circuitscape (McRae et al. 2008, 2013; www.circuitscape.org), has provided accessible means of implementing circuit theory concepts across a range of projects and disciplines.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McRae et al. 2008 source
- Not matchedcites McRae et al. 2013
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
In the paper
“Finally, McRae et al. (2008) introduced many readers to the key concepts and metrics used in electrical circuit theory, and how they could be applied to model and map the process of connectivity over extensive landscape, habitat, or population networks (using georeferenced raster grids).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McRae et al. (2008) source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The approach provided a much-needed theoretical basis for understanding and mapping patterns of connectivity and has been rapidly adopted in conservation biology, other ecological disciplines, and beyond.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“He posited concepts and metrics from electrical circuit theory as a robust way to quantify movement across multiple possible paths in a landscape, not just a single least-cost path or corridor.”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“From 2006–2008, the late Brad McRae introduced circuit theory to many ecologists and conservation biologists as an alternative approach to model gene flow and the dispersal or movement routes of organisms.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
In the paper
“For example, Lawler et al. (2013) used species distribution models to map the routes that organisms might follow to track shifting climates, and Littlefield et al. (2017) mapped connections between climatic conditions today and where those conditions will be in the future (i.e., climate analogs).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Littlefield et al. (2017) source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Beyond the impacts of transportation corridors, circuit theory applications have addressed a wide range of anthropogenic impacts on connectivity, including urbanization, agriculture, and energy infrastructure (see Supporting Information).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
In the paper
“Similarly, advances in data visualization tools have assisted the communication of circuit theory results to a broader set of conservation practitioners, stakeholders, and planning efforts.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Lawler et al. 2013 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“The electronic circuit analogy has been used in a variety of subdisciplines within the field of hydrology.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
In the paper
“Circuit theory’s basis in random walk theory results in an implicit assumption that individuals moving across a landscape have no knowledge of relative resistance beyond their immediate surroundings, making it particularly appropriate for modeling natal dispersal paths (McRae et al. 2008).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McRae et al. 2008 source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“Indeed, understanding the effects of linear infrastructure such as transportation corridors and other barriers (e.g., international boundary structures, fence lines) on connectivity and gene flow was a primary impetus for McRae’s interest in the theory and development of Circuitscape (McRae 2006).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites McRae 2006
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
In the paper
“In their comparison of microsatellite genetic datasets to maps of current density derived using circuit theory, Marrotte et al. (2017) found that current density was not usually a good predictor of gene flow for four terrestrial mammal species in Ontario, especially where habitat amount was high or pinch points were observed.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Marrotte et al. (2017)
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Users are now able to solve for landscape grids that are larger or derived at finer resolutions than those used in earlier versions, as well as pairwise resistance calculations between a higher number of focal points (see also Supporting Information).”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The Julia implementation of Circuitscape (v. 5.0) has greatly improved performance and scalability.
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“In India, national policy associated with the Wildlife Protection Act, which delineates key habitat areas as tiger reserves, has been informed by Circuitscape-derived models and maps (Qureshi et al. 2014; Dutta et al. 2016).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Qureshi et al. 2014
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Dutta et al. 2016
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“Using genetic data to inform models of landscape resistance to movement using circuit theory has since become a standard practice (Zeller et al. 2012; Simpkins et al. 2018).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Zeller et al. 2012 source
- Not matchedcites Simpkins et al. 2018
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
In the paper
“More recent studies have assessed the vulnerability of populations to climate change due to fragmentation that could potentially impede adaptive shifts in distributions (e.g., Leonard et al. 2017a).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Leonard et al. 2017a
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“Resulting metrics (e.g., current density and centrality) and maps of potential fire connectivity may be used to target areas on the landscape where fuel breaks could most effectively hinder fire movement through wildlife habitat (Welch et al. 2015), and disrupt the invasive grass-fire cycle (Gray & Dickson 2016).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Welch et al. 2015
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Gray & Dickson 2016 source
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
In the paper
“For example, Lawler et al. (2013) used species distribution models to map the routes that organisms might follow to track shifting climates, and Littlefield et al. (2017) mapped connections between climatic conditions today and where those conditions will be in the future (i.e., climate analogs).”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Lawler et al. (2013) source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
In the paper
“They concluded that the flow of multiple predators on soybean aphids (Aphis glycines) was improved by the presence of adjacent, native ‘conservation plantings’ that maximize such biocontrol services.”
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Koh et al. (2013) source
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“Additionally, several assumptions and caveats still need to be addressed, such as modeling long-distance dispersal events (McRae 2006) and asymmetric migration (McRae et al. 2008; but see Hanks 2017).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites McRae 2006
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites McRae et al. 2008 source
- Not matchedcites Hanks 2017
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
The paper relies on this without support.
The Julia implementation of Circuitscape (v. 5.0) has greatly improved performance and scalability.
“The Julia implementation of Circuitscape (v. 5.0) has greatly improved performance and scalability.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Circuitscape and other related applications have undergone rapid and near constant refinement and improvement since the initial applications of circuit theory in conservation.
“Since the initial applications of circuit theory in conservation, Circuitscape and other related applications have undergone rapid and near constant refinement and improvement.”
The paper relies on this without support.
McRae played a major role in the development of generalized connectivity maps produced with wall-to-wall and ‘Omniscape’ versions of Circuitscape models.
“In his work at TNC, McRae played a major role in the development of generalized connectivity maps produced with wall-to-wall (Anderson et al. 2016) and ‘Omniscape’ (McRae et al. 2016; Supporting Information) versions of Circuitscape models.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Regional-scale flow maps remain a key component in TNC’s Conserving Nature’s Stage approach for identifying land protection priorities.
“These regional-scale flow maps remain a key component in TNC’s Conserving Nature’s Stage approach for identifying land protection priorities, which to date has helped guide decisions on US$38 million in land protection funding.”
The paper relies on this without support.
TNC’s Conserving Nature’s Stage approach has to date helped guide decisions on US$38 million in land protection funding.
“These regional-scale flow maps remain a key component in TNC’s Conserving Nature’s Stage approach for identifying land protection priorities, which to date has helped guide decisions on US$38 million in land protection funding.”
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“This logic is compatible with the application of circuit theory [25], which models spatial connectivity in contexts where individuals have limited but directed knowledge of the landscape.”
From Tracing neanderthal mobility through the romanian carpathians: a GIS-based least-cost connectivity model (2025) · cites this paper as [25]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“GIS technologies and least-cost analysis tools, such as Linkage Mapper [19] and Circuitscape [20], have demonstrated their potential in diverse fields, from biodiversity conservation to the study of ecological networks [21–25].”
From Tracing neanderthal mobility through the romanian carpathians: a GIS-based least-cost connectivity model (2025) · cites this paper as [25]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“In just two years, the collection grew by over 180 papers (Figure 1a,b).”
From Circuitscape in julia: empowering dynamic approaches to connectivity assessment (2021) · cites this paper as [16]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“The circuit-theoretic approach to connectivity modeling was a more recent innovation, and it has been gaining popularity over the past decade (Dickson et al., 2019;McRae, 2006;McRae et al., 2008).”
From Omniscape.jl: software to compute omnidirectional landscape connectivity (2021) · cites this paper as Dickson et al., 2019
In the citing paper
“In support of the effort to update Circuitscape without McRae's leadership, and inspired by the breadth of applications described in the Dickson et al. review [16], we assembled a comprehensive set of peer-reviewed Circuitscape applications.”
From Circuitscape in julia: empowering dynamic approaches to connectivity assessment (2021) · cites this paper as [16]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.
gflow citation points to the sea-level-rise paper
MinorThe text cites Leonard et al. 2017b for gflow software, but the 2017b reference concerns connectivity losses due to sea-level rise and land-use change. The gflow paper is listed as Leonard et al. 2017a.
“recent advances in open-source software (e.g., gflow; Leonard et al. 2017b)”
“Leonard PB, Sutherland RW, Baldwin RF, Fedak DA, Carnes RG, Montgomery AP. 2017b. Landscape connectivity losses due to sea level rise and land use change. Animal Conservation 20:80–90. [Google Scholar]”
Climate-change citation points to the gflow software paper
MinorThe text cites Leonard et al. 2017a for connectivity losses associated with sea-level rise and land-use change, but the 2017a reference is a paper about gflow software. The sea-level-rise paper is listed as Leonard et al. 2017b.
“More recent studies have assessed the vulnerability of populations to climate change due to fragmentation that could potentially impede adaptive shifts in distributions (e.g., Leonard et al. 2017a).”
“Leonard PB, Duffy EB, Baldwin RF, McRae BH, Shah VB, Mohapatra TK. 2017a. gflow: software for modelling circuit theory-based connectivity at any scale. Methods in Ecology & Evolution 8:519–526. [Google Scholar]”
Citations
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Karimi, J. D., Harris, J. A., & Corstanje, R. (2021) · Landscape Ecology · doi:10.1007/s10980-021-01307-6 · Cited by 38
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Fast food in the city? Nomadic flying-foxes commute less and hang around for longer in urban areas
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Four steps to strengthen connectivity modeling
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Current approaches and future opportunities for climate-smart protected areas
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Metadata
- Authors
- Dickson, B. G., Albano, C. M., Anantharaman, R., Beier, P., Fargione, J., Graves, T. A., Gray, M. E., Hall, K. R., Lawler, J. J., Leonard, P. B., Littlefield, C. E., McClure, M. L., Novembre, J., Schloss, C. A., Schumaker, N. H., Shah, V. B., & Theobald, D. M.
- Affiliations
- Northern Arizona University (US)
- Conservation Science Partners (US)
- Julia Computing 45 Prospect Street Cambridge MA 02139 U.S.A.
- The Nature Conservancy (US)
- Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center (US)
- University of Washington (US)
- United States Fish and Wildlife Service (US)
- University of Chicago (US)
- Environmental Protection Agency (US)
- Corresponding author
- Dickson, Brett G.
- Venue
- Conservation Biology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2018-11-27
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 239-249
- ISSN
- 0888-8892 (ISSN-L)
- 1523-1739
- PMC
- PMC6727660
- OpenAlex
- W2896699618
- Cited by
- 461
- References
- 106
- Citations by year
- 2026: 84 · 2025: 81 · 2024: 73 · 2023: 67 · 2022: 61 · 2021: 51 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 2.13
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- Locations
- Conservation Biology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Wilburforce Foundation
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- University of Washington
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Wildlife-Road Interactions and Conservation
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Keywords
- circuit theory, ecological connectivity, Circuitscape, gene flow, animal dispersal, landscape genetics, population genetics, anthropogenic barriers, fire behavior, water flow, ecosystem services, habitat use, animal movement
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Conservation of Natural Resources, Ecology, Ecosystem, Gene Flow, Islands
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
A language model drew the claims from the paper on 2026-11-08, under version 3 of the claim definition (model deepseek-v4.1-flash, prompt extract-v3).
A second model labelled each claim on 2026-11-08 (model jev-1.13-20260917, definition revision gold-guideline-v0.2).
Cited sources are checked with a language model’s help (gpt-6-sol).
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
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