Sighting characteristics and photo-identification of Cuvier’s beaked whales (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ziphius cavirostris</Emphasis>) near San Clemente Island,California: a key area for beaked whales and the military?

The relationship between beaked whales and certain anthropogenic sounds remains poorly understood and of great interest. Although Cuvier’s beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris) are widely distributed, little is known of their behavior and population structure throughout much of their range. We conducted a series of five combined visual-acoustic marine mammal surveys from 2006 to 2008 in the southern San Nicolas Basin, a site of frequent naval activity off the southern California coast, west of San Clemente Island. The study area was defined by a 1,800 km² array of 88 bottom-mounted hydrophones at depths up to 1,850 m. The array was used to vector visual observers toward vocalizing marine mammal species. Thirty-seven groups of Cuvier’s beaked whales were encountered during the study period. The overall encounter rate was one group for every 21.0 h of survey effort, and was as high as one group per 10.2 h of effort during the October 2007 survey. Whales were encountered in the deepest portion of the study area, at a mean bottom depth of 1,580 m (SD 138). The average group size was 3.8 individuals (SD 2.4), which was higher than has been reported from other studies of this species. Twenty-four groups were observed over multiple surfacings (median = 4 surfacings, range 2–15). The mean encounter duration of extended sightings was 104 min (SD 98, range 12–466 min) and the mean distance moved over the course of sightings was 1.66 km (SD 1.56, range 0.08–6.65 km). Temporal surfacing patterns during extended encounters were similar to dive behavior described from Cuvier’s beaked whales carrying time-depth recording tags. Seventy-eight photographic identifications were made of 58 unique individuals, for an overall resighting rate of 0.26. Whales were sighted on up to 4 days, with duration from first to last sighting spanning 2–79 days. For those whales sighted on subsequent days, the mean distance between subsequent sightings was 8.6 km (SD 7.9). Individuals resighted over 2–3 days were usually in association with previous group members. Approximately one-third of groups contained more than one adult male, and many of the repeated associations involved adult males. These observations suggest the basin west of San Clemente Island may be an important region for Cuvier’s beaked whales, and also one which affords an unusual opportunity to collect detailed data on this species. Given its status as an active military range, it can also provide the ability to monitor the behavior of individuals in the presence of naval sonar, a critical step in the management of this and other beaked whale populations worldwide.     

Will Evolving Climate Conditions Increase the Risk of Floods of the Large U.S.‐Canada Transboundary Richelieu River Basin?

In spring 2011, an unprecedented flood hit the complex eastern United States (U.S.)–Canada transboundary Lake Champlain–Richelieu River (LCRR) Basin, destructing properties and inducing negative impacts on agriculture and fish habitats. The damages, covered by the Governments of Canada and the U.S., were estimated to C$90M. This natural disaster motivated the study of mitigation measures to prevent such disasters from reoccurring. When evaluating flood risks, long‐term evolving climate change should be taken into account to adopt mitigation measures that will remain relevant in the future. To assess the impacts of climate change on flood risks of the LCRR basin, three bias‐corrected multi‐resolution ensembles of climate projections for two greenhouse gas concentration scenarios were used to force a state‐of‐the‐art, high‐resolution, distributed hydrological model. The analysis of the hydrological simulations indicates that the 20‐year return period flood (corresponding to a medium flood) should decrease between 8% and 35% for the end of the 21st Century (2070–2099) time horizon and for the high‐emission scenario representative concentration pathway (RCP) 8.5. The reduction in flood risks is explained by a decrease in snow accumulation and an increase in evapotranspiration expected with the future warming of the region. Nevertheless, due to the large climate inter‐annual variability, short‐term flood probabilities should remain similar to those experienced in the recent past.     

The values and vulnerabilities of ‘Star Wars Island’: exploring tensions in the sustainable management of the Skellig Michael World Heritage Site

This paper explores challenges in reconciling the cultural, economic and ecological pillars of the sustainable development concept. It does so by examining how conflicts in the management of an island off the Irish coast called Skellig Michael, which has been internationally designated for its significant cultural and ecological attributes, have been intensified by: (a) increasing tourist numbers; (b) a re-framing of the site’s identity and (c) changing visitor motivations. These have resulted from the amplified attention the island has received following the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi in which it features prominently. Following a critical identification and discussion of the fault lines between different stakeholders involved in the conservation and use of the island, the paper advances a roadmap for action to help resolve animosity in the governance of the site and facilitate its sustainable management in the context of changing visitor numbers and profiles.     

Synchronized breeding events in sympatric marine invertebrates: role of behavior and fine temporal windows in maintaining reproductive isolation

While breeding synchrony among conspecifics is increasingly well understood with regards to the reproductive success of vertebrate and invertebrate taxa, the occurrence of simultaneous multispecies breeding events remains intriguing. The fairly recent discovery of mass annual spawnings in reef corals has provided a first glimpse at putative strategies of reproductive isolation during such events. However, the mechanisms and advantages of same-day heterospecific breeding are still poorly understood and have not yet been investigated in non-coral taxa with different life history strategies. In an effort to bridge this gap, we investigated spawning periodicity and synchrony among 26 sympatric species of free-spawning, capsule-laying, and brood-protecting macroinvertebrates belonging to six different phyla. Twenty-four of these species released gametes or larvae between early March and late April. We analyzed the events over fine temporal scales to test the hypothesis that breeding activities were not random in time or relative to each other. We found that the two main reproductive pulses followed a lunar periodicity and that consistent species- and gender-specific modulations in the timing of spawning occurred during same-day episodes involving up to six free-spawning species. Mass spawning accounts from the literature were reviewed and compared. This work suggests that many species participate in synchronous heterospecific spawning events either because they respond to the same environmental cues or rely on cross-cueing and that reproductive isolation is favored by species-specific circadian patterns, spawning behaviors and cross-gender signaling.     

The role of automated feedback in training and retaining biological recorders for citizen science

The rapid rise of citizen science, with lay people forming often extensive biodiversity sensor networks, is seen as a solution to the mismatch between data demand and supply while simultaneously engaging citizens with environmental topics. However, citizen science recording schemes require careful consideration of how to motivate, train, and retain volunteers. We evaluated a novel computing science framework that allowed for the automated generation of feedback to citizen scientists using natural language generation (NLG) technology. We worked with a photo‐based citizen science program in which users also volunteer species identification aided by an online key. Feedback is provided after photo (and identification) submission and is aimed to improve volunteer species identification skills and to enhance volunteer experience and retention. To assess the utility of NLG feedback, we conducted two experiments with novices to assess short‐term (single session) and longer‐term (5 sessions in 2 months) learning, respectively. Participants identified a specimen in a series of photos. One group received only the correct answer after each identification, and the other group received the correct answer and NLG feedback explaining reasons for misidentification and highlighting key features that facilitate correct identification. We then developed an identification training tool with NLG feedback as part of the citizen science program BeeWatch and analyzed learning by users. Finally, we implemented NLG feedback in the live program and evaluated this by randomly allocating all BeeWatch users to treatment groups that received different types of feedback upon identification submission. After 6 months separate surveys were sent out to assess whether views on the citizen science program and its feedback differed among the groups. Identification accuracy and retention of novices were higher for those who received automated feedback than for those who received only confirmation of the correct identification without explanation. The value of NLG feedback in the live program, captured through questionnaires and evaluation of the online photo‐based training tool, likewise showed that the automated generation of informative feedback fostered learning and volunteer engagement and thus paves the way for productive and long‐lived citizen science projects.     

“You spoil everything!” Indigenous peoples and the consequences of industrial development in British Columbia

This article discusses the perspectives of two First Nations of Canada, northeastern British Columbia’s West Moberly First Nations, Halfway River First Nation, and Treaty 8 Tribal Council, regarding the impacts of industrial resource extraction in lands critical to their traditional cultures and subsistence activities. This collaborative project interviewed First Nation government officials and staff as well as community members and Elders, which created a complex picture of physical impacts of industrial development as well as psychological and cultural concerns. In addition, we briefly explore the impacts of First Nations being required to constantly participate in consultative processes, such as environmental assessment, designed to predict potential impacts. We conclude that recognizing and meaningfully addressing all types of impacts that First Nations experience is critical, both for ensuring environmental justice for indigenous peoples and for recognizing that some land and resources must remain for indigenous peoples to continue to practice their traditional culture. We note, as well, that if there is no room amidst industrial resource extraction activities for indigenous peoples, there is also no room for other environmentally critical values such as healthy ecosystems.     

'Stop pub': can banning of junk mail reduce waste production?

According to the new regulations on junk mail management to be adopted in France, both producers and distributors must participate in the recycling process. This case study was carried out in 2000 in four sectors in the Departement of Charente in the south west of France. This report presents the quantities of junk mail in residual waste and in separate collections. The conclusion is that the new regulations may reduce overall domestic waste production by 2-4%, with the impact on separately collected paper being some 20%.