A global ecological signal of extinction risk in terrestrial vertebrates

To determine the distribution and causes of extinction threat across functional groups of terrestrial vertebrates, we assembled an ecological trait data set for 18,016 species of terrestrial vertebrates and utilized phylogenetic comparative methods to test which categories of habitat association, mode of locomotion, and feeding mode best predicted extinction risk. We also examined the individual categories of the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List extinction drivers (e.g., agriculture and logging) threatening each species and determined the greatest threats for each of the four terrestrial vertebrate groups. We then quantified the sum of extinction drivers threatening each species to provide a multistressor perspective on threat. Cave dwelling amphibians (p < 0.01), arboreal quadrupedal mammals (all of which are primates) (p < 0.01), aerial and scavenging birds (p < 0.01), and pedal (i.e., walking) squamates (p < 0.01) were all disproportionately threatened with extinction in comparison with the other assessed ecological traits. Across all threatened vertebrate species in the study, the most common risk factors were agriculture, threatening 4491 species, followed by logging, threatening 3187 species, and then invasive species and disease, threatening 2053 species. Species at higher risk of extinction were simultaneously at risk from a greater number of threat types. If left unabated, the disproportionate loss of species with certain functional traits and increasing anthropogenic pressures are likely to disrupt ecosystem functions globally. A shift in focus from species- to trait-centric conservation practices will allow for protection of at-risk functional diversity from regional to global scales.     

Accounting for system dynamics in reserve design.

Systematic conservation plans have only recently considered the dynamic nature of ecosystems. Methods have been developed to incorporate climate change, population dynamics, and uncertainty in reserve design, but few studies have examined how to account for natural disturbance. Considering natural disturbance in reserve design may be especially important for the world's remaining intact areas, which still experience active natural disturbance regimes. We developed a spatially explicit, dynamic simulation model, CONSERV, which simulates patch dynamics and fire, and used it to evaluate the efficacy of hypothetical reserve networks in northern Canada. We designed six networks based on conventional reserve design methods, with different conservation targets for woodland caribou habitat, high-quality wetlands, vegetation, water bodies, and relative connectedness. We input the six reserve networks into CONSERV and tracked the ability of each to maintain initial conservation targets through time under an active natural disturbance regime. None of the reserve networks maintained all initial targets, and some over-represented certain features, suggesting that both effectiveness and efficiency of reserve design could be improved through use of spatially explicit dynamic simulation during the planning process. Spatial simulation models of landscape dynamics are commonly used in natural resource management, but we provide the first illustration of their potential use for reserve design. Spatial simulation models could be used iteratively to evaluate competing reserve designs and select targets that have a higher likelihood of being maintained through time. Such models could be combined with dynamic planning techniques to develop a general theory for reserve design in an uncertain world.     

Small mammals and forest fuel reduction: national-scale responses to fire and fire surrogates.

Forest fuel reduction treatments are increasingly used by managers to reduce the risk of high-severity wildfire and to manage changes in the ecological function of forests. However, comparative ecological effects of the various types of treatments are poorly understood. We examined short-term patterns in small-mammal responses to mechanical thinning, prescribed-fire, and mechanical thinning/prescribed-fire combination treatments at eight different study areas across the United States as a part of the National Fire and Fire Surrogate (FFS) Project. Research questions included: (1) do treatments differ in their effect on small mammal densities and biomass? and (2) are effects of treatments consistent across study areas? We modeled taxa-specific densities and total small-mammal biomass as functions of treatment types and study area effects and ranked models based on an information-theoretic model selection criterion. Small-mammal taxa examined, including deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), yellow-pine chipmunks (Tamias amoenus), and golden-mantled ground squirrels (Spermophilus lateralis), as well as all Peromyscus and Tamias species, had top-ranked models with responses varying both by treatment type and study area. In each of these cases, the top-ranked model carried between 69% and 99% of the total weight in the model set, indicating strong support for the top-ranked models. However, the top-ranked model of total small-mammal biomass was a model with biomass varying only with treatment (i.e., treated vs. untreated), not by treatment type or study area; again, this model had strong support, with 75% of the total model weight. Individual species and taxa appear to have variable responses to fuel reduction treatment types in different areas; however, total small-mammal biomass appears generally to increase after any type of fuel reduction. These results suggest that there is substantial variability in taxa-specific responses to treatments and indicate that adaptive management policies may be necessary when applying fuel reduction treatments in areas where management of small-mammal populations is of interest. Adaptive management can be used by managers who are conducting fuel reduction treatments to reduce uncertainty as to which treatments are locally optimal for meeting objectives for the management of small-mammal populations.     

Partnerships for Local Environmental Action: Observations on the First Two Years of Rural Action for the Environment

Rural Action for the Environment is a key element of the UK Government's 'Action for the Countryside' initiative. It has two main elements: the provision of advice, training, information and grants to local communities; and the formation of county based networks of environmental organizations to provide the necessary support infrastructure to local projects. This paper suggests that Rural Action is a laudable attempt to move towards a more 'enabling' style of operation which may ultimately result in a significant increase in the level of interest and involvement in environmental action. However, it has also highlighted a number of important problems which are likely to afflict all future attempts to encourage local communities to formulate and carry out sustainable environmental improvements in their areas. Particular difficulties result from the need to reconcile the multiple and possibly contradictory objectives of different agencies, the problems of engaging the interest of local people, the time and other resource constraints faced by those who seek to implement such initiatives and the political imperative to achieve action on the ground as rapidly as possible. Each of these issues will need to be addressed by future schemes if widespread involvement in locally determined environmental action is to be secured.     

低碳高能,骑车出行没烦恼

<正>下午5点,一场大雨不期而至。史蒂夫站在窗前,心里不免有些失望,因为不能骑车回家了。史蒂夫是个不折不扣的骑行达人。在北京住了10年,换了4辆自行车。他的上一辆自行车报废之前,里程记录仪上留下的数字是3年18844公里,相当于绕二环576圈。10年间,从家门口的胡同开始,史蒂夫骑车转遍了鼓楼、故宫、工体、国贸和香山……从十三陵到南海子,从门头沟到通州,最后他甚至把车骑到了天津。可以这么说,只要是骑车能到达的地方,史蒂夫绝不选     

Abundance,population structure and claw morphology of the semi-terrestrial crab <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pachygrapsus marmoratus</Emphasis> (Fabricius, 1787) on shores of differing wave exposure

Wave action is known to influence the abundance and distribution of intertidal organisms. Wave action will also determine the duration and suitability of various foraging windows (high-tide and low-tide, day and night) for predation and can also affect predator behaviour, both directly by impeding prey handling and indirectly by influencing prey abundance. It remains uncertain whether semi-terrestrial mobile predators such as crabs which can access intertidal prey during emersion when the effects of wave action are minimal, are influenced by exposure. Here, we assessed the effect of wave action on the abundance and population structure (size and gender) of the semi-terrestrial intertidal crab Pachygrapsus marmoratus on rocky shores in Portugal. The activity of P. marmoratus with the tidal cycle on sheltered and exposed shores was established using baited pots at high-tide to examine whether there was activity during intertidal immersion and by low-tide searches. Because prey abundance varies along a wave exposure gradient on most Portuguese shores and because morphology of crab chelipeds are known to be related to diet composition, we further tested the hypothesis that predator stomach contents reflected differences in prey abundance along the horizontal gradient in wave exposure and that this would be correlated with the crab cheliped morphology. Thus, we examined phenotypic variation in P. marmoratus chelipeds across shores of differing exposure to wave action. P. marmoratus was only active during low-tide. Patterns of abundance and population structure of crabs did not vary with exposure to wave action. Stomach contents, however, varied significantly between shores of differing exposure with a higher consumption of hard-shelled prey (mussels) on exposed locations, where this type of prey is more abundant, and a higher consumption of barnacles on sheltered shores. Multivariate geometric analysis of crab claws showed that claws were significantly larger on exposed shores. There was a significant correlation between animals with larger claws and the abundance of mussels in their stomach. Variation in cheliped size may have resulted from differing food availability on sheltered and exposed shores.