Effects of different management strategies on long-term trends of Australian threatened and near-threatened mammals

Monitoring is critical to assess management effectiveness, but broadscale systematic assessments of monitoring to evaluate and improve recovery efforts are lacking. We compiled 1808 time series from 71 threatened and near-threatened terrestrial and volant mammal species and subspecies in Australia (48% of all threatened mammal taxa) to compare relative trends of populations subject to different management strategies. We adapted the Living Planet Index to develop the Threatened Species Index for Australian Mammals and track aggregate trends for all sampled threatened mammal populations and for small (<35 g), medium (35–5500 g), and large mammals (>5500 g) from 2000 to 2017. Unmanaged populations (42 taxa) declined by 63% on average; unmanaged small mammals exhibited the greatest declines (96%). Populations of 17 taxa in havens (islands and fenced areas that excluded or eliminated introduced red foxes [Vulpes vulpes] and domestic cats [Felis catus]) increased by 680%. Outside havens, populations undergoing sustained predator baiting initially declined by 75% but subsequently increased to 47% of their abundance in 2000. At sites where predators were not excluded or baited but other actions (e.g., fire management, introduced herbivore control) occurred, populations of small and medium mammals declined faster, but large mammals declined more slowly, than unmanaged populations. Only 13% of taxa had data for both unmanaged and managed populations; index comparisons for this subset showed that taxa with populations increasing inside havens declined outside havens but taxa with populations subject to predator baiting outside havens declined more slowly than populations with no management and then increased, whereas unmanaged populations continued to decline. More comprehensive and improved monitoring (particularly encompassing poorly represented management actions and taxonomic groups like bats and small mammals) is required to understand whether and where management has worked. Improved implementation of management for threats other than predation is critical to recover Australia's threatened mammals.     

Fetal echocardiography using transvaginal and transabdominal probes during the first period of pregnancy: A comparative study

The authors compare the diagnostic possibilities of fetal transabdominal echocardiography versus transvaginal echocardiography. A larger diagnostic capacity is verified in different gestation ages with transvaginal probe between the 11th and 14th week of gestation. The results are emphasized by colour Doppler.     

Remotely engaged? Towards a framework for monitoring the success of stakeholder engagement in remote regions

The importance of stakeholder engagement for the success of natural resources management processes is widely acknowledged, yet evaluation frameworks employed by administrators of environmental programmes continue to provide limited recognition of or insistence upon engagement processes. This paper presents a framework for monitoring and evaluation of engagement that aims to better incorporate community engagement into mainstream environmental programmes, in particular in remote regions such as arid and desert regions of the world. It is argued that successful monitoring of engagement should not only comprise a generic set of indicators but rather, in addition to the principles of good monitoring practice, should take into account a variety of the stakeholder interests as well as key regional drivers, addressing them at right geographic, institutional and time scale.     

DEMAND SIDE MANAGEMENT OF WATER IN ONTARIO MUNICIPALITIES: STATUS,PROGRESS, AND OPPORTUNITIES1

ABSTRACT: Demand side management is being used increasingly by Ontario municipalities as a way to improve the efficiency of water use, defer the costs associated with constructing new water treatment works, and minimize the environmental impacts associated with supplying water. A comprehensive survey of 153 Ontario municipalities was completed in mid‐1998. These ranged in size from small rural townships (with populations as low as 500 people) to the province's largest urban center, Metropolitan Toronto, with a population of approximately 2.5 million people. The questionnaire measured the use of six broad types of demand side measures, including water pricing and metering; municipal by‐laws (ordinances) that promote water conservation; operational and maintenance measures to reduce water losses and consumption; water‐saving plumbing fixtures and devices; public participation programs that encourage water conservation; and other measures, such as water audits. Additionally, the survey collected data on implementation barriers and opportunities. Since the last comprehensive Ontario survey, conducted in 1987 by Kreutzwiser and Fea‐gan (1989), there has been an increase in the use of basic tools such as metering and pricing, plumbing fixtures, and public participation programs. Additionally, new initiatives, such as water audits and computerized monitoring equipment, are being used. However, in many areas opportunities exist to make better use of demand side measures. Unfortunately, municipal capacity to do so often is constrained by (among other factors) limited finances, lack of political will, and public resistance. Demonstration of real cost savings to consumers, and the development of specific goals and objectives for demand side management programs, are two important steps needed to overcome these challenges.