Understanding the Lessons and Limitations of Conservation and Development

Abstract: The lack of concrete instances in which conservation and development have been successfully merged has strengthened arguments for strict exclusionist conservation policies. Research has focused more on social cooperation and conflict of different management regimes and less on how these factors actually affect the natural environments they seek to conserve. Consequently, it is still unknown which strategies yield better conservation outcomes? We conducted a meta‐analysis of 116 published case studies on common resource management regimes from Africa, south and central America, and southern and Southeast Asia. Using ranked sociodemographic, political, and ecological data, we analyzed the effect of land tenure, population size, social heterogeneity, as well as internally devised resource‐management rules and regulations (institutions) on conservation outcome. Although land tenure, population size, and social heterogeneity did not significantly affect conservation outcome, institutions were positively associated with better conservation outcomes. There was also a significant interaction effect between population size and institutions, which implies complex relationships between population size and conservation outcome. Our results suggest that communities managing a common resource can play a significant role in conservation and that institutions lead to management regimes with lower environmental impacts.     

Use of Market Data to Assess Bushmeat Hunting Sustainability in Equatorial Guinea

Abstract: Finding an adequate measure of hunting sustainability for tropical forests has proved difficult. Many researchers have used urban bushmeat market surveys as indicators of hunting volumes and composition, but no analysis has been done of the reliability of market data in reflecting village offtake. We used data from urban markets and the villages that supply these markets to examine changes in the volume and composition of traded bushmeat between the village and the market (trade filters) in Equatorial Guinea. We collected data with market surveys and hunter offtake diaries. The trade filters varied depending on village remoteness and the monopoly power of traders. In a village with limited market access, species that maximized trader profits were most likely to be traded. In a village with greater market access, species for which hunters gained the greatest income per carcass were more likely to be traded. The probability of particular species being sold to market also depended on the capture method and season. Larger, more vulnerable species were more likely to be supplied from less‐accessible catchments, whereas there was no effect of forest cover or human population density on probability of being sold. This suggests that the composition of bushmeat offtake in an area may be driven more by urban demand than the geographic characteristics of that area. In one market, traders may have reached the limit of their geographical exploitation range, and hunting pressure within that range may be increasing. Our results demonstrate that it is possible to model the trade filters that bias market data, which opens the way to developing more robust market‐based sustainability indices for the bushmeat trade.     

Cost‐Effectiveness of Translocation Options for a Threatened Waterbird

Abstract: Reintroduction of captive‐reared animals has become increasingly popular in recent decades as a conservation technique, but little is known of how demographic factors affect the success of reintroductions. We believe whether the increase in population persistence associated with reintroduction is sufficient to warrant the cost of rearing and relocating individuals should be considered as well. We examined the trade‐off between population persistence and financial cost of a reintroduction program for Crested Coots (Fulica cristata). This species was nearly extirpated from southern Europe due to unsustainable levels of hunting and reduction in amount and quality of habitat. We used a stochastic, stage‐based, single‐sex, metapopulation model with site‐specific parameters to examine the demographic effects of releasing juveniles or adults in each population for a range of durations. We parameterized the model with data from an unsuccessful reintroduction program in which juvenile captive‐bred Crested Coots were released between 2000 and 2009. Using economic data from the captive‐breeding program, we also determined whether the strategy that maximized abundance coincided with the least expensive strategy. Releasing adults resulted in slightly larger final abundance than the release of nonreproductive juveniles. Both strategies were equally poor in achieving a viable metapopulation, but releasing adults was 2–4 times more expensive than releasing juveniles. To obtain a metapopulation that would be viable for 30 years, fecundity in the wild would need to increase to the values observed in captivity and juvenile survival would need to increase to almost unity. We suggest that the most likely way to increase these vital rates is by increasing habitat quality at release sites.     

Effects of Road Networks on Bird Populations

Abstract: One potential contributor to the worldwide decline of bird populations is the increasing prevalence of roads, which have several negative effects on birds and other vertebrates. We synthesized the results of studies and reviews that explore the effects of roads on birds with an emphasis on paved roads. The well‐known direct effects of roads on birds include habitat loss and fragmentation, vehicle‐caused mortality, pollution, and poisoning. Nevertheless, indirect effects may exert a greater influence on bird populations. These effects include noise, artificial light, barriers to movement, and edges associated with roads. Moreover, indirect and direct effects may act synergistically to cause decreases in population density and species richness. Of the many effects of roads, it appears that road mortality and traffic noise may have the most substantial effects on birds relative to other effects and taxonomic groups. Potential measures for mitigating the detrimental effects of roads include noise‐reduction strategies and changes to roadway lighting and vegetation and traffic flow. Road networks and traffic volumes are projected to increase in many countries around the world. Increasing habitat loss and fragmentation and predicted species distribution shifts due to climate change are likely to compound the overall effects of roads on birds.     

The Role of Translocation in Recovery of Woodland Caribou Populations

Abstract: Maintenance of viable populations of many endangered species will require conservation action in perpetuity. Efforts to conserve these species are more likely to be successful if their reliance on conservation actions is assessed at the population level. Woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) were extirpated recently from Banff National Park, Canada, and translocations of caribou to Banff and neighboring Jasper National Park are being considered. We used population viability analysis to assess the relative need for and benefits from translocation of individuals among caribou populations. We measured stochastic growth rates and the probability of quasi extinction of four populations of woodland caribou with and without translocation. We used two vital rates in our analysis: mean adult female survival and mean number of calves per breeding‐age female as estimates of mean fecundity. We isolated process variance for each vital rate. Our results suggested the Tonquin caribou population in Jasper is likely to remain viable without translocation, but that translocation is probably insufficient to prevent eventual extirpation of the two other populations in Jasper. Simulated reintroductions of caribou into Banff resulted in a 53–98% probability of >8 females remaining after 20 years, which suggests translocation may be an effective recovery tool for some caribou populations.     

Use of Habitats as Surrogates of Biodiversity for Efficient Coral Reef Conservation Planning in Pacific Ocean Islands

Abstract: Marine protected areas (MPAs) have been highlighted as a means toward effective conservation of coral reefs. New strategies are required to more effectively select MPA locations and increase the pace of their implementation. Many criteria exist to design MPA networks, but generally, it is recommended that networks conserve a diversity of species selected for, among other attributes, their representativeness, rarity, or endemicity. Because knowledge of species’ spatial distribution remains scarce, efficient surrogates are urgently needed. We used five different levels of habitat maps and six spatial scales of analysis to identify under which circumstances habitat data used to design MPA networks for Wallis Island provided better representation of species than random choice alone. Protected‐area site selections were derived from a rarity–complementarity algorithm. Habitat surrogacy was tested for commercial fish species, all fish species, commercially harvested invertebrates, corals, and algae species. Efficiency of habitat surrogacy varied by species group, type of habitat map, and spatial scale of analysis. Maps with the highest habitat thematic complexity provided better surrogates than simpler maps and were more robust to changes in spatial scales. Surrogates were most efficient for commercial fishes, corals, and algae but not for commercial invertebrates. Conversely, other measurements of species‐habitat associations, such as richness congruence and composition similarities provided weak results. We provide, in part, a habitat‐mapping methodology for designation of MPAs for Pacific Ocean islands that are characterized by habitat zonations similar to Wallis. Given the increasing availability and affordability of space‐borne imagery to map habitats, our approach could appreciably facilitate and improve current approaches to coral reef conservation and enhance MPA implementation.     

α1-Microglobulin levels and correlation with cadmium and other metals in urine of non-smoking women among general populations in Japan

The present study was initiated to examine urinary α₁-microglobulin (α₁-MG-U) levels among non-smoking women in the general population in Japan. A previously established database on spot urine samples from adult woman volunteers in 10 non-polluted areas all over Japan was re-examined. The data examined were on α₁-MG-U, cadmium, calcium, magnesium and zinc levels in urine (Cd-U, Ca-U, Mg-U and Zn-U, respectively), urinary creatinine (CR or cr), urine specific gravity (SG or sg), smoking habits and age. Thus, 8975 never-smoking women were selected for statistical analyses. The grand geometric mean (GM) for α₁-MG-U among the population was 2.1?mg/L or 2.5?mg/g?cr, depending on the correction for urine density. It was 1.1?µg/L or 1.3?µg/g?cr for GM Cd-U. The inter-area difference in α₁-MG-U was <1.5?mg/g?cr or <0.7?mg/L; the area with the highest or lowest GM Cd-U was not always highest or lowest in GM α₁-MG-U. The correlation coefficient (0.53) between log?Cd-U and log?α₁-MG-U (both without urine density correction) became substantially smaller when the analyte levels were corrected for CR (0.25) or SG (0.26). In multiple regression analysis, the power of influence of the five independent variables (log?Cd-U, Ca-U, Mg-U, Zn-U and age) in combination was small (R ²?≦?0.13). In contrast, logistic regression analysis suggested that α₁-MG-U might be elevated as a function of an increase in Cd-U, depending on the cut-off values. Discussion was made on dose (Cd-U_cr) and response (α₁-MG-U_cr) relationship based on information available in literatures to show that the increment in α₁-MG-U_cr per Cd-U_cr was much greater when Cd-U_cr was large, e.g., in excess of 10?µg/g?cr.     

Combining Measures of Dispersal to Identify Conservation Strategies in Fragmented Landscapes

Abstract: Understanding the way in which habitat fragmentation disrupts animal dispersal is key to identifying effective and efficient conservation strategies. To differentiate the potential effectiveness of 2 frequently used strategies for increasing the connectivity of populations in fragmented landscapes—corridors and stepping stones—we combined 3 complimentary methods: behavioral studies at habitat edges, mark‐recapture, and genetic analyses. Each of these methods addresses different steps in the dispersal process that a single intensive study could not address. We applied the 3 methods to the case study of Atrytonopsis new species 1, a rare butterfly endemic to a partially urbanized stretch of barrier islands in North Carolina (U.S.A.). Results of behavioral analyses showed the butterfly flew into urban and forested areas, but not over open beach; mark‐recapture showed that the butterfly dispersed successfully through short stretches of urban areas (<500 m); and genetic studies showed that longer stretches of forest (>5 km) were a dispersal barrier, but shorter stretches of urban areas (≤5 km) were not. Although results from all 3 methods indicated natural features in the landscape, not urbanization, were barriers to dispersal, when we combined the results we could determine where barriers might arise: forests restricted dispersal for the butterfly only when there were long stretches with no habitat. Therefore, urban areas have the potential to become a dispersal barrier if their extent increases, a finding that may have gone unnoticed if we had used a single approach. Protection of stepping stones should be sufficient to maintain connectivity for Atrytonopsis new species 1 at current levels of urbanization. Our research highlights how the use of complementary approaches for studying animal dispersal in fragmented landscapes can help identify conservation strategies.     

Incorporating Social and Cultural Significance of Large Old Trees in Conservation Policy

In addition to providing key ecological functions, large old trees are a part of a social realm and as such provide numerous social‐cultural benefits to people. However, their social and cultural values are often neglected when designing conservation policies and management guidelines. We believe that awareness of large old trees as a part of human identity and cultural heritage is essential when addressing the issue of their decline worldwide. Large old trees provide humans with aesthetic, symbolic, religious, and historic values, as well as concrete tangible benefits, such as leaves, branches, or nuts. In many cultures particularly large trees are treated with reverence. Also, contemporary popular culture utilizes the image of trees as sentient beings and builds on the ancient myths that attribute great powers to large trees. Although the social and cultural role of large old trees is usually not taken into account in conservation, accounting for human‐related values of these trees is an important part of conservation policy because it may strengthen conservation by highlighting the potential synergies in protecting ecological and social values. Incorporación del Significado Social y Cultural de Árboles Añejos a Políticas de Conservación     

Effects of Dam‐Induced Landscape Fragmentation on Amazonian Ant–Plant Mutualistic Networks

Mutualistic networks are critical to biological diversity maintenance; however, their structures and functionality may be threatened by a swiftly changing world. In the Amazon, the increasing number of dams poses a large threat to biological diversity because they greatly alter and fragment the surrounding landscape. Tight coevolutionary interactions typical of tropical forests, such as the ant–myrmecophyte mutualism, where the myrmecophyte plants provide domatia nesting space to their symbiotic ants, may be jeopardized by the landscape changes caused by dams. We analyzed 31 ant–myrmecophyte mutualistic networks in undisturbed and disturbed sites surrounding Balbina, the largest Central Amazonian dam. We tested how ant–myrmecophyte networks differ among dam‐induced islands, lake edges, and undisturbed forests in terms of species richness, composition, structure, and robustness (number of species remaining in the network after partner extinctions). We also tested how landscape configuration in terms of area, isolation, shape, and neighborhood alters the structure of the ant–myrmecophyte networks on islands. Ant–myrmecophytic networks were highly compartmentalized in undisturbed forests, and the compartments had few strongly connected mutualistic partners. In contrast, networks at lake edges and on islands were not compartmentalized and were negatively affected by island area and isolation in terms of species richness, density, and composition. Habitat loss and fragmentation led to coextinction cascades that contributed to the elimination of entire ant–plant compartments. Furthermore, many myrmecophytic plants in disturbed sites lost their mutualistic ant partners or were colonized by opportunistic, nonspecialized ants. Robustness of ant–myrmecophyte networks on islands was lower than robustness near lake edges and in undisturbed forest and was particularly susceptible to the extinction of plants. Beyond the immediate habitat loss caused by the building of large dams in Amazonia, persistent edge effects and habitat fragmentation associated with dams had large negative effects on animal–plant mutualistic networks. Efectos de la Fragmentación del Paisaje Inducida por Presas sobre Redes Mutualistas Hormiga‐Planta Amazónicas