Quantifying population declines based on presence‐only records for red‐list assessments

Accurate trend estimates are necessary for understanding which species are declining and which are most in need of conservation action. Imperfect species detection may result in unreliable trend estimates because this may lead to the overestimation of declines. Because many management decisions are based on population trend estimates, such biases could have severe consequences for conservation policy. We used an occupancy‐modeling framework to estimate detectability and calculate nationwide population trends for 14 Swiss amphibian species both accounting for and ignoring imperfect detection. Through the application of International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List criteria to the different trend estimates, we assessed whether ignoring imperfect detection could affect conservation policy. Imperfect detection occurred for all species and detection varied substantially among species, which led to the overestimation of population declines when detectability was ignored. Consequently, accounting for imperfect detection lowered the red‐list risk category for 5 of the 14 species assessed. We demonstrate that failing to consider species detectability can have serious consequences for species management and that occupancy modeling provides a flexible framework to account for observation bias and improve assessments of conservation status. A problem inherent to most historical records is that they contain presence‐only data from which only relative declines can be estimated. A move toward the routine recording of nonobservation and absence data is essential if conservation practitioners are to move beyond this toward accurate population trend estimation.     

The role of digital data entry in participatory environmental monitoring

Many argue that monitoring conducted exclusively by scientists is insufficient to address ongoing environmental challenges. One solution entails the use of mobile digital devices in participatory monitoring (PM) programs. But how digital data entry affects programs with varying levels of stakeholder participation, from nonscientists collecting field data to nonscientists administering every step of a monitoring program, remains unclear. We reviewed the successes, in terms of management interventions and sustainability, of 107 monitoring programs described in the literature (hereafter programs) and compared these with case studies from our PM experiences in Australia, Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, Greenland, and Vietnam (hereafter cases). Our literature review showed that participatory programs were less likely to use digital devices, and 2 of our 3 more participatory cases were also slow to adopt digital data entry. Programs that were participatory and used digital devices were more likely to report management actions, which was consistent with cases in Ethiopia, Greenland, and Australia. Programs engaging volunteers were more frequently reported as ongoing, but those involving digital data entry were less often sustained when data collectors were volunteers. For the Vietnamese and Canadian cases, sustainability was undermined by a mismatch in stakeholder objectives. In the Ghanaian case, complex field protocols diminished monitoring sustainability. Innovative technologies attract interest, but the foundation of effective participatory adaptive monitoring depends more on collaboratively defined questions, objectives, conceptual models, and monitoring approaches. When this foundation is built through effective partnerships, digital data entry can enable the collection of more data of higher quality. Without this foundation, or when implemented ineffectively or unnecessarily, digital data entry can be an additional expense that distracts from core monitoring objectives and undermines project sustainability. The appropriate role of digital data entry in PM likely depends more on the context in which it is used and less on the technology itself.     

Resembling a Viper: Implications of Mimicry for Conservation of the Endangered Smooth Snake

The phenomenon of Batesian mimicry, where a palatable animal gains protection against predation by resembling an unpalatable model, has been a core interest of evolutionary biologists for 150 years. An extensive range of studies has focused on revealing mechanistic aspects of mimicry (shared education and generalization of predators) and the evolutionary dynamics of mimicry systems (co‐operation vs. conflict) and revealed that protective mimicry is widespread and is important for individual fitness. However, according to our knowledge, there are no case studies where mimicry theories have been applied to conservation of mimetic species. Theoretically, mimicry affects, for example, frequency dependency of predator avoidance learning and human induced mortality. We examined the case of the protected, endangered, nonvenomous smooth snake (Coronella austriaca) that mimics the nonprotected venomous adder (Vipera berus), both of which occur in the Åland archipelago, Finland. To quantify the added predation risk on smooth snakes caused by the rarity of vipers, we calculated risk estimates from experimental data. Resemblance of vipers enhances survival of smooth snakes against bird predation because many predators avoid touching venomous vipers. Mimetic resemblance is however disadvantageous against human predators, who kill venomous vipers and accidentally kill endangered, protected smooth snakes. We found that the effective population size of the adders in Åland is very low relative to its smooth snake mimic (28.93 and 41.35, respectively).Because Batesian mimicry is advantageous for the mimic only if model species exist in sufficiently high numbers, it is likely that the conservation program for smooth snakes will fail if adders continue to be destroyed. Understanding the population consequences of mimetic species may be crucial to the success of endangered species conservation. We suggest that when a Batesian mimic requires protection, conservation planners should not ignore the model species (or co‐mimic in Mullerian mimicry rings) even if it is not itself endangered. Implications of mimicry for Conservation of the endangered smooth snake     

Positioning human heritage at the center of conservation practice

Conservation projects subscribing to a community-based paradigm have predominated in the 21st century. We examined the context in which the phrase was coined and traced its growth over time. Community-based conservation first appeared in the literature in the early 1990s; but grew little until after the 5th World Parks Congress in 2003. Thereafter, publications describing community-based conservation approaches increased exponentially. The conference theme was Benefits Beyond Boundaries, and its goal was to provide an economic model based on revenue accrued from conservation fundraising and ecotourism to support ecosystems, wildlife, and people, particularly in the Global South. Such models tended not to incorporate, as a core principle, the heritage of local human communities. Human heritage varies substantially over time and space making generalization of conservation principles across scales challenging. Pitfalls that have grown out of the community-based conservation approaches in the Global South include fortress conservation, conservation militarism, consumptive and nonconsumptive ecotourism, and whiz-bang solutions. We propose 10 tenets in a human heritage-centered conservation framework (e.g., engage in conservation practices using local languages, thoughtfully propose and apply solutions consistent with human heritage, provide clear professional development pathways for individuals from local communities, and promote alternative revenue-generating programs centered in local communities, among others). Progressive philosophies can derive from authentic and ethical integration of local communities in conservation practice.     

Bioaccumulation of anthropogenic contaminants by detritivorous fish in the Río de la Plata estuary: 1-aliphatic hydrocarbons

The temporal variability and bioaccumulation dynamics of C_12–25 n-alkanes, isoprenoids and unresolved aliphatic hydrocarbons (UCM) were studied in a detritivorous fish (Sábalo: Prochilodus lineatus) collected from 1999 to 2005 in the sewage impacted Buenos Aires coastal area. Fish muscles contain huge amounts of n-C_12–25 (165 ± 93, 70 ± 48 or 280 ± 134 μg g⁻¹, dry, fresh and lipid weight, respectively) and UCM (931 ± 560, 399 ± 288 and 1567 ± 802 μg g⁻¹) reflecting the chronic bioaccumulation of fossil fuels from sewage particulates. On a temporal basis, lipid normalized aliphatic concentrations peaked by the end of 2001–2002 during the rainiest period over the last four decades (1750 vs. 1083 ± 4.6 mm in 1999, 2004 and 2005), reflecting an enhanced exposition due to massive anthropogenic fluxes from Metropolitan Buenos Aires in wet years. The hydrocarbon composition in fish muscles is enriched in n-C_15–17 and isoprenoids relative to a fresh crude oil and settling particulates, with fresher signatures during the 2001–2002 maxima. Fish/settling material bioaccumulation factors (BAFs: 0.4–6.4 dry weight or 0.07–0.94 lipid-organic carbon) plotted against K_ow showed a parabolic pattern maximizing at n-C_14–18 and isoprenoids. The optimal bioaccumulation window corresponds to highly hydrophobic (log K_ow: 7.2–9.9), intermediate-size C_14–18 n-alkanes and C_15–20 isoprenoids (MW: 198–282; length: 17.9 to 25.4 Å) with melting points ranging from −19.8 to 28 °C. The uptake efficiency is inversely correlated to melting points and increased from 75% for n-C₂₅ to above 90% for n-C_14–15 and isoprenoids.     

A case study of an isolated wind powered electricity system meeting 100% of local demand

Using meteorological and electricity demand data for a 4-year period, electricity demand in Shetland was modeled to provide an estimate of the demand over a 30-year period from 1 January 1981. That modeled demand was then compared to estimated wind power output over the same period using the WAsP model. The wind farm output was estimated for a range of sizes of wind farm up to the consented 370 MW Viking Wind Farm in Shetland. Some wind power was available for 94% of the time and the 370 MW wind farm would meet 100% of demand for nearly 80% of the time. The statistics of single and accumulated deficits were calculated for a range of wind farms and estimates of the amount of additional generation capacity and additional power requirements were assessed. The study suggests that with storage, wind power in Shetland could meet all electricity demand in Shetland at around £130 to £150/MWh (excluding subsidy) and with a grid connection allowing the sale of excess power, those costs could be reduced.     

Modeled Summer Background Concentration of Nutrients and Suspended Sediment in the Mid‐Continent (USA) Great Rivers1

Angradi, Ted R., David W. Bolgrien, Matt A. Starry, and Brian H. Hill, 2012. Modeled Summer Background Concentration of Nutrients and Suspended Sediment in the Mid‐Continent (USA) Great Rivers. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 48(5): 1054‐1070. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2012.00669.x Abstract: We used regression models to predict summer background concentration of total nitrogen (N), total phosphorus (P), and total suspended solids (TSS), in the mid‐continent great rivers: the Upper Mississippi, the Lower Missouri, and the Ohio. From multiple linear regressions of water quality indicators with land use and other stressor variables, we determined the concentration of the indicators when the predictor variables were all set to zero — the y‐intercept. Except for total P on the Upper Mississippi River, we could predict background concentration using regression models. Predicted background concentration of total N was about the same on the Upper Mississippi and Lower Missouri Rivers (430 μg l^?1), which was lower than percentile‐based values, but was similar to concentrations derived from the response of sestonic chlorophyll a to great river total N concentration. Background concentration of total P on the Lower Missouri (65 μg l^?1) was also lower than published and percentile‐based concentrations. Background TSS concentration was higher on the Lower Missouri (40 mg l^?1) than the other rivers. Background TSS concentration on the Upper Mississippi (16 mg l^?1) was below a threshold (30 mg l^?1) designed to protect aquatic vegetation. Our model‐predicted concentrations for the great rivers are an attempt to estimate background concentrations for water quality indicators independent from thresholds based on percentiles or derived from stressor‐response relationships.     

“电改袋”技术在130t／h煤粉炉烟气除尘系统改造中的应用

介绍了“电改袋”除尘系统的工艺特征,分析了130t／h煤粉炉烟气除尘器系统改造为长袋低压脉冲袋式除尘器的技术方案。改造后,除尘器已经稳定运行1年多,各项技术指标均达到设计要求,环境效益与经济效益显著。     

Comparision of the waterborne and dietary routes of exposure on the effects of Benzo(a)pyrene on biotransformation pathways in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

BaP is one of the most studied PAH, due to its ubiquitous presence in aquatic environments and toxicity to aquatic organisms. The main goal of this study was to assess BaP effects in Nile Tilapia after waterborne and dietary exposures, through the evaluation of EROD and GST activities in liver, gills and intestine, and BaP metabolites in bile; and also to evaluate the usefulness of these commonly used biomarkers after two different routes of exposure. Waterborne exposure to BaP led to a significant induction of EROD in all tissues analyzed (644%, 1640% and 2880% in relation to solvent in liver, gill and intestine respectively) while in dietary exposures EROD was induced only in intestine (3143%) after exposure to high BaP concentrations. GST activities with CDNB were slightly induced in liver (40%) and in gill (66%) after water exposure to BaP, and in intestine after dietary exposure to low BaP concentrations (182%). BaP metabolites in bile increased after both exposure routes, and were highly correlated with EROD activity after water exposure. In summary, this work has shown that the effects of BaP on biotransformation pathways depend on the route of exposure. Moreover, barrier tissues like gills and intestine also have an important role in the first-pass metabolism of BaP, reducing the amount of parent compound that reaches the liver to be metabolized. For that reason, EROD activity as a biomarker of exposure should also be applied in extrahepatic organs, like gills and intestine, in monitoring studies. Biliary BaP type metabolites are good reflectors of contamination levels under both exposure routes, while GST activity with CDNB as substrate, as a phase II enzyme, does not seem a reliable biomarker of exposure to BaP regardless the route of exposure.     

超声波提取-恒波长同步荧光法测定淡水藻中叶绿素a的含量

针对绿藻,采用超声波提取,以荧光激发-发射波长差216nm,建立了同步荧光法测定绿藻叶绿素a含量的新方法,其线性范围为0.02～1.25 mg/L,检出限为1.6ug/L,加标回收率在97.0%～104%之间。与分光光度法测定叶绿素a的对比试验结果表明,两者无显著性差异,但该方法具有快速、灵敏,其他常见色素不干扰测定的优点,能够满足供水中绿藻叶绿素a含量快速检测的需要。