Conservation and the 4 Rs,which are rescue,rehabilitation, release,and research

Vertebrate animals can be injured or threatened with injury through human activities, thus warranting their “rescue.” Details of wildlife rescue, rehabilitation, release, and associated research (our 4 Rs) are often recorded in large databases, resulting in a wealth of available information. This information has huge research potential and can contribute to understanding of animal biology, anthropogenic impacts on wildlife, and species conservation. However, such databases have been little used, few studies have evaluated factors influencing success of rehabilitation and/or release, recommended actions to conserve threatened species have rarely arisen, and direct benefits for species conservation are yet to be demonstrated. We therefore recommend that additional research be based on data from rescue, rehabilitation, and release of animals that is broader in scope than previous research and would have community support.     

Biological parameters used in setting captive‐breeding quotas for Indonesia's breeding facilities

The commercial captive breeding of wildlife is often seen as a potential conservation tool to relieve pressure on wild populations, but laundering of wild‐sourced specimens as captive bred can seriously undermine conservation efforts and provide a false sense of sustainability. Indonesia is at the center of such controversy; therefore, we examined Indonesia's captive‐breeding production plan (CBPP) for 2016. We compared the biological parameters used in the CBPP with parameters in the literature and with parameters suggested by experts on each species and identified shortcomings of the CBPP. Production quotas for 99 out of 129 species were based on inaccurate or unrealistic biological parameters and production quotas deviated more than 10% from what parameters in the literature allow for. For 38 species, the quota exceeded the number of animals that can be bred based on the biological parameters (range 100–540%) calculated with equations in the CBPP. We calculated a lower reproductive output for 88 species based on published biological parameters compared with the parameters used in the CBPP. The equations used in the production plan did not appear to account for other factors (e.g., different survival rate for juveniles compared to adult animals) involved in breeding the proposed large numbers of specimens. We recommend the CBPP be adjusted so that realistic published biological parameters are applied and captive‐breeding quotas are not allocated to species if their captive breeding is unlikely to be successful or no breeding stock is available. The shortcomings in the current CBPP create loopholes that mean mammals, reptiles, and amphibians from Indonesia declared captive bred may have been sourced from the wild.     

Exposing ecological and economic costs of the research‐implementation gap and compromises in decision making

The frequently discussed gap between conservation science and practice is manifest in the gap between spatial conservation prioritization plans and their implementation. We analyzed the research‐implementation gap of one zoning case by comparing results of a spatial prioritization analysis aimed at avoiding ecological impact of peat mining in a regional zoning process with the final zoning plan. We examined the relatively complex planning process to determine the gaps among research, zoning, and decision making. We quantified the ecological costs of the differing trade‐offs between ecological and socioeconomic factors included in the different zoning suggestions by comparing the landscape‐level loss of ecological features (species occurrences, habitat area, etc.) between the different solutions for spatial allocation of peat mining. We also discussed with the scientists and planners the reasons for differing zoning suggestions. The implemented plan differed from the scientists suggestion in that its focus was individual ecological features rather than all the ecological features for which there were data; planners and decision makers considered effects of peat mining on areas not included in the prioritization analysis; zoning was not truly seen as a resource‐allocation process and not emphasized in general minimizing ecological losses while satisfying economic needs (peat‐mining potential); and decision makers based their prioritization of sites on site‐level information showing high ecological value and on single legislative factors instead of finding a cost‐effective landscape‐level solution. We believe that if the zoning and decision‐making processes are very complex, then the usefulness of science‐based prioritization tools is likely to be reduced. Nevertheless, we found that high‐end tools were useful in clearly exposing trade‐offs between conservation and resource utilization.     

Governing trade-offs in ecosystem services and disservices to achieve human–wildlife coexistence

Sustaining wildlife populations, which provide both ecosystem services and disservices, represents a worldwide conservation challenge. The ecosystem services and Ostrom's social–ecological systems frameworks have been adopted across natural and social sciences to characterize benefits from nature. Despite their generalizability, individually they do not include explicit tools for addressing the sustainable management of many wildlife populations. For instance, Ostrom's framework does not specifically address competing perspectives on wildlife, whereas the ecosystem services framework provides a limited representation of the social and governance context wherein such competing perspectives are embedded. We developed a unified social–ecological framework of ecosystem disservices and services (SEEDS) that advances both frameworks by explicitly acknowledging the importance of competing wildlife perspectives embedded in the social and governance contexts. The SEEDS framework emulates the hierarchical structure of Ostrom's social–ecological systems, but adds subsystems reflecting heterogeneous stakeholder views and experiences of wildlife-based services and disservices. To facilitate operationalizing SEEDS and further broader analyses across human–wildlife systems, we devised a list of variables to describe SEEDS subsystems, such as types and level of services and disservices, cost and benefit sharing, and social participation of stakeholders. Steps to implement SEEDS involve engaging local communities and stakeholders to define the subsystems, analyze interactions and outcomes, and identify leverage points and actions to remedy unwanted outcomes. These steps connect SEEDS with other existing approaches in social–ecological research and can guide analyses across systems or within individual systems to provide new insights and management options for sustainable human–wildlife coexistence.     

Response of soil fauna to simulated nitrogen deposition： A nursery experiment in subtropical China

We studied the responses of soil fauna to a simulated nitrogen deposition in nursery experimental plots in Subtropical China. Dissolved NH4NO3 was applied to the soil by spraying twice per month for 16 months, starting January 2003 with treatments of 0, 5, 10, 15 and 30 gN/(m2·a). Soil fauna was sampled after 6, 9, 13 and 16 months of treatment in three soil depths (0-5 cm, 5-10 cm, 10-15 cm). Soil available N increased in correspondence with the increasing N treatment, whereas soil pH decreased. Bacterial and fungal densities were elevated by the N treatment. Soil fauna increased in the lower nitrogen treatments but decreased in the higher N treatments, which might indicate that there was a threshold around 10 gN/(m2·a) for the stimulating effects of N addition. The N effects were dependent on the soil depth and sampling time. The data also suggested that the effects of the different N treatments were related to the level of N saturation, especially the concentration of NO3- in the soil.     

长江支流桥边河大型底栖动物群落结构及水质生物评价

中小河流数量众多,分布广泛,其健康状况将直接影响和决定着大江大河的生态系统健康,如何准确、合理的评估中小河流的健康状况,已经成为世界性的科学问题.本研究以长江一级支流桥边河为例,于2019年1月（枯水期）和8月（丰水期）在河道的上中下游设置8个采样点,进行桥边河大型底栖动物群落结构调查,利用Shannon-Wiener多样性指数、耐污值法和科级生物指数法（FBI）分别对各样点进行水质生物评价.调查结果显示,枯水期采集到底栖动物17个分类单元,共283个底栖动物;丰水期采集到16个分类单元,共301个底栖动物,丰水期大型底栖动物个体数略高于枯水期.水质生物评价结果显示,桥边河水质状况时空差异性明显,丰水期的水质状况优于枯水期,空间尺度上丰枯水期水质状况均为上游段 > 中游段 > 下游段.3种水质生物评价法对比分析显示,FBI科级生物指数的评价结果与实际情况更吻合,更适合桥边河水质评价,其研究结果可为中小河流生态系统健康评价提供参考.     

上海城区六种林地凋落物中土壤动物群落结构

为探究上海城区不同林地凋落物中土壤动物的群落组成、群落多样性及其与环境因子的关系,于2014年4月~2015年1月分四个季度,对上海市建成年代较久的不同林地凋落物层土壤动物群落进行调查,共捕获凋落物土壤动物9 391只,隶属于2门11纲21个类群,其中优势类群为蜱螨亚纲和弹尾纲,两个类群共占总密度的90.31%,常见类群为双翅目、寡毛纲和等足目,占总密度的的5.29%。不同林地凋落物中土壤动物密度存在极显著差异(F=146.31,P0.01),其中香樟悬铃木林土壤动物密度最高,水杉林密度最低。此外各林地土壤动物季节动态表现出一定的差异性。密度-类群指数大小顺序为香樟悬铃木林(4.62)悬铃木林(2.69)香樟杨树林(1.86)香樟林(1.36)香樟水杉林(0.91)水杉林(0.85),该顺序可以较好地表征各林地的群落多样性。CCA分析显示凋落物有机碳、生物量、表土含水量、温度是影响城市林地凋落物土壤动物群落的主要环境因子,不同类群对环境因子适应程度不同。     

土壤动物对三江平原典型毛果苔草湿地枯落物分解的影响

采用尼龙网分解袋法,从枯落物的分解量、组分含量和分解残留物的热能值3方面,研究了土壤动物对三江平原毛果苔草（Carex lasiocarpa）湿地枯落物分解的影响。结果表明,土壤动物加速了枯落物的分解,大中型土壤动物的分解作用大于小型土壤动物;土壤动物增加了枯落物中腐殖酸、纤维素和木质素等物质含量以及C／N比值的变化幅度,促进了枯落物组分的释放;土壤动物影响枯落物分解过程中的能量流动;但土壤动物并未影响枯落物分解的总体变化趋势,土壤动物对枯落物分解不起决定性作用。     

Economic costs of protecting islands from invasive alien species

Biological invasions represent a key threat to insular systems and have pronounced impacts across environments and economies. The ecological impacts have received substantial focus, but the socioeconomic impacts are poorly synthesized across spatial and temporal scales. We used the InvaCost database, the most comprehensive assessment of published economic costs of invasive species, to assess economic impacts on islands worldwide. We analyzed socioeconomic costs across differing expenditure types and examined temporal trends across islands that differ in their political geography—island nation states, overseas territories, and islands of continental countries. Over US$36 billion in total costs (including damages and management) has occurred on islands from 1965 to 2020 due to invasive species’ impacts. Nation states incurred the greatest total and management costs, and islands of continental countries incurred costs of similar magnitude, both far higher than those in overseas territories. Damage-loss costs were significantly lower, but with qualitatively similar patterns across differing political geographies. The predominance of management spending differs from the pattern found for most countries examined and suggests important knowledge gaps in the extent of many damage-related socioeconomic impacts. Nation states spent the greatest proportion of their gross domestic products countering these costs, at least 1 order of magnitude higher than other locations. Most costs were borne by authorities and stakeholders, demonstrating the key role of governmental and nongovernmental bodies in addressing island invasions. Temporal trends revealed cost increases across all island types, potentially reflecting efforts to tackle invasive species at larger, more socially complex scales. Nevertheless, the already high total economic costs of island invasions substantiate the role of biosecurity in reducing and preventing invasive species arrivals to reduce strains on limited financial resources and avoid threats to sustainable development goals.     

Plastics in the Marine Environment: Problems and Solutions

Plastics debris is known to be present in all of the world's oceans, and on most amenity beaches, although comparatively little data are available to provide reliable information on the extent of damage from this pollution, and on its spatial and temporal variations.

Marine pollution by plastics has been shown to be damaging to marine mammals, birds and reptiles. This is due to entanglement in packaging bands, synthetic ropes and lines, or drift nets; or by the ingestion of small items of plastics debris. More research is needed to quantify the extent of the problems.

Wider use of degradable plastics will not solve the problems of plastics pollution. Their lifetimes are relatively long and unpredictable, and they are not generally acceptable for recycling.

Marine plastics pollution may be alleviated by the judicious application of both economic incentives and legislation, designed to decrease their use, to increase the rate of recycling, and to restrict uncontrolled discards.