Geography and Recovery under the U.S. Endangered Species Act

Abstract: The U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) defines an endangered species as one “at risk of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.” The prevailing interpretation of this phrase, which focuses exclusively on the overall viability of listed species without regard to their geographic distribution, has led to development of listing and recovery criteria with fundamental conceptual, legal, and practical shortcomings. The ESA's concept of endangerment is broader than the biological concept of extinction risk in that the “esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational, and scientific” values provided by species are not necessarily furthered by a species mere existence, but rather by a species presence across much of its former range. The concept of “significant portion of range” thus implies an additional geographic component to recovery that may enhance viability, but also offers independent benefits that Congress intended the act to achieve. Although the ESA differs from other major endangered‐species protection laws because it acknowledges the distinct contribution of geography to recovery, it resembles the “representation, resiliency, and redundancy” conservation‐planning framework commonly referenced in recovery plans. To address representation, listing and recovery standards should consider not only what proportion of its former range a species inhabits, but the types of habitats a species occupies and the ecological role it plays there. Recovery planning for formerly widely distributed species (e.g., the gray wolf [Canis lupus]) exemplifies how the geographic component implicit in the ESA's definition of endangerment should be considered in determining recovery goals through identification of ecologically significant types or niche variation within the extent of listed species, subspecies, or “distinct population segments.” By linking listing and recovery standards to niche and ecosystem concepts, the concept of ecologically significant type offers a scientific framework that promotes more coherent dialogue concerning the societal decisions surrounding recovery of endangered species.     

北京、东京及釜山地铁防灾应急设施现状调查研究

地铁在面对各种灾害时,各类防灾及应急设施的准备是否充分将直接影响到救援工作的质量。通过实地考察北京、日本(东京地铁车站为主)及韩国釜山城市的地铁车站防灾应急设施,探讨东京和釜山地铁与北京地铁应急设施的异同,并结合我国关于大型现代地铁枢纽站应急预案的研究,针对我国地铁在防灾应急设施方面存在的问题提出改进建议。     

Advancing indigenous self-determination through endangered species protection: Idaho gray wolf recovery

As part of the right of indigenous cultures to self-determination, several international bodies have recognized and addressed the role of indigenous communities in natural resources management, including the conservation of biodiversity. In the United States, disagreements regarding the application of the federal Endangered Species Act to Native American tribes have hindered the relationship between the federal and tribal governments on endangered species recovery. Our research examines the efforts of one Native American tribe, the Nez Perce, and the United States federal government to collaborate on federal gray wolf recovery in central Idaho. We interviewed members of the Nez Perce Tribe and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to characterize their relationship and explore the context in which the recovery program was implemented. Respondents attributed the success of the biological aspects of wolf recovery to the robustness of the wolf as a species and to close interagency coordination at the operational level. However, differences of opinion existed between the Tribe and Service concerning program funding, policy planning, and the rights and role of the Tribe in wolf management via co-management and cooperative management regimes. Respondents from both governments noted a clear hierarchical relationship at the strategic level, where policy planning and decision-making rested with the federal government. Lessons drawn from this case study can be applied across the international spectrum to improving partnerships, particularly at the strategic level, between indigenous and non-indigenous governance structures for protecting endangered species.     

过电流故障铝导线熔痕部位与组织特征关联性研究

为深入研究过电流故障铝导线熔痕部位与组织特征之间的关联关系,本文模拟2.5 mm²BLV铝导线通25～187.5 A电流时的发热、熔断和燃烧过程,研究过电流铝导线发热形变与熔痕形成的内在关联,根据各部位熔痕受热形成过程,分类识别典型组织特征。研究结果表明:随着电流值升高,铝导线先后出现线芯发热、绝缘热解、熔断拉弧、绝缘燃烧、重力折断等现象,发生熔断拉弧的临界电流值位于[71.5,73)A区间内;重力折断痕迹和导线本体组织受线芯发热和绝缘燃烧的共同影响,组织为粗大的块状晶,折断点为锯齿状寸断痕迹;熔断电弧熔痕为高温电弧作用于熔化金属后凝固形成,呈树枝状、纤维状铸态组织,分区分布,孔洞较少,表现为圆珠状、钝头状、尖头型、弯折状、牵拉状等5种典型形貌。通过建立熔痕部位与组织特征的关联,增加故障判断证据维度,为准确识别铝导线发生过电流故障及溯源起火过程提供数据支持。     

Test for independence between marks and points of marked point processes: a subsampling approach

Ecological data often involve measurements taken at irregularly spaced locations (e.g., the heights of trees in a forest). A useful approach for modeling such data is via a marked point process, where the marks (i.e., measurements) and points (i.e., locations) are often assumed to be independent. Although this is a convenient assumption, it may not hold in practice. Schlather et al. (Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Services B, 66, 79–93, 2004) proposed a simulation-based approach to test this assumption. This paper presents a new method for testing the assumption of independence between the marks and the points. Instead of considering a simulation approach, we derive analytical results that allow the test to be implemented via a conventional χ² statistic. We illustrate the use of our approach by applying it to an example involving desert plant data.     

Longitudinal Analysis of Attitudes Toward Wolves

Understanding individual attitudes and how these predict overt opposition to predator conservation or direct, covert action against predators will help to recover and maintain them. Studies of attitudes toward wild animals rely primarily on samples of individuals at a single time point. We examined longitudinal change in individuals’ attitudes toward gray wolves (Canis lupus). In the contiguous United States, amidst persistent controversy and opposition, abundances of gray wolves are at their highest in 60 years. We used mailed surveys to sample 1892 residents of Wisconsin in 2001 or 2004 and then resampled 656 of these individuals who resided in wolf range in 2009. Our study spanned a period of policy shifts and increasing wolf abundance. Over time, the 656 respondents increased agreement with statements reflecting fear of wolves, the belief that wolves compete with hunters for deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and inclination to poach a wolf. Endorsement of lethal control of wolves by the state and public hunting of wolves also increased. Neither the time span over which respondents reported exposure to wolves locally nor self‐reported losses of domestic animals to wolves correlated with changes in attitude. We predict future increases in legal and illegal killing of wolves that may reduce their abundance in Wisconsin unless interventions are implemented to improve attitudes and behavior toward wolves. To assess whether interventions change attitudes, longitudinal studies like ours are needed. Análisis Longitudinal de las Actitudes Hacia Lobos     

Correction model for CO detection in the coal combustion loss process in mines based on GWO-SVM

Accurate detection of CO gas is crucial to the prevention of coal combustion. Tuneable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) is a reliable method for CO detection during coal combustion. The influences of temperature and pressure cause changes in the line strength and linewidth of the index gases’ absorption spectra, leading to sizable measurement errors. To correct the distortion of the CO absorption spectrum caused by temperature and pressure fluctuation, a compensation model based on the grey wolf optimizer–support vector machine (GWO–SVM) was proposed. The results were compared with those of the single SVM, the back propagation neural network (BPNN), and multiple regression analysis (MRA). MRA was revealed to result in the lowest accuracy, which indicated that MRA is not ideal for compensation in TDLAS. The hyperparameter selection of the SVM had the disadvantages of randomness and blindness, which led to instability and large errors. The BPNN achieved better correction in the training stage, but severe overfitting occurred in the testing stage. The modified results revealed that the GWO–SVM model had higher accuracy and stability than the other models. It effectively inhibited the effects of temperature and pressure on the measured concentration and greatly improved the measurement accuracy. The equipment is thus suitable for CO gas detection with the aim to preventing coal combustion loss, and it can be further applied to loss prevention in other process fields.     

Bordering Ecosystems: The Rhetorical Function of Characterization in Gray Wolf Management

Decisions about iconic species such as the wolf provide a key index of human–nature relations. The gray wolf's reintroduction in the USA has been controversial, particularly at the interface of state versus federal management. This essay analyzes discourse surrounding this controversy, focusing on how wolves are characterized as ecological and social actors in official correspondence and management plans. I interpret this textual evidence by drawing from social theory regarding sovereignty, discipline, and population, including studies on bordering practices imposed on humans. As with humans, bordering practices in the case of the wolf may illuminate how political forces impose physical and discursive limits upon mobile bodies motivated to move across political borders by powerful exigencies of need. The essay seeks to amplify understanding about how regimes of power enact difference from “others” whose presence strongly influences the health of ecosystems and economies.     

The Normative Dimension and Legal Meaning of Endangered and Recovery in the U.S. Endangered Species Act

Abstract:  The ethical, legal, and social significance of the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) is widely appreciated. Much of the significance of the act arises from the legal definitions that the act provides for the terms threatened species and endangered species. The meanings of these terms are important because they give legal meaning to the concept of a recovered species. Unfortunately, the meanings of these terms are often misapprehended and rarely subjected to formal analysis. We analyzed the legal meaning of recovered species and illustrate key points with details from "recovery" efforts for the gray wolf ( Canis lupus ). We focused on interpreting the phrase "significant portion of its range," which is part of the legal definition of endangered species. We argue that recovery and endangerment entail a fundamentally normative dimension (i.e., specifying conditions of endangerment) and a fundamentally scientific dimension (i.e., determining whether a species meets the conditions of endangerment). Specifying conditions for endangerment is largely normative because it judges risks of extinction to be either acceptable or unacceptable. Like many other laws that specify what is unacceptable, the ESA largely specifies the conditions that constitute unacceptable extinction risk. The ESA specifies unacceptable risks of extinction by defining endangered species in terms of the portion of a species' range over which a species is "in danger of extinction." Our analysis indicated that (1) legal recovery entails much more than the scientific notion of population viability, (2) most efforts to recover endangered species are grossly inadequate, and (3) many unlisted species meet the legal definition of an endangered or threatened species.     

Consensus on Criteria for Potential Areas for Wolf Reintroduction in Mexico

Abstract: Given the conflict with human interests that in many cases results in the extirpation of large carnivores, acceptance of their reintroduction is a considerable challenge. By the 1980s Mexican wolves (Canis lupus) were extinct in the wild. In 1998 a population was reintroduced in the Blue Range Mountains of New Mexico (U.S.A.). Efforts to reintroduce the species in Mexico have been ongoing since the late 1980s. Four teams working independently identified 6 areas in northern Mexico in the historic range of Mexican wolves, where reintroductions could potentially be successful. Each team used different methods and criteria to identify the areas, which makes it difficult to prioritize among these areas. Therefore, members of the different teams worked together to devise criteria for use in identifying priority areas. They identified areas with high, intermediate, and low potential levels of conflict between wolves and humans. Areas with low potential conflict had larger buffers (i.e., distance from human settlement to areas suitable for wolves) around human settlements than high‐ and intermediate‐conflict areas and thus were thought most appropriate for the first reintroduction. High‐conflict areas contained habitat associated with wolf presence, but were closer to human activity. The first reintroduction of Mexican wolves to Mexico occurred in October 2011 in one of the identified low‐conflict areas. The identification of suitable areas for reintroduction represents a crucial step in the process toward the restoration of large carnivores. Choice of the first reintroduction area can determine whether the reintroduction is successful or fails. A failure may preclude future reintroduction efforts in a region or country.