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Conservation Maven
155 posts
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- March 18, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 18 views
Quality vs. quantity in protecting habitat for birds
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
A new study from South Africa touches on an interesting conservation question about whether we should place greater importance on quality or quantity when it comes to protecting habitat to conserve biodiversity...... Read more »
Dures, S., & Cumming, G. (2010) The confounding influence of homogenising invasive species in a globally endangered and largely urban biome: Does habitat quality dominate avian biodiversity?. Biological Conservation, 143(3), 768-777. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2009.12.019
- March 17, 2010
- 11:00 AM
- 32 views
Indigenous people have smaller ecological footprint on Amazon than colonists
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
A new study in the journal Conservation Biology shows that indigenous people in the northern Ecuadorian Amazon have a lower impact on the rainforest than the colonists who have moved into the area.
This bodes ill for conservation of the Amazon rainforest given the increasing settlement of the region by outsiders, the expansion of the agricultural frontier, and cultural changes in indigenous communities.... Read more »
LU, F., GRAY, C., BILSBORROW, R., MENA, C., ERLIEN, C., BREMNER, J., BARBIERI, A., & WALSH, S. (2010) Contrasting Colonist and Indigenous Impacts on Amazonian Forests. Conservation Biology. DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01463.x
- March 17, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 34 views
Oil exploration causing long-term damage to arctic tundra
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Proponents for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and government regulators have generally assumed that conducting seismic activities in the winter would avoid damaging the sensitive tundra ecosystem. A new study throws this assumption into doubt...... Read more »
Jorgenson, J., Hoef, J., & Jorgenson, M. (2010) Long-term recovery patterns of arctic tundra after winter seismic exploration. Ecological Applications, 20(1), 205-221. DOI: 10.1890/08-1856.1
- March 16, 2010
- 07:00 AM
- 67 views
Reducing the negative ecological impacts from biofuel production
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Two new articles in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment show that dramatic expansion of biofuel agriculture may reduce biodiversity and promote the spread of invasive species. The articles also make a number of recommendations for reducing the ecological impact from biofuel production. ... Read more »
Davis, A., Cousens, R., Hill, J., Mack, R., Simberloff, D., & Raghu, S. (2010) Screening bioenergy feedstock crops to mitigate invasion risk. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2147483647. DOI: 10.1890/090030
- March 16, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 33 views
When land managers unintentionally create ecological traps
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Sometimes the well-intentioned efforts of land managers can have unintended negative consequences for threatened species. In a new case study, researchers from Israel show how efforts by the national forestry agency to improve scrubland habitat in the Negev desert actually created an ecological trap for a highly endangered, endemic lizard...... Read more »
HAWLENA, D., SALTZ, D., ABRAMSKY, Z., & BOUSKILA, A. (2010) Ecological Trap for Desert Lizards Caused by Anthropogenic Changes in Habitat Structure that Favor Predator Activity. Conservation Biology. DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01477.x
- March 15, 2010
- 07:00 AM
- 27 views
Quantifying the impact of land cover change on regional climate
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Ecosystems can influence regional climate through biophysical regulation. Researchers test a method to help resource mangers quantify this ecosystem service and predict how land cover changes will affect climate...... Read more »
West, P., Narisma, G., Barford, C., Kucharik, C., & Foley, J. (2010) An alternative approach for quantifying climate regulation by ecosystems. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2147483647. DOI: 10.1890/090015
- March 12, 2010
- 06:00 AM
- 29 views
The challenge of managing disease in wildlife: the case of elk in Yellowstone
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
The disease brucellosis is surging in free-ranging elk populations in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem according to a new study in the journal Ecological Applications.
Furthermore, efforts to address the problem by reducing the density of elk populations through increased hunting or introduction of natural predators will be difficult given the matrix of private and public lands where elk aggregate.... Read more »
Cross, P., Cole, E., Dobson, A., Edwards, W., Hamlin, K., Luikart, G., Middleton, A., Scurlock, B., & White, P. (2010) Probable causes of increasing brucellosis in free-ranging elk of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Ecological Applications, 20(1), 278-288. DOI: 10.1890/08-2062.1
- March 11, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 33 views
Profiting from invasive plants: the challenge of controlling the horticultural industry
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
... Read more »
Drew, J., Anderson, N., & Andow, D. (2010) Conundrums of a complex vector for invasive species control: a detailed examination of the horticultural industry. Biological Invasions. DOI: 10.1007/s10530-010-9689-8
- March 11, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 32 views
Delimiting the boundaries of a species invasion (with no prior info)
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
When it comes to successfully controlling invasive species, managers face the critically important step of figuring out the extent of the invasion. Researchers have developed and tested an innovative approach for accomplishing this challenging task...... Read more »
Leung, B., Cacho, O., & Spring, D. (2010) Searching for non-indigenous species: rapidly delimiting the invasion boundary. Diversity and Distributions. DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-4642.2010.00653.x
- March 10, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 38 views
The impact of snorkeling on fish and macroalgae communities
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
A new study on snorkelers in the Mediterranean sea finds a rare piece of good news about human impacts on the marine environment.
Joachim Clauedet and fellow researchers looked at snorkeling within the Cerbère Banyuls Natural Marine Reserve in the French Mediterranean and found that the activity had no observable effect on the structure of fish or macroalgae communities.... Read more »
Claudet, J., Lenfant, P., & Schrimm, M. (2010) Snorkelers impact on fish communities and algae in a temperate marine protected area. Biodiversity and Conservation. DOI: 10.1007/s10531-010-9794-0
- March 9, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 35 views
Evaluating protected areas in China and North Korea
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
... Read more »
Tang, L., Shao, G., Piao, Z., Dai, L., Jenkins, M., Wang, S., Wu, G., Wu, J., & Zhao, J. (2010) Forest degradation deepens around and within protected areas in East Asia. Biological Conservation. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2010.01.024
- March 9, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 38 views
Automating bird surveys with remote sensors
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Researchers have developed and tested an automated system for remotely surveying birds based on their vocalizations. The system involves using pole-mounted, remote sensors to collect ongoing acoustic data...... Read more »
Kasten, E., McKinley, P., & Gage, S. (2010) Ensemble Extraction for Classification and Detection of Bird Species☆. Ecological Informatics. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoinf.2010.02.003
- March 8, 2010
- 04:00 AM
- 43 views
Protecting Europe's last, old-growth forests
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Whenever I think of old-growth forests, I envision the redwoods of Northern California or the Amazon region of South America - not the continent of Europe where forest destruction and intensive management have been widespread for millennia. However, in parts of Europe, areas of virgin forest still exist - mostly in Russia, but also in other countries, as well.
A new study in the journal Biodiversity and Conservation reflects a growing effort to identify and protect these remnant old-growth fo........ Read more »
Veen, P., Fanta, J., Raev, I., Biriş, I., Smidt, J., & Maes, B. (2010) Virgin forests in Romania and Bulgaria: results of two national inventory projects and their implications for protection. Biodiversity and Conservation. DOI: 10.1007/s10531-010-9804-2
- March 5, 2010
- 06:00 AM
- 56 views
Can marine reserves boost fish populations outside their borders?
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
A new study shows that higher fish reproduction inside marine reserves is likely to benefit fisheries outside, as ocean currents carry the tiny, young fish to surrounding waters.
However, the study also indicates that if the young, exported from marine reserves, disperse across large areas it may be extremely difficult to detect a boost to fisheries.... Read more »
Pelc, R., Warner, R., Gaines, S., & Paris, C. (2010) Marine Reserves Special Feature: Detecting larval export from marine reserves. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0907368107
- March 4, 2010
- 12:06 PM
- 48 views
An innovative approach for monitoring tidal wetland restoration success
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Researchers from the US Geological Survey at the San Francisco Bay Estuary Station have created a new, cost-effect, and more accurate method for measuring early sediment accretion in restored, tidal marshes.
Their innovative method involves using sound waves to determine water depth. The echosounder system is mounted onto a shallow draft kayak and includes an acoustic profiler, GPS unit, and laptop computer.... Read more »
Takekawa, J., Woo, I., Athearn, N., Demers, S., Gardiner, R., Perry, W., Ganju, N., Shellenbarger, G., & Schoellhamer, D. (2010) Measuring sediment accretion in early tidal marsh restoration. Wetlands Ecology and Management. DOI: 10.1007/s11273-009-9170-6
- March 4, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 59 views
Quantifying open space loss from urban sprawl
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
... Read more »
McDonald, R., Forman, R., & Kareiva, P. (2010) Open Space Loss and Land Inequality in United States' Cities, 1990–2000. PLoS ONE, 5(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0009509
- March 3, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 52 views
Using GPS to remotely observe wildlife behavior
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
GPS plays an important role in wildlife conservation by enabling managers to track the movements of animals. But sometimes wildlife biologists want to know more than just where an animal is located at any given time - sometimes they also want to know what an animal is actually doing...... Read more »
Löttker, P., Rummel, A., Traube, M., Stache, A., Šustr, P., Müller, J., & Heurich, M. (2009) New Possibilities of Observing Animal Behaviour from a Distance Using Activity Sensors in Gps-Collars: An Attempt to Calibrate Remotely Collected Activity Data with Direct Behavioural Observations in Red Deer . Wildlife Biology, 15(4), 425-434. DOI: 10.2981/08-014
- March 2, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 44 views
Plant a tree to save a fish: riparian woodlands as stream temperature regulators
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
... Read more »
Broadmeadow, S., Jones, J., Langford, T., Shaw, P., & Nisbet, T. (2010) The influence of riparian shade on lowland stream water temperatures in southern England and their viability for brown trout. River Research and Applications. DOI: 10.1002/rra.1354
- March 1, 2010
- 07:00 AM
- 64 views
Not all species are created equal (in the eyes of scientific study)
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
Not all species are equally important in the eyes of scientific research. As a new paper in the journal Conservation Biology shows, some types of species are much more commonly studied than others.... Read more »
TRIMBLE, M., & VAN AARDE, R. (2010) Species Inequality in Scientific Study. Conservation Biology. DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2010.01453.x
- February 26, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 46 views
Popular herbicide can be a secret killer of fish
by Rob Goldstein in Conservation Maven
The chemical glyphosphate has emerged as the most widely used herbicide in the world. As a new study suggests, the popular herbicide may have unexpected negative impacts on fish by making them more vulnerable to disease...... Read more »
Kelly, D., Poulin, R., Tompkins, D., & Townsend, C. (2010) Synergistic effects of glyphosate formulation and parasite infection on fish malformations and survival. Journal of Applied Ecology. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2664.2010.01791.x
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