Capture success of Fijian bats (Pteropodidae) and their evaluation as umbrella species for conservation

2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Therese Scanlon ◽  
Sophie Petit
Keyword(s):  
Conservation Management ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Sex Bias ◽  
Conservation Action ◽  
Umbrella Species ◽  
Capture Success ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
Pteropus Tonganus ◽  
Mist Net

Easily captured species provide powerful opportunities to motivate research and conservation action. Conversely, rare and cryptic species with low capture probability can be difficult to study. We examined the capture success of Fiji’s Pteropodidae (Pteropus tonganus, P. samoensis, Notopteris macdonaldi, and Mirimiri acrodonta) and incorporated capture success and associated observations into an assessment of their suitability as umbrella species for conservation. We caught 252 bats from 2493 mist-net-hours in lowland rainforest near Waisali on Vanua Levu, and 38 bats from 1915 mist-net-hours in cloud forest on Taveuni. Of these captures, 67% were N. macdonaldi, 16% P. tonganus, 18% P. samoensis, and <1% M. acrodonta. All species were difficult to net in cloud forest, where we recorded a female sex bias. Capture success was affected by site, season, and net height; peak capture times varied among species and between sites. N. macdonaldi was recaptured most frequently (8.8%), revealing habitual nightly movements. It has strong potential as an umbrella species for rainforest and cave-dwelling organisms of Fiji, and was readily netted. P. tonganus is an unsuitable umbrella species, P. samoensis has potential as an umbrella species, and M. acrodonta has many attributes of a flagship species. Capture efficiency of N. macdonaldi provides opportunities for monitoring and conservation management activities in Fiji. However, variability in capture success among species means that different approaches should be explored for conserving bats effectively with limited resources.

scholarly journals Beneath the umbrella: conservation out of the limelight

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
David W. Macdonald ◽  
Chris Newman ◽  
Lauren A. Harrington
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Utility Value ◽  
Conservation Action ◽  
Umbrella Species ◽  
Priority Species ◽  
Range Overlap

The concluding chapter of this book poses the question: what is special about the musteloids in the context of promoting their conservation. Ranking species on their public appeal, most musteloids score relatively poorly as ambassadors, or flagships, for conservation compared with, for example, big cats. There are individual exceptions (many of the otters, for example, and the endangered ‘celebrity’ species, such as black-footed ferrets or red pandas), and some have potential as umbrella species due to their range overlap with other threatened mammals. The chapter explores if and how musteloids contribute to ecosystem services, and thus their utility value, and assesses the potential for identifying priorities for conservation action (in terms of both priority species and priority countries). The conservation needs of musteloids are varied, and these are not the only important considerations, but they illustrate some of the complexity that is involved.

scholarly journals Distribution and conservation status of Bornean Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron schleiermacheri in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia

1998 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 373-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy G. O'Brien ◽  
Nurul Laksmi Winarni ◽  
Frida Mindasari Saanin ◽  
Margaret F. Kinnaird ◽  
Paul Jepson
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Protected Area ◽  
National Park ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Conservation Action ◽  
Lowland Forest ◽  
Central Kalimantan ◽  
The Status ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
And Control

SummaryWe distributed questionnaires and conducted interviews between July and November 1996 to develop a better understanding of the status and distribution of Bornean Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron schleiermacheri in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. We found that many people were familiar with the species, that it is apparently widely distributed but rare in lowland forest, and that populations may be declining. We received reports of recent sightings of the pheasant at 23 locations in 9 survey areas. The primary threats to Bornean Peacock-pheasants are habitat loss within logging concessions and hunting. Recommendations for future conservation action include increasing the representation of lowland rainforest in Kalimantan's protected area system, specifically the proposed extension of Bukit Raya National Park, and control of hunting within logging concessions.

Future direction for the conservation of New Zealand?s biodiversity

2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark N. H. Seabrook-Davison ◽  
Dianne H. Brunton ◽  
Weihong Ji
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Threatened Species ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Allocation Of Resources ◽  
Species Management ◽  
Future Direction ◽  
Biodiversity Changes

Recent analyses (Clout, 2001; Cullen et al. 2005; Hartley, 1997; Joseph et al. 2008; Joseph et al. 2009) of the management of New Zealand?s biodiversity have highlighted the challenge of allocating limited resources, especially the funding of threatened species. Our essay includes frequent citation of Joseph et al. (2008, 2009) as the Project Prioritization Protocol (PPP) modal proposed in their papers is co-written by Department of Conservation (DOC) staff, and may be the metric used in future allocation of resources to New Zealand?s threatened species. Limited resourcing of threatened species management and recovery is a worldwide problem, extensively documented in the conservation literature (Spring et al. 2007; Sutherland, 2009). Reviews of conservation management practices (Craig and Stewart, 1994; Sutherland, 2009; Sutherland et al. 2004; Ussher, 1999) have called for the justification of conservation research by quantifying biodiversity changes and testing solutions. Therefore it is appropriate that novel strategies such as those presented by Joseph et al. (2008, 2009) are available for assessment. Any suggestions for improvement must engage a full debate on the current demands on natural resources (Sarukhan and Whyte, 2005) and the emerging threats to biodiversity, such as climate change (Kostyack and Rohlf, 2008). Development and Implementation of management strategies for threatened species need to be cognizant of not only the ecological (Clark et al. 1994; Tear et al. 1993) needs of threatened species, but also cultural (Charnley, 2006; Craig and Stewart, 1994; McBride et al. 2007) and economic (Craig, 1998; Cullen et al. 2005; Moran, 2003; Perhans et al. 2008; Sinden, 2004) factors.

Two New Species of Eschweilera (Lecythidaceae) from rainforest on the Caribbean slope of Panama

Phytotaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 296 (1) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
JUVENAL E. BATISTA G. ◽  
SCOTT A. MORI
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
National Park ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Habitat Ecology ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
The Caribbean

Eschweilera donosoensis and Eschweilera rotundicarpa are described from the lowlands rainforest and cloud forest of the Caribbean slope of Panama. E. donosoensis is common in the lowland rainforests in the Donoso District, Colón Province and E. rotundicarpa is endemic to cloud forest in the General De División Omar Torrijos Herrera National Park, Coclé Province and also the lowland rainforest of Valle Grande in the Donoso District, Colón Province. In this paper these species are illustrated, and information on distribution, habitat, ecology, phenology and conservation status according to IUCN are provided.

scholarly journals Using genetics to prioritise headwater stream fish populations of the Marico barb, Enteromius motebensis Steindachner 1894, for conservation action

Koedoe ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry-Ann Van der Walt ◽  
Ernst R. Swartz ◽  
Darragh Woodford ◽  
Olaf Weyl
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Conservation Planning ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Fish Populations ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Conservation Action ◽  
River Catchment ◽  
Two Populations

South Africa has a relatively large number of threatened freshwater fish species and limited resources to implement conservation programs. Enteromius motebensis was regionally prioritised for action because of its conservation status and flagship status in a nationally important aquatic ecosystem. Genetic diversity of E. motebensis in headwater refugia of the Groot Marico River Catchment was assessed to determine if genetic diversity is important for conservation planning for this species. The results of the genetic analysis indicate that some prioritisation was possible, with two populations showing evidence of recent isolation.Conservation implications: We recommend that at least three populations be prioritised for conservation action to ensure maintenance of most of the remaining genetic diversity of the species.

The distribution of leaf litter invertebrates along a Neotropical altitudinal gradient

1994 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Olson
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Test Tube ◽  
Pitfall Traps ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
Litter Invertebrates ◽  
Number Of Individuals ◽  
Leaf Litter Invertebrates

ABSTRACTLeaf litter invertebrates were sampled at eight sites, approximately 250 m apart in elevation, along an altitudinal transect extending from primary lowland rainforest to cloud forest in western Panama. The study focused on several diverse and numerically important litter invertebrate taxa (e.g., ants, spiders, and beetles) that were effectively sampled using a combination of litter sifting and test tube pitfall traps. The mean altitudinal range of species was around 500 m (standard deviation 370 m) and approximately 50% of the species characteristic of a given elevation dropped out after a 500 m change in elevation in either direction. There was no evidence for distinct altitudinal zonation in leaf litter assemblages. Both species richness and number of individuals of most taxa showed a pronounced decline in the vicinity of the upward transition to cloud forests. The data also suggest a broad mid-elevation peak in sample species richness for the litter invertebrate fauna. The implications of the results for biodiversity conservation are discussed.

scholarly journals Advanced survey effort required to obtain bat assemblage data in temperate woodlands (Chiroptera)

2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-48
Author(s):  
Morgan Hughes ◽  
Scott K. Brown ◽  
Stefano S. K. Kaburu ◽  
Simon T. Maddock ◽  
Christopher H. Young
Keyword(s):  
Survey Methods ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Species Assemblage ◽  
Species Accumulation Curves ◽  
Temperate Woodlands ◽  
Accumulation Curves ◽  
The Mean ◽  
A Site ◽  
Mist Net ◽  
Survey Effort

There is a lack of precise guidelines concerning the survey effort required for advanced bat surveys in temperate European woodlands, resulting in a lack of standardisation in survey methods. In this study we assess catch data from 56 bat trapping surveys at 11 UK woodland sites in order to provide recommendations for mist net survey effort required to gain meaningful bat assemblage data in temperate woodlands. Species accumulation curves were produced and were used to develop two novel values for survey effort: the minimum survey threshold (MST), whereby surveyors are more likely than not to encounter less dominant species; and the known species threshold (KST), the point where a given percentage (in our case, 75%) of the known species assemblage for a site is likely to be reached and beyond which there are diminishing returns for survey effort. For our data, the mean of MST was 17.4 net hours, and for KST, the mean was 29.8 net hours. The MST and KST values were reached during the second and third surveys, respectively. These proposed values are adaptable based on location and known species assemblage and may be used for planning advanced bat surveys in temperate woodlands not only to maximise survey efficacy and use of limited resources but to ensure ethical viability of undertaking advanced surveys in the first place.

scholarly journals Priority ratings for conservation of Indian primates

Oryx ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anwaruddin Choudhury
Keyword(s):  
Action Plan ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Limited Area ◽  
Small Populations ◽  
Primate Conservation ◽  
Conservation Action

Many of India's primates are threatened, especially by forest destruction, and in some areas they are also hunted for food. The 15 species involved are not threatened equally—some are widespread and common, even in the hearts of cities, while others survive only in small populations over a limited area. In order to make best use of the limited resources available for primate conservation it is necessary to identify those species needing urgent attention. The author, who is at present carrying out research on the primates of Assam, has rated the species according to their conservation needs using a method based on one developed for identifying conservation priorities for African primates. He compares his results with those of the Asian Action Plan for Primates and makes recommendations for conservation action in India.

What happens if we cannot fix it? Triage, palliative care and setting priorities in salinising landscapes

2003 ◽  
Vol 51 (6) ◽  
pp. 647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard J. Hobbs ◽  
Viki A. Cramer ◽  
Linda J. Kristjanson
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Saline Water ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Healthcare Provision ◽  
Management Intervention ◽  
Relative Value ◽  
Water Tables ◽  
Agricultural Areas

It is increasingly recognised that rising saline water tables present an unprecedented threat to both agricultural production and biodiversity conservation in the agricultural areas of Australia. In Western Australia, hydrological analysis is increasingly indicating that treatment of the problem will be difficult and costly, perhaps even impossible in some cases. Given the limited resources available for conservation management, there is a need to prioritise efforts and ensure that the level and type of management applied is both appropriate and likely to be effective. We discuss options for this in terms of ideas borrowed from healthcare provision, including triage and palliative care. We examine the range of management responses available in salinising landscapes in relation to the degree of threat, the relative value of the remnant or landscape and the likelihood of successful management intervention. While we certainly need to make a concerted effort to limit damage and loss as far as is possible, we also have to face the possibility that we cannot do this effectively everywhere, and that some areas will not be treated or treatable.

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