Evaluating wildlife management by using principles of applied ecology: case studies and implications

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim Hone ◽  
V. Alistair Drake ◽  
Charles J. Krebs

Context The broad concepts and generalisations that guide conduct of applied ecology, including wildlife management, have been reviewed and synthesised recently into 22 prescriptive and three empirical principles. Aims The aim of this study was to use these principles to evaluate three on-ground wildlife management programs and assess the utility of the principles themselves. Key results Case studies of long-term management of national park biodiversity impacted by feral pigs (Sus scrofa), and of conservation and harvest of red kangaroos (Macropus rufus) and mallards (Anas platyrhnchos), were selected to provide a representative range of management objectives, spatial scales and land tenures, and to include both native and introduced species. Management documents and a considerable scientific literature were available for all three programs. The results highlight similarities and differences among management activities and demonstrate the 25 principles to differing degrees. Most of the prescriptive principles were demonstrated in both the management and the scientific literature in all three programs, but almost no use was made of the three empirical principles. We propose that use of the prescriptive principles constitutes evidence that these programs meet both societal and scientific expectations. However, the limited use of the empirical principles shows gaps in the three programs. Conclusions The results suggest that evaluating other wildlife management programs against the principles of applied ecology is worthwhile and could highlight aspects of those programs that might otherwise be overlooked. Little use was made of the empirical principles, but the the Effort–outcomes principle in particular provides a framework for evaluating management programs. Implications The effort–outcomes relationship should be a focus of future applied research, and both prescriptive and empirical principles should be integrated into wildlife management programs.

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 172-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
ALICE B. KELLY ◽  
A. CLARE GUPTA

SUMMARYThis study considers the issue of security in the context of protected areas in Cameroon and Botswana. Though the literature on issues of security and well-being in relation to protected areas is extensive, there has been less discussion of how and in what ways these impacts and relationships can change over time, vary with space and differ across spatial scales. Looking at two very different historical trajectories, this study considers the heterogeneity of the security landscapes created by Waza and Chobe protected areas over time and space. This study finds that conservation measures that various subsets of the local population once considered to be ‘bad’ (e.g. violent, exclusionary protected area creation) may be construed as ‘good’ at different historical moments and geographical areas. Similarly, complacency or resignation to the presence of a park can be reversed by changing environmental conditions. Changes in the ways security (material and otherwise) has fluctuated within these two protected areas has implications for the long-term management and funding strategies of newly created and already existing protected areas today. This study suggests that parks must be adaptively managed not only for changing ecological conditions, but also for shifts in a protected area's social, political and economic context.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 34-39
Author(s):  
Beata Gierczak-Korzeniowska

AbstractIntroduction. There are many factors which determine the attractiveness of a region for tourists. However, such assessments are, relatively rarely, a result of the analysis of the presence and condition of regional tourist brands and their perception among visitors. The analysis and assessment of the condition of a brand can be carried out using the BAV (Brand Asset Valuator). This is an extremely interesting and useful tool which explains the dynamics of behaviour of brands on the market and diagnoses their “health”, supporting the process of their long-term management.Materials and methods. On the basis of the results of a pilot study, an attempt is made to measure the tourist attractiveness of the Podkarpackie region through the assessment of regional tourist brands and their features which are important from the point of view of the inhabitants of the region. The BAV model was used to analyse 32 tourist products. The applied research methods include the Mann-Whitney test, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and the chi-square independence test.Results. The mapped data analysis based on the BAV model showed that 16 out of 32 products assessed were located in the leadership quadrant. The majority of the remaining products were in the development or decline phases.Conclusions. The presence of branded tourist products and their number have an impact on the tourist attractiveness of the region. The following aspects of the region were considered the most attractive: nature (natural surroundings, natural values, and ecological aspects), heritage (historical heritage and monuments and presentation of important past events), and tourism (tourism and recreation offerings).


Author(s):  
A. Knapp ◽  
W. Smith

Prescribed burning in U.S. National Parks has been employed as a substitute for natural fires to achieve vegetation and/or wildlife management objectives (Habeck 1970). One specific management objective in Glacier National Park (GNP) is the restoration of plant community diversity to pre-fire-suppression levels.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas W Smith ◽  
Matthew Metz ◽  
Chris Wilmers ◽  
Daniel Stahler ◽  
Chris Geremia

Prey selection by wolves has been a fundamental and long-term topic of interest for wolf-prey studies. Virtually all studies conclude the selectivity of wolf predation and typically identify what made an individual vulnerable. Vulnerability, however, varies for multiple reasons and emerging research is discovering climate induced effects on prey forage altering condition and selective advantage of migration. We present data from a twenty year study of wolf-elk predation in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) which found bull elk killed more frequently in early winter after years with less snowfall compared to years with normal snowfall. Snowfall impacted summer forage, which impacted bull elk condition going into the autumn rut, which weakened elk prematurely post-rut causing them to be selected by wolves in early rather than late winter, and possibly caused more bulls to be killed overall. Bull elk ratios have declined over the last 20 years (from 40-60 to 10-15 bulls/100 cows; lower outside YNP), which has led to calls for a reduced human harvest on bulls which has been met with significant resistance. Understanding the interaction between climate, forage and wolf predation on bull elk (and other sex/age classes) will help guide management decisions and potentially sustain hunting of bulls in the long term as well as protect natural management objectives within YNP. Results will be of widespread value as they may suggest changing predator-prey dynamics across North America by making some otherwise healthy prey vulnerable to predation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asta Maskaliūnaitė

Abstract The paper aims to contribute to discussion on comprehensive defence development by looking into Resistance Operating Concept and Comprehensive Defence Handbook. These two documents are designed as a guide for the countries facing a formidable adversary to help them develop resistance (including violent) infrastructure before the potential invasion. After discussing the main tenets of the concept and suggesting a wider engagement with case studies and scientific literature on this and similar topics, the paper addresses the pitfalls and considerations of preparing such resistance in peacetime, focusing on five areas: C2, legitimacy, recruitment, potential problems in long-term and communication.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. e27042
Author(s):  
Meghan Grizzle

All too often, archaeologists have viewed curation as a process that manages, rather than investigates, archaeological and natural history collections. The curation crisis can be understood as the result of a serious imbalance between the continued generation of field collections and a corresponding lack of resources and facilities devoted to accessioning, analyzing, reporting, curating and otherwise caring for these collections. Researchers mistakenly prioritize ‘interpretation at the trowel’s edge’ with emphasis on excavation and field work, without considering the problem of how and where to store the objects they excavate. While legislation, Curation of Federally Owned and Administered Archaeological Collections (36 C.F.R. Part 79), was intended to ensure the long-term management and care of these resources, the absence of funding at the institutional and federal levels, nonexistent enforcement of the legislation through the National Park Service, and lack of compliance from field archaeologists, have resulted in collections throughout the United States being at risk of loss through deterioration, mismanagement, and neglect. I will demonstrate that accessioning, inventorying, cataloguing, rehousing and conserving are meaningful generative encounters between scholars, objects and collections staff, not simply byproducts of research. The need for an online database specifically set up for archaeological collections is suggested as a way to address the curation crisis. Implementing digitization will enhance preservation by reducing damage to the artifacts caused by physical handling. Persons working within the field will gain a better understanding of collections care and the collections transition to the repository.


Rangifer ◽  
2012 ◽  
pp. 183-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Bradley ◽  
Lalenia Neufeld

Woodland caribou in the southern portion of Jasper National Park have declined from an estimated 435 in the mid 1970s to a population estimate of 87 in the fall of 2009. We examined the available historical information to determine why caribou have declined. We compared three main hypotheses for caribou decline in JNP: human disturbance, climate change, and wildlife management. We used historical human use statistics, climate data, and animal abundance information to weigh the evidence for these competing hypotheses over two time scales. Caribou decline could not be attributed to changes in climate over the long-term, or an increase in human use (our proxy for disturbance). Caribou decline was attributed to a combination of climate and wildlife management. Recovery of caribou in Jasper National Park will likely be contingent on managing the interaction between the predator/prey dynamic and climate change.


1978 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Silvert

One of the side effects of fisheries management is the discovery of new scientific information. Since this information has economic value, in that it can be used to improve future management of the fishery, the information that can be gained through a particular management strategy should not be ignored in evaluating that strategy. This paper shows using a simple model, how the research component of fisheries management can be measured and used to plan an optimal strategy. The management objectives are taken to include avoidance of risk and maximization of yield. The results depend critically on the time horizon for management. Long-term management favors creative risk-taking and leads to optimal future exploitation, while management based on short-term considerations may freeze the fishery in a permanent pattern of suboptimal yields. Key words: fisheries management, optimal control


Author(s):  
Christopher Servheen ◽  
Kerry Gunther

ABSTRACT: Culture is widely accepted as an important social factor present across a wide range of species. Bears have a culture as defined as behavioral traditions inherited though social learning usually from mothers to offspring. Successful bear cultures can enhance fitness and resource exploitation benefits. In contrast, some bear cultures related to response to humans and human-related foods can be maladaptive and result in reduced fitness and direct mortality. In environments with minimal human influence most bear culture has evolved over generations to be beneficial and well adapted to enhance fitness. However, most bears across the world do not live in areas with minimal human influence and in these areas, bear culture is often changed by bear interactions with humans, usually to the detriment of bear survival. We highlight the importance of identifying unique bear cultural traits that allow efficient use of local resources and the value of careful management to preserve these adaptive cultural behaviors. It is also important to select against maladaptive cultural behaviors that are usually related to humans inorder to reduce human-bear conflicts and high bear mortality. We use examples from Yellowstone National Park to demonstrate how long-term management to reduce maladaptive bear cultures related to humans has resulted in healthy bear populations and a low level of human-bear conflict in spite of a high number of Park visitors in close association with bears.


2011 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. JCNSD.S4125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa Catalán ◽  
Rafael Penadés

Antipsychotic medication is considered the cornerstone of the treatment in elderly patients with schizophrenia. Long acting risperidone injection was the first antipsychotic available for use in this group of patients. Current scientific literature revealed that long-acting risperidone is effective in treating the positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia and some improvements in cognition and functioning have also been found. In terms of efficacy, there is a paucity of randomized trials but the studies suggest that long-acting risperidone is efficient in the long-term management of schizophrenia, with a safety profile similar to that of oral risperidone. It seems that patient acceptance of treatment is greater when patients are switched from a traditional oral medication to depot risperidone and some improvements in cognition and functioning might be related. Further long-term comparisons with other oral and long-acting antipsychotic medications are needed. These studies should include cost-effectiveness data. Research into metabolic side effects is also needed


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