Quantifying wildlife watchers’ preferences to investigate the overlap between recreational and conservation value of natural areas

1.Nature-based recreation provides substantial benefits for human wellbeing, including improving physical and mental health, but can also have severe ecological impacts. The recreational value of landscapes and natural areas is often used to generate support for public spending in conservation. However, we still don’t know whether nature-based recreationists place greater recreational value on natural areas that have high conservation value compared to other green spaces.2.Here, we determine which attributes of nature-based tourism destinations provide recreational services. We used pictures of wildlife posted on Flickr to quantify wildlife-watching activities in Scotland. We then determined the environmental variables key to attracting wildlife watchers to a destination, such as protected areas (PAs), the perceived naturalness, and the presence of different types of infrastructure.3.Infrastructure is the best predictor of intensity of wildlife watching activities in Scotland, while areas of high natural value are rarely used. PAs act as a weak attractor of wildlife watchers, with PAs designated to protect threatened habitats or species having low recreational value. In accessible and highly visited areas, higher biodiversity increases the intensity of wildlife watching activities.4.Synthesis and applications. Areas of high natural and conservation value and areas of high recreational value do not tend to overlap. Recreational ecosystem services are mainly provided by the wider countryside and highly transformed landscapes as opposed to wild ecosystems and PAs designated to protect environmental features of high conservation value. These results question the synergy between the goals of recreation and those of conservation and the use of recreation as a justification for economic investment in conservation. During wildlife watching activities most people experience an urbanised, highly transformed nature; it will be important to determine how this human-dominated nature can influence support for conservation of wild and remote areas.

Download Full-text

Conservation value of the Egoli Granite Grassland, an endemic grassland in Gauteng, South Africa

Koedoe ◽

10.4102/koedoe.v49i2.112 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 49 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

G.J. Bredenkamp ◽

L.R. Brown ◽

M.F. Pfab

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Species Composition ◽

Urban Development ◽

Human Impacts ◽

Conservation Value ◽

Natural Areas ◽

High Conservation

Gauteng is the most densely populated province in South Africa. Its remaining natural areas are constantly under threat from urban development and the associated impacts. Presently, the natural areas of Gauteng support a large diversity of ecosystems. One such ecosystem is the Egoli Granite Grassland, endemic to the province, poorly conserved and therefore highly threatened. This paper describes the original Egoli Granite Grassland and the anthropogenic Hyparrhenia hirta dominated grassland that has replaced it in many of the remnant areas. Human impacts on this sensitive ecosystem have resulted in an altered species composition, loss of many species, and a change from a species-rich grassland with high conservation value to a species-poor grassland with low conservation value. The conservation of the last remaining relicts of original Egoli Granite Grassland is essential.

Download Full-text

High conservation value approach in controlling water catchment area as a provider of environmental services

IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science ◽

10.1088/1755-1315/644/1/012038 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 644 (1) ◽

pp. 012038

Author(s):

T E Syafjanuar ◽

K Siregar ◽

I Ramli

Keyword(s):

Catchment Area ◽

Environmental Services ◽

Conservation Value ◽

Water Catchment Area ◽

High Conservation ◽

Water Catchment

Download Full-text

Using the high conservation value forest concept and Pareto optimization to identify areas maximizing biodiversity and ecosystem services in cork oak landscapes

Agroforestry Systems ◽

10.1007/s10457-015-9814-x ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 90 (1) ◽

pp. 35-44 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

M. N. Bugalho ◽

F. S. Dias ◽

B. Briñas ◽

J. O. Cerdeira

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Pareto Optimization ◽

Cork Oak ◽

Conservation Value ◽

High Conservation

Download Full-text

Tropical plant diversity of Borneo: The role of high conservation value area on species conservation in an oil palm plantation

10.1063/1.5061882 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Rozza Tri Kwatrina ◽

Yanto Santosa ◽

M. Bismark ◽

Nyoto Santoso

Keyword(s):

Plant Diversity ◽

Oil Palm ◽

Species Conservation ◽

Conservation Value ◽

Oil Palm Plantation ◽

Tropical Plant ◽

High Conservation

Download Full-text

What is Interoception and Why is it Important?

Frontiers for Young Minds ◽

10.3389/frym.2021.558246 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Melissa Barker ◽

Rebecca Brewer ◽

Jennifer Murphy

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

The Body ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

Heart Beating ◽

Different Types ◽

The Brain

What is the word for the sense of signals that come from inside your body, such as feeling your heart beating and your breathing, or knowing when you are hungry? This is called interoception. Interoception is one of our senses, like vision, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. In this article, we talk about what interoception is and how information about these feelings is sent from the body to the brain. We will also talk a little about how interoception is measured and the different types of interoception. Finally, we will discuss why interoception might be important for things like recognising emotions in ourselves and in other people, our physical and mental health, and why understanding how interoception changes throughout our lives might help us to understand where differences in interoception across different people come from.

Download Full-text

PROCESS IN THE HIGH CONSERVATION VALUE (HCV) CONCEPT WITHIN COMMUNITY-MANAGED FORESTS: CASE STUDY OF COPAL AND BB COMMUNITY FORESTS IN CAMEROON

Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management ◽

10.1142/s1464333210003577 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 12 (02) ◽

pp. 215-237 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

ADJÉ OLIVIER AHIMIN ◽

MARIE MBOLO

Keyword(s):

Decision Makers ◽

Conservation Value ◽

Empirical Knowledge ◽

Managed Forests ◽

Forest Stewardship Council ◽

Community Forests ◽

High Conservation ◽

Conservation Values ◽

Forest Stewardship

The concept of "High Conservation Value" which was initially used by the Forest Stewardship Council, now plays an increasingly important role in several areas, and most significantly in the design and implementation of development projects. Within the framework of certification of community forests in Cameroon, this concept has been implemented in close collaboration with interested communities. Based on the activities conducted, it is worth noting that the consideration of informal management methods appear to result in better protection of biodiversity. Several categories of High Conservation Values were identified in 2 community-managed forests (Coopérative des Paysans de la Lékié & Bimbia Bonadikombo Community Forests) in Cameroon. Rare or endangered ecosystems, more than 300 plant species and more than 20 wildlife species, including endemic, rare, threatened or endangered species were found. Traditional conservation methods based on culture, as well as some ancestral practices and beliefs help to achieve this protection. Decision-makers and academics should learn from this empirical knowledge for protection programmes and projects of biodiversity.

Download Full-text

Effect of reintroduced manual mowing on biodiversity in abandoned fen meadows

Biologia ◽

10.1515/biolog-2015-0009 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 70 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Jakub Horak ◽

Lenka Safarova

Keyword(s):

Restoration Ecology ◽

Conservation Value ◽

High Conservation ◽

New Type ◽

Surrounding Landscape ◽

Flower Visiting ◽

Short Time ◽

Positive Effect ◽

Insect Group

AbstractWetlands have recently become of high environmental interest. The restoration effects on habitats like fens are one of the main topics of recent restoration ecology, especially due to their interconnection with other ecosystems. We studied the manual mowing effect on abandoned fen using the response of three study taxa: diurnal butterflies, flower-visiting beetles and vascular plants. Our results showed that butterflies seems to be quickly-responding indicator taxon for evaluation and that restored management had a positive effect on both species richness and composition of this insect group. The results indicated that the manual mowing effect could be rapid. In comparison with the surrounding landscape, we found that: (i) the manually mowed site was most similar to strictly protected area, (ii) some species of high conservation value could reach higher abundance in restored than protected site, and (iii) manual mowing could bring a new type of habitat (i.e., spatial heterogeneity) compared to the other management types (abandonment, conservation and agri-environmental mowing). The main implication seems to be optimistic for practice: The manual mowing of long-term abandoned fen is leading to the creation of habitat with high conservation value in a relatively short time.

Download Full-text

The Tubul-Raqui Coastal Wetland: A Chilean Ecosystem of High Conservation Value Severely Disturbed by the 2010 Earthquake

The Ecology and Natural History of Chilean Saltmarshes ◽

10.1007/978-3-319-63877-5_10 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 293-327 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Claudio Valdovinos ◽

Natalia Sandoval ◽

Daniela Vasquez ◽

Viviana Olmos

Keyword(s):

Coastal Wetland ◽

Conservation Value ◽

High Conservation

Download Full-text

Physical and Mental Health of Different Types of Orchestra Musicians Compared to Other Professions

Medical Problems of Performing Artists ◽

10.21091/mppa.2012.1003 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 27 (1) ◽

pp. 9-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Edgar Voltmer ◽

Mark Zander ◽

Joachim E Fischer ◽

Brigitte M Kudielka ◽

Bernhard Richter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

General Population ◽

Physical Health ◽

Reference Sample ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

Health Score ◽

Professional Groups ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Different Types ◽

Physical Health Score

Objectives: This study examined the physical and mental health of orchestra musicians of different types of orchestras compared to a reference sample of the general population and of two other professions. Methods: Professional musicians (n = 429) from nine opera and/or concert orchestras were surveyed with the Short Form-12 general health questionnaire (SF-12). Data were compared with a reference sample (n = 2805) with a sample of physicians (n = 549) and aircraft manufacturers (n = 822). Results: Compared to the reference sample and the two other professional groups, the musicians had a higher physical health score: 53.07 (SD 5.89) vs 49.03 (SD 9.35) reference, 51.26 (SD 7.53) physicians, and 49.31 (SD 7.99) aircraft manufacturers. The musicians’ mental health score was lower compared to the reference sample but did not differ from the other professional groups: 48.33 (SD 9.52) for musicians vs 52.24 (SD 8.10) reference, 48.26 (SD 10.06) physicians, and 48.54 (SD 9.59) aircraft manufacturers. Physical health but not mental health decreased with age in all groups. In physical and mental health, women scored lower than men. There was no significant difference in physical and mental health scores between musicians of concert and opera orchestras. Age and gender accounted for 3.6% of the variance of the physical health score, but none of the demographic characteristics or orchestral roles and functions was predictive for mental health scores. Conclusions: Musicians report better physical but poorer mental health than the general population, but they did not differ in mental health scores from physicians or aircraft manufacturers.

Download Full-text