scholarly journals Bird monitoring programs in Ontario: What have we got and what do we need?

2009 ◽  
Vol 85 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles M Francis ◽  
Peter J Blancher ◽  
R. Dean Phoenix
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Adaptive Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Population Monitoring ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
Bird Population ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Monitoring Programs ◽  
Bird Monitoring

Bird population monitoring should be designed to enhance conservation of birds through informing policy decisions and management actions. Many different bird surveys are undertaken in Ontario ranging from province-wide multi-species programs such as the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas to single-species localized surveys for Species at Risk. Although most surveys provide some useful contributions towards understanding the status of bird populations, there remain significant gaps in both species and geographic coverages, especially in the northern half of the province, and few surveys are sufficient for evaluating the specific effects of current management practices on birds. Enhancing bird monitoring in the province should first involve clearly defining, quantitatively, the information required for management, conservation and decision-making, in the context of an adaptive management cycle, and then identifying the most cost-effective monitoring programs to obtain that information. This can most effectively be implemented through a cooperative effort involving all parties with an interest in bird monitoring data including federal and provincial government agencies, environmental non-government organizations, and industry. Key words: bird population monitoring, evaluation, adaptive management, decision-making

Strategies to improve implementation of adaptive management practices for restoration in coastal Louisiana

Shore & Beach ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 83-91
Author(s):  
Tim Carruthers ◽  
Richard Raynie ◽  
Alyssa Dausman ◽  
Syed Khalil
Keyword(s):  
Adaptive Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
The United States ◽  
State Agency ◽  
Coastal Protection ◽  
Coastal Restoration ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Coastal Louisiana ◽  
Restoration Effort

Natural resources of coastal Louisiana support the economies of Louisiana and the whole of the United States. However, future conditions of coastal Louisiana are highly uncertain due to the dynamic processes of the Mississippi River delta, unpredictable storm events, subsidence, sea level rise, increasing temperatures, and extensive historic management actions that have altered natural coastal processes. To address these concerns, a centralized state agency was formed to coordinate coastal protection and restoration effort, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA). This promoted knowledge centralization and supported informal adaptive management for restoration efforts, at that time mostly funded through the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA). Since the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill in 2010 and the subsequent settlement, the majority of restoration funding for the next 15 years will come through one of the DWH mechanisms; Natural Resource and Damage Assessment (NRDA), the RESTORE Council, or National Fish and Wildlife Foundation –Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (NFWF-GEBF). This has greatly increased restoration effort and increased governance complexity associated with project funding, implementation, and reporting. As a result, there is enhanced impetus to formalize and unify adaptive management processes for coastal restoration in Louisiana. Through synthesis of input from local coastal managers, historical and current processes for project and programmatic implementation and adaptive management were summarized. Key gaps and needs to specifically increase implementation of adaptive management within the Louisiana coastal restoration community were identified and developed into eight tangible and specific recommendations. These were to streamline governance through increased coordination amongst implementing entities, develop a discoverable and practical lessons learned and decision database, coordinate ecosystem reporting, identify commonality of restoration goals, develop a common cross-agency adaptive management handbook for all personnel, improve communication (both in-reach and outreach), have a common repository and clearing house for numerical models used for restoration planning and assessment, and expand approaches for two-way stakeholder engagement throughout the restoration process. A common vision and maximizing synergies between entities can improve adaptive management implementation to maximize ecosystem and community benefits of restoration effort in coastal Louisiana. This work adds to current knowledge by providing specific strategies and recommendations, based upon extensive engagement with restoration practitioners from multiple state and federal agencies. Addressing these practitioner-identified gaps and needs will improve engagement in adaptive management in coastal Louisiana, a large geographic area with high restoration implementation within a complex governance framework.

Managerial Decision Support in the Post-COVID-19 Era

2021 ◽  
pp. 225-241
Author(s):  
Jan Kalina
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Decision Support ◽  
Decision Support Systems ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Support Systems ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
Managerial Decision ◽  
Massive Datasets ◽  
New Development ◽  
Decision Making Processes

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated trends to digitalization and automation, which allow us to acquire massive datasets useful for managerial decision making. The expected increase of available data (including big data) will represent a potential for an increasing deployment of management decision support systems for more general and more complex tasks. Sophisticated decision support systems have been proposed already in the pre-pandemic times either to assist managers in specific decision-making processes or to perform the decision making fully automatically. Decision support systems are presented in this chapter as perspective artificial intelligence tools contributing to a deep transform of everyday management practices. Attention is paid here to their new development in the quickly transforming post-COVID-19 era and to their role under the post-pandemic conditions. As an original contribution, this chapter presents a vision of information-based management, which far exceed the rather limited pre-pandemic visions of evidence-based management focused primarily on critical thinking.

An adaptive management case study for managing macropods on Maria Island National Park, Tasmania, Australia: adding devils to the detail

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janeane Ingram
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Adaptive Management ◽  
National Park ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Tasmanian Devil ◽  
Integrated Monitoring ◽  
Juvenile Mortality ◽  
Management Actions

Adaptive management is driven by structured decision making and evidence from monitoring in a ‘learning’ framework that guides management actions. In a conservation context, this iterative approach includes evaluation of the impacts on natural processes. On Maria Island National Park, Tasmania, Australia, introduced Forester kangaroo, Bennetts wallaby and Tasmanian pademelon have been intensively managed by an annual cull since 1994. Management actions were triggered by high parasite loads, intense grazing pressure and high juvenile mortality during drought periods. Criticism of the annual cull from animal welfare groups initiated the development of an adaptive management approach for decision making that replaces the historic ‘trial and error’ process. Following a comprehensive review of the existing macropod management program in 2011, an integrated monitoring strategy was established to provide evidence for informed decision making. Assessments of animal health and estimates of population trends are the key indicators for management actions to occur. Maintaining viable macropod populations and protecting natural values form the basis of management objectives. Management actions in each year, for each species, represent ‘treatments’ as spatial replication is not possible at such a small scale. An adaptive management approach for macropod management on Maria Island has resulted in only one species being culled in 2014 and 2015 for the first time in almost 20 years. However the recent introduction of a major predator, the Tasmanian devil, has increased uncertainty for long-term macropod management on Maria Island with no cull occurring in 2016 and 2017.

scholarly journals Developing Rigorous Monitoring Programs: Power and Sample Size Evaluations of a Robust Method for Monitoring Bird Assemblages

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 480-491
Author(s):  
Jeremy A. Baumgardt ◽  
Michael L. Morrison ◽  
Leonard A. Brennan ◽  
Tyler A. Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Population Monitoring ◽  
Multiscale Model ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Monitoring Programs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Unbiased Estimates ◽  
Multiple Species

Wildlife population monitoring programs are useful for identifying ecological impacts such as those from local management actions and broader scale influences such as climate change. Increasing the number of species monitored improves robustness of the program towards meeting monitoring objectives. In addition, monitoring at multiple spatial scales should increase the sensitivity of the monitoring program. We developed a monitoring program using unbiased estimates of occupancy at both local and regional scales, and unbiased estimates of density for multiple species of birds with a single protocol. We used transects for sampling ∼1,000-ha pastures that consisted of twelve 200-m radius sampling points. We conducted 10-min point counts and recorded distance to each observation using two independent observers, and resampled each of 30 transects over two study sites in South Texas, for a total of four visits in each of 2015 and 2016. We estimated occupancy at two scales using the multiscale model in Program MARK and estimated density using the Distance package in R. We predicted that it would be possible to detect a 50% decline over 25 y with a power of 0.90 in regional occupancy, local occupancy, and density for 36, 37, and 30 species, respectively, on our larger study site, and for 29, 33, and 12 species, respectively, on our smaller study site using two independent observers and four visits. Our work shows it is possible to monitor numerous species within a complex bird assemblage with a simple field protocol. For those interested in implementing a long-term monitoring program that is sensitive to a wide range of potential stressors at local and regional scales, we suggest considering multiscale occupancy and density monitoring for multiple species of birds.

scholarly journals Lizard Activity and Abundance Greater in Burned Habitat of a Xeric Montane Forest

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 181-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin L. Fouts ◽  
Clinton T. Moore ◽  
Kristine D. Johnson ◽  
John C Maerz
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Population Monitoring ◽  
Habitat Modeling ◽  
Forest Stands ◽  
Sceloporus Undulatus ◽  
Great Smoky Mountains ◽  
Burned Areas ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Resource Managers

Abstract Restoring the natural or historical state of ecosystems is a common objective among resource managers, but determining whether desired system responses to management actions are occurring is often protracted and challenging. For wildlife, the integration of mechanistic habitat modeling with population monitoring may provide expedited measures of management effectiveness and improve understanding of how management actions succeed or fail to recover populations. Southern Appalachia is a region of high biodiversity that has undergone dramatic change as a result of human activities such as historic logging, exotic invasions, and alteration of disturbance regimes—including reduction in application of fire. Contemporary efforts to restore fire-maintained ecosystems within southern Appalachian forests require tools to assess the effects of fire management practices on individual animal fitness and relate them to corresponding influences on species abundance. Using automated sensing equipment, we investigated the effects of burned forests on reptile habitat suitability within the western portion of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. Specifically, we used microclimate measurements to model northern fence lizard Sceloporus undulatus hyacinthinus diurnal activity budgets in unburned and variable burn age (3–27-y) forest stands. We estimated northern fence lizard occurrence and abundance along transects through burned and unburned forests. Burned forest stands had microclimates that resulted in longer modeled daily activity periods under most conditions during summer. S. undulatus abundance was 4.75 times greater on burned stands compared to paired unburned stands, although the relationship between burn age and abundance was not well determined. Results suggest the more open habitat structure of burned areas within these xeric pine–oak forests may benefit S. undulatus.

scholarly journals Landscape-scale simulations as a tool in multi-criteria decision making for agri-environment schemes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris J. Topping ◽  
Lars Dalby ◽  
Jose W. Valdez
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Simulation System ◽  
Landscape Context ◽  
Context Dependency ◽  
Multi Criteria Decision Making ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Wide Range

AbstractIncreasing concerns over the environmental impacts of agriculture in Europe has led to the introduction of agri-environment schemes (AES) to help mitigate biodiversity loss. However, effectiveness of AES has been mixed and only partially successful in achieving desired outcomes. To improve effectiveness and reduce high costs, multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) can help support decision-making and determine the most effective management action. Although MCDA has great potential for evaluating policy measures, it rarely considers the context-dependency of species responses to management practices across different landscapes. Landscape simulations can, therefore, be valuable for reducing the uncertainties when predicting the consequences of management actions. A potential suitable simulation system is the Animal, Landscape, and Man Simulation System (ALMaSS), a mechanistic simulation with can improve MCDA with the automatic integration of a species ecology and behaviour and landscape context. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the effectiveness of ALMaSS in evaluating AES management practices across different landscapes and estimate their ability to achieve the proposed conservation outcomes of three typical species of conservation interest. In this study, the effect of a particular management strategy on a species was dependent on the landscape context, in our case, a combination of landscape structure and the type and distribution of farms, and varied depending on the metrics being measured. Although we did not aim to make recommendations of particular management strategies, we demonstrate how simulations can be used for MCDA to select between management strategies with different costs. Despite the complexity of ALMaSS models, the simulation results provided are easy to interpret. Landscape simulations, such as ALMaSS, can be an important tool in multi-criteria decision making by simulating a wide range of managements and contexts and provide supporting information for filtering management options based on specific conservation goals.

An Integrated Approach for Maximising Local and Scientific Knowledge for Land Management Decision-Making in the New Zealand High Country.

1996 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
OJH Bosch ◽  
WJ Allen ◽  
JM Williams ◽  
AH Ensor
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Land Management ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Integrated System ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
Monitoring Tools ◽  
Management Decision Making

This paper describes the development of a process to facilitate the identification and introduction of sustainable land management practices in the high country of New Zealand. The process was designed to gather and structure community knowledge (both local and scientific) into a single, accessible decision support system (DSS). The development and provision of appropriate, and user-friendly monitoring tools is supported. An outline is given of how this integrated system can be used to integrate monitoring with adaptive management. Special reference is made to how this process is used as a large-scale ecological 'experiment', to enhance continually the knowledge base available for land use decision-making in the South Island high country of New Zealand.

scholarly journals Involving hybrid professionals in top management decision-making: How managerial training can make the difference

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 168-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giorgio Giacomelli ◽  
Francesca Ferré ◽  
Manuela Furlan ◽  
Sabina Nuti
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Management Decision ◽  
Top Management ◽  
Performance Information ◽  
Managerial Training ◽  
Management Decision Making ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Clinical Directors

Hybrid professionals have a two-fold – professional and managerial – role, which requires appropriate management skills. Investing on managerial training programs aims to empower professionals with managerial skills and competencies. Does this pay back? Assessing the impact of such training programs is still a limited practice. This paper explores whether participation in managerial training programs in healthcare can enhance the involvement of hybrid professionals (namely, clinical directors) in top management decision-making. The mediational effects of knowledge of performance information and its use are explored. Survey data were collected from more than 3000 clinical directors of 69 public health authorities from five regional healthcare systems in Italy. Relationships between participation in managerial training programs, performance management practices (i.e., knowledge and use of performance information) and the level of clinicians’ involvement by the top management were studied using a three-path mediation analysis with structural equation modelling. Propensity score matching was also performed to mitigate selection bias. Knowledge and use of performance information positively mediate, both independently and sequentially, the relationship between clinical directors' participation in managerial training programs and the level of their involvement in decision-making. The results of the study suggest that managerial training can support hybrid professionals in engaging with managerialism and playing upward influence on top management decision-making.

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