Sébastien Desbureaux, Julia Girard, Alicia Dalongeville, Rodolphe Devillers, David Mouillot, Narriman Jiddawi, Loic Sanchez, Laure Velez, Laetitia Mathon, Antoine Leblois
{"title":"The long-term impacts of Marine Protected Areas on fish catch and socioeconomic development in Tanzania","authors":"Sébastien Desbureaux, Julia Girard, Alicia Dalongeville, Rodolphe Devillers, David Mouillot, Narriman Jiddawi, Loic Sanchez, Laure Velez, Laetitia Mathon, Antoine Leblois","doi":"10.1111/conl.13048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13048","url":null,"abstract":"Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are a cornerstone of marine conservation efforts, with the potential to protect biodiversity and provide socioeconomic benefits. We quantified the effect of MPAs on fishing outcomes, economic activities, and material living standards in 24 coastal villages of Tanzania over two decades. We accessed original data from a study conducted in 2003 that found no effect of MPAs 3–8 years after their creation. Eighteen years later, we replicated the survey and used a Before-After Control-Intervention design to quantify the effect of MPAs. We found that villages near MPAs experienced a 50% higher improvement in living standards compared to those further from MPAs. This benefit is not related to higher fishing outcomes but to a diversification of economic sectors. Our findings highlight a decoupling between fish catches and economic benefits, revealing that socio-economic outcomes can be observed for MPAs whose ecosystems’ productivity has declined.","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"223 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142374527","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Simon Lhoest, Marine Drouilly, Paul Kazaba Kaseya, Steeve Ngama, Cédric Vermeulen
{"title":"To conserve African tropical forests, invest in the protection of its most diverse wildlife communities","authors":"Simon Lhoest, Marine Drouilly, Paul Kazaba Kaseya, Steeve Ngama, Cédric Vermeulen","doi":"10.1111/conl.13060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13060","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142374208","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Christopher Brown, Richard Hamilton, Simon Vuto, Willie Atu, Rosalie Masu, Christain Ramofafia, Pete Waldie
{"title":"Contributions of small‐scale and longline fishing to sea turtle mortality in the Solomon Islands","authors":"Christopher Brown, Richard Hamilton, Simon Vuto, Willie Atu, Rosalie Masu, Christain Ramofafia, Pete Waldie","doi":"10.1111/conl.13056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13056","url":null,"abstract":"A focus of sea turtle management has been reducing bycatch in commercial fisheries, but sustainable harvest for consumption is also an important objective in many nations. Identifying how much different fisheries contribute to turtle mortality could help focus limited management resources. We estimated national scale turtle catches for two fisheries in the Solomon Islands: a small‐scale reef fishery where turtles are caught for food and sale, and an offshore longline fishery where turtles are bycatch. The footprint of the longline fishery spanned the entire exclusive economic zone of the Solomon Islands and was 67 times bigger than the footprint of the small‐scale fishery. The median catch summed across both fisheries was ∼12,000 turtles in 2018, with 85%–97% of that catch in the small‐scale fishery. We suggest that turtle management in the Solomon Islands, a nation with globally significant turtle breeding populations, should focus on sustainable management of small‐scale coastal fisheries.","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142328714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cassandra Brooks, Sharon Stammerjohn, Grant Ballard, Alice K. DuVivier, Eileen Hofmann, Michelle LaRue, Cara Nissen, Alexander J. Orona, B. Jack Pan, Annie E. Schmidt, Nathan Walker, George M. Watters, John Weller
{"title":"Building a coordinated framework for research and monitoring in large-scale international marine protected areas: The Ross Sea region as a model system","authors":"Cassandra Brooks, Sharon Stammerjohn, Grant Ballard, Alice K. DuVivier, Eileen Hofmann, Michelle LaRue, Cara Nissen, Alexander J. Orona, B. Jack Pan, Annie E. Schmidt, Nathan Walker, George M. Watters, John Weller","doi":"10.1111/conl.13053","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13053","url":null,"abstract":"To fulfill their conservation potential and provide safeguards for biodiversity, marine protected areas (MPAs) need coordinated research and monitoring for informed management through effective evaluation of ecosystem dynamics. However, coordination is challenging, often due to knowledge gaps caused by inadequate access to data and resources, compounded by insufficient communication between scientists and managers. We propose to use the world's largest MPA in the Ross Sea, Antarctica as a model system to create a comprehensive framework for an interdisciplinary network supporting research and monitoring that could be implemented in other remote large-scale international MPAs. Our proposed framework has three key components: (i) policy engagement, including delineation of policy needs and ecosystem metrics to assess MPA effectiveness; (ii) community partner engagement to elevate diverse voices, build trust, and share resources; and (iii) integrated science comprising three themes. These themes are: advancement of data science and cyberinfrastructure to facilitate data synthesis and sharing; biophysical modeling towards understanding ecosystem changes and uncertainties; and execution of observational and process studies to address uncertainties and evaluate ecosystem metrics. This proposed framework can improve MPA implementation by generating policy-relevant science through this coordinated network, which can in turn improve MPA effectiveness in the Ross Sea and beyond.","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142247159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Simon B. Z. Gorta, Alex J. Berryman, Richard T. Kingsford, Marcel Klaassen, Rohan H. Clarke
{"title":"Kleptoparasitism in seabirds—A potential pathway for global avian influenza virus spread","authors":"Simon B. Z. Gorta, Alex J. Berryman, Richard T. Kingsford, Marcel Klaassen, Rohan H. Clarke","doi":"10.1111/conl.13052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13052","url":null,"abstract":"Wild birds have experienced unprecedented, near‐global mass mortalities since 2021, driven by outbreaks of high‐pathogenicity avian influenza virus (HPAIV) H5N1 lineage 2.3.4.4b. Managing this panzootic requires identification of transmission pathways. We investigated potential HPAIV transmission via kleptoparasitism (food theft) by examining the distribution, behaviors, and movements of two globally widespread and commonly kleptoparasitic seabird families: Fregatidae (frigatebirds) and Stercorariidae (skuas). These kleptoparasites force other seabirds (targets) to regurgitate food, which the kleptoparasite then ingests, potentially facilitating direct transfer of viral particles from target to kleptoparasite. Scavenging and predation probably contribute further to viral spread. Although frigatebirds use kleptoparasitism on a year‐round basis, skuas more commonly do so outside of the breeding season. Both frequently forage, disperse, or migrate across oceans and hemispheres. Dense aggregations of kleptoparasitic and target seabirds at breeding and/or roosting sites may facilitate the spread of HPAIV. In addition, the migration of these species could also facilitate broadscale geographic spread of HPAIV. Surveillance of kleptoparasites for HPAIVs could aid in early detection and may be important for seabird conservation.","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142236632","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Moving beyond simplistic representations of land use in conservation","authors":"Tobias Kuemmerle","doi":"10.1111/conl.13055","DOIUrl":"10.1111/conl.13055","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Land use is both a major cause of the biodiversity crises and a potential solution to it. Decisions about land use are made in complex social–ecological systems, yet conservation research, policy, and practice often neglect the diverse and dynamic nature of land use. A deeper integration of land system science and conservation science provides major opportunities in this context, through a transfer of concepts, data, and methodologies. Specifically, a closer exchange between land-use data developers and users will enable common terminology and better data use, allowing to move beyond coarse land-cover representations of land use. Similarly, archetyping and regionalization approaches can help to embrace, rather than oversimplify, the diversity of land-use actors and practices. Finally, systematically linking land-use actors to portfolios of pressures on biodiversity, beyond their direct impact on habitat, can better represent and map co-occurring and interacting threats. Together, this will enable conservation policymakers and planners to recognize the often-complex and wicked nature of conservation challenges related to land, allowing for more context-specific conservation policymaking and planning, and more targeted conservation interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"17 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.7,"publicationDate":"2024-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/conl.13055","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142234064","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amy A. Yackel Adams, Nathan J. Hostetter, William A. Link, Sarah J. Converse
{"title":"Identifying Pareto-efficient eradication strategies for invasive populations","authors":"Amy A. Yackel Adams, Nathan J. Hostetter, William A. Link, Sarah J. Converse","doi":"10.1111/conl.13051","DOIUrl":"10.1111/conl.13051","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Invasive species are a major cause of biodiversity loss and are notoriously expensive and challenging to manage. We developed a decision-analytic framework for evaluating invasive species removal strategies, given objectives of maximizing eradication probability and minimizing costs. The framework uses an existing estimation model for spatially referenced removal data—one of the most accessible types of invasive species data—to obtain estimates of population growth rate, movement probability, and detection probability. We use these estimates in simulations to identify Pareto-efficient strategies—strategies where increases in eradication probability cannot be obtained without increases in cost—from a set of proposed strategies. We applied the framework post hoc to a successful eradication of veiled chameleons (<i>Chamaeleo calyptratus</i>) and identified the potential for substantial improvements in efficiency. Our approach provides managers and policymakers with tools to identify cost-effective strategies for a range of invasive species using only prior knowledge or data from initial physical removals.</p>","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"17 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.7,"publicationDate":"2024-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/conl.13051","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142198279","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Justine Bell-James, Rose Foster, Miguel Frohlich, Carla Archibald, Claudia Benham, Megan Evans, Pedro Fidelman, Tiffany Morrison, Liza Rolim Baggio, Peter Billings, Nicole Shumway
{"title":"Not all conservation “policy” is created equally: When does a policy give rise to legally binding obligations?","authors":"Justine Bell-James, Rose Foster, Miguel Frohlich, Carla Archibald, Claudia Benham, Megan Evans, Pedro Fidelman, Tiffany Morrison, Liza Rolim Baggio, Peter Billings, Nicole Shumway","doi":"10.1111/conl.13054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13054","url":null,"abstract":"In many countries, complex environmental problems such as biodiversity decline are regulated at the national level by a disparate range of laws and nonstatutory policy instruments variously described by terms including plans, strategies, guidelines, statements of intent, and/or incentives. Such instruments are often grouped together by conservation policymakers and scientists under the umbrella term “policy.” However, from a legal perspective, there are critical differences between these so-called policy instruments. In this paper, we focus on what we consider to be the critical difference: whether a policy instrument is binding, and therefore whether an administrative decision (e.g., about a development proposal) can be legally challenged due to noncompliance with that policy instrument. Drawing from international examples, the aim of this paper is to give conservation policymakers and scientists the guidance needed to critically differentiate between laws and nonstatutory policy, assess current or proposed policies, and determine whether a nonstatutory instrument gives rise to binding obligations, thus allowing for decisions to be challenged before a court. In doing so, we encourage conservation scientists, policymakers, activists, and practitioners to reflect critically on what is possible and not possible when nonstatutory “policy” instruments are designed and implemented.","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2024-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142198031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Colter A. Feuerstein, Ryan P. Kovach, Carter G. Kruse, Matt E. Jaeger, Donovan A. Bell, Zachary L. Robinson, Andrew R. Whiteley
{"title":"Genetic variation and hybridization determine the outcomes of conservation reintroductions","authors":"Colter A. Feuerstein, Ryan P. Kovach, Carter G. Kruse, Matt E. Jaeger, Donovan A. Bell, Zachary L. Robinson, Andrew R. Whiteley","doi":"10.1111/conl.13049","DOIUrl":"10.1111/conl.13049","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The preservation of genetic variation is fundamental in biodiversity conservation, yet its importance for population viability remains contentious. Mixed-source reintroductions, where individuals are translocated into a single vacant habitat from multiple genetically divergent and often depauperate populations, provide an opportunity to evaluate how genetic variation and hybridization influence individual and relative population fitness. Population genetic theory predicts that individuals with higher genetic variation and hybrids among populations should have higher fitness. We tested these two hypotheses by analyzing individual and population-scale data for westslope cutthroat trout (<i>Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi</i>) in four mixed-source reintroductions. We observed more hybrid and fewer nonhybrid offspring than expected across four independent mixed-source reintroductions. We also found clear evidence that heterozygosity influenced individual reproductive and relative population fitness. Overall, we found a strong, positive relationship between genetic variation, hybridization, and transplant fitness, emphasizing the importance of genetic variation and population mixing in conservation.</p>","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"17 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.7,"publicationDate":"2024-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/conl.13049","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142138422","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nicole Kaechele, Rachelle Beveridge, Megan Adams, Paul Boyce, Kyle Artelle
{"title":"A primer for the practice of reflexivity in conservation science","authors":"Nicole Kaechele, Rachelle Beveridge, Megan Adams, Paul Boyce, Kyle Artelle","doi":"10.1111/conl.13047","DOIUrl":"10.1111/conl.13047","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Rigorous scientific practice relies on the tenet of transparency. However, despite regular transparency in areas such as data availability and methodological practice, the influence of personal and professional values in research design and dissemination is often not disclosed or discussed in conservation science. Conservation scientists are increasingly driven to work in collaboration with communities where their work takes place, which raises important questions about the research process, especially as the field remains largely represented by a Western scientific worldview. The process of reflexivity, and the creation of positionality statements as one form of a reflexive practice, is an important component of transparency, rigor, and best practice in contemporary conservation science. In our own professional practices, however, we have found that guidance on how to produce positionality statements and maintain reflexivity throughout the lifecycle of research is too often lacking. In response, we build on existing literature and our own experience to offer a primer as a starting point to the practice of reflexivity. Rather than being prescriptive, we seek to demonstrate flexible approaches that researchers may consider when communicating reflexive practice to enhance research transparency. We explore the challenges and potential pitfalls in a reflexive practice and offer considerations and advice based on our collective professional experience.</p>","PeriodicalId":157,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Letters","volume":"17 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.7,"publicationDate":"2024-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/conl.13047","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142138424","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}