Conservation collaboration in the western Indian Ocean
The workshop brought together marine biodiversity, conservation planning, and spatial analysis experts.
Conservation collaboration in the western Indian Ocean
Genes and geography
Species that are threatened with extinction usually exist in small
numbers and occur in groups that are often isolated from each
other. Central to conservation planning is the effort to maximise
representation and persistence of biodiversity at minimum cost.
The great majority of plans, however, only focus on representation.
Of ecological disturbance and genetic diversity
Using genetic info to better manage biodiversity in a changing world Environmental disturbances range from big events like bushfires, floods and volcanic eruptions to more mundane processes like a boulder being turned over on wave-pounded rocky shore. Ecologists have long realised that disturbance underpins the dynamics and diversity of many of the ecosystems of the […]
Burning questions for black cockatoos
The gregarious Carnaby’s cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris) are such a common sight in Perth that it is easy to forget they are endangered, and that the urban and agricultural expansion of south-western Australia has removed the bulk of their habitat. How we manage their remaining habitat will have important consequences for the species’ survival.
Balancing species numbers and phylogenetic diversity
Which ‘books’ do you save as the library of life burns? The global extinction crisis shows no signs of abating, and conservation funding falls far short of what is necessary to stop declines in biodiversity. Thus, either implicitly or explicitly, conservation agencies engage in prioritization; they try to use their limited resources to maximize achievable […]
Genes in a fragmented habitat
Animals don’t move across landscapes at random, and the way in which they disperse has important implications for the dynamics of populations in fragmented habitat. There are a number of ways in which we can use genetic data to improve our understanding of dispersal in fragmented ecosystems.
Incorporating genetic data into conservation plans
Although evolutionary processes underpin the patterns of biodiversity we see, it is uncommon for resource managers to explicitly consider genetic data in conservation prioritization. Genetic information is inherently relevant to management because it describes genetic diversity, population connectedness, and evolutionary history. This provides valuable insights on behavioural traits, climate tolerance, evolutionary potential, and dispersal ability.
What price security?
EDG’s James Watson and colleagues are calling for a fundamental step change in funding, planning and enforcement of our protected areas (Watson et al, 2014). Not only are we falling behind meeting the Aichi targets we all signed up for (see Decision Point #83), our existing protected area estate is being degraded across the developed and […]
Lizards, fire and genes
Fire mosaics are often maintained in landscapes to promote successional diversity in vegetation. However, there is little understanding of how this will affect ecological processes in animal populations such as dispersal and social organization.
Taboo and other ‘t’-words
Whatever you to, don’t mention the ‘t’-word! Why? Because the moment you do (and the ‘t’ word is ‘triage’) someone will respond by asking you: “So, if you’re a supporter of TRIAGE, which species are you prepared to give up on?”
Down for the count
“The iconic Carnaby’s black cockatoo may die out in the Perth region within 15 years, a report has found, prompting calls for the state and federal governments to protect remaining habitats. The 2014 Great Cocky Count report by Birdlife Australia and Western Australia’s Department of Parks and Wildlife estimated the current rate of decline in […]
Cultivating our next generation of environmental leaders
Forbes Magazine contributor Kevin Kruse recently defined leadership
as “a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others,
towards the achievement of a goal.” (Forbes.com 2013). This broad
definition matches the aim of the new environmental leadership
program being implemented by the EDG. The program has been titled:
empowering leadership for impact.
Conservation talk in Oceania
Pacific Islanders, and the environments they live in, face some of the most pressing conservation challenges on the globe. These include habitat loss (due to logging), land clearance, over-harvesting, overfishing, invasive species, pollution, climate change, rising sea levels and extreme weather events. In an effort to constructively engage with these challenges, the 2014 Conference of the Society for Conservation Biology (Oceania section) was held in Fiji in July this year. The event brought together a wide range of scientists and conservation practitioners working across the whole spectrum of theory and practice.
A new list to frame biodiversity conservation
Much of the debate on declining biodiversity has been framed around disappearing species. A new IUCN Red List promises to enlarge this debate to take ecosystems into account and CEED researchers have made several important contributions to its development. The status of threatened species is but one facet of the conservation problem of declining biodiversity. Scientists have become increasingly concerned about the ecosystems and their processes that support species, their interactions and environment. What we have long needed is a Red List of Ecosystems, and last year the IUCN (the International Union for the Conservation of Nature) delivered one.