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25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 production were also recorded to enable estimates of reproductive output, seedling production and growth rates determined over successive years. Initial metapopulation models will be presented based on the field data. 2011-12-06 16:54 Understanding Needs to more fully integrate ecosystem-based management into the seafood industry Short, K.M*, Imperial College; Milner-Gulland, E.J, Imperial College; Agnew, D, MRAG; Martin, D, Seaweb; The 1992 collapse of Newfoundland cod alerted those who care about the future of marine fisheries internationally to act. Since then this international community, in government and non-government organisations, the fishing industry, academia and beyond, have developed policies, management systems, fishing techniques, closed areas, independent ecolabelling schemes and even new responsible sourcing policies to enable improvement. Ecosystem-based management is a widely accepted policy and operational approach underpinning this fisheries improvement. However, obstacles to its effective implementation exist such as a gulf between the science of marine conservation and fisheries management and the need for new tools to empower the seafood sector. Through experience, a focused literature review and a targeted questionnaire of a cross section of stakeholders, this study charts the uptake of the ecosystem-based approach and assesses the perspectives and needs of a range of stakeholders in applying it. It seeks to understand how to address these obstacles so that those with the power to influence change can be further engaged and empowered to bring about greater marine conservation outcomes. 2011-12-08 18:30 Variation in baseline corticosterone levels of Tree sparrow (Passer montanus) populations along an urban gradient in Beijing , China Shuping Zhang*, Minzu university of China; Rapid urbanization is a major anthropogenic pressure on bird species that rely on vegetation for food and shelter. Since the baseline corticosterone concentration (BCC) in some bird species has been found to increase slightly in response to environmental challenges, we hypothesized that urbanization could also induce an increase in BCC. To test this hypothesis we compared the BCC of Tree sparrow populations in five urban and two rural habitats and analyzed the relationship between BCC and the degree of urbanization. Here we show that the BCCs of Tree sparrow populations were strongly and positively correlated with the degree of urbanization of the habitat. Average BCC of sparrows from high-rise residential areas and a university campus were significantly higher than those from rural areas, suggesting that Tree sparrows living in highly urbanized areas have greater environmental challenges than those in rural areas. However, the average BCC of birds from an urban park was not significantly different to that of birds at rural sites and also differed significantly from that of birds at two of the other urban sites. These results suggest that urbanization could pose environmental challenges for Tree sparrows, a species that appears relatively well-adapted to humanmodified environments. The marked variation in BCC between different urban sites indicates that conclusions drawn from data collected at single sites must be interpreted with caution. 2011-12-09 17:45 Efficacy of field data for calculating emissions reductions from above and below ground in a miombo dry land Forest Sibanda, M*, Geography Dept., University of Cambridge ; Kapos, V, UNEP WCMC, Cambridge; Miles, L, UNEP WCMC, Cambridge; Coomes, D, Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge ; Climate Change is the major development and environmental challenge of the 21st Century. Forests provide a cost effective means of sequestering carbon. Despite this an estimated 17% of global emissions come from forest degradation and deforestation. Poor forest stewardship, agriculture and other land use changes are the reasons for this. Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) has emerged as an attractive proposal encouraging emissions reduction and carbon sequestration (conservation, management and enhancement of carbon stocks). National REDD+ plans and pilot projects have been developed in various developing countries. A key challenge for REDD+ from the onset is the accuracy and affordability of measuring, verifying and reporting baseline and subsequent emissions reductions (ERs) from above ground and below ground carbon sequestration. This research focuses on the efficacy of using field data to calculate carbon values instead of using IPCC default values for soil, below ground biomass and or above ground carbon. The difference of using local or regional values for biomass and /or soil using field data from Zambia. Zambia is a UN-REDD country and its miombo dryland forests also occurs in eleven countries in southern Africa. The policy implications of this will be explored. 2011-12-06 15:00 A new way of promoting wildlife conservation among Dutch municipalities: benchmarking urban bird habitats Sierdsema, H.*, SOVON Dutch Centre for Field Ornithology; Louwe Kooijmans, L.H. , Birdlife Netherlands; Kwak, R.G.M., Birdlife Netherlands; Birds are an important indicator for the quality of life in urban areas. Citizens enjoy birds in their neighbourhoods and often spend time and money to facilitate bird survival and reproduction in their gardens. However, ‘public green’ areas may, due to their size and habitat type, contribute more to urban birds than the green in private gardens. Municipalities, responsible for the public green, are therefore an important party to address urban bird conservation. Birdlife Netherlands & SOVON have developed the ‘Urban Bird Indicator’, in order to facilitate the use of bird data as indicators for the habitat quality of urban areas. This indicator consists of two parts: information on trends of urban birds and a benchmark function. The benchmark compares counts of birds in a specific urban area with reference values. Through point count schemes, both in the breeding season and winter, data is collected on bird occurrence. Citizens can easily join the program by counting their own neighborhood. These observations are benchmarked with reference values for a range of urban habitats like city centres, housing estates (varying in age and openness), urban parks and industrial areas. The benchmark provides not only insight at the species level, but also at the level of ecological guilds. Information on the habitat requirements of the species and guilds is then used to provide the municipality with clear guidelines for the conservation of urban birds and habitats. 2011-12-09 11:45 Land-use change in the face of global climate change: a win-win solution for the environment and farming communities of the Eastern Cape, South Africa Sigwela, A.M.*, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University; Cowling, R.M.C., Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University; Mills, A.M., Stellenbosch University; Marais, C., Department of Environment Affairs Climate change and variability is already affecting Africa, although it affects different countries differently. The Eastern Cape Province in South Africa is typically vulnerable to droughts accompanied by high losses of livestock to farmers. Climate forecast and climate change scenarios predict more severe and frequent pattern of such drought. Yet contingency planning for adaptation to climate change has not shown significant progress. In 2010 this province experienced the worse drought in 130 years, such that the government declared some areas “drought disaster areas”. Many of these areas fall in the heartland of the Subtropical Thicket, a “stunted forest” vegetation with high levels of endemism. Thicket has been shown to be a relic of ancient vegetation types and has survived various climatic changes through geological periods. Its adaptation mechanism is its ability to maintain a constant microclimate in the under-canopy environment. Due to humaninduced vegetation degradation, the opening of the thicket canopy alters its microclimatic environment, and that leads to cascading degradation effects. The Natural Resource Management Programmes then administered by the Department of Water Affairs (now Department of Environment Affairs) initiated the Subtropical Thicket Restoration Program in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. This program is providing information on opportunities for landowners to convert from pastoral farming, which, if poorly managed, is the key driver of degradation, to farming for carbon by re-establishing indigenous vegetation on degraded land. In return for planting trees and sequestering carbon from the atmosphere, carbon credits can be earned and sold on the carbon exchanges of developing nations. The species used is Portulacaria afra, an indigenous leaf and stem succulent tree that demonstrates exceptional efficiency in drier, xeric, environments. It is highly adapted with its unique, water efficient system whereby it can switch between CAM and C3 photosynthetic pathways. Its excellent method of carbon sequestration makes P. afra not only an excellent carbon pump and ecosystem stabilizer, but also an important provider of forage for herbivores. Furthermore, it can be established from cuttings without the need for watering. Although there is growing interest in this change in land-use from pastoral operations to 154
25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 carbon farming, landowners are still watchful and somewhat skeptical of entering the market because of the considerable uncertainties and the large investment costs needed. Although this program is the first of its kind in South Africa, it is successful in raising awareness about climate change and variability not only amongst rural communities of the Eastern Cape, but also among the higher echelons of government. The initial phase of this project has been able to demonstrate the value of this activity and potential entry into the carbon trade, although private landowners need to weigh up costs against expected returns. Even if carbon credits are earned only after the carbon has been sequestrated, the short-term valuable advantage of this land-use change is in converting dysfunctional degraded landscapes into healthy ecosystems. In rehabilitated ecosystems the capture of carbon comes with a host of other benefits such as improved soil conditions (both in terms of soil carbon and soil temperature), increased topsoil and filtration rates (therefore reduced soil erosion) and improved potential for successive natural rehabilitation. The additional returns in rehabilitated ecosystems include altering dysfunctional systems to those where simultaneous income opportunities can be ensured, e.g. medicinal plants, tourism, game farming, and bee keeping. This project is successful in showing, not only the recovery of biodiversity of degraded ecosystems but also improved socio-economic conditions of local communities through job creation. The rehabilitation program is aligned with the government’s poverty alleviation program. To date more than 2000 ha of land has been planted with P. afra cuttings with an average of $1500 per ha. This money is earned by communities that are employed in this program. The plan is to plant about 10 000 ha in the next 10 years which can be translated into millions of dollars which will accrue to local communities. This income is even before the financial returns that could be earned by the sale of carbon credits. This project demonstrates the full potential of the green economy by aligning climate change projects with poverty alleviation programs. 2011-12-09 12:00 Soil microbes as a restoration tool to improve degraded landscapes Sikes, BA*, University of Texas at Austin; Soil biota can play critical roles in ecosystem functioning and resilience to disturbances such as invasions. Manipulations of soil biota may provide a novel pathway to achieve aboveground results, and have the potential to substantially broaden our conservation and restoration toolkit. I will present early results from an experiment using amendments of different groups of soil fungi to enhance restoration of degraded Florida scrublands including invaded pastures and disturbed native scrub. Thus far, soil microbes have important consequences for germination of several native plant species and these effects can differ based on the origin of the fungi added. We also incorporated a conventional restoration treatment (herbicide) which appears to interact with fungal additions to affect plants. Apart from plant effects, we are examining how microbial amendments alter soil nutrients and the invasion (or re-invasion) of these sites. Our preliminary data shows the potential for native soil microbe amendments to alter plantsoil feedbacks and change the outcome of plant germination. Our goal is to create a predictive framework for the use of native soil microbes by incorporating microbial ecology with traditional ecology and management. Because microorganisms dominate our own bodies and the many biological systems we hope to maintain, incorporating them into our science can provide a foundational link between human and ecosystem health. 2011-12-06 11:00 Translocation of Island Scrub-Jays to Santa Rosa Is., California: an Opportunity for Proactive Species Management and the Restoration of an Insular Ecosystem Sillett, TS*, Smithsonian Institution; Royle, JA, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center; Chandler, R, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center; Bakker, VJ, James Madison University; Kéry, M, Swiss Ornithological Institute; Morrison, SA, The Nature Conservancy; Aphelocoma insularis currently exists only on Santa Cruz Island in Channel Islands National Park (CINP), and with a total population size < 3000, is one of the rarest birds in North American. Here, we present a conservation framework for the reintroduction of A. insularis to nearby Santa Rosa Island (SRI) in CINP. Recent evidence suggests that scrub-jays existed on SRI into the late 1800s and were likely extirpated by widespread destruction of vegetation by sheep. Although some vegetation has recovered since sheep were removed in the 1950s, hundreds of non-native deer and elk minimize regeneration of chaparral habitat. After all ungulates are removed in 2011, the regeneration of SRI would be hastened by A. insularis, which through their acorn and seed caching behavior are important ecosystem engineers. Re-establishing A. insularis on SRI would also increase population size and hence species viability. Based on a hierarchical model for predicting habitat-specific abundance of A. insularis, we estimate that SRI could support a small but viable population of jays now, and a population of several thousand when native vegetation has fully recovered. 2011-12-09 10:34 Incipient, but efficient? Ecological outcomes of fishers’ involvement in co-management of floodplain lakes in the Tocantins River, Brazilian Amazon Silvano, RAM*, Dep. Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Hallwass, G, Pós-graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Lopes, PF, Depto. Botânica, Ecologia e Zoologia, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil; Juras, AA, Centrais Elétricas do Norte do Brasil S.A - Eletronorte, Brasília, DF, Brazil; Ribeiro, AR, Dep. Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Lima, RP, Dep. Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo; Begossi, A, Fisheries and Food Institute (FIFO), ECOMAR, UNISANTA and Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Campinas, SP, Brazil; We addressed the ecological outcomes of fisheries co-management in the impounded Lower Tocantins River (Brazilian Amazon). We analyzed 590 fish landings (6.7 t of fish) from five fishing communities, plus 48 fish samples using gillnets (10,378 fish from 101 species) in 12 floodplain lakes (three per region) in four regions: two not managed, one informally managed (by fishers) and one formally co-managed (limited governmental support). The mean number of fish and the mean fish species richness did not differ among regions, but lakes of the two managed regions had higher mean fish biomass (2.5 ± 1.5 and 3.2 ± 3.4 g x m2 gillnets -1 x h -1) and larger fish (23 ± 4 and 18.3 ± 3 cm). Lakes in the two managed regions showed also a higher mean proportion of reproductive fish (44.7 ± 0.4 and 41.2 ± 7.7 %) during the high water season: local fishers acknowledged the importance of these lakes to fish spawning. Fishers from two communities with managed lakes had a higher mean catch per unit of effort (CPUE) (1.4 ± 1.6 and 1.5 ± 2.3 kg x fisher -1 x h -1) and the lakes showed a higher mean CPUE (1.3 ± 2 kg x fisher -1 x h -1) than other aquatic habitats. The studied co-management systems have thus provided positive ecological (fish abundance) and economic (fish catches) outcomes, by protecting a critical fish habitat (floodplain lakes). Despite their importance in large rivers impacted by impoundment and fishing pressure, these local initiatives may go unnoticed and risk to be disrupted. 2011-12-08 18:30 Cherry-picking parrots: can the field of ecoimmunology help managers to select individuals for release programs? Simon Tollington*, DICE, University of Kent; Jim Groombridge, DICE, University of Kent; Carl Jones, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Mauritian Wildlife Foundation; Andrew Greenwood, Wildlife Vets International; Many populations of endangered species require some form of human intervention to ensure survival and viability. Species which have recovered from severe population bottlenecks are likely to suffer inbreeding depression owing to low numbers of founder individuals. Loss of genetic diversity has been shown to decrease individual fitness and immune function efficiency, putting many of these species at risk from disease. Many studies of avian eco-immunology employ a single measure of immune function as an indicator of an individual’s overall immunocompetence. In contrast, we sample a free-living, recovered population of Mauritius parakeets to (i) simultaneously assess individual innate cellular and humoral immune function performance using several methods, (ii) confirm individual parasite prevalence and (iii) calculate individual inbreeding coefficients in order to determine relationships between inbreeding, immunocompetence and disease. Preliminary data suggest that individuals from remnant populations are more immunocompetent and display fewer parasitic infections than those from intensively-managed, released populations. In addition, meteorological data suggests that rainfall during the hatching period has an effect on nestling immunocompetence. The results from 155
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Page 189 and 190: Index Benini, Rubens 42 Beniston, M
Page 191 and 192: Index DeWan, Amielle 14 Dianne Brun
Page 193 and 194: Index Hilborn, Ray 27 Hill, CM 176
Page 195 and 196: Index Loutit, R. 116 Louwe Kooijman
Page 197 and 198: Index Ottewell, K 81 Overton, J 61,
Page 199 and 200: Index Sequeira, Ana 151 Serebryakov
Page 201 and 202: Index Winandy, L 181 Winner, J. 112
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