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25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 2011-12-07 18:00 Orang-utan persistence under global change requires a multi-faceted conservation strategy Stephen D. Gregory*, The Environment Institute and School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia; Damien A. Fordham, The Environment Institute and School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia; Benoit Goossens, Biodiversity and Ecological Processes Group, Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, United Kingdom & Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sabah, Malaysia; Marc Ancrenaz, Kinabatangan Orang-utan Conservation Project, Sabah, Malaysia; Alfred Raymond, Borneo Conservation Trust; Laurentius Ambu, Sabah Wildlife Department, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia; Barry W. Brook, The Environment Institute and School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia; Major threats to globally endangered Malaysian orangutans, including habitat degradation and fires, have caused an estimated 50% decline in their population over the last 60 years. Most remaining populations now live outside wildlife sanctuaries, in lowland forests exploited for timber production or remnant patches in a matrix of agricultural land. Forecast climate change is predicted to amplify these threats by increasing fire frequency and intensity. Using aerial nest counts collected over 8 years (2002-2010) together with expert advice and the most up-to-date climate and landscape spatial data, we coupled species distribution models and stage-structured, spatially explicit population models to examine the effect of land use and climate change and different conservation strategies on the persistence of orangutan populations in the Malaysian province of Sabah. We assessed model performance using data from independent aerial nest surveys collected by a different protocol. By comparing scenarios, we show that land use change and changing fire frequency threaten to drive orangutan population declines. Their long-term persistence will require a multi-faceted conservation strategy that expands habitat availability through carefully planned and managed land purchasing initiatives. 2011-12-07 11:15 Winter migration patterns and habitat use by adult northern fur seals: filling in gaps to aid conservation and management of a declining species Sterling, JT*, (1) National Marine Mammal Laboratory, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115; Springer AM, (2) Institute of Marine Science, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Box 757220, Fairbanks, AK, 99775 ; Iverson SJ, (3) Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, B3H4J1; Johnson SP, (4) Johnson Veterinary Service, 8402 Quail Canyon RD, Vacaville, CA 95688; Pelland N, (5) School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Box 357940, Seattle, WA 98195-7940 ; Johnson DS, (1) N a t i o n a l Marine Mammal Laboratory, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115; The northern fur seal (NFS, Callorhinus ursinus) population in Alaska is declining and information on winter migration patterns will help aid conservation efforts and management goals. A critical gap in our knowledge is understanding how and why adult males and females utilize different winter migratory habitats during their eight-month hiatus from breeding sites. This study investigated migratory movements, behavior, and habitat characteristics of adult males and females by deploying five satellite-linked conductivity, temperature, and depth data loggers on adult male NFS, and six satellite-dive recorders and four satellite transmitters on adult female NFS on St. Paul I. (Pribilof Is.) during October 2009. Initial dispersal from St. Paul I. occurred between 25 October and 23 November, with most animals departing within a 10-day period. Dispersal patterns, winter foraging habitats and diving behavior differed between sexes. Environmental determinants, such as winter cyclones, upwelling features, mixed-layer depth and lunar cycle explained some of the movement and diving variability. We speculate that as winter winds intensify, fur seal prey fields deepen and become dispersed leading females to migrate farther south and east to more accessible prey fields while males, because of their larger size and physiological capabilities, can remain in regions farther north and exploit prey below the surface mixed layer. 2011-12-07 11:45 Citizen Involvement in Urban Biodiversity Conservation - opportunities and obstacles in New Zealand Stewart, G*, Lincoln University; Meurk, C, Landcare Research; There are hundreds of community conservation groups in New Zealand cities. These may involve stream-care, legal trusts that manage million dollar predator-fenced parks, pest control, planting, nature walking and political lobbying. Indigenous peoples, with special relationships to the land are often carrying out projects on their tribal areas. Many groups work in partnership with local government who provide tools, plants and financial grants. This is generally in line with policies to support local action as opposed to regulation and council-led action. In some few cases a body corporate of a subdivision may have to carry out certain environmental management - by local residents or through commercial contractors. Obstacles arise from natural/intrinsic factors, community value conflicts or bureaucratic failures. The main natural barriers result from New Zealand’s idiosyncratic biogeography and vulnerability of its ancient and/or depauperate biota to introduced competitors and predators. Secondly, not all members of the community want to see their city dominated by indigenous species and often the supportive silent majority is not as visible or influential as the few angry knockers. Some council’s fail to recognise this dynamic and have inadequate consultation processes. Nevertheless, the number of conservation groups continues to grown and there are endless opportunities to enhance nature through pest control, tree planting, weeding and education. 2011-12-06 10:45 Measuring effectiveness of law enforcement in reducing threats to wild tigers and their prey: improving the interpretation of patrol-based data Stokes, EJ*, Wildlife Conservation Society; Burn, RW, University of Reading; Underwood, FM, University of Reading; Wild tigers are in a critical state with numbers at an historical low of 3,200. Poaching of tigers for their commercial value, and of their prey are major limiting factors in the tigers’ recovery. Anti-poaching patrols (APP) are one of the principal means of controlling poaching. Given the limited resources available for tiger conservation it is vitally important to monitor the effectiveness of conservation measures. In 2007, standardized data collection protocols for APP were established in key tiger sites to evaluate and improve enforcement: APP rangers collect data on poaching encounters as well as details of the patrol. Whilst these data can be routinely and cheaply collected they present a considerable challenge to traditional statistical methods. We present guidelines for designing patrol-based data collection programs and introduce new analytical tools that will enable the use of patrol data to provide robust measures of the impact and effectiveness of APP. Through case-studies from tiger sites, we illustrate how these tools can address key problems in patrol data, including a lack of randomness, variation in patrol effort and a lack of independence between APP and the process being monitored. Finally, we highlight the potential application of these tools for evaluating current global efforts to recover tigers, and, more broadly, for any conservation situation employing patrol-based interventions. 2011-12-07 11:30 High Conservation Value Forest Assessments in Boreal Canada Strittholt, JR*, Conservation Biology Institute; The boreal region of Canada has been the focus of numerous High Conservation Value Forest (HCVF) assessments. With much of the biome relatively intact, Canada offers unique opportunities and challenges in assessing and implementing the HCVF concept. Not only is HCVF fundamental to forest certification throughout Canada, it has also become an important component of the historic Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement with the main impetus of this agreement being the protection of woodland caribou throughout Canada. Taking advantage of the web-based Boreal Information Centre and newly launched Forest Stewardship Council Gateway, many of the foundational spatial datasets supporting HCVF assessments and case study results are readily available to users via the Internet. These two online resources with examples of data, case studies, and basic system functionality will be reviewed. 162
25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 2011-12-08 18:30 Wildfire effect on an endangered island bird: The case of the Gran Canaria blue chaffinch (Fringilla teydea polatzeki) Suárez, NM*, Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, E-35080 Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain; Betancor, E, Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, E-35080 Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain; Fregel, R, Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, E-35080 Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain; Rodríguez, F, Biodiversity Service, Gobierno de Canarias, Edf. Servicios Múltiples II, 4ª planta, E-35071 Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain; Pestano, J, Departamento de Genética, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, E-35080 Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain; Habitat destruction is identified as the main threat to biodiversity. Among all factors causing habitat disturbance, wildfire is recognized as one of the most important ecological forces that influences not only the physical environment but also the structure and composition of floral and faunal communities. These processes are often translated in population bottlenecks, which occur frequently in threatened species and result in loss of genetic diversity and evolutionary potential. In this study, we analyzed the genetic consequences of demographic bottleneck produced by a forest fire that reduced the population of the endangered blue chaffinch which inhabits the island of Gran Canaria (Fringilla teydea polatzeki) to approximately 122 individuals. Analysis of nine microsatellite loci revealed that, while a decline in census was observed during the bottleneck, there was no observed excess of heterozygosity nor evidence in decline in allelic richness, two characteristic bottleneck signatures. On the contrary, we observed that the Gran Canaria blue chaffinch has retained significant levels of genetic diversity and show no evidence for inbreeding depression either before or after the bottleneck. The results from this study have important implications for the conservation of this endangered subspecies and provide insight concerning management strategies to prevent its extinction. 2011-12-08 18:30 Mate Choice and Population Structure of the Water Toad (Bufo stejnegeri) in South Korea Suk, Chamoon*, Seoul National University; Water toads (Bufo stejnegeri) are an unusual, peculiar species of toad that are found in Korea and northeastern China. As their name suggests, they are highly aquatic, very unlike other species of toads. Although the species has a wide distribution in Asia, its status within Korea is unclear. The toads appear rare, confined to limited ranges in eastern Gyeonggi-do and Gangwon-do. They are found in woodland riparian areas, at elevations from 200 to 700 metres. The toads form breeding pairs in the autumn, and overwinter amplexed in streams covered by ice, apparently ready to oviposit early in the spring. The water toad is typically nocturnal but is also active during the day during summer rains. I am studying their mate choice, population structure, and MHC variation in relation to disease resistance. My research should provide more accurate information about the toad’s natural history and susceptibility to disease that should contribute to the development of management strategies that will protect this species. 2011-12-08 10:30 Building an integrated platform for projecting and monitoring persistence of wildlife populations faced with roads and traffic Sunnucks, P*, Monash University; Taylor, AC, Monash University; Amos, N, Monash University; van der Ree, R, Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology, Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne; Molecular ecology as a discipline was born around 20 years ago. It makes contributions to the most effective approaches to tackle some of the most important and difficult issues in ecology such as population connectivity, demography and evolutionary change, and is increasingly efficient and useful. However, it has been surprisingly difficult to achieve substantial uptake in ecology and environmental management, including in road ecology. It seems likely that the molecular population biology community has not managed to make it sufficiently understood what the field has to offer in terms of outputs, costs and benefits. But we can make a new start: recent developments in two major areas are causing a second wave of rapid increase in the utility and cost-effectiveness of molecular population biology approaches: population modelling, and genomics fuelled by new DNA sequencing technologies. We consider the example of the challenges and potential approaches to arguably the most important yet difficult question in ecological management: how to project and monitor population persistence, with particular emphasis on wildlife populations faced with roads and traffic. I conclude that we can and should build an integrated platform that can deliver rapid, cost-effective solutions to applied problems in ecology. 2011-12-08 10:30 Ownership, poverty alleviation and conservation: the dolphin-watching industry in Chilika lagoon, India Sutaria, D*, Foundation for Ecological Research, Advocacy and Learning; Marsh, H, James Cook University; Globally, wildlife tourism is emerging as a significant human-animal interaction, often directed towards income generation. Transforming such tourism into a conservation tool is a serious challenge. Chilika lagoon, India harbors a small population of Irrawaddy dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris). People (~200,000) from 142 villages, mainly fishers, depend on the lagoon’s resources for multiple needs. In 1986, local fishers initiated a dolphinwatching industry in the Outer channel (30sqkm) of the lagoon. The tourist fleet of 450 boats serves as a source of alternative income. In order to identify opportunities for conservation, we assessed fishers /’touristboat operators’ perceptions towards dolphins and their socio-economic well-being by conducting 400 semi-structured interviews in 44 villages, analyzed tourist log-book data between 2004 and 2006, and conducted 65 questionnaires. The interviews reveal a direct dependency between local communities and dolphin tourism that mimics the strength of their linkage to fishing. We demonstrate that proximity of village to dolphin hotspots; tourist-boat ownership, and age positively influence individual perceptions towards dolphins. Interestingly, growth of the local tourism has been selflimiting, due to conflicts over ownership and access to fishing areas and dolphin hotspots. Our results underline the importance of understanding local socio-political processes and incorporating them into conservation planning of endangered species. 2011-12-07 11:30 Can we construct a comprehensive marine reserve system just using environmental domains? Sutcliffe, P.R.*, University of Queensland; Klein, C.J., University of Queensland; Possingham, H.P., University of Queensland; In many instances around the world, knowledge of marine systems is limited and the cost of data is high. Therefore, for the design of systems of marine reserves, we need to know whether more readily available data is enough for comprehensive and representative reserve system design. Here we used environmental data, collated at a 0.01 degree resolution, to develop environmental domains on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Then we developed a reserve system based on these environmental domains, using Marxan. We tested the representation of biological features collected at 1189 sites from the Great Barrier Reef seabed in this reserve system. We found that 411 out of 842 species reached their conservation target using this environmental domain approach, and only 152 species were under half their target. This supports the use of environmental domains to develop reasonable reserve systems where biological data is limited, that could be modified later as more data is assembled. 2011-12-08 18:30 Tourist perception of the 2010 coral bleaching event in Mu Koh Chang, Thailand Sutthacheep, M*, Ramkhamhaeng University; Pengsakun, S, Ramkhamhaeng University; Klinthong, W, Ramkhamhaeng University; Sangmanee, K, Ramkhamhaeng University; The severe mass coral reef bleaching event in 2010 has led to coral mortality in the Gulf of Thailand. The present study aimed to assess socio-economic impacts and tourist perceptions of the 2010 coral bleaching event in Mu Koh Chang, the eastern Gulf of Thailand, based on questionnaire surveys, secondary data sources and interviews of key informants. The survey revealed that 52% of Thai tourists interviewed were aware of the 2010 coral reef bleaching event. About 69% of tourists in the sample were their first SCUBA diving/snorkeling at Mu Koh Chang and they mentioned that the diving was as good as they expected before coming to the islands. Only 9% of tourists who have visited Mu Koh Chang before said that 163
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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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