Abstracts available here - Society for Conservation Biology

More documents

Recommendations

Info

25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 people’ while ‘connecting landscapes’: a framing intended to engage and inspire a commitment to conservation through creating a positive narrative that places small-scale interventions in a larger landscape context. This framing demonstrates the power of a science-based concept that can bridge normative and scientific domains to create a space for meaningful action at the local scale. Using qualitative social research examining two large landscape conservation initiatives in Australia and North America, this paper will explore how charismatic species, captivating visions and a crisis are being mobilised to create a shared imperative for collaboration. Charismatic narratives may embellish the purity of scientific concepts however they also play an important role in engaging diverse groups of people in the context of landscape scale science and action. 2011-12-09 12:30 Indigenous management and the ecological role of Andean peatlands (bofedales) in the context of global environmental change. Yager, KA*, Biospheric Sciences, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Tupayachi, A, Vargas Herbarium, UNSAAC ; Meneses, RI, National Herbarium of Bolivia and National Natural History Museum of Bolivia, , UMSA ; García, C, ECOBIOSIS, Universidad de Concepción; Beck, S, National Herbarium of Bolivia, UMSA; In the Andes of South America, bofedales (or high Andean peatlands) are fundamental to the traditional livelihoods of Andean pastoralists, in addition to providing numerous ecosystem services. In this presentation, we discuss the biology and ecological role of bofedales on a regional basis, including the intersection of water and soils that permit the formation of these unique vegetation communities, which support biodiversity, help to regulate hydrological resources, provide highly palatable and nutritious forage, and act as a carbon sink. We compare peatland characteristics (including species diversity, primary vegetation communities according to gradients of elevation and humidity, and total distribution) and local indigenous management (including irrigation, animal preference, and pasture sectoring) of bofedales in Southern Peru (Cordillera Vilcanota and Urubamba) and Bolivia (Cordillera Occidental and Oriental). Recent threats to the sustainability of bofedales are discussed, including the impacts of rapid climate change. As indigenous communities re-negotiate local management practices in the face of global change, the continued management of these integral mountain systems is increasingly challenged. In addition to securing enough pastures for future generations, the strategic conservation of bofedal systems will contribute to maintaining mountain biodiversity and water availability over the long-term as the Andes region is adversely and increasingly impacted by global environmental change. 2011-12-08 18:30 Effects of clam dredging on population density of the surf clam Paphia undulata in the eastern Gulf of Thailand Yeemin, T*, Ramkhamhaeng University; Saenghaisuk, C, Ramkhamhaeng University; Yuchareon, M, Ramkhamhaeng University; Donsomjit, W, Ramkhamhaeng University; Sutthacheep, M, Ramkhamhaeng University; The surf clam Paphia undulata is a commercially important species in Thai waters and has supported an offshore fishery in Thailand for several decades. The deleterious impact of clam dredging on the benthic environment has been documented at many fishing grounds. This study aimed to assess the effects of clam dredging on a soft sediment community, especially changes of population density of the surf clam P. undulata, in Trat Province, the eastern Gulf of Thailand. The survey in August 2010 revealed that the surf clam P. undulata was the most abundant species. The average population density was 10 individuals/m2 with an average size of 2.6 cm. Following the report of illegal clam fishing at the study sites, the intensive study on population density of macrobenthic animals was conducted. There were no P. undulata from the samplings. A few polychaetes and brittle stars were observed on the soft sediment community. At the moment surf clam stocks are overfished therefore it is vitally important that strict preservation of surf clams in the protected areas be taken into account in the fisheries management plan. This may be achieved by increasing efforts to enforce the laws and enhancing community empowerment. 2011-12-08 18:30 Community-let nest protection and Pagoda based head-starting of Cantor’s Soft-shell Turtle in Cambodia Yoeung, SUN*, Conservation International; Since 2007, a conservation team of endangered Asian Giant Soft-shell turtle Pelochelys cantorii from Conservation International, Cambodia have been working with local villagers living along Mekong River to conserve this rare species and its nest after the turtle was rediscovered in 2007. This species will be listed as Critically Endangered one soon because it is rare in the world. The turtle nests protection is focus on Cambodia Mekong River which from Sambor district in Kratie province to up stream. From 2007 to 2010, thirty turtle nests were protected by villagers with in total number of 616 hatchlings released back to their habitat successfully. In 2010-2011, the project is doing protection the nest as previous activities by giving some incentive to people to find and guard the turtle nests. So far 8 of 20 nests hatched with 238 hatchlings but 88 hatchlings were released back to their habitat and 150 hatchlings have being kept in CI office. Moreover, Conservation International and history 100 pillar pagoda has agreed to construct a turtle head-starting facility included re-build an old pond and a turtle facility in the pagoda ground to be used for feeding turtles for the purpose of eco-tourism for improvement of riparian people benefit and conservation dissemination of Cambodian turtle species especially P. cantorii. Also, we will train people about how to take care the turtle hatchlings in the facility. 2011-12-08 15:00 Cost-benefit analysis for international plant introductions under uncertainty Yokomizo, H*, National Institute for Environmental Studies; Possingham, HP, The University of Queensland; Hulme, PE, Lincoln University; Grice, AC, CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences; Buckley, YM, The University of Queensland; Worldwide, we rely on introduced plants for the essentials of human life; however, intentional plant introductions for commercial benefit have resulted in invaders with negative environmental, economic or social impacts. We argue that plant species of low expected economic value should be less acceptable for introduction than species of high economic value if their other traits are similar; however key traits such as likelihood of escape and costs of escape are often highly uncertain. We developed a cost-benefit analysis for determining plant introduction that incorporates probability of escape, expected economic costs after escape, expected commercial benefits, and the efficiency and cost of containment. We used a model to obtain optimal decisions for the introduction and containment of commercial plants while maximizing net benefit or avoiding losses. Optimal decisions for introduction and containment of commercial plants depended, not only on the probability of escape and subsequent costs incurred, but also on the anticipated commercial benefit, and the cost and efficiency of containment. When our objective is to maximize net benefit, increasing uncertainty in parameter values increased the likelihood of introduction; in contrast, if our objective is to avoid losses, more uncertainty decreased the likelihood of introduction. 2011-12-08 18:30 Habitat modification by an invasive alien grass reduces native food availability of a grasshopper species endemic to Japan Yoshioka, A*, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life-Sciences, The University of Tokyo; Kadoya, T, Environmental Biology Division, National Institute for Environmental Studies; Suda, S, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life-Sciences, The University of Tokyo; Washitani, I, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life-Sciences, The University of Tokyo; To examine the relative importance and interactions of trophic and nontrophic effects of plant invasions on herbivores, we investigated how the invasion of weeping lovegrass Eragrostis curvula impacted a threatened species, Eusphingonotus japonicus, a food generalist grasshopper endemic to gravelly floodplains with sparse vegetation in Japan. Field observations and laboratory experiments showed that the grasshopper fed mainly on herbs endemic to the gravelly floodplains, which were negatively impacted by the alien grass. The alien grass was not consumed as food. Field censuses also showed that the density of the grasshopper was positively correlated with the coverage of endemic herbs in a plot where weeping lovegrass was 182
25th International Congress for Conservation Biology • Auckland, New Zealand • 5-9 December 2011 not dominant. Dominance of the grass (i.e., habitat modification for E. japonicus) not only negatively affected the density of the habitat specialist grasshopper, but also weakened the positive relationship between the coverage of the endemic herbs and the density of the grasshopper. These results suggest that understanding of the interaction between non-trophic and trophic effects is essential to predict the impacts of plant invasions on herbivores. 2011-12-09 14:15 The Benefits of Augmented Gene Flow – Genetic rescue in the self-incompatible herb Rutidosis leptorrhynchoides Young, A.*, CANBR, CSIRO Plant Industry; Pickup, M., Deaprtment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto; Dudash, M., Department of Biology, University of Maryland; Loss of genetic variation and increased inbreeding are features of small, fragmented plant and animal populations and evidence for associated negative effects on individual fitness and population demography is accumulating. Despite this, examples of successful “rescue” of wild populations through addition of novel genetic material are still few. Selfincompatible plants are excellent targets for such genetic management approaches because of the direct link between genetic diversity at the selfincompatibility locus and population reproductive performance. Here we report results of a long-term study of the self-incompatible grassland plant Rutidosis leptorrhynchoides and explore the potential for genetic rescue in this species. Controlled-crossing experiments, marker-based analysis of mating and field-based demographic monitoring show that populations are mildly bi-parentally inbred and that those smaller than 200 flowering plants exhibit reproductive failure due to low S allele numbers. Population simulation modelling indicates that this translates into reduced population viability. In glasshouse experiments, inter-population pollinations have a higher probability of successful fertilisation than within-population crosses in small populations, but not in large ones, and there is some evidence that they result in increased progeny fitness. In contrast, field-based pollen augmentation experiments show that increases in the reproductive performance of small populations, and the fitness of resulting progeny, are modest and variable. While not an ecological panacea, genetic rescue to restore reproductive function can form an effective part of population recovery strategies for self-incompatible plants. 2011-12-07 14:08 Science and elephant management decisions in South Africa Young, K.D.*, Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria; van Aarde, R.J., Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria; Conservation resources are often limited. Conservation management decisions should therefore be evidence-based and rely on scientific information. However, most conservation managers rely on experiencedbased information for management decisions. In South Africa, government policy directs elephant managers to base their decisions on the best available scientific information. This is because elephant management considerations there are complex. While elephants are an iconic conservation species, increasing elephant numbers may have negative impacts on biodiversity. We interviewed 30 managers from small to large protected areas in South Africa to evaluate whether science underpinned strategic and applied elephant management decisions. Further we evaluated manager’s perspectives regarding limitations and opportunities for greater reliance on science. We found that although managers valued science, most managers based decisions on experience-based information. Only 28%, 30% and 8% of managers respectively developed objectives, identified issues and selected management methods on science-based information. Furthermore, only 30% selected a desired number of elephants, and 5% selected a population control method, according to science-based information. Limitations included a lack of relevance and application of science findings to respective management areas, and scientists’ attitudes and credibility. Opportunities included more site specific studies, better communication and easier access to scientific material. Implementing these opportunities could close the implementation gap between science and elephant management by enabling scientists to contribute more effectively to elephant management decisions. Furthermore, they may improve the reliance on science among the wider community of conservation practitioners in Africa. 2011-12-09 18:15 The persecuted alpine parrot, kea (Nestor notabilis), is an essential seed disperser for alpine plants Young, L.M*, University of Canterbury; Kelly, D, University of Canterbury; Nelson, X.J, University of Canterbury; Globally, bird species and numbers of individual birds continue to decline, with potentially serious flow-on effects on ecosystem processes, such as seed dispersal. Numbers of the world’s only mountain parrot, the New Zealand kea (Nestor notabilis), have declined drastically over the last 120 years due to a period of intense official persecution, where an estimated 150,000 individuals were legally culled so that now
Page 1 and 2:
ABSTRACTS 25th International Congre
Page 3 and 4:
25th International Congress for Con
Page 5 and 6:
Page 7 and 8:
Page 9 and 10:
Page 11 and 12:
Page 13 and 14:
Page 15 and 16:
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
Page 37 and 38:
Page 39 and 40:
Page 41 and 42:
Page 43 and 44:
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
Page 51 and 52:
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60:
Page 61 and 62:
Page 63 and 64:
Page 65 and 66:
Page 67 and 68:
Page 69 and 70:
Page 71 and 72:
Page 73 and 74:
Page 75 and 76:
Page 77 and 78:
Page 79 and 80:
Page 81 and 82:
Page 83 and 84:
Page 85 and 86:
Page 87 and 88:
Page 89 and 90:
Page 91 and 92:
Page 93 and 94:
Page 95 and 96:
Page 97 and 98:
Page 99 and 100:
Page 101 and 102:
Page 103 and 104:
Page 105 and 106:
Page 107 and 108:
Page 109 and 110:
Page 111 and 112:
Page 113 and 114:
Page 115 and 116:
Page 117 and 118:
Page 119 and 120:
Page 121 and 122:
Page 123 and 124:
Page 125 and 126:
Page 127 and 128:
Page 129 and 130:
Page 131 and 132:
Page 133 and 134: 25th International Congress for Con
Page 183: 25th International Congress for Con
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
show all

Abstracts available here - Society for Conservation Biology

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?