Adaptive Management Framework Research Articles

Toward Programmable DOCSIS 4.0 Networks: Adaptive Modulation in OFDM Channels

The sixth generation of DOCSIS standard is currently under development for the provisioning of multi-Gbps services over cable networks. Building upon DOCSIS 3.1 (D3.1), DOCSIS 4.0 (D4) introduces several features including full-duplex transmission and extended-spectrum, which benefit from subcarrier-level OFDM modulation configurations to adapt to varying channel conditions. To exploit the full potential of D4, we propose a softwarized adaptive subcarrier modulation management framework. The optimization system consists of (i) a clustering mechanism that classifies CMs (Cable Modems) with a similar channel condition into the same group using a sparsified K-means algorithm and (ii) an efficient profile generation mechanism to balance achieved channel throughput and packet error rate within the same group. Then, we implement key elements of the softwarized system using a virtualized network function in our DOCSIS experimental testbed that enables the programmatic control of OFDM channels using D4 performance parameters. Our experimental results show that the proposed optimization function offers significant improvements in OFDM channel throughput over current industry management practices. Furthermore, we confirm via simulations that using a novel clustering algorithm for the classification of CM populations and a new bit-loading method measurably enhances channel performance in large-scale distributed deployment scenarios.

Robust Time Resource Management in Cognitive Radar Using Adaptive Waveform Design

The Cognitive Radar is almost a new research topic, in which most efforts have been done for its conceptual description and the adaptive waveform design feature of these radars. While other aspect of adaptive action for optimum performance of cognitive radars has been ignored. In this paper, a framework for adaptive time resource management in Cognitive Radars is proposed. The main purpose of this paper is proposing an algorithm for time resource management, with incorporation of adaptive waveform design capability of cognitive radars, to enhance the radar performance for an efficient time resource usage. After developing the equations for radar time resource management using adaptive waveform design for the first time, an implementable algorithm is proposed and its performance is simulated and analysed. The results show that using the proposed algorithm resulted in a more efficient time resource management compared to the existing ones.

Assessment of Alternative Sampling Designs for Range‐wide Monitoring of New England Cottontail

ABSTRACTMonitoring within an adaptive management framework provides important insights about system responses to management and information on which management actions to adjust to improve outcomes over time. We evaluated the range‐wide monitoring survey of the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis) and assessed its ability to track changes in species’ population status over time using data gathered under the original protocol in 2016–2017 from 204 sites in 5 states (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New York, USA). We used occupancy analysis and structured decision making to evaluate 2 questions: 1) Does the monitoring survey provide the information needed to meet monitoring goals? and 2) What changes in the monitoring protocol, survey‐site selection, or field‐data collection are needed to better meet monitoring goals? A power analysis applied to data from the 2016–2017 survey indicated insufficient power (<0.80) to detect a large (0.50) change in occupancy, and either increasing the number of sites sampled, the number of occupied sites sampled, or both actions were needed to increase power and enable range‐wide survey objectives to be met. A revised study design was implemented in 2017–2018 that included sampling 146 of about 210 known occupied sites in 6 states (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Rhode Island, USA) and provided sufficient power (0.81) to detect a small (0.30) change in occupancy. The revised study design revealed a 50% decline in the number of known occupied sites has occurred over the last decade. Our findings highlight the importance of study‐design considerations in monitoring protocols and the important role of structured decision‐making in making transparent, data‐informed, and defendable decisions when developing, evaluating, and revising monitoring plans for cryptic and rare species such as the New England cottontail. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.

Theory of stepwise ecological restoration

The United Nations General Assembly declared 2021–2030 as the “Decade of Ecosystem Restoration”, which positions “the restoration of ecosystems as a major nature-based solution towards meeting a wide range of global development goals and national priorities”. Ecological restoration, when it was implemented effectively, contributes to improving food and water security, mitigating climate change, protecting biodiversity, boosting economic prosperity and benefiting human health and well-being. Thus, ecological restoration is fundamental for the success of ecological civilization and sustainable development. Ecological restoration theories in developed countries usually require restoring the ecosystem to the status prior to degradation, and this requirement is difficult to achieve in regions with serious degradation, especially in developing countries. We developed a new theory of ecological restoration, or stepwise ecological restoration (STERE), which comprises three modes in different restoration stages: Environmental remediation in the initial stage with serious degradation, ecological rehabilitation for moderately degraded ecosystems, and natural restoration for slightly degraded ecosystems. Environmental remediation aims to reduce environmental pollution through the removal or detoxification of pollutants or excess nutrients from soil and water. Ecological rehabilitation is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed through various physical, chemical and biological restoration strategies. Natural restoration aims to restore ecosystem functions and services and improve ecosystem resilience without much human assistance. Environmental remediation is fundamental and needs to be implemented prior to ecological rehabilitation and natural restoration in places where pollution is severe. Only the former is successfully carried out; however, when the ecosystem is moderately degraded, ecological rehabilitation can be effectively implemented. In places where the ecosystem is slightly degraded, natural restoration is recommended. The processes of ecological rehabilitation and natural restoration will result in ecological functions that are more complete, an increase in biodiversity, and improved ecosystem resilience. For STERE, appropriate restoration goals should be formulated based on the degree of degradation, local funding support, and technological development. The new theory proposed in this study emphasizes the application of reference ecosystems in restoration projects and the importance of ecological monitoring. It also requires an adaptive restoration management framework that considers the influence of global climate change. STERE should be implemented for future ecosystems rather than only for restoring an ecosystem to a status similar to the condition prior to degradation. Moreover, STERE promotes systematic large-scale landscape restoration by considering the interactions between individual small scales (e.g., field scale) and large scales (e.g., catchment scale). In addition, technologies such as unmanned aerial vehicles and remote sensing should be more widely used in future STERE projects. Ecological restoration databases should be established for restorative activities in mountains, waters, forests, farms, lakes and other ecosystems. The newly proposed STERE theory would play an important role in developing restoration projects worldwide, especially in developing countries.

Quantitative Spatial Ecology to Promote Human-Wildlife Coexistence: A Tool for Integrated Landscape Management

Understanding, predicting and controlling animal movement is a fundamental problem of conservation and management ecology. The need to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts, such as crop raiding by large herbivores, is becoming increasingly urgent. Because of the substantial costs or the possibility of unsuitable outcomes on wildlife, managers are often encouraged to deploy interventions that can achieve their objective while minimizing the impact on animal populations. We propose an adaptive management framework that can identify cost-effective solutions to reduce human-wildlife conflicts, while also minimizing constraints on animal movement and distribution. We focus on conflicts involving animals for which conflict zones occupy only a portion of their home-range. The adaptive management approach includes four basic steps: define and spatialize conflict areas, predict animal distribution from functional connectivity and patch residency time, predict the impact of management actions on animal distribution, and test predictions and revise predictive models. Key to the process is development of a mathematical model that can predict how habitat-animal interactions shape animal movement dynamics within patch networks. In our model, networks consist of a set of high-quality patches connected by links (i.e., potential inter-patch movements). Inter-patch movement rules and determinants of patch residency time need to be determined empirically. These data then provide information to parameterize a reaction-advection-diffusion model that can predict animal distribution dynamics given habitat features and movement taxis towards (or against) conflict areas depending on management actions. Illustrative simulations demonstrate how quantitative predictions can be used to make spatial adjustments in management interventions (e.g., length of diversionary fences) with respect of conflict areas. Simulations also show that the impact of multiple interventions cannot be considered as simply having additive effect, and their relative impact on animal equilibrium distribution depends on how they are added and deployed across the network. Following the principles of adaptive, integrated landscape management, the predictive model should be revised as monitoring provides new information about the response of animals to the set of interventions. We contend that the proposed quantitative approach provides a robust framework to find cost-effective strategy toward sustainable human-wildlife conflicts.

Informing adaptive management strategies: Evaluating a mechanism to predict the likely qualitative size of foot‐and‐mouth disease outbreaks in New Zealand using data available in the early response phase of simulated outbreaks

The objective of the study was to define and then evaluate an early decision indicator (EDI) trigger that operated within the first 5weeks of a response that would indicate a large and/or long outbreak of FMD was developing, to be able to inform control options within an adaptive management framework. To define the EDI trigger, a previous dataset of 10,000 simulated FMD outbreaks in New Zealand, controlled by the standard stamping-out approach, was re-analysed at various time points between Days 11 and 35 of each response to find threshold values of cumulative detected infected premises (IPs) that indicated upper quartile sized outbreaks and estimated dissemination rate (EDR) values that indicated sustained spread. Both sets of thresholds were then parameterized within the InterSpread Plus modelling framework, such that if either the cumulative IPs or the EDR exceeded the defined thresholds, the EDI trigger would fire. A new series of simulations were then generated. The EDI trigger was like two diagnostic tests interpreted in parallel, with the diagnostic outcome positive if either test was positive at any time point between Days 11 and 35 inclusive. The diagnostic result was then compared to the final size of each outbreak, to see if the outbreak was an upper quartile outbreak in terms of cumulative IPs and/or final duration. The performance of the EDI trigger was then evaluated across the population of outbreaks, and the sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated. The Se, Sp, PPV and NPV for predicting large outbreaks were 0.997, 0.513, 0.404 and 0.998, respectively. The study showed that the EDI trigger was very sensitive to detecting large outbreaks, although not all outbreaks predicted to be large were so, whereas outbreaks predicted to be small invariably were small. Therefore, it shows promise as a mechanism that could support an adaptive management approach to FMD control.

Responding to COVID-19 and future times of uncertainty: Challenges and opportunities associated with visitor use, management, and research in parks and protected areas

In March 2020, many United States-based parks and protected area (PPA) managers implemented disease control measures (e.g., park and facility closures) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2. This thought-piece considers expected transformations in PPAs during unprecedented circumstances. We employ a challenges and opportunities framework to explain pandemic-induced alterations in visitor accessibility, PPA management, and scientific research. We acknowledge the complex difficulties that visitors, managers, and researchers may experience during pandemics and provide a listing of opportunities that result from these challenges. We suggest that PPA managers explore alternative solutions that maintain recreation access during future times of uncertainty. Maintaining access allows PPAs to continue serving as places for healthy recreation and restoration for park visitors and may create new opportunities for visitors, managers, and researchers. We underline the necessity to include human disease impacts into adaptive management frameworks and the shifting needs for current and prospective research. These details can affect the availability and accessibility of PPAs, how managers approach and adapt to unusual circumstances, and the focus of future recreation research. [This is a paper from “Systemic Threats to Parks & Protected Areas,” the 2020 George Wright Society Student Summit.]

A new decision support tool for collaborative adaptive vegetation management in northern Great Plains national parks

National Park Service (NPS) units in the northern Great Plains (NGP) were established to preserve and interpret the history of America, protect and showcase unusual geology and paleontology, and provide a home for vanishing large wildlife. A unifying feature among these national parks, monuments, and historic sites is mixed-grass prairie, which not only provides background scenery but is the very foundation of many park missions. As recognition of the prairie’s importance to park fundamental resources and values has grown, so too has the realization that invasive plants threaten these values by reducing native species diversity, altering food webs, and marring the visitor experience. Parks manage invasive species despite uncertainties in treatment effectiveness because management cannot wait for research to provide definitive answers. Under these circumstances, adaptive management (AM) is an appropriate approach. In the NGP, we formed a collaborative adaptive vegetation management team to apply AM towards reducing invasive species (with a focus on exotic annual grasses) and improving native vegetation conditions. In our AM framework, the team uses a Bayesian model built from NPS Inventory & Monitoring and Fire Effects monitoring data and experimental results to predict the effects of management actions on park management units, according to those units’ vegetation condition and management history. These predictions inform management decisions, which are then applied.

A knowledge-intensive adaptive business process management framework

Business process management has been the driving force of optimization and operational efficiency for companies until now, but the digitalization era we have been experiencing requires businesses to be agile and responsive as well. In order to be a part of this digital transformation, delivering new levels of automation-fueled agility through digitalization of BPM itself is required. However, the automation of BPM cannot be achieved by solely focusing on process space and classical planning techniques. It requires a holistic approach that also captures the social aspects of the business environment, such as corporate strategies, organization policies, negotiations, and cooperation. For this purpose, we combine BPM, knowledge-intensive systems and intelligent agent technologies, and yield one consolidated intelligent business process management framework, namely agileBPM, that governs the entire BPM life-cycle. Accordingly, agileBPM proposes a modeling methodology to semantically capture the business interests, enterprise environment and process space in accordance with the agent-oriented software engineering paradigm. The proposed agent-based process execution environment provides cognitive capabilities (such as goal-driven planning, norm compliance, knowledge-driven actions, and dynamic cooperation) on top of the developed business models to support knowledge workers’ multi-criteria decision making tasks. The context awareness and exception handling capabilities of the proposed approach have been presented with experimental studies. Through comparative evaluations, it is shown that agileBPM is the most comprehensive knowledge-intensive process management solution.

From a research study to a conservation partnership: Developing approaches to restoring common scoter populations

Abstract Like many sea‐duck populations, the British breeding population of common scoters Melanitta nigra has declined markedly. In 2009, a study was established to measure factors affecting lake use by breeding scoters, to inform conservation measures. That study, published in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems (AQC) in 2016, showed that lakes used by scoters had relatively more shallow water and large invertebrates. Furthermore, lakes with abundant large invertebrates had relatively few brown trout Salmo trutta. These results probably reflect the importance of foraging habitat (shallow water), prey abundance (large invertebrates), and competition for prey (trout abundance) in influencing scoter lake use. To develop this study, additional research, and scoter conservation measures, we formed a long‐term partnership, comprising nature conservation non‐governmental organizations, statutory agencies, fisheries managers and the regional hydropower company. The partnership meets regularly to coordinate and review research and develop conservation measures, building on the earlier lake‐use study. At key scoter lakes managed for hydropower, the partnership negotiated a revised water level management regime, favouring shallow water availability in the breeding season. This regime was informed by additional research, showing the value of certain islands for nesting scoters, and water level requirements to maintain these as islands. In a different key scoter area — an extensive near‐natural peatland where recreational angling takes place — the partnership established a trial of increased brown trout angling, with increased fish removal, to determine whether this would increase invertebrate prey abundance and benefit breeding scoters. Both conservation interventions are currently being evaluated by detailed monitoring. Overall, the earlier study published in AQC, was important in strengthening and informing our researcher–practitioner partnership, as we collaborated within an adaptive management framework to reverse scoter declines. Long‐term interdisciplinary partnerships are likely to have an important role to play in general, for the successful conservation of aquatic biodiversity.

The Fox and the Crow. A need to update pest control strategies

The recent discovery that cats and mustelids can be infected by SARS-CoV-2 may raise the question of monitoring domestic, feral and wild populations of such animals, as an adjunct to the elimination of COVID-19 in humans. Emergency solutions might consider large scale control of these animals in the wild. However, looking at science recently published on native vertebrate pest control reveals first that usual controls do not succeed in reducing animal numbers and associated damages, second that controlling can be counter-productive in increasing the infectious risks for humans and livestock. The examples of red fox and corvids are detailed in a European context, illustrating the urgent need for an ethical evaluation of ecological and economic costs and benefits of pest control strategies. A complete scientific evaluation process must be implemented and up-dated regularly, to be organized in four major steps, once the aim of the control strategy has been defined: (1) evaluating damages/risks caused by the animals, to be balanced with the ecosystem services they may provide, also in terms of economic costs; (2) unravelling spatial and temporal population dynamics of target animals to identify, if any, optimal control scenarios – which could be done within an adaptive management framework; (3) estimating the economic costs of implementing those optimal control scenarios, to be compared to the economic costs of damages/diseases; (4) finally evaluating how the control strategy reached its aims. A modern fable of the Fox and the Crow should deliver a timely moral for an ethical, ecological and economical appraisal of pest control strategies in Europe.

A generic framework to assess the representation and protection of benthic ecosystems in European marine protected areas

Abstract There is concern across the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) region that a consideration of vulnerable components and the wider support mechanisms underpinning benthic marine ecosystems may be lacking from the process of marine protected area (MPA) designation, management and monitoring. In this study, MPAs across six European ecoregions were assessed from a benthic ecology perspective. The study included 102 MPAs, designated by 10 countries, and focused on three aspects regarding the role of the benthos in: (i) the designation of MPAs; (ii) the management measures used in MPAs; and (iii) the monitoring and assessment of MPAs. Qualitative entries to a questionnaire based on an existing framework (EU project ‘Monitoring Evaluation of Spatially Managed Areas’, (MESMA) were collected by 19 benthic experts of the ICES Benthic Ecology Working Group. A pedigree matrix was used to apply a numerical scale (score) to these entries. The results showed clear differences in scores between ecoregions and between criteria. The designation‐phase criteria generally achieved higher scores than the implementation‐phase criteria. Poor designation‐phase scores were generally reiterated in the implementation‐phase scores, such as scores for assessment and monitoring. Over 70% of the MPA case studies were found to consider the benthos to some extent during selection and designation; however, this was not followed up with appropriate management measures and good practice during the implementation phase. Poor spatial and temporal coverage of monitoring and ineffective indicators is unlikely to pick up changes caused by management measures in the MPA. There is concern that without adequate monitoring and adaptive management frameworks, the MPAs will be compromised. Also, there could be an increased likelihood that, with regard to the benthos, they will fail to meet their conservation objectives. This assessment was successful in highlighting issues related to the representation and protection of the benthos in MPAs and where changes need to be made, such as expanding the characterization and monitoring of benthic species or habitats of interest. These issues could be attributable to an ongoing process and/or an indication that some MPAs only have ‘paper protection’.

Adapting reintroduction tactics in successive trials increases the likelihood of establishment for an endangered carnivore in a fenced sanctuary.

Threatened species recovery programs are increasingly turning to reintroductions to reverse biodiversity loss. Here we present a real-world example where tactics (techniques which influence post-release performance and persistence) and an adaptive management framework (which incorporates feedback between monitoring and future actions) improved reintroduction success. Across three successive trials we investigated the influence of tactics on the effective survival and post-release dispersal of endangered eastern quolls (Dasyurus viverrinus) reintroduced into Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary, Australian Capital Territory. Founders were monitored for 42 days post-release, and probability of survival and post-release dispersal were tested against trial, origin, sex, den sharing and presence of pouch young. We adopted an adaptive management framework, using monitoring to facilitate rapid learning and to implement interventions that improved reintroduction success. Founders released in the first trial were less likely to survive (28.6%, n = 14) than those founders released the second (76.9%, n = 13) and third trials (87.5%, n = 8). We adapted several tactics in the second and third trials, including the selection of female-only founders to avoid elevated male mortality, and post-mating releases to reduce stress. Founders that moved dens between consecutive nights were less likely to survive, suggesting that minimising post-release dispersal can increase the probability of survival. The probability of moving dens was lower in the second and third trials, for females, and when den sharing with another founder. This study demonstrates that, through iterative trials of tactics involving monitoring and learning, adaptive management can be used to significantly improve the success of reintroduction programs.

An evidence-based approach for setting desired state in a complex Great Barrier Reef seagrass ecosystem: A case study from Cleveland Bay

Implementing management actions to achieve environmental outcomes requires defining and quantifying ecological targets, but this is a complex challenge, and there are few examples of how to quantitatively set them in complex dynamic marine ecosystems. Here we develop a methodology to devise ‘desired state’ for tropical seagrasses in Cleveland Bay, northern Australia, in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. Analysis of diverse species assemblages was used to define seagrass communities as indicators of the region’s ecological value. Multivariate regression trees assigned 8000 observations of species presence/absence and habitat characteristics from 2007 to 2017 into seven community types. Generalised Linear Models were used to assess annual variation in above-ground biomass of each seagrass community. Reference subsets of the data expressing high biomass and spatial extent were identified, and desired state was defined as the mean and 95% confidence intervals. This approach rests on the assumption that seagrass resilience and its ecosystem services are met when the diverse seagrass communities reach desired state. This method required a data set that spanned a range in seagrass conditions, but which may have been compromised by a history of pressures. Our method for defining desired state provides evidence-based targets that can be used within an adaptive management framework that prioritises and implements management actions.

Building Information Modeling Implementation Framework for Smart Airport Life Cycle Management

Connectivity is key in this new era of smart infrastructure. Smart airports utilize new connected technologies to improve end-user experience while ensuring operational feasibility in aeronautical and non-aeronautical segments. The increasing need for digitizing the design-build-operate life cycles of airports can be met by implementing building information modeling (BIM) that enables accessing, managing, utilizing, and connecting physical and operational data in a digital collaborative environment. This study investigates the current state of practice in airport BIM (ABIM) and the use of ABIM processes in digital airport operations and maintenance by connecting existing data sources and integrating smart airport systems. The study proposes a comprehensive and adaptive ABIM management framework that depicts the alignment and connectivity of ABIM processes, resources and stakeholders with airport operational requirements by identifying gaps in the industry and literature, and developing a global understanding in ABIM visions. Research data are collected through literature and industry review, online surveys, and semi-structured interviews with aviation professionals. Mixed methods including non-parametric statistical analysis and qualitative analysis are used to determine the elements of the framework. Model-based systems engineering (MBSE) principles and language are used to generate the framework. For framework validation, a proof of concept (POC) is conducted by development and deployment of a web-based application. The developed ABIM framework is expected to guide major airport stakeholders in their BIM implementation processes to enhance airport operational efficiencies and in strategizing digital initiatives on a connected-BIM platform.

Why adaptive management will not save us: Exploring management directives' interaction with practice

SummarySparked by the critique of practitioners and academics on the excessive managerialisation of development project management, the donor community turns increasingly towards adaptive management approaches. Rather than examining the effectiveness of the new adaptive management trend, the article deals with the more fundamental question of how the underlying relationship between management frameworks and practice can be characterised. To this end, the article analyses the practices of a select number of Dutch Civil Society consortia that are working with a new adaptive management framework. Making use of a practice theory approach, the analysis finds that rules are not directly translated into practice. The presented rules (innovations) are always mediated by antecedent practice, shared histories and interactions amongst individuals, communities and artefacts. Notably, the flexibility provided for in the framework does not reach all links in the aid chain equally and is counterbalanced by the institutional realities of the aid system. The article therewith adds to the literature on everyday development management cautioning against overestimating the effects of management tools, as they operate within and are determined by the funding and accountability requirements of the larger aid regime.

Data Replication Strategies with Load Balancing and Data Migration in Cloud Data Center

The evolution of Information Systems implies new applications and the need to migrate the data from a previous application to a new one. At the same time, some organizations may need to replicate data from one technology to another one, in order to have backup systems and have a flexible load balanced strategies. The maximal uniform distribution of the load across closer and number of simpler nodes can help managing and providing the big data and large workloads which are more easy to handle. The ultimate goal is to balance the load through cloud and make internet less cloud defendant by having data available closer to the user end. One of the most challenging steps required to deploy an application infrastructure in the cloud involves the physics of moving data into and out of the cloud. Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides a number of services for moving data, and each solution offers various levels of speed, security, cost, and performance. This stems from the fact that almost all the typical distributed storage systems only provide data-amount-oriented balancing mechanisms without considering the different access load of data. To eliminate the system bottlenecks and optimize the resource utilization, there is a demand for such distributed storage systems to employ a workload balancing and adaptive resource management framework. We propose a framework of Enhanced replication scheduling algorithm which balances the replicated data to be balanced and to handle the overload data integration by data migration concept which gives more data efficiency and improved performance during migration of replicated data. For handling of data migration, we propose Ant Colony Algorithm which gives a safe data migration from one end to the other. This will improve the efficiency, Cost and takes less duration for the data to migrated and to be equally balanced.

Social-Environmental Analysis for the Management of Coastal Lagoons in North Africa

This study provides an overview of eleven lagoons in North Africa, from the Atlantic to the Eastern Mediterranean. Lagoons are complex, transitional, coastal zones providing valuable ecosystem services that contribute to the welfare of the human population. The main economic sectors in the lagoons included fishing, shellfish harvesting, salt and sand extraction, as well as maritime transport. Economic sectors in the areas around the lagoons and in the watershed included agriculture, tourism, recreation, industrial and urban development. Changes were also identified in land-use from reclamation, changes in hydrology, changes in sedimentology from damming, inlet modifications and coastal engineering. The human activities in and around the lagoons exert multiple pressures on these ecosystems and result in changes in the environment, affecting salinity, dissolved oxygen and erosion; changes in the ecology, such as loss of biodiversity; and changes in the delivery of valuable ecosystem services. Loss of ecosystem services such as coastal protection and seafood affect human populations that live around the lagoons and depend on them for their livelihood. Adaptive management frameworks for social- ecological systems provide options that support decision makers with science-based knowledge to deliver sustainable development for ecosystems. The framework used to support the decision makers for environmental management of these eleven lagoons is Drivers-Activities-Pressures-State Change-Impact on Welfare-Responses as Measures [ DAPSI(W)R(M)].

Managing feral cats through an adaptive framework in an arid landscape

Adaptive management is the systematic acquisition and application of reliable information to improve natural resource management over time. We have employed an adaptive management framework in the control and monitoring of feral cats (Felis catus) on the Matuwa Indigenous Protected Area over the past 16 years. We used 120 Reconyx PC900 camera-traps and a rapid survey technique called the cat track activity index (TAI) to determine if aerial baiting with Eradicat® was more efficient and/or cost-effective than track baiting plus leg-hold trapping. We found that aerial baiting at $0.54 per percent decrease in cat detections is more cost-effective than track-baiting alone at $0.56 per percent decrease in cat detections. Track baiting plus leg-hold trapping, however, is more cost-effective than aerial baiting alone at reducing the number of feral cats detections at $0.39 per percent decrease in cat detections. Aerial baiting plus trapping was the most effective method of suppressing feral cats in an arid landscape with 97.7% reduction in cat detections. Trapping reduced the proportion of the population made up of adult cats from 51.5% to 38.7%, which may influence the efficacy of Eradicat®. Additionally, we found that cats were twice as likely to be detected on spinifex sandplain habitats than stony or hardpan habitats. We make several recommendations for refining feral cat management programs and future research.

Monitoring a New England Cottontail Reintroduction with Noninvasive Genetic Sampling

ABSTRACTCareful monitoring of reintroduced threatened species is essential for informing conservation strategies and evaluating reintroduction efforts in an adaptive management context. We used noninvasive genetic sampling to monitor a reintroduction of a threatened shrubland specialist, the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), in southeastern New Hampshire, USA. We monitored the apparent survival and breeding success of founder individuals and tracked changes in population size and genetic diversity for 5 years following an initial reintroduction in 2013. We released 42 rabbits, documented 29 unique offspring in years following releases through noninvasive surveys, and identified 6 founder individuals and 9 recruited offspring that bred. Apparent survival of founders was variable and greatest in the first year of the reintroduction. Predation was the primary cause of mortality and greatest in the first month after release and after heavy snowfall. Population size remained small but relatively stable until a stochastic decline in the fourth year following reintroduction, followed by a slight rebound after population augmentation and offspring production by wild‐born rabbits. Genetic diversity increased after the initial founders with diverse genetic backgrounds were released and then they and their subsequent offspring bred. We documented successful dispersal 700 m from the release site to a high‐quality patch of habitat, which remained occupied throughout the study. For New England cottontail reintroductions to be successful in the long term, releases will be needed at multiple patches within dispersal distance, and habitat corridors need to be restored among patches to create a functioning metapopulation. For small or isolated reintroduced populations, continued intensive monitoring is needed to detect stochastic declines in population size or changes in sex ratios and guide subsequent management reactions via additional reintroductions or population augmentations. Noninvasive genetic sampling is a valuable tool to monitor reintroductions of the New England cottontail and other threatened species to provide managers with detailed information to inform decision‐making in an adaptive management framework. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.