Conservation Management Plans Research Articles

Habitat Selection and Specialisation of Herring Gulls During the Non-breeding Season

Understanding both the distribution and habitat use of populations through the annual cycle is vital to understanding how vulnerable species are to environmental change. However, distributions and habitat use can vary among individuals and populations, particularly in generalist species, with variation depending on external environmental factors, such as resource availability. Comprehensive information across multiple populations is important to guide spatial planning of protected areas and is increasingly available for breeding individuals, but it is still lacking for many species, particularly seabirds, during the non-breeding season, especially those with declining populations. We investigated within-species variation in migratory strategies, non-breeding habitat selection and habitat and spatial specialisation in a declining, opportunistic, generalist seabird, the European herring gullLarus argentatus, from multiple breeding colonies across northwest England and southwest Scotland using global positioning system (GPS) tracking during the non-breeding season of 2014/15. Although several individuals stayed within the area of the breeding colony, the majority of individuals migrated in a southerly direction and spent half of the annual cycle (on average 53%) away from the breeding area and kept moving through the non-breeding period. During non-breeding, herring gulls selected mainly marine intertidal, but also a range of anthropogenic terrestrial habitats. However, habitat selection differed between geographical regions, within a geographical region and among individuals. There was a generalist use of non-breeding habitats at the population level, but some habitat specialisation at the individual level that was repeatable through the non-breeding period despite individuals showing low spatial specialisation. The results highlight the importance of intertidal habitat and a mix of alternative foraging habitats in the wintering areas of herring gulls. The results also highlight that habitat selection in an opportunistic generalist can vary even between nearby regions and that appropriate conservation management plans may need to be tailored to regional differences in specific non-breeding areas.

St. John the Baptist Church through the Years: Demystifying Albay’s Icon of Faith and Heritage

This paper profiled the St. John the Baptist Church in Camalig, Albay, and Tabaco City, Philippines. It assessed the church’s cultural significance as well as the threats, issues, and constraints. This qualitative research adopted the cultural mapping approach of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA). It employed ethnography, historiography, and participant observation as methods in cultural mapping. Braun and Clarke’s phases of thematic analysis were applied to reveal the inherent cultural significance. Further, the assessment of cultural significance was based on the Four Fields Value of Important Cultural Property. Findings revealed that St. John the Baptist Church both in Camalig, Albay, and Tabaco City possessed historical, aesthetic, and religious attributes that made the heritage structure profoundly valuable. However, natural calamities and funds for church restoration are the issues or constraints facing the church. This paper recommends that a conservation management plan that will focus on the restoration guidelines, conservation measures, and heritage protection must be adopted to fully protect the St. John the Baptist Church in Camalig, Albay, and Tabaco City. Moreover, the local government unit should conduct a risk assessment and update the hazard plans to mitigate the possible impacts of natural calamities on these heritage churches.

Re-examination of the current distribution of two endemic malkohas from Greater Luzon PAIC, the Philippines

This study was conducted to re-examine the geographic distribution and update the existing maps and distribution data of the two Greater Luzon Philippine malkohas ( Lepidogrammus cumingi and Dasylophus superciliosus ) derived from museum specimens and online anecdotes. Precise locality of each skin specimen from various museum collections and recent field accounts from various online platforms on the occurrence of these malkohas were collected, plotted, and compared with the existing distribution maps from the BirdLife International using the Quantum Geographic Information System (QGIS) software. Results showed that the data collected on the locations of the two endemic Philippine malkohas revealed that L. cumingi and D. superciliosus exhibited broader range on their distributions compared to the existing BirdLife International distribution data. Furthermore, the collected distribution data also revealed that the subspecies D. s. cagayanensis is not restricted in the northeast region of Cagayan province but also occurs in its southern regions as well as in the provinces of Benguet and Nueva Vizcaya. The updated and generated maps of the distribution of these birds constitutes a significant range extension that will serve as additional information in the proper implementation of conservation management plan of the Philippine Malkohas.

Protected area characteristics that help waterbirds respond to climate warming.

Protected area networks help species respond to climate warming. However, the contribution of a site's environmental and conservation-relevant characteristics to these responses is not well understood. We investigated how composition of nonbreeding waterbird communities (97 species) in the European Union Natura 2000 (N2K) network (3018 sites) changed in response to increases in temperature over 25 years in 26 European countries. We measured community reshuffling based on abundance time series collected under the International Waterbird Census relative to N2K sites' conservation targets, funding, designation period, and management plan status. Waterbird community composition in sites explicitly designated to protect them and with management plans changed more quickly in response to climate warming than in other N2K sites. Temporal community changes were not affected by the designation period despite greater exposure to temperature increase inside late-designated N2K sites. Sites funded under the LIFE program had lower climate-driven community changes than sites that did not received LIFE funding. Our findings imply that efficient conservation policy that helps waterbird communities respond to climate warming is associated with sites specifically managed for waterbirds.

The Heritage District of Malolos: Conserving Kamestizuhan Amidst the Threat of Commercialization

Conservation as a concept and process has its fundamental objective, the protection of cultural property from loss and depletion. Implicit in this is the notion of maintaining living contact with the pass through the identification, transmission, and protection of that which is considered cultural valuable. Conservation of historic buildings and streets is growing rapidly in many countries, under the threat of commercialization. The historic district in Shanghai, China has been successful in transforming its traditional residential houses as well as its old factories, into a community for creative industry (Yung, 2011). This study will pursue the same objective by providing a conservation management plan to rescue Kamestizuhan, the Heritage District of Malolos, to withstand the effects of commercialization to urban morphology. To pursue the objective, the researcher conducted cultural documentation procedures. Archival resources were reviewed to establish the historical context. Pertinent documents were gathered and reviewed from the City Government of Malolos to identify the past and present plan of actions if there?s any in safeguarding and preserving the heritage district. Records of socioeconomic profile of Malolos were also studied to determine the impact of commercialization in Kamestizuhan Heritage District. Politicians, local historians, academicians, conservation advocates and other stakeholders were interviewed and the results proved that there is no regulation or concrete policies being implemented strictly by the local government in order to safeguard and protect the Heritage District of Malolos Zones. With the use of the comparative historical method, local historic towns with successful conservation approach were compared to serve as guide in determining applicable considerations for the proposal. Photo-documentation, Mapping and inventory were used and findings reveal that some ancestral houses were demolished and sold as effect of commercialization. Surveys also shows that majority of the local has low level of awareness in the historical significance of Kamestizuhan. Ultimately, the study formulated policy in conserving the Kamestizuhan Heritage District of Malolos amidst commercialization.

Time budgets and activity patterns of the southern gelada (Theropithecus gelada obscurus) in a human‐modified landscape, Wollo, Ethiopia

AbstractUnderstanding the behavioural ecology of primates in human disturbance areas is crucial to developing conservation management plan. Southern geladas (Theropithecus gelada obscurus) are endemic subspecies of geladas that are threatened by habitat loss and degradation in the Ethiopian Highlands. During the 18‐months period, we conducted this intensive study in an unprotected area of human‐modified landscape to examine the diurnal time budgets and activity patterns of southern geladas. We quantified the time budget data from a band of southern gelada using instantaneous scan sampling method. Southern geladas had an overall diurnal activity budget of 49.5% feeding, 17.5% resting, 16.2% moving, 13.0% grooming and 3.0% socialising. The band spent significantly more time feeding during the dry season than the wet season. However, the band spent significantly more time during the wet season than the dry season in resting and grooming activities. We observed variations in the trend of activity patterns during the daylight hours between the wet and dry seasons. We found consistent relationships between monthly time budget and food availability. Our results contribute to improve our knowledge on the behavioural ecology of gelada populations in human‐modified landscape across the Ethiopian Highlands.

New Form, New Material and Color Scheme, the Exposed Concrete Phenomenon—The Centennial Hall in Wrocław

The aim of the article is to present the remarkable changes in architecture that took place in the 20th century. They can easily be called a revolution regarding the architectural form and the color scheme. Progress was being made through the development of reinforced concrete production methods. In the German Empire (Deutsches Kaiserreich), this material quickly found applications in more and more interesting solutions in architectural structures. In Wrocław (formerly Breslau), then located in the eastern German Empire, exceptional architectural works were realized before and after the First World War using new technology. In 1913, an unusual building was erected—the Centennial Hall, designed by Max Berg (inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2006). Berg’s work was inspired by the works of both Hans Poelzig and Bruno Taut. On the one hand, it was a delight with the new material (the Upper Silesian Tower at the exhibition in Poznań, designed by H. Poelzig) and, on the other hand, with the colorful architecture of light and glass by B. Taut (a glass pavilion at the Werkbund exhibition in Cologne). Max Berg left the concrete in an almost “pure” form, not hiding the texture of the formwork under the plaster layer. However, stratigraphic studies of paint coatings and archival inquiries reveal a new face of this building. The research was carried out as part of the CMP (Conservation Management Plan—prepared by the authors of the article, among others) grant from The Getty Foundation Keeping It Modern program. According to the source materials, the architect intended to leave the exposed concrete outside of the building, while the interior was to be decorated with painting, stained glass, and sculpture. The stratigraphic tests showed that the external walls were covered with a translucent yellowish color coating. Thus, the Centennial Hall shows a different face of reinforced concrete architecture.

Water audit of Chitkara University, Himachal Pradesh – A zero discharge campus

Water has always been regarded as a low-cost and abundant resource. It was viewed as a limitless resource, with little motivation to conserve it. Recently, perception has shifted. The rapid increase in population growth, industrial and commercial development, and provincial draughts are making it difficult for drinking water supply systems to keep up with rising demand. Many new technologies have been created in recent decades to improve the efficiency of water supply and consumption. A water audit is a rigorous study of all water appurtenances, equipment, fixtures, and processes at an organization/facility. The water conservation and effective use management plan begins with a complete water audit and serves as the foundation of the collaborative effort. The selected campus for the water audit is Chitkara University, Himachal Pradesh. The results of this study showed that a structured and orderly conducted water audit helps an educational institute to conserve water and make certain of its optimum usage. The university campus assures ongoing financing for fixture and appurtenance replacement, which helps to reduce water losses. Improving interdepartmental communication aids in the development of an effective management plan, and a welldesigned water recycling and reuse system ensures a decrease in net water usage.

Temperature mediates chorusing behaviour associated with spawning in the sciaenid Argyrosomus regius

Climate change is leading to an increase in the frequency and intensity of daily temperature extremes in aquatic environments, posing a threat to ectothermic animals such as fishes. Temperature shifts can impact their reproductive cycle and behaviour, including acoustic signalling associated with courtship and mating in vocal fishes. Here, we examined the effect of temperature and other environmental factors on spawning-related chorusing behaviour in the meagreArgyrosomus regius. Using an automatic recognition system based on hidden Markov models coupled with one-third octave band sound level analysis, we extracted meagre daily vocal activity over 4 yr of passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) in the Tagus estuary (Portugal). Meagre vocal activity showed a distinct diel pattern, with choruses being most prevalent at dusk. Chorus activity started earlier in years with warmer springs, while the end of the season was concurrent with the rise in water temperature. Circa 70% of daily variations were explained by changes in water temperature. Tidal cycle, lunar phase and changes in daylength did not appear to affect vocal behaviour. Choruses were detected on days with mean water temperature ranging from 15-25°C, with stronger chorusing observed around 18°C. Abrupt temperature changes caused disruption in choruses and likely in associated spawning. This study highlights the importance of temperature to fish reproduction and demonstrates that PAM can be a useful tool for long-term conservation management plans. PAM may also allow us to predict how temperature shifts due to climate change may affect fish reproduction, using vocal fishes as model species.

Anthropogenic pressures decrease structural complexity in Caucasian forests of Iran

ABSTRACT The Arasbaran Protected Area of northern Iran encompasses 160,000 ha of deciduous, broad-leaved forest with 78,560 ha recently designated as a United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve. Our study objectives were to (1) quantify whether anthropogenic pressures measurably impacted the structural complexity of Arasbaran forests and (2) determine which structural complexity indices were most sensitive to anthropogenic pressures in Arasbaran forests. We identified and sampled three study sites with high, moderate, and low levels of anthropogenic pressures and used nine forest structural indices to develop structural complexity indices. High anthropogenic pressure resulted in aggregated tree distribution, uniformity in tree sizes, and less heterogeneous forest structure. The structural indices particularly sensitive to anthropogenic pressure were diameter differentiation, height differentiation, Gini coefficient, and structural diversity. Structural complexity appears to be a useful method for quantifying the impacts of anthropogenic pressure on montane deciduous forests. Regular sampling of the diameter differentiation index, height differentiation index, Gini coefficient and structural diversity index should be integrated into conservation management plans for the Arasbaran Protected Area.

Identifying the habitat suitability and built-in corridors for Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus) movement in the northern highlands of Pakistan

Identifying habitat suitability and potential corridors are important tools for biodiversity conservation in the face of climate change. We modeled habitat suitability and simulated possible corridors for movement and gene flow among the Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus) population in the Northern Highlands of Pakistan (NHP). Results indicated that the areas of 13,923 km2 and 21,931 km2 suitable for the Asiatic black bear under current and future scenarios respectively. Under the future scenario, we found an area of 12,657 km2 (57.21%) as increase in suitable habitat (ISHf) and 4649 km2 (33.39%) area as a decrease in current suitable habitat (DSHc). Our model predicted that about >65% (9274 km2) of the current suitable habitat as a climate refugia which is projected from the center to southeast east and northwest of the NHP primarily in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Pakistan Administered Kashmir (PAK). The attitudinal range of refugia was projected from 688 m to 4483 m with >56% at the elevations between 2001 m to 3000 m. A very small portion of suitable habitats (current suitable habitat = 2.75%, future suitable habitat = 5.11%) were projected under the protected areas. Maps connecting suitable habitats identified different regions delineated as important for the dispersal of Asiatic black bears, which mainly distributed in the PAK and KPK. Our results help informs conservation strategies and management plans for mitigating the impacts of climate change on Asiatic black bears in the NHP.

Conservation Management Plan for Heritage Site in Malaysia: A case study of Brooke Dockyard, Kuching, Sarawak.

Conservation Management Plan (CMP) and its implementation is a relatively new practice in the protection and safeguarding of heritage buildings and sites in Malaysia. The CMP is a vital legal document which details out the management strategy for historic assets, heritage sites and significant places; as well as prescribes future use, management, alteration, or repair to retain the significance of heritage buildings and sites. Without proper CMP implementation, gazetted heritage buildings or sites are at risk due to potential development threats that may affect their significant values. This article presents the fundamentals of the CMP as stated under the Malaysian laws, which are the National Heritage Act 2005 (Act 645), State of Penang Heritage Enactment 2011 (Enactment 14) and Sarawak Heritage Ordinance 2019 (Chapter 77). This study involves a qualitative research in examining provisions in the Malaysian heritage laws; as well as reviewing the contents of the CMP of Brooke Dockyard in Kuching, Sarawak as a case study. The study found that all three Malaysia heritage laws have similar provisions in aspects of authority, power, control, management, and designated criteria for heritage property. Specific provisions of the Sarawak Heritage Ordinance 2019 (Chapter 77) laws were found to be fully complied and well documented in the case study of the CMP of Brooke Dockyard. Hence, the CMP of Brooke Dockyard serves as an instrumental tool in safeguarding the significant values of this heritage building prior to its transformation into a maritime museum. The CMP provides guidance to envisage future care and use of Brooke Dockyard including new development proposals within the designated core and buffer zones. The CMP also portrays Brooke Dockyard as one of the significant heritage sites in Sarawak that should be conserved for the benefits of future generations.

Diversity of European habitat types is correlated with geography more than climate and human pressure.

Habitat richness, that is, the diversity of ecosystem types, is a complex, spatially explicit aspect of biodiversity, which is affected by bioclimatic, geographic, and anthropogenic variables. The distribution of habitat types is a key component for understanding broad‐scale biodiversity and for developing conservation strategies. We used data on the distribution of European Union (EU) habitats to answer the following questions: (i) how do bioclimatic, geographic, and anthropogenic variables affect habitat richness? (ii) Which of those factors is the most important? (iii) How do interactions among these variables influence habitat richness and which combinations produce the strongest interactions? The distribution maps of 222 terrestrial habitat types as defined by the Natura 2000 network were used to calculate habitat richness for the 10 km × 10 km EU grid map. We then investigated how environmental variables affect habitat richness, using generalized linear models, generalized additive models, and boosted regression trees. The main factors associated with habitat richness were geographic variables, with negative relationships observed for both latitude and longitude, and a positive relationship for terrain ruggedness. Bioclimatic variables played a secondary role, with habitat richness increasing slightly with annual mean temperature and overall annual precipitation. We also found an interaction between anthropogenic variables, with the combination of increased landscape fragmentation and increased population density strongly decreasing habitat richness. This is the first attempt to disentangle spatial patterns of habitat richness at the continental scale, as a key tool for protecting biodiversity. The number of European habitats is related to geography more than climate and human pressure, reflecting a major component of biogeographical patterns similar to the drivers observed at the species level. The interaction between anthropogenic variables highlights the need for coordinated, continental‐scale management plans for biodiversity conservation.

Seasonal Occurrence, Distribution and Group Size of Irrawaddy Dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) in the Bay of Brunei, Brunei Darussalam

The uniqueness of the Bay of Brunei makes it an ideal place to be inhabited by Irrawaddy dolphins. However, the increasing potential impacts of anthropogenic factors and environmental changes on the dolphins are alarming. The objectives of this study were to determine the seasonal occurrence and distribution, and to estimate the group size of Irrawaddy dolphins in the Bay of Brunei. Surveys were conducted between January 2016 and April 2018. The total distance surveyed was 2,439.2 km in 189.13 h (survey effort = 13,081.93 km.h). Forty-nine groups of Irrawaddy dolphins were recorded with a sighting rate of 0.37 per 100 km.h. Thirteen of the groups were observed with calves. Overall, the group size ranged between 1 and 15 individuals with a mean of 4.5 individuals (SD = 3.3). There was no statistical significance in the number of dolphin sightings between four different monsoon seasons (Northeast, Southwest, April Inter-monsoon, and October Inter-monsoon) (χ2 = 5.66, df = 3, p > 0.05). The number of sightings and number of individuals suggest that Irrawaddy dolphins are residents of the Bay of Brunei and are in need of a conservation management plan.

Ecological niche differentiation among six annual Lythrum species in Mediterranean temporary pools.

The ecological niche defines the favourable range of a species in a multidimensional space of ecological factors that determine the presence and function of individuals. This fundamental concept in ecology is widely used to understand plant species coexistence and segregation. In this study, we test for ecological differentiation among six annual Lythrum species that are characteristic of temporary pools in the South of France, where they either coexist or occur separately. We first analysed the co-occurrence of species at two different geographical scales: cluster analyses of species presence in 10km grid cells and coexistence in 0.25 m2 quadrats within populations of each species. Second, for three to nine populations of each species, we quantified a range of biotic and abiotic parameters using point contacts and soil measurements in five 0.25 m2 quadrats per population. We performed PCA on all variables and analysed each variable separately to compare the ecological niche features of the six species. A phenological index was assessed for the plant community of each site. We detected highly localized niche differentiation in terms of soil pH (all species) and for a range of variables among pairs of species. The six species also showed marked differences in the flowering period relative to the mean and variability of flowering time in their local community. These fine-scaled niche differences are associated with phylogenetic distances among species and may contribute to species' coexistence. These results are integrated in a conservation management plan for the habitat of the rarest species in this group.

Ontogeny of eDNA shedding during early development in Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)

AbstractKnowledge of the timing of major life history events in aquatic species is important for informing conservation and resource management planning. Accordingly, surveys of environmental DNA (eDNA) have been performed to determine the efficacy of eDNA for providing information on life history events, primarily focusing on the timing of events associated with spawning, and these studies have proved successful. However, spawning represents only one part of the life history, and therefore, information on eDNA shedding during other life history stages is needed to fill gaps in knowledge. Here, we explored eDNA shedding during early life history (from fertilized eggs until near yolk sac absorption) in Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) at three biomasses in a laboratory environment. We found that fertilized eggs shed little eDNA prior to hatching. Hatching coincided with a spike in eDNA, and we observed a significant and positive relationship between eDNA concentration and the number of hatched eggs. The concentration of eDNA shed by larvae after hatching was not consistent across post‐hatch sampling days, suggesting developmental and behavioral changes associated with larval ontogeny may affect eDNA shedding rate. These results indicate that eDNA data may be used to identify hatch timing and verify successful reproduction in oviparous aquatic fishes. The application of eDNA to early life history broadens the capacity of eDNA‐based methods for assessing population status and trends.

The implementation of irrigation leads to declines in farmland birds

Assessing the effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity is critical for developing effective management plans for farmland conservation. Among other factors, the direct and indirect impacts of irrigation on wildlife have yet to be thoroughly studied despite significant increases in the surface area of irrigated farmlands since the mid-twentieth century (currently greater than 300 million hectares worldwide). Here, we evaluate the impact of irrigation on bird species occurrence patterns using a BACI (Before-After Control-Impact) design. Our study occurs in a 100 km2 area with rainfed agriculture in the Mediterranean region of northern Spain. We analysed a 13-year dataset comprised of the 47 most common bird species in the region using a multi-species hierarchical occurrence model. We examined how the implementation of irrigation in a rain-fed farmland area altered the local bird community, identifying which species were negatively or positively impacted by changes to the local ecosystem. The implementation of irrigation had an overall negative impact on the bird community, with occurrence rates of most species (55%) decreasing and only a small fraction (11%) increasing after the onset of irrigation, leading to an overall reduction in site-level species richness. Irrigation had the most detrimental impact on farmland birds (including steppe birds, which are of high conservation concern), but also had negative effects on forest, shrubland, and non-specialist bird species that occur frequently in rainfed agricultural environments. The observed negative impacts on bird occurrences are likely due to the loss of nesting and foraging habitat arising from shifts in crops and/or loss of fallow lands associated with irrigation. The fact that only a few species responded positively to the implementation of irrigation suggests that in the long-term irrigation may lead to substantial negative changes in local bird communities, with less diversity and a lack of ecologically-important farmland species. Irrigation schemes should thus be implemented carefully, avoiding areas with high species richness or high densities of endangered species. In cases where irrigation cannot be avoided, promoting diverse agrosystems, avoiding monocultures, and including interspersed rainfed crops and fallow lands may help to mitigate negative effects on local bird communities and their ecosystems.

Drivers of Flight Performance of California Condors (Gymnogyps californianus)

ABSTRACT Flight behavior of soaring birds depends on a complex array of physiological, social, demographic, and environmental factors. California Condors (Gymnogyps californianus) rely on thermal and orographic updrafts to subsidize extended bouts of soaring flight, and their soaring flight performance is expected to vary in response to environmental variation and, potentially, with experience. We collected 6298 flight tracks described by high-frequency GPS telemetry data from five birds ranging in age from 1 to 19 yr old and followed over 32 d in summer 2016. Using these data, we tested the hypothesis that climb rate, an indicator of flight performance, would be related to the topographic and meteorological variables the bird experienced, and also to its age. Climb rate was greater when condors were flying in faster winds and during environmental conditions that were conducive to updraft development. However, we found no effect of age on climb rate. Although many of these relationships were expected based on flight theory, the lack of an effect of age was unexpected. Our work expands understanding of the relationship condors have with the environment, and it also suggests the potential for as-yet unexplored complexity to this relationship. As such, this study provides insight into avian flight behavior and, because flight performance influences bird behavior and exposure to anthropogenic risk, it has potential consequences for development of conservation management plans.

Predicting the potential distribution of wintering Asian Great Bustard (Otis tarda dybowskii) in China: Conservation implications

Changes in future climate will alter the geographic distributions of many species. Species distribution models have evolved as a powerful tool for predicting potential species distributions and assessing habitat suitability. The Asian Great Bustard (Otis tarda dybowskii), a long-distance migratory bird, is listed as a globally threatened species and is highly dependent on farmlands during the wintering period. In this study, 78 occurrence points and 15 environmental variables were used to estimate the potential distribution under current conditions and four future climate scenarios by using the maximum entropy model. With current climatic conditions, the highly suitable areas of wintering Asian Great Bustard in China were mainly concentrated on the Northeast Plain, Guanzhong Plain, and North China Plain (33–48° N, 109–127° E). Under future climatic scenarios, the geographic distribution of wintering Asian Great Bustard would remain stable, and the total area of suitable habitats would increase to varying degrees until the end of this century. Our results can be used to define highly suitable areas for conservation management plans for this threatened species.

Assessing visitors' preferences and willingness to pay for the Malayan Tiger conservation in a Malaysian National Park: A choice experiment method

The population of the unique and critically endangered species Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni) continues to decline to less than 200 in the wild, demanding immediate attention to apply conservation plans. Thus, this study determined visitors' preferences and estimated their willingness to pay for Malayan tiger conservation attributes in Taman Negara Park in Pahang, Malaysia. Choice experiment method was used to estimate multinomial and mixed logit models. The selected attributes were related to number of tigers, tiger prey and rangers, frequency of awareness programmes, buffer zones, and conservation fee. The estimations were done with basic and interaction models of visitors' socio-demographic characteristics. Results revealed that increasing the number of tigers was the most preferred attribute with the willingness to pay varying from MYR15.42 to MYR18.07 (US$3.7 to US$4.4) between the models. The results also revealed that education and gender significantly impacted visitors' preferences. Visitors with high education level are willing to pay to increase tigers' prey. In addition, males are willing to pay to increase the awareness programme frequency, whereas females are willing to pay to increase the number of prey and rangers. These findings would support policymakers in applying an efficient conservation budget allocation to develop conservation management plans.