Global Conservation Research Articles

Global and local conservation of mass, momentum and kinetic energy in the simulation of compressible flow

The spatial discretization of convective terms in compressible flow equations is studied from an abstract viewpoint, for finite-difference methods and finite-volume type formulations with cell-centered numerical fluxes. General conditions are sought for the local and global conservation of primary (mass and momentum) and secondary (kinetic energy) invariants on Cartesian meshes. The analysis, based on a matrix approach, shows that sharp criteria for global and local conservation can be obtained and that in many cases these two concepts are equivalent. Explicit numerical fluxes are derived in all finite-difference formulations for which global conservation is guaranteed, even for non-uniform Cartesian meshes. The treatment reveals also an intimate relation between conservative finite-difference formulations and cell-centered finite-volume type approaches. This analogy suggests the design of wider classes of finite-difference discretizations locally preserving primary and secondary invariants.

Automating violence? The anti-politics of ‘smart technology’ in biodiversity conservation

This article examines the politics of emerging partnerships among big-tech corporations, big international non-governmental organisations (BINGOs) and bilaterals that promote the uptake and implementation of ‘smart technologies’ in biodiversity conservation. Despite growing global recognition of Indigenous and local peoples' rights to forests, lands, and oceans as central to socially just and successful conservation, new initiatives to conserve 30% of the Earth's territory by 2030 (‘30 × 30’) under the United Nations' (UN) post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework largely continue to neglect their existing customary rights and uses of biodiverse territories. The consequences of this have become evident in new global conservation partnerships that are taking a ‘technological turn’. ‘Smart technologies’ that rely on artificial intelligence (AI) and complex hardware, such as camera traps, drones, and smartphones, enable new forms of surveillance and securitisation through and beyond conventional conservation practices. Despite their potential to exacerbate social injustices against historically marginalised groups, the situated character of smart technology impacts and outcomes often remain unquestioned by mainstream conservation actors. Our paper shows how the dominant discourses framing such technology as successful and innovative across global and local partnerships belies its potential to: 1) inflict considerable violence upon local and Indigenous peoples; and 2) neglect the main political economic drivers of biodiversity loss. Drawing on examples from Palawan Island, the Philippines, we show how these global-local governance partnerships have valorised the potential success of smart technology for biodiversity conservation in situ without considering how they may adversely impact Indigenous and local peoples' rights and livelihoods, while at the same time neglecting and depoliticising the violence of capitalist extractivist expansion.

Monitoring threatened species with environmental DNA and open ecological data: Local distribution and habitat preferences of scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna lewini)

Evidence-based environmental management is urgently required to enable progress towards global conservation commitments. To fill large-scale biodiversity knowledge gaps, governments, organisations and communities must adopt innovative ecological monitoring techniques. The emergence of environmental DNA (eDNA) survey methods, as well as the increased availability of in situ ocean observation and satellite remote sensing data, offers opportunities to overcome significant logistic and financial challenges previously associated with traditional biodiversity monitoring. Here, a 1.5 year-long eDNA survey reveals the spatial and temporal presence of ‘critically endangered’ scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna lewini) in Apra Harbor, Guam. The survey confirms the presence of S. lewini in the region, and shows eDNA detections are most frequent at the beginning of the dry season, in January. Combined analysis of eDNA results with open (freely available) ecological data identifies that S. lewini presence is associated with increases in water velocity, turbidity and wind direction, as well as decreases in temperature and wind speed. Additionally, the data indicate S. lewini are most frequent at sampling sites characterised by high turbidity, shallow depths, and large distances from the harbor entrance. Information on local distribution and habitat preferences generated here is fundamental to the establishment of management protocols that aim to minimise negative anthropogenic impacts on S. lewini in Apra Harbor. The work provides an example of contemporary marine monitoring for the efficient generation of biodiversity data; an approach that will enable informed management decisions and help to reduce the risk and rate of species extinctions throughout the next decade.

Precipitation and potential evapotranspiration determine the distribution patterns of threatened plant species in Sichuan Province, China

A fundamental goal of ecologists is to determine the large-scale gradients in species richness. The threatened plants are the priority of such studies because of their narrow distribution and confinement to a specific habitat. Studying the distribution patterns of threatened plants is crucial for identifying global conservation prioritization. In this study, the richness pattern of threatened plant species along spatial and elevation gradients in Sichuan Province of China was investigated, considering climatic, habitat-heterogeneity (HHET), geometric constraint and human-induced factors. The species richness pattern was analyzed, and the predictor variables, including mean annual temperature (MAT), mean annual precipitation (MAP), potential evapotranspiration (PET), HHET, and disturbance (DIST), to species richness were linked using the geographical distribution data of threatened species compiled at a spatial resolution of 20 km × 20 km. Generalized linear models and structural equation modelling were used to determine the individual and combined effects of each variable on species richness patterns. Results showed a total of 137 threatened plant species were distributed between 200 and 4800 m.a.s.l. The central region of the province harbors the highest species diversity. MAP and PET profoundly explained the richness pattern. Moreover, the significant role of DIST in the richness patterns of threatened plants was elucidated. These findings could help determine the richness pattern of threatened plant species in other mountainous regions of the world, with consideration of the impact of climate change.

Investigation of Spatial Coupling Coordination Development: Identifying Land System States from the Adaptation-Conflict Perspective.

With the advancement of global urbanization, ecosystem conservation and sustainable land development have become major issues. In this context, the uncoordinated and imbalanced development of the land-centered human-environment system requires urgent attention, especially in rust belt cities that pose critical challenges to regional land system sustainability. Therefore, taking Changchun City from 1990 to 2020 as an example, we identified and evaluated the ecosystem service (ES) balance and land use conflict from the perspectives of internal support and external development pressure. Based on the land system adaptation and conflict results, a coupling coordination degree model (CCDM) was constructed to investigate the spatio-temporal characteristics of land system development. The results indicated that there was an obvious downward trend in the regional ES balance, while areas with higher ES balance were mainly distributed in the eastern ecologically sound areas, and southern built-up areas presented deficient ES balance levels (i.e., demand exceeding supply), with a significant expansion trend from 1990 to 2020. Land use conflict was especially prominent in areas experiencing rapid rural-urban transformation, and the hot spots expanded noticeably. The spatio-temporal differences in the coupling coordination degree of ES balance and land use conflict were significant, whereas the land system of the study area has always been dominated by a balanced development pattern throughout the research period, except for the urban center, which tended to be in a stage of uncoordinated development, with the ES balance blocked. These findings suggest that it is necessary to coordinate urban and adjacent regions through regionally integrated efforts to alleviate the ES imbalance. This research can provide a scientific reference for analyzing regional land system states, coordinating the sustainable spatial development of ecosystems, and implementing revitalization strategies to achieve win-win land system goals.

Conservation of the Goitered gazelle (Gazella subgutturosa) under climate changes in Iraq

Climate is a vital factor that shapes habitat suitability for many species across space and time. Gazella subgutturosa (Goitered gazelle) is a globally vulnerable mammal already extinct in some areas of Armenia and Georgia and is highly threatened in other areas of its distribution. In this study, new data were gathered for 33 locations in north-eastern Iraq, and then together with literature data, Species Distribution Models (SDMs) were used to explore the geographical distribution of the gazelle under current and future climate change scenarios. We studied the relationship between seven climate variables and 43 occurrence records to predict habitat suitability of the gazelle under the current climate, and also under four future climate scenarios (RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 for both 2050 and 2080). Annual precipitation and isothermality had the most influence on the distribution of Gazella subgutturosa. The most suitable habitat in both the current and future scenarios was located in north-eastern Iraq close to the Iranian border near the Zagros Mountains. There was no difference in habitat suitability for the gazelle inside Iraqi Protected Areas (PAs) compared to outside the PAs. Using the occurrence records and IUCN Red List national assessments, we found Iraqi Goitered gazelle populations to be classified as Endangered (EN). Our results suggest urgent conservation planning is needed to save this species, including the establishment of new PAs. These results contribute new baseline information, which was currently missing Goitered gazelle in about Iraq, to the IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group, which will hopefully aid with future global assessments and conservation.

Indigenous-led conservation in the Arctic supports global conservation practices

Amid growing recognition for the role of global conservation initiatives in protecting biodiversity and mitigating climate change impacts, the interest in Indigenous-led and Indigenous-centered conservation in the circumpolar Arctic is also on the rise. Through literature and practice, Indigenous communities in the Arctic are shaping the global discourse around conservation approaches, mechanisms, and strategies, and are challenging colonial conceptions of how lands, waters, and species should be used, managed, and protected. Indigenous approaches, mechanisms, and strategies often differ from those found in the global conservation toolbox and rather focus on local priorities, Indigenous knowledge, traditional practices, sovereignty, and self-determination. Direction on how conservation should evolve and overcome challenges and related burdens is best given by Indigenous communities, scholars, organizations, and governments. Valuing Indigenous knowledge and supporting community-level initiatives, strategies, and practices comes with the benefits of understanding, forwarding, and implementing community priorities, needs, and values through attention and focus on funding, Indigenous-led research and management, and mutual mentorship. In addition to benefiting conservation itself, biodiversity research conducted within Indigenous homelands has the opportunity to serve as a model for how regional, national, and international initiatives best engage with Indigenous knowledge, conservation practice, and policy development in the Arctic and beyond.

Five approaches to producing actionable science in conservation.

The knowledge produced by conservation scientists must be actionable in order to address urgent conservation challenges. To understand the process of creating actionable science, we interviewed 71 conservation scientists who had participated in 1 of 3 fellowship programs focused on training scientists to become agents of change. Using a grounded theory approach, we identified 16 activities that these researchers employed to make their scientific products more actionable. Some activities were more common than others and, arguably, more foundational. We organized these activities into 3 nested categories (motivations, strategies, and tactics). Using a co-occurrence matrix, we found that most activities were positively correlated. These correlations allowed us to identify 5 approaches, framed as profiles, to actionable science: the discloser, focused on open access; the educator, focused on science communication; the networker, focused on user needs and building relationships; the collaborator, focused on boundary spanning; and the pluralist, focused on knowledge coproduction resulting in valuable outcomes for all parties. These profiles build on one another in a hierarchy determined by their complexity and level of engagement, their potential to support actionable science, and their proximity to ideal coproduction with knowledge users. Our results provide clear guidance for conservation scientists to generate actionable science to address the global biodiversity conservation challenge.

Effects of climate and land-cover change on the conservation status of gibbons.

Species shift their distribution in response to climate and land-cover change, which may result in a spatial mismatch between currently protected areas (PAs) and priority conservation areas (PCAs). We examined the effects of climate and land-cover change on potential range of gibbons and sought to identify PCAs that would conserve them effectively. We collected global gibbon occurrence points and modeled (ecological niche model) their current and potential 2050s ranges under climate-change and different land-cover-change scenarios. We examined change in range and PA coverage between the current and future ranges of each gibbon species. We applied spatial conservation prioritization to identify the top 30% PCAs for each species. We then determined how much of the PCAs are conserved in each country within the global range of gibbons. On average, 31% (SD 22) of each species' current range was covered in PAs. PA coverage of the current range of 9 species was <30%. Nine species lost on average 46% (SD 29) of their potential range due to climate change. Under climate-change with an optimistic land-cover-change scenario (B1), 12 species lost 39% (SD 28) of their range. In a pessimistic land-cover-change scenario (A2), 15 species lost 36% (SD 28) of their range. Five species lost significantly more range under the A2 scenario than the B1 scenario (p=0.01, SD 0.01), suggesting that gibbons will benefit from effective management of land cover. PA coverage of future range was <30% for 11 species. On average, 32% (SD 25) of PCAs were covered by PAs. Indonesia contained more species and PCAs and thus has the greatest responsibility for gibbon conservation. Indonesia, India, and Myanmar need to expand their PAs to fulfill their responsibility to gibbon conservation. Our results provide a baseline for global gibbon conservation, particularly for countries lacking gibbon research capacity.

Cooper-Frye sampling with short-range repulsion

This work incorporates the effect of short-range repulsion between particles into the Cooper-Frye hadron sampling procedure. This is achieved by means of a rejection sampling step, which prohibits any pair of particles from overlapping in the coordinate space, effectively modeling the effect of hard-core repulsion. The new procedure---called the fist sampler---is based on the package thermal-fist. It is used here to study the effect of excluded volume on cumulants of the (net-)proton number distribution in central collisions of heavy ions in a broad collision energy range in conjunction with exact global conservation of baryon number, electric charge, and strangeness. The results are compared with earlier calculations based on analytical approximations, quantifying the accuracy of the latter at different collision energies. An additional advantage of the new method over the analytic approaches is that it offers the flexibility provided by event generators, making it straightforwardly extendable to other observables.

Harnessing island–ocean connections to maximize marine benefits of island conservation

Islands support unique plants, animals, and human societies found nowhere else on the Earth. Local and global stressors threaten the persistence of island ecosystems, with invasive species being among the most damaging, yet solvable, stressors. While the threat of invasive terrestrial mammals on island flora and fauna is well recognized, recent studies have begun to illustrate their extended and destructive impacts on adjacent marine environments. Eradication of invasive mammals and restoration of native biota are promising tools to address both island and ocean management goals. The magnitude of the marine benefits of island restoration, however, is unlikely to be consistent across the globe. We propose a list of six environmental characteristics most likely to affect the strength of land–sea linkages: precipitation, elevation, vegetation cover, soil hydrology, oceanographic productivity, and wave energy. Global databases allow for the calculation of comparable metrics describing each environmental character across islands. Such metrics can be used today to evaluate relative potential for coupled land–sea conservation efforts and, with sustained investment in monitoring on land and sea, can be used in the future to refine science-based planning tools for integrated land–sea management. As conservation practitioners work to address the effects of climate change, ocean stressors, and biodiversity crises, it is essential that we maximize returns from our management investments. Linking efforts on land, including eradication of island invasive mammals, with marine restoration and protection should offer multiplied benefits to achieve concurrent global conservation goals.

Ecology, evolution, and conservation of Ethiopia’s biodiversity

Ethiopia is home to one of the richest and most unique assemblages of fauna and flora on the African continent. Contained within its borders are two major centers of endemism, the mesic Roof of Africa (also known as the Ethiopian Highlands) and the arid Horn of Africa, resulting from the country’s varied topography and consequent geographic isolation. These centers of endemism are crucial to global conservation as evidenced by their classification within the Eastern Afromontane and Horn of Africa biodiversity hotspots, respectively. Ethiopia’s diverse ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain are increasingly threatened by climate change and the growing impacts of Africa’s second largest human and largest livestock populations. In this paper, we focus on several key areas of recent and ongoing research on Ethiopian biodiversity that have broadened our understanding of nature and its conservation in Africa. Topics explored include the behavioral ecology of Ethiopia’s large social mammals, the ecology and conservation of its unique coffee forests, and Ethiopian approaches to community conservation, fortress conservation, and nature-based solutions. We also highlight the increasing prominence of Ethiopian scientists in studies of the country’s biodiversity in recent decades. We suggest promising avenues for future research in evolutionary biology, ecology, systematics, and conservation in Ethiopia and discuss how recent and ongoing work in Ethiopia is helping us better understand and conserve nature in the human-dominated landscapes of Africa and other tropical regions today.

Strangeness thermodynamic instabilities in hot and dense nuclear matter

We explore the presence of thermodynamic instabilities and, consequently, the realization of a pure hadronic phase transition in the hot and finite baryon density nuclear matter. The analysis is performed by means of an effective relativistic mean-field model with the inclusion of hyperons, varDelta -isobars, and the lightest pseudoscalar and vector meson degrees of freedom. The Gibbs conditions on the global conservation of baryon number and zero net strangeness in symmetric nuclear matter are required. Similarly to the liquid–gas phase transition, we show that a phase transition, characterized by mechanical instabilities (due to fluctuations on the baryon number) and chemical-diffusive instabilities (due to fluctuations on the strangeness number), can take place for a finite range of varDelta -meson coupling constants, compatible with different experimental constraints. The hadronic phase transition, which presents similar features to the quark-hadron phase transition, is characterized by different strangeness content during the mixed phase and, consequently, by a sensible variation of the strange anti-particle to particle ratios.

Realizing a rights-based approach to resettlement from protected areas: Lessons from Satpura Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh (India)

Though the lifeworlds of many Indigenous and Local Communities (ILCs) across the world are deeply intertwined with nature, ‘fortress conservation’ has led to their exclusion from lands in which they have resided for generations with concomitant social and material costs. Enhanced evidence-based understanding on the untenability of ‘fortress conservation’, evolving international law on the rights of the Indigenous peoples and the advocacy of numerous actors in the international arena have led to the ascendency of the rights-based approach (RBA) in global conservation politics with long-standing struggles of ILCs over land and resources reframed as human rights. Though its effective realization on the ground has been stymied by pre-existing power asymmetries and inequal relationship between ILCs vis-à-vis other actors, nevertheless, RBA has gradually gained traction in the legal and policy framework governing conservation including resettlement from protected areas in countries like India. Using an anthropological, interpretative lens, this paper critically analyses the resettlement of Tribal and other traditional forest dwellers from the Satpura Tiger Reserve in the Central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh post the adoption of the NTCA Guidelines of 2011 which are in sync with the broad contours of RBA. The paper concludes that certain factors are crucial to the realization of RBA on the ground namely ‘Free, Prior and Informed Consent’ (FPIC), recognition and settlement of rights under relevant legal provisions, the assertion of free choices concerning resettlement options, livelihood and financial handholding as well as adequate provisioning for community facilities. However, certain challenges such as power asymmetries on the ground, quasi-egalitarian decision-making, limitations to the exercise of free choice and persistence of the earlier ‘need-based’ governmentality come in the way of realization of RBA in letter and spirit which need to be overcome for reconciling ‘conservation with justice’.

An international assessment of the barriers influencing the effectiveness of island ecosystem management

Abstract Island ecosystems are disproportionally impacted by biodiversity loss and as such their effective management is critical to global conservation efforts. Practitioners world‐wide work to manage island sites and species to conserve them, but various day‐to‐day barriers compromise these efforts, reducing management effectiveness and preventing local and potentially even national biodiversity targets from being met. Identifying the most important barriers that currently impede effective island conservation could streamline investment to focus on cost‐efficient interventions that better reflect realities on the ground and the need to address barriers under substantial time and budget constraints. A survey of 360 practitioners working in island ecosystem management across 77 countries was conducted. The three most common barriers perceived by practitioners to prevent them from achieving more effective management are: low staff capacity; difficulties turning data into useful information for management (including lack of capacity and time to analyse data); and lack of a research and management strategy. Practitioners' perceptions of national‐level management effectiveness were mostly associated with their perception of governance issues, the presence/absence of research and management strategies and their experience of collaboration outcomes. Practitioners' experience of staffing and monitoring programme issues was important in shaping their perception of management effectiveness within the organisation(s) they worked with. Despite the indisputable need for transformative change to address the underlying causes of many of these barriers, more immediate and direct investment in strengthening the people and systems that are at the frontline of preventing biodiversity loss on islands is needed to bridge these barriers and achieve more effective management of island ecosystems. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Algal settling ponds contribute to final effluent quality of integrated algal pond systems for municipal sewage treatment

AbstractAppropriate wastewater technologies and sound management are crucial to global water quality and conservation. The integrated algal pond system (IAPS), considered an efficient, passive and low‐cost wastewater treatment technology for peri‐urban spaces, is perceived to yield a final effluent unsuitable for discharge. Experiments were carried out to challenge the prevailing perception that algal‐based wastewater treatment processes and in particular IAPS produce an effluent that does not always meet national and/or regional regulatory standards. Formation of a microalgal–bacterial floc (MaB‐flocs) and settleability together with biomass removal from algal settling ponds (ASPs) is shown to reduce total suspended solids (TSS) from &gt;50 to &lt;20 mg L−1. Thus, production of a readily settleable MaB‐floc coupled with removal of settled biomass from ASP ensures that final effluent TSS remains below the general limit of 25 mg L−1 and yields an effluent suitable for either irrigation or discharge.

Prioritizing nationally endemic species for conservation

AbstractOver 90% of recent human‐caused extinctions are wild species known from only one nation. These nationally endemic species represent one of the greatest global conservation responsibilities for any country. To meet this responsibility, we must first identify nationally endemic species. We developed the first comprehensive inventory of the 308 plant, animal, and fungi species and infraspecies only found in Canada, of which approximately 90% are of global conservation concern. Our analysis also identified 27 spatial concentrations of endemic species, many of which are associated with glacial refugia, islands, coasts, and unique habitats. Nationally endemic species have not been the primary focus of endangered species conservation in Canada and other countries. Our analysis provides a case study on how national inventories of endemic species can be developed and applied to support species assessments and place‐based conservation. Prioritizing endemic species for conservation can build on sentiments of sense of place and national responsibility to foster public interest. We propose a species conservation framework that highlights the critical role of national endemism in preventing global extinctions. Greater conservation focus on endemic species will support national and international biodiversity conservation targets, including the post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

Field research stations are key to global conservation targets

Field research stations are key to global conservation targets

Freshwater mussel conservation: A global horizon scan of emerging threats and opportunities.

We identified 14 emerging and poorly understood threats and opportunities for addressing the global conservation of freshwater mussels over the next decade. A panel of 17 researchers and stakeholders from six continents submitted a total of 56 topics that were ranked and prioritized using a consensus-building Delphi technique. Our 14 priority topics fell into five broad themes (autecology, population dynamics, global stressors, global diversity, and ecosystem services) and included understanding diets throughout mussel life history; identifying the drivers of population declines; defining metrics for quantifying mussel health; assessing the role of predators, parasites, and disease; informed guidance on the risks and opportunities for captive breeding and translocations; the loss of mussel-fish co-evolutionary relationships; assessing the effects of increasing surface water changes; understanding the effects of sand and aggregate mining; understanding the effects of drug pollution and other emerging contaminants such as nanomaterials; appreciating the threats and opportunities arising from river restoration; conserving understudied hotspots by building local capacity through the principles of decolonization; identifying appropriate taxonomic units for conservation; improved quantification of the ecosystem services provided by mussels; and understanding how many mussels are enough to provide these services. Solutions for addressing the topics ranged from ecological studies to technological advances and socio-political engagement. Prioritization of our topics can help to drive a proactive approach to the conservation of this declining group which provides a multitude of important ecosystem services.

Pakistan Zoo Visitors’ Perceptions toward Zoos and Large Native Carnivores

A primary goal of zoos is to educate their visitors about global conservation efforts. Studying visitors’ perceptions and attitudes towards captive and wild endangered species helps target conservation messaging. This is especially important in countries, such as Pakistan, where hunting and human–wildlife conflict pose the greatest threats to species. While there have been some studies about Pakistan’s rural communities’ perceptions, few studies have examined the perceptions of Pakistan’s zoo visitors. We present data from exit surveys (n = 304) collected at three of the largest zoos in Pakistan (Lahore: an established zoo, Peshawar: a newly built zoo, and Jungle Kingdom: a theme park and zoo). Zoo location was a significant predictor for a range of attitudes, suggesting that the way a zoo presents itself strongly impacts visitor perceptions. Perceptions of learning were influenced by high biodiversity appreciation but a low confidence in knowledge about animals. Support for keeping animals in captivity was most likely when animal welfare was perceived as good and amongst respondents who valued biodiversity. Zoo-goers, regardless of location, demonstrated high levels of interest in animals and environmental concerns. However, the primary visit motivator was spending time with family and friends.