Habitat Conservation Plans Research Articles

Mapping opportunities and barriers for coexistence between people and pumas in the Argentine Dry Chaco

AbstractAimThe persistence of large carnivore populations depends on their survival outside protected areas, where they often impact local livelihoods through livestock depredation. Understanding the impacts of human behaviour on large carnivores in shared landscapes is thus important but is often overlooked in habitat assessments or conservation planning. We employed an integrated approach that considers human behaviour and landscape structure metrics to assess the potential for human‐puma (Puma concolor) coexistence in the Chaco region, a global deforestation and defaunation hotspot.LocationArgentine Dry Chaco (~490,000 km2).MethodsWe identified suitable puma habitat patches and movement areas using occupancy modelling and combined it with a spatial human‐puma conflict risk model based on interview data to identify ‘safe’ and ‘unsafe’ habitat patches. We then used resistance surfaces to identify ‘safe’ and ‘unsafe’ movement areas, as well as ‘severed’ movement areas where anthropogenic land conversion inhibits movement.ResultsSafe puma habitat patches (i.e., suitable and safe) covered 29% of the region, whereas attractive sinks (i.e., suitable but risky) represented 12%. Movement areas corresponded to 60% of the region, while conflict risk and high landscape resistance undermined connectivity: unsafe and severed movement areas covered 10% and 11% of the region, respectively. Nearly 98% of safe habitat and movement areas occurred outside protected areas.Main ConclusionsWe provide an integrated conceptual framework and spatial explicit template for a three‐pronged conservation strategy to (1) protect safe habitat and movement areas, (2) mitigate livestock depredation in attractive sinks and unsafe movement areas and (3) restore landscape in severed and matrix areas to improve ecological connectivity. This would allow pumas to maintain viable populations while reducing negative impacts on local people. More generally, we show how integrating habitat and conflict risk models can reveal opportunities and challenges for human‐carnivore coexistence beyond protected areas.

Assessment of Waterbird Habitat Importance and Identification of Conservation Gaps in Anhui Province.

Wetlands are among the most important habitats of highly wetland-dependent waterbirds but are subject to ongoing habitat loss and degradation owing to intensified anthropogenic activities. The scarcity of human and natural resources makes effective habitat protection an important concern. Here, we aimed to investigate waterbird habitat protection methods for Anhui Province, China, a critical stopover and wintering area on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway that features rich wetland resources subject to significant habitat loss and degradation. We evaluated the status and importance of 306 wintering waterbird habitats and identified the key environmental influences and current protection gaps using the entropy weights method and generalized additive modeling. We found 73 important habitats for waterbirds in Anhui Province, which were classified into levels of importance (descending from I to V) according to the natural discontinuity method. Level I and Level II habitats were mainly located in the Yangtze River floodplain and Level IV habitats in the Huaihe River floodplain. The gap analysis showed that 42 important waterbird habitats had protection gaps, accounting for 57.53% of the total area. Waterbird habitat importance was significantly correlated with elevation, normalized vegetation index, lake area, and lake circumference but not with distance from roads or population density. The results of this study provide scientific information for waterbird habitat conservation planning, which is crucial for maintaining wetland ecosystem functions.

Preference of trees for nest building by critically endangered white-rumped vultures (Gyps bengalensis) in Nepal.

White-rumped vultures (Gyps bengalensis) are critically endangered species, and protecting their habitats, particularly the nesting trees, may have a positive impact on their reproductive success. For a better understanding of vultures' habitat needs, the characteristics of nesting trees should be accounted. In this paper, we compare the characteristics of the trees that have vultures' nests and that do not by randomly select a control tree within a 10 m radius of the nesting tree. We extensively searched and monitored the white-rumped vultures' nests, nesting trees, and nesting tree species in Nepal between 2002 and 2022, and measured the characteristics of sampled trees such as their height, girth, canopy spread, branching orders, and whorls. We recorded 1161 nests of white-rumped vulture in total on 194 trees belonging to 19 species over the past two decades. White-rumped vultures preferred the kapok trees (Bombax ceiba) for nest construction than other tree species (χ 2 = 115.38, df = 1, p < .001) as 66.49% of nests were built on them. In the logistic regression model, the number of whorls on a tree, canopy spread, and the height of the first branch determined whether a nest was present or absent on a tree. These results help to prioritize the tree attributes in a habitat conservation plan for vultures.

Spatiotemporal dynamics of duck harvest distributions in the Central and Mississippi flyways, 1960–2019

AbstractGeographical distributions of waterfowl exhibit annual variation in response to spatiotemporal variation in weather conditions, habitat availability, and other factors. Continuing changes in climate and land use could lead to persistent shifts of waterfowl distributions, potentially causing a mismatch with habitat conservation planning, wetland restoration efforts, and harvest management decisions informed by historical distributions. We used band recoveries and harvest records (i.e., hunter‐harvested wings) from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Waterfowl Parts Collection Survey as indices of duck distribution in autumn and winter, and quantified intra‐annual, interannual, and interspecific variation in their geographic distributions across 6 decades (1960–2019) for 15 duck species in the Central and Mississippi flyways in North America. Specifically, we tested for annual and decadal shifts in mean latitude and longitude of recoveries for each month (Oct–Jan) by species and taxonomic guild (i.e., dabbling, diving ducks). Overall, species varied in the extent, timing, and sometimes direction, of distributional change in recoveries. From 1960–2019, mean recovery locations for dabbling ducks shifted south 105–296 km in October and 27 km in November (wings only), whereas mean latitudes shifted north 144–234 km in December and 186–301 km in January. Mean recovery locations for diving ducks shifted north 162 km in October (wings only), 84–173 km in December, and 66–120 km in January, but shifted 99–512 km south in November. Shifts in longitude were less consistent between guilds and data types. Finally, distributional change rarely accelerated during recent decades, except for southward shifts of band recoveries of diving ducks in November and northward shifts of band and wing recoveries of dabbling ducks in January. Although anecdotal accounts of large‐scale northward shifts in duck distributions are prolific in the land management and hunting communities, our data demonstrate more subtle shifts that vary considerably by species and month. Observed changes in recovery distributions could necessitate changes in timing of habitat management practices throughout the Central and Mississippi flyways and may result in fewer hunting and recreational opportunities for some species in southern states. Quantifying patterns of historical change is a necessary first step to understanding temporal and interspecific variation in waterfowl distributions, which will help with landscape‐scale conservation and management efforts in the future and enable effective communication to core constituencies regarding ongoing changes and their implications for recreational engagement.

Peltigera (Ascomycota) living in open and shady environments depend on different Nostoc photobionts

&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Species of Peltigera (lichen-forming Ascomycota) establish obligate symbioses with several monophyletic groups (phylogroups) of Nostoc cyanobacteria. Some of these fungi are strict specialists and only associate with one Nostoc phylogroup throughout their range, while others are generalists and associate with many different Nostoc phylogroups. We sampled 20 Peltigera taxa, mostly representing the Peltigera section Peltigera, from grassland and forest habitats across Europe. Mycobionts’ identities were confirmed using fungal ITS sequences. The Nostoc cyanobionts were identified and grouped based on single nucleotide differences in the trnL region and on the phylogenetic analysis of the rbcLX region. Our data confirmed that some Peltigera species clearly prefer open habitats, while others are largely confined to shady forest habitats. The two habitat preferences are consistently paired with association with different Nostoc groups. As a specific example, two ecologically versatile species, Peltigera canina and P. didactyla, both growing in open and shady habitats, consistently associated with different groups of Nostoc when growing in different habitats. As associations between specific mycobionts and cyanobionts are influenced by habitat conditions, the diversity of both taxon groups should be considered in the context of habitat management and conservation planning.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D;

Hands across the Water: How the 57-Year Dispute over the Edwards Aquifer Began, Persisted, and Was Resolved

The Edwards Aquifer is the primary source of water for a region in South-Central Texas that includes San Antonio and irrigated agriculture to the west. The aquifer also contributes to surface water flow in the Guadalupe River through Comal and San Marcos Springs, which are home to endangered aquatic species. In 1956, during the multiyear Texas drought of record, Comal Springs ceased to flow initiating a multi-decadal transboundary water dispute over the aquifer. This dispute pitted urban, agricultural, and environmental interests and surface water right holders against one another. In 1993, a federal district court ruled that the Endangered Species Act required that adequate flows from the springs be ensured for the endangered species. The Texas Legislature responded to the court by establishing the Edwards Aquifer Authority to regulate groundwater withdrawals. In 2007, with a key deadline looming to create a species protection plan, the Texas Legislature intervened again and mandated that the rival regional water interests engage in a stakeholder process to develop the plan. That process, which was called the Edwards Aquifer Recovery Implementation Program, resulted in a diverse group of parties with opposing interests collaborating to develop, approve, fund, and implement the landmark Edwards Aquifer Habitat Conservation Plan, which is in its 10th year of implementation.

Foraging Habitat and Its Effects on the Tricolored Blackbird’s Breeding Distribution and Abundance in the Sierra Nevada Foothills, California

The grassland-dominated eastern Central Valley and Sierra Nevada foothills of California, from Placer to Stanislaus counties, supported at least 43,000–55,000 breeding Tricolored Blackbirds (Agelaius tricolor) annually from 2014 to 2018—about 30% of the statewide population. We found that within 5 km of a colony, the extent of land cover used for foraging, grassland–herbaceous, and to a lesser extent annual crops and irrigated pasture, exceeded their proportions in this region as a whole, suggesting that nesting Tricolored Blackbirds select colony sites where these habitats are more abundant. Other land-cover types were underutilized for foraging, suggesting avoidance. The probability of Tricolored Blackbird occupancy of blocks of 100 km2 was strongly associated with the extent of the selected land-cover types. The relationship between average density of the breeding population and the extent of the selected land-cover types was significant but weaker, implying that other factors are important in determining density. From 2014 to 2018, development and mining eliminated or degraded 9 of 79 colony sites and made 4 others unsuitable by reducing the extent of nearby foraging habitat, although the total breeding population in the region did not decline. We recommend that conservation measures for the Tricolored Blackbird in federally and state-approved habitat-conservation plans in Placer and Sacramento counties, which support the largest breeding populations in the central Sierra foothills but where urban development is rapid, be reevaluated on the basis of recent colony locations and recognition of the critical role of grassland, annual crops, and irrigated pasture as foraging habitat.

A simple but novel approach to calculate seabird light fallout: A case study from Kauaʻi

Injury and mortality of night flying seabirds due to lights (fallout) affects their long-term viability. However, the cryptic nature of these species hinders direct estimates and projections of fallout. The Kauaʻi Seabird Habitat Conservation Plan (KSHCP) characterizes the current and projected fallout for Newell's shearwaters (Puffinus auricularis newelli), Hawaiian petrels (Pterodroma sandwichensis) and the Hawaiʻi distinct population segment of the band-rumped storm-petrels (Oceanodroma castro) on the island of Kauaʻi across eight permittees. In the KSHCP, each permittee was required to itemize the lighting infrastructure related to their facilities (type, wattage, number of lights, etc.) as well as supply an overall expected seabird fallout number with an estimate of detection probability or ability to find the fallout birds. Light intensity is thought to be correlated to the degree of attraction to a light source. Here we identify seabird fallout using indirect estimates derived from the KSHCP and present a reproducible method to consistently project and calculate fallout between entities that need to reduce seabird mortality due to their light sources. Though the permittees did not provide an estimate of light intensity at their sites, we extrapolated luminous intensity (light brightness) from their itemized light information (i.e., lumens/watt). Using luminous intensity, we then derived the degree of fallout per lumen and its variation across the permittees. As a proof of concept, we then projected the fallout per lumen estimate onto streetlights owned by the Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative, as applied over a range of detectability correction factors. Though fallout varies significantly based on the detectability correction factor used, when considering the site differences on Kauaʻi, a previous fallout estimate, and the overlapping characteristics of the projected versus actual luminous intensities, the utilities projected fallout appears applicable. We feel that the methodology can be used as a baseline to infer fallout associated with various entities.

Large-scale distribution models for optimal prediction of Eastern black rail habitat within tidal ecosystems

Eastern black rails (Laterallus jamaicensis jamaicensis) are among the rarest and least-studied birds in North America and were recently listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Spatial models that predict habitat quality across the subspecies range are therefore needed to inform conservation, recovery, and monitoring efforts for this rare bird. We used data from 47,585 call-broadcast surveys collected at 7906 sites over a 3-decade period (1990s, 2000s, 2010s; 23 total years) to build species distribution models for eastern black rails. We used hierarchical Bayesian occupancy models and predictive model selection to develop multi-scale models that optimally predict habitat suitability for eastern black rails within tidal wetlands while also accounting for imperfect detection of these cryptic birds during field surveys. We also used raster regression techniques to translate model predictions into 30-m resolution maps of habitat suitability for eastern black rails within tidal wetlands along the eastern seaboard of the United States. The model predicted suitability of breeding habitat as a function of wetland attributes (e.g., cover of high marsh and terrestrial border), hydrologic modification, and disturbance from human development measured over multiple spatial scales. We also found differences in habitat relationships for eastern black rails when compared to models that included both North American subspecies of black rail. Important results included negative effects of shrub-scrub wetlands, and strong positive effects of high marsh, terrestrial border, and impoundments on breeding season occupancy. Our study provides an example of integrating detection-non-detection data and modern statistical methods to build predictive distribution models for an extremely rare species, while also providing rigorous predictions of breeding habitat quality for the eastern black rail within tidal wetlands. These models will facilitate optimal monitoring, habitat conservation, and recovery planning efforts for eastern black rails and provide a foundation for future research and conservation of this imperiled bird.

Potential Distribution and Medicinal Uses of the Mexican Plant Cuphea aequipetala Cav. (Lythraceae)

Carrying out studies that lead us to obtain information on both the cultural and biological heritage of a locality, region, or country allows us to create appropriate strategies for the conservation of biocultural diversity. In this context, the objective of this study was to model the potential distribution of Cuphea aequipetala Cav. within the Mexican territory, to identify the main environmental variables that delimit its habitat, and to obtain information from traditional knowledge through the medicinal uses that the inhabitants of nearby communities give to the plant. Potential distribution modeling was performed with MaxEnt together with 19 bioclimatic variables of Worldclim plus three variables closely related to the habitat of the species. Data on its presence were obtained in situ within the Lagunas de Zempoala National Park and from iNaturalist. Information on the medicinal uses of the plant was obtained through semi-structured surveys with people who were in continuous contact with it. The potential range of C. equipetala Cav. was 3205.63 km2, which represents 0.16% of the Mexican territory. The altitude, precipitation in the driest period, average temperature of the warmest quarter, and average temperature of the driest quarter were the variables that had the greatest effects on the potential distribution (49%), and these factors mainly delimited the suitability of the habitat. C. aequipetala Cav. is still used in traditional medicine, mainly for conditions related to cancer, shocks, and inflammation. Finally, it was found that the potential distribution coincided with the states of the country where its medicinal use was reported. This information is important, since it constitutes the basis for performing actions targeting the conservation of this species of medicinal relevance. For example, potential distribution areas can be integrated into habitat restoration and conservation plans to prevent anthropogenic activities, such as felling, that directly affect the habitat. This information can also be used as a reference to promote the preservation of medicinal uses among the young population of the distribution areas.

Fecundity of First-Generation Captively Reared Heterelmis comalensis (Coleoptera: Elmidae).

The Comal Springs riffle beetle Heterelmis comalensis Bosse, Tuff, and Brown is listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Rearing this species in captivity is important to maintaining a refuge which is a goal of the Edwards Aquifer Habitat Conservation Plan. Although captive larval production has been observed for years, the production of larvae per female has been relatively unknown. Production chambers were constructed from PVC to house one female and male and the production of larvae was monitored ca. monthly until the female died. Females were found to be iteroparous and produced 29.3 ± 37.1 larvae. The number of larvae produced was found to be a function of female longevity rather than size. Other aspects of captive production and observations from the study are discussed.

Environmental and anthropogenic influences on movement and foraging in a critically endangered lemur species, Propithecus tattersalli: implications for habitat conservation planning

BackgroundWildlife conservation often focuses on establishing protected areas. However, these conservation zones are frequently established without adequate knowledge of the movement patterns of the species they are designed to protect. Understanding movement and foraging patterns of species in dynamic and diverse habitats can allow managers to develop more effective conservation plans. Threatened lemurs in Madagascar are an example where management plans and protected areas are typically created to encompass large, extant forests rather than consider the overall resource needs of the target species.MethodsTo gain an understanding of golden-crowned sifaka (Propithecus tattersalli) movement patterns, including space use and habitat selection across their range of inhabited forest types, we combined behavior data with Dynamic Brownian Bridge Movement Models and Resource Selection Functions. We also examined the influence of abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic factors on home range size, movement rates, and foraging patterns.ResultsWe found that home range size and movement rates differed between seasons, with increased core area size and movement in the rainy season. Forest type also played a role in foraging behavior with sifaka groups in the humid forest avoiding roads in both seasons, groups in the dry deciduous forest avoiding road networks in the rainy season, and groups in the moderate evergreen forest displaying no selection or avoidance of road networks while foraging.ConclusionOur study illustrates the importance of studying primate groups across seasons and forest types, as developing conservation plans from a single snapshot can give an inaccurate assessment of their natural behavior and resources needs of the species. More specifically, by understanding how forest type influences golden-crowned sifaka movement and foraging behavior, conservation management plans can be made to the individual forest types inhabited (dry deciduous, moderate evergreen, humid, littoral, etc.), rather than the region as a whole.

Habitat Conservation Plans provide limited insight into the cost of complying with the Endangered Species Act

AbstractThe Endangered Species Act (ESA) mandates protection for listed species, prohibiting intentionally adverse “take” by both public and private activities. The requirements can be perceived as a costly regulatory burden, although minimal understanding of the costs of compliance actions may exacerbate the perceived burden. This has potential consequences for ESA effectiveness and species recovery. We developed a framework to identify when compliance costs could be incurred in a project and then analyzed projected cost data from published Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs) using this framework. We found that across HCPs, the projected costs reported were incomplete and difficult to interpret with inconsistent reporting across documents. Within the 43 HCPs that had utilizable cost data, the majority of projected costs (77%–97%) were incurred by implementation of ESA compliance activities. Of these, 46% of expected implementation costs were for monitoring efforts for project‐scale HCPs, while 81% of implementation costs for large‐scale projects were for compensatory mitigation actions. Our results provide a first attempt at analyzing the cost of ESA compliance actions using HCPs. However, we found that costs reported in HCPs tended to be opaque and incomplete, underscoring the need for standardization of cost reporting to better support understanding of ESA compliance costs.

Predicting Dynamics of the Potential Breeding Habitat of Larus saundersi by MaxEnt Model under Changing Land-Use Conditions in Wetland Nature Reserve of Liaohe Estuary, China

Identifying waterfowl habitat suitability under changing environments, especially land-use change, is crucial to make waterfowl habitat conservation planning. We took Wetland Nature Reserve of Liaohe Estuary, the largest breeding area of Saunders’s Gulls (Larus saundersi) in the world, as our study area, generated land-use-type maps through interpretation of satellite images from four different years (1988, 2000, 2009, 2017), and predicted the potential breeding habitat of Saunders’s Gulls by MaxEnt model based on the land-use map, along with other environmental variables (NDVI, distance to roads and artificial facilities, distance to rivers and water bodies, DEM and distance to shoreline) for the four years, respectively. The models were evaluated using the area under the curve (AUC). We analyzed the changes of the breeding habitat from 1988 to 2017 and utilized RDA to explore the relationships among the changes of suitable habitat of Larus saundersi and the dynamics of land uses. Our results showed that the most suitable habitat decreased by 1286.46 ha during 1988-2009 and increased by 363.51 ha from 2009 to 2017. The suitable habitat decreased by 582.48 ha from 1988 to 2009 and then increased to 1848.96 ha in 2017, while the unsuitable habitat increased by 2793.87 ha during 1988–2009 and then decreased by 178.83 ha from 2009 to 2017. We also found that land use, distance to the coastline, distance to artificial facilities, distance to rivers, distance to roads, and NDVI had certain degrees of impact on the Larus saundersi distribution. The contribution of land use ranged from 16.4% to 40.3%, distance to coastline from 34.7% to 48.0%, distance to artificial facilities from 5.9% to 11.1%, distance to rivers from 5.5% to 11.0%, distance to roads from 3.9% to 12.5%, and NDVI from 0.3% to 6.3%. The change in suitable habitat of Larus saundersi has a positive relationship with the change of seepweed marsh. Human-induced changes in seepweed marsh and coastline position are the main factors influencing the potential breeding habitat of Saunders’s Gulls. We suggest strict conservation of seepweed marsh and implementation of habitat management practices to better protect Saunders’ Gull’s breeding habitat.

Incorporating Climate Uncertainty into Conservation Planning for Wildlife Managers

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is one of the oldest conservation organizations in the United States and is the only federal agency solely charged with conserving fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats. The agency leads numerous conservation initiatives, such as protecting and recovering endangered species, managing almost 600 wildlife refuges throughout all states and territories, enforcing federal wildlife laws, and regulating international wildlife trade. In the past, these activities have not accounted for climate change. The accelerating biodiversity crisis, in combination with climate uncertainty, adds to the existing complexity associated with responding to multiple anthropogenic stressors. Here we describe current practice and thinking related to climate uncertainty and management of USFWS resources. We focus on three agency domains which represent various conservation planning responsibilities: evaluating species to be listed as threatened or endangered, Habitat Conservation Plans for listed species, and land management techniques on wildlife refuges. Integrating climate considerations into agency planning documents is complex and we highlight effective current applications and suggest future improvements. Additionally, we identify outstanding research needs or management applications, and updates to existing policy that will aid in developing improved conservation strategies. Our synthesis contributes to ongoing efforts to incorporate climate uncertainty into conservation planning, natural resource management, and related policy revisions.

Explainable AI reveals new hydroclimatic insights for ecosystem-centric groundwater management

Trustworthy projections of hydrological droughts are pivotal for identifying the key hydroclimatic factors that affect future groundwater level (GWL) fluctuations in drought-prone karstic aquifers that provide water for human consumption and sustainable ecosystems. Herein, we introduce an explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) framework integrated with scenario-based downscaled climate projections from global circulation models. We use the integrated framework to investigate nonlinear hydroclimatic dependencies and interactions behind future hydrological droughts in the Edwards Aquifer Region, an ecologically fragile groundwater-dependent semi-arid region in southern United States. We project GWLs under different future climate scenarios to evaluate the likelihood of severe hydrological droughts under a warm-wet future in terms of mandated groundwater pumping reductions in droughts as part of the habitat conservation plan in effect to protect threatened and endangered endemic aquatic species. The XAI model accounts for the expected non-linear dynamics between GWLs and climatic variables in the complex human-natural system, which is not captured in simple linear models. The XAI-based analysis reveals the critical temperature inflection point beyond which groundwater depletion is triggered despite increased average precipitation. Compound effects of increased evapotranspiration, lower soil moisture, and reduced diffuse recharge due to warmer temperatures could amplify severe hydrological droughts that lower GWLs, potentially exacerbating the groundwater sustainability challenges in the drought-prone karstic aquifer despite an increasing precipitation trend.

Applying Biodiversity Metrics as Surrogates to a Habitat Conservation Plan

Unabated urbanization has led to environmental degradation and subsequent biodiversity loss across the globe. As an outcome of unmitigated land use, multi-jurisdictional agencies have developed land use plans that attempt to protect threatened or endangered species across selected areas by which some trade-offs between harm to species and additional conservation approaches are allowed among the partnering organizations. Typical conservation plans can be created to focus on single or multiple species, and although they may protect a species or groups of species, they may not account for biodiversity or its protection across the given area. We applied an approach that clustered deductive habitat models for terrestrial vertebrates into metrics that serve as surrogates for biodiversity and relate to ecosystem services. In order to evaluate this process, we collaborated with the partnering agencies who are creating a Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan in southern California and compared it to the entire Mojave Desert Ecoregion. We focused on total terrestrial vertebrate species richness and taxon groupings representing amphibians, birds, mammals, and reptiles, and two special status species using the Normalized Index of Biodiversity (NIB). The conservation planning area had a lower NIB and was less species rich than the Mojave Desert Ecoregion, but the Mojave River riparian corridor had a higher NIB and was more species-rich, and while taxon analysis varied across the geographies, this pattern generally held. Additionally, we analyzed desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) and desert kit fox (Vulpes macrotis arsipus) as umbrella species and determined that both species are associated with increased NIB and large numbers of species for the conservation area. Our process provided the ability to incorporate value-added surrogate information into a formal land use planning process and used a metric, NIB, which allowed comparison of the various planning areas and geographic units. Although this process has been applied to Apple Valley, CA, and other geographies within the U.S., the approach has practical application for other global biodiversity initiatives.

Multi-scale waterfowl habitat conservation planning in Wisconsin, USA

ContextThe North American Waterfowl Management Plan and the Upper Mississippi River/Great Lakes Joint Venture waterfowl habitat conservation strategy provide continental and regional guidance, respectively, for waterfowl habitat conservation planning. They were not designed to guide watershed- scale waterfowl habitat delivery.ObjectiveOur goal was to develop a waterfowl habitat decision support framework for the state of Wisconsin using biological and social criteria to guide state and local-scale practitioners with an explicit link to larger scale objectives.MethodsWe engaged a core group of wetland and waterfowl experts to decide upon decision support layers relevant to biological and social objectives, evaluate variables, establish weights, and review model outputs for reasonableness and accuracy. We used spatial analyst tools, kernel density estimators, and weighted sums to create spatially explicit models to identify landscapes and watersheds important for waterfowl. We identified habitat resources that exist currently (Conservation Capital) and considered potential resources (Conservation Opportunities) which could enhance wetland restoration efforts.ResultsWe developed a transparent framework to identify and prioritize landscapes for conserving waterfowl habitat at the Hydrologic Unit Code 12 watershed scale in Wisconsin, by maintaining continental and regional priorities, and including local landscape characteristics, biological criteria, and researcher, manager, and biologist expertise.ConclusionsLocal detail is critical for implementing waterfowl habitat delivery and making efficient use of limited funds for conservation but can be more abstract in larger regional or continental conservation planning. Our models are science-based, transparent, defensible, and can be modified as social, political, biological, and environmental forces change.

Improving species status assessments under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and implications for multispecies conservation challenges worldwide

Despite its successes, the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) has proven challenging to implement due to funding limitations, workload backlog, and other problems. As threats to species survival intensify and as more species come under threat, the need for the ESA and similar conservation laws and policies in other countries to function efficiently has grown. Attempts by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to streamline ESA decisions include multispecies recovery plans and habitat conservation plans. We address species status assessment (SSA), a USFWS process to inform ESA decisions from listing to recovery, within the context of multispecies and ecosystem planning. Although existing SSAs have a single‐species focus, ecosystem‐based research can efficiently inform multiple SSAs within a region and provide a foundation for transition to multispecies SSAs in the future. We considered at‐risk grassland species and ecosystems within the southeastern United States, where a disproportionate number of rare and endemic species are associated with grasslands. To initiate our ecosystem‐based approach, we used a combined literature‐based and structured World Café workshop format to identify science needs for SSAs. Discussions concentrated on 5 categories of threats to grassland species and ecosystems, consistent with recommendations to make shared threats a focus of planning under the ESA: (1) habitat loss, fragmentation, and disruption of functional connectivity; (2) climate change; (3) altered disturbance regimes; (4) invasive species; and (5) localized impacts. For each threat, workshop participants identified science and information needs, including database availability, research priorities, and modeling and mapping needs. Grouping species by habitat and shared threats can make the SSA process and other planning processes for conservation of at‐risk species worldwide more efficient and useful. We found a combination of literature review and structured discussion effective for identifying the scientific information and analysis needed to support the development of multiple SSAs. Article impact statement: Species status assessments can be improved by an ecosystem‐based approach that groups imperiled species by shared habitats and threats.

ДИКИЕ ВИДЫ DAUCUS L. В СЕЛЕКЦИИ И СОХРАНЕНИИ EX SITU В УСЛОВИЯХ МОСКОВСКОЙ ОБЛАСТИ

Wild ancestors and close relatives provide valuable genetic resources for improving cultivated carrots (Daucus carota L. subsp. Sativus (Hoffm.) Arcang.). Remaining knowledge gaps in taxonomy, distribution and characteristics of commercially valuable traits limit their wide usage in selection and negatively affect ex situ (gene bank) and in situ (natural habitat) conservation planning. Since some populations of wild plants are adapted to extreme climatic conditions, unfavorable soils, pests and diseases, they have significant potential to contribute to selection to solve emerging and foreseeable future problems in the agrotechnology of table carrots. The aim of the study is to study wild species of Daucus genus by morphological characteristics in the Moscow region in order to expand their usage in selection and ex situ preservation. According to the research results, it was found that the trait “anthocyanin colour of the leaf petiole” of D. setifolius (Turkey, Antalya) is a marker when hybridizing with cultivated carrots. The marker trait “anthocyanin colour of flowers” was recorded in D. carota L. var. maximus, D. carota (Tajikistan), D. carota (Uzbekistan, Kashkadarya region). D. carota subsp. halophilus is a genetic source for resistance to salt stress. In the future, the formation of Daucus germ plasm collections and ex situ preservation contribute to the expanded usage of wild species in selection for resistance of cultivated table carrots to bio- and abiostress.