Loss Of Wildlife Habitat Research Articles

Animal behavioral adaptation to changing landscapes: spring-staging geese habituate to wind farms

Wind farms are positioned in open landscapes and may cause loss of wildlife habitat due to disturbance, fragmentation, and infrastructure development. Especially flocking geese, swans, ducks and waders are regarded as vulnerable to wind farm development. We compared past and current displacement effects of two onshore wind farms and a line of land-based turbines on spring-staging pink-footed geese (Anser brachyrhynchus) to see if there was evidence of habituation. In one wind farm area, geese previously (1998) (Larsen and Madsen 2000) kept a distance of c. 200 m (the distance at which 50% of peak densities is reached) and they did not go between the turbines; today (2008) they keep a distance of c. 100 m, but do still not enter the wind farm area. In another wind farm, where foraging geese previously (2000) kept a distance of more than 100 m and did not enter the wind farm, they now (2008) forage between the wind turbines and keep a distance of c. 40 m to turbines. In 1998, geese kept a distance of 125 m to a line of turbines, compared to 50 m now. We conclude that geese have behaviorally adapted to changing landscapes created by wind farms. The difference in avoidance between the sites may be due to the sizes of the turbines which in this study were small in both rotor-swept area and in height compared to more recent “industry standard” of 2.5 and 3.0 MW turbines. The study points to the need for longer term studies to properly assess the impact of wind farms on wildlife, including consequent increased risks from inclement weather events of feeding, rafting, and migrating waterfowl.

Into the Wild: Reintroduced Animals Face Daunting Odds

Researchers in the emerging field of wildlife reintroduction battle hawks, habitat loss, and poachers to give animals a second chance.

Characteristics, Motivations, and Management Actions of Landowners Engaged in Private Land Conservation in Larimer County Colorado

Nationwide, private land conservation (PLC) is on the rise. Land trusts, local government open space and natural area programs, and revised land use codes, as well as federal and state tax laws, combine to offer an increasing number of incentives and opportunities for landowners to consider. Such programs mitigate the loss of agricultural lands, wildlife habitat, and open space occurring as a result of development pressure. Larimer County, Colorado, has considerable development pressure and a diversity of voluntary and quasi-regulatory programs that stimulate PLC. This study probes the motivations, characteristics, and management practices of the landowners involved, and how these differ according to the mechanisms chosen to conserve private land. We surveyed all County landowners (grantors) who conserved private land using conservation easements, covenants, and cluster developments and interviewed a subset of those landowners. The typical grantor is older, married, well-educated, and likely retired. Five motivational domains were derived from responses to survey items. The natural resource protection domain was assigned the highest importance by participating landowners followed by community- mindedness, family commitments, financial incentives, and sustaining agricultural production. Motivations also differ significantly according to the type of conservation program utilized, geographic location, and the amount of land owned. Half of the respondents were found to be quite to fully engaged in management and monitoring activities. These and other findings may be useful to local governments and other entities engaged in private land conservation wishing to optimize available resources, the approaches, and practices used with different landowners.

Effect of Conifer Encroachment Into Aspen Stands on Understory Biomass

Abstract Conifers (Picea and Abies spp.) have replaced aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) over much of aspen's historic range in the western United States. We measured the impact of this change upon the production of understory vegetation potentially useful as forage for livestock and wildlife on two southern Utah national forests. A negative exponential relationship between conifer cover and understory biomass was demonstrated as log(biomass) = 6.25 − 0.03787(% conifer), adjusted R2 = 0.57. Understory production in aspen stands begins to decline under very low levels (10% to 20%) of conifer encroachment. Management implications include loss of forage production capability and wildlife habitat and potential overstocking of livestock grazing allotments if the associated loss of forage is not considered.

Bridging native and scientific observations of snowshoe hare habitat restoration after clearcutting to set wildlife habitat management guidelines on Waswanipi Cree land

Large-scale timber harvesting in the northern black spruce forest, on Quebec Cree territory, causes immediate loss of productive wildlife habitat for Cree hunters. Duration of this impact is key information to improve forest management. The objective here was to examine the postharvesting habitat restoration delay for snowshoe hare, a species valuable to Cree hunters, as well as a wildlife indicator of the sapling stage. A minimum threshold for vegetation development was established, at which the return of hare populations is considered acceptable by Cree hunters. To do so, an adaptive approach was used, combining Cree hunter knowledge and biological assessment. Hare populations were monitored in 36 cut blocks, ranging from 0 to 30 years after harvest. Cree hunters were interviewed to determine when a cut block becomes adequate for snaring. The combined analysis of the two knowledge sources indicated that stands that meet the threshold average 4 m in height, 6300 trees/ha in density, and are aged between 13 and 27 years. Current regulation sets this threshold at 3 m in height, regardless of cut block scale, and at 20 years postcut when considering family hunting ground scale, and thus, does not fully meet sustainable resource development objectives.

Integrating crop productivity and biodiversity conservation pilot initiatives developed by Bayer CropScience

Wildlife habitat loss driven by human activities, including conversion of land to agriculture, represents a major threat to biodiversity. Agricultural technologies, for example, irrigation, mechanization, enhanced seeds, crop protection and nutrition products contribute to productivity increases on land already cultivated and, therefore, play a role in preventing further land conversion to agriculture. However, such technologies must be adapted and employed within the context of locally appropriate land management strategies that take an integrated approach to achieving agricultural production, rural livelihoods and biodiversity conservation goals. This paper was developed for presentation at a workshop on ‘Conservation Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture’, held during the 4th International Weed Society Congress, [ 4th International Weed Society Congress, Durban, South Africa, 19–25 June 2004. http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/iws/4intlweedcong.htm>.], It highlights the potential roles a plant science company can play in addressing the challenge of jointly achieving crop productivity and biodiversity conservation objectives. These relate to activities that integrate biodiversity conservation objectives into technology research and development (R&D) of crop protection products and into land management approaches. Three pilot initiatives developed by Bayer CropScience in Brazil, Guatemala and the UK in collaboration with a variety of local stakeholders illustrate how conservation objectives can be embedded in land management practices that sustainably enhance agricultural productivity and profitability, simultaneously addressing food security and biodiversity conservation challenges. Bayer CropScience, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, is a market leader in the areas of crop protection, non-agricultural pest control, seeds and plant biotechnology. The company has a global workforce of about 19,000 and is represented in more than 120 countries.

Community perspectives on spruce beetle impacts on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

A recent outbreak of spruce beetles ( Dendroctonus rufipennis) in forests on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska was met with substantial variation in response among people and communities situated within this changing landscape. Interviews and mail surveys administered to residents in six Kenai Peninsula communities revealed differences in perception of biophysical, social, and economic impacts that resulted from changing forest conditions related to the spruce beetle outbreak. Together, the qualitative and quantitative data provided evidence of collective experience and community risk perception across Kenai Peninsula communities. Fire, falling trees, declining quality of watersheds and wildlife habitat, economic fluctuations, landscape change, and emotional loss were some of the issues faced. In some communities, increased timber harvesting brought short-term, positive economic change in the wake of the spruce beetle outbreak. In other communities, the loss of a living spruce ( Picea spp.) forest profoundly affected quality of life, and led to community conflict, increased risk perception of future impacts, and economic challenges. Biophysical changes were keenly felt by many residents. Communities at different stages in the spruce beetle outbreak revealed temporal and spatial variations in perceived impacts. The diverse array of perceived impacts and risks from the spruce beetle outbreak in Kenai Peninsula communities presents both opportunities and obstacles for forest management in the context of changing forest conditions.

Modeling ecological impacts of landscape change

Growth and development in the Rocky Mountain West have increased employment and output at the expense of loss and fragmentation of wildlife habitats, and other environmental impacts. An Ecosystem Landscape Modeling System (ELMS) is proposed for evaluating the potential ecological and economic impacts of future landscape changes in rapidly growing areas of the Rocky Mountain West. ELMS consists of an economic model, land use change model, ecological assessment model, and policy model. The economic model uses IMPLAN and various assumptions to estimate changes in employment and output for alternative future growth rates for sectors in the study area. Future changes in employment and output are translated into land use requirements for residential housing and commercial establishments. Future changes in the extent and location of land converted from undeveloped land classes (undeveloped land zoned residential, agricultural land and private forest land) to developed land classes (residential housing and commercial establishments) are simulated by the land use change model. The ecological assessment model evaluates impacts of land use changes on potential and realized habitat for selected species. The policy model specifies alternative residential and commercial development, infrastructure expansion, and natural resource conservation policies that are incorporated in the economic and land use change models. Results from ELMS can be used to evaluate potential trade-offs between economic and ecological values associated with future growth and development. Trade-off analysis compares increases in employment and output to decreases in potential and effective habitat for the species over time for alternative futures. ELMS has the potential to improve land use planning and management in the Rocky Mountain West.

Grassbanks: Bartering for Conservation

Introduction O ver next 10 years, Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming will implement fuel-reduction burns on approximately 10 cattle grazing allotments, temporarily displacing up to 13 ranchers from 1 to 3 years. As is case for many other national forests, a significant obstacle facing federal land managers implementing restoration treatments is lack of alternative forage for permittees who must remove their livestock from allotments for extended time periods while restoration work occurs. If these temporarily displaced families sold their ranches, which are often large intact tracts of land adjacent to national forest, there would likely be an increased rate of subdivision contributing to loss of open space, wildlife habitat, and degradation of forest ecosystem processes such as fire.1'2 To help support restoration activities on public land and minimize threat of habitat fragmentation on private land, Wyoming Chapter of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has used an irrigated pasture of its Heart Mountain Ranch near Cody as a to provide forage for permittees whose grazing allotments are temporarily unavailable because of restoration activities on Shoshone National Forest. Grassbanking is a conservation tool that exchanges forage for conservation benefits. In example of Heart Mountain Ranch, TNC trades forage for a suite of restoration activities. Fuel loads have been reduced (thus decreasing potential for catastrophic fire), forage quality and quantity have been enhanced and increased for both cattle and wildlife, and likelihood of habitat fragmentation has been temporarily reduced because ranches remain economically viable and intact. History of Grassbanking The term grassbankTm was coined and registered as a trademark by Malpai Borderlands Group, a nonprofit or anization located in Arizona devoted to restoring and maintaining the natural processes that create and protect a healthy, unfragmented landscape to support a diverse, flourishing community of human, plant, and animal life in our Borderlands Region. The Malpai Borderlands Group, working on 321,000-acre Gray Ranch, which is located in New Mexico and owned by Animas Foundation, has developed several conservation tools, with grassbanking among their most innovative. The term grassbank was used to describe practice where a rancher in need of alternative forage because of drought, or desire to conduct restoration activities that require temporary cessation of grazing, moved displaced cattle to Gray Ranch. In exchange for forage, rancher placed a permanent conservation easement on their property, which generally restricted development and, therefore, subdivision. The easement is held by Malpai Borderlands Group, and its value is equal to forage value rancher used on Gray Ranch. As a result of this exchange of forage for conservation easements, over 25,000 acres have been restricted from subdivision. Many people associate grassbanking with conservation easements, but Malpai Borderlands Group has been only that has traded forage for conservation easements. All other grassbanks have traded forage for other types of conservation benefits, such as prescribed fire, rest, or wildlife habitat improvements. While term grassbank is relatively new, practice of using a forage reserve, custom grazing, or other tools to incorporate rest rotation into a grazing management plan is

Herbaceous Cover and Soil Properties in Wildlife Habitats in Bauchi and Gombe States, Nigeria

ABSTRACT The perpetuation of wildlife is closely related to habitat, especially plant resources and soil. Yet wildlife habitat degradation and loss appear to be increasing in the Nigerian Savanna owing to natural and man-made factors. The herbaceous ground cover and the soil physical and chemical properties (at 0-15 cm, 15-30 cm levels) were investigated in fallow lands in Alkaleri, Gombe, Toro and Misau local government areas with Yankari National Park (YNP) as control. The herbaceous ground cover was poorer outside YNP but poorest in Gombe having 43% bare ground, 10% forb, 13% litter, and 8% woody plants in dry season as against 30%, 31%, 16%, and 12%, respectively, in YNP. Also irrespective of study site, the soils were generally sandy and low in total nitrogen (0.03-0.11%) and available phosphorus (0.6-6.0 ppm). Wildlife habitats studied are being degraded, hence agroforestry practices recommended for use in dry lands such as green belt plantings and active participation of the people in plantation and community wood-lot establishments should be encouraged.

Substitution and scalar politics: negotiating environmental compensation in Cardiff Bay

One of the most contested dimensions of sustainable development is the issue of substitutability––the extent to which environmental qualities can be substituted, either for human-made assets, or for some equivalent environmental function. The main argument of this paper is that dominant economic discourses of sustainability neglect long-standing geographical concerns with scale, embeddedness and abstraction that are inevitably embroiled in the practical negotiation of substitutability. In particular, it seeks to demonstrate how relations of ecological and political scale frame the ‘decision space’ within which debates about substitution take place. These arguments are developed by analysing conflicts over the development of an amenity barrage across the Taff–Ely estuary in Cardiff, South Wales, and the provision of new wetlands to compensate for the resulting loss of wildlife habitat. This case shows that the scale at which environmental ‘assets’ are constructed––whether local, national or global––can reveal or obscure distributive effects incurred in maintaining environmental capital through compensatory measures. It also demonstrates how the re-scaling of governance arrangements (in this case to the European Commission) can empower the delivery of environmental management measures but simultaneously re-structures the objects of sustainability, rendering habitats and wildlife populations as disembedded symbols.

Ethics in science: ecotoxicology

Predictive ecotoxicology emphasizes the probable environmental outcome of exposure to toxics, rather than the mere appraisal of existing damage, and in so doing raises some complex but interesting ethical issues. Awareness of endocrine-disrupting chemicals is blurring the line between humankind and other life forms in toxicity testing by providing evidence that both humans and wildlife suffer adverse reproductive and developmental effect. There is a wide variety of chemicals that have been reported as potential endocrine disruptors. Finally, with the increasing loss of wildlife habitat, protecting the quality and ultimate fate of the remaining habitat from the effects of toxic sub- stances becomes increasingly important to the moral quest for sustainable use of the planet.

Zoo and aquarium animal management and conservation: current trends and future challenges

The turn of the century appears to be a good time to examine the role of zoos and aquariums, both in the past and present, and to predict what role these organizations will play in animal management and conservation in the future. In this review three main trends are considered: (1) the loss of wildlife habitats and, therefore, wildlife, (2) the increase in the number of animal‐welfare and animal‐rights organizations, and (3) the continued urbanization of the Earth's human population. Several predictions and positive action points are given for each trend and if these are taken on board and developed, zoos and aquariums of the future may become leaders in conservation, education and science.

USGS PAH contaminants studies could be among budget cut victims

Traffic congestion, smog, and loss of open space and wildlife habitat are among the unwelcome effects of sprawl development in many urban areas in the United States. However, another problem that the typical commuter may not be as aware of is the increases in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that degrade air and water quality and that may be linked to urban sprawl and traffic on the roadways.

A web-based expert system for gypsy moth risk assessment

The gypsy moth is one of North America's most devastating exotic forest pests because it can cause the loss of valuable oak species, degraded aesthetics, loss of wildlife habitat, and detrimental effects on watersheds. Due to the increasingly wide infestation of the gypsy moth, it is important to develop decision aids that help assess the risks of this pest to our forests. Expert systems are a type of decision aid that could be applied to the area of risk assessment. We have developed the Gypsy Moth Expert System to estimate the risk that a forest stand faces from the gypsy moth based on the composition, structure, and management objectives of a particular forest. Risk assessment in this context is developed from forest susceptibility to infestation, vulnerability to damage caused by an infestation, and the hazard that management objectives for a forest may be affected if damage occurs. The system uses a straightforward set of if-then rules to classify risk. The development of a web-based expert system presented significant challenges to maintaining remote user processing integrity.

Evaluating Costs of Conservation

Abstract: The loss and fragmentation of native habitats caused by agricultural development and conversion of agricultural lands into urban sprawl are widely recognized as the most serious modern threats to the conservation of biodiversity. Regulatory mechanisms have been heavily relied upon but largely ineffective at preventing the loss of wildlife habitat and the decline of endangered species, particularly on private lands. Land acquisition and permanent conservation easements may be more reliable conservation tools, but they are often incompatible with the desires of private landowners and rural communities. We describe resource conservation agreements ( RCAs), an incentive‐based alternative that provides private landowners compensation for the agricultural and nonagricultural development potential of their land in exchange for conserving and managing wildlife habitat. We evaluated the public costs of managing 356,038 ha of existing public lands in southwest Florida critical to the survival of the Florida panther ( Puma concolor coryi). We also reviewed the costs of public ownership, permanent conservation easements, and RCAs for approximately 200,000 ha of priority panther habitat under public ownership in southwest Florida. Assuming a 3.65% nominal interest rate and an infinite life of public ownership, we estimated current annualized expenditures for public ownership as U.S. $69/ha/year. In comparison, estimated costs to purchase and manage ($174–297/ha/year) or enter into permanent conservation easements ($116–208/ha/year) on privately owned, priority panther habitat were much greater. The disparity between the costs of public ownership for existing public lands and those estimated for privately owned lands was due to greater agricultural and residential development potential on the privately owned lands. The mean purchase price for the public lands reviewed was $1291/ha, whereas the estimated average value of privately owned priority panther habitat was $4744–7401/ha. The estimated cost of RCA on private lands was $74–82/ha/year. The estimated cost of RCA was roughly equivalent to current expenditures for the public lands we reviewed, 200–400% less expensive than the estimated cost of purchasing privately owned lands and 200–300% less expensive than the estimated cost of permanent conservation easements to conserve privately owned priority panther habitat in southwest Florida.

Sand-spit erosion following interruption of longshore sediment transport: Shamrock Island, Texas

Shamrock Island, located in Corpus Christi Bay, Texas, is a former sand spit that was detached from Mustang Island by navigation channels constructed in the early 1950s. The navigation channels effectively eliminated longshore sediment transport to the island, resulting in severe and ongoing erosion of the island's north shore. This study documents long-term shoreline change, based on analysis of aerial photographs from 1938, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1956, 1967, 1975, 1979, 1985, 1990, and 1995. Shamrock Island grew steadily to the south prior to 1956, while the north shore of the island was relatively stable. After 1956, the north shore eroded rapidly, while the south shore continued to grow, probably because sand eroded from the north was redistributed to the south. By 1995, up to 156 m of retreat had occurred on the north shore. The island was recently acquired by the Nature Conservancy of Texas for use as a nature preserve. Erosion now threatens to breach the island, which may result in degradation of an interior lagoon and loss of valuable wildlife habitats. Therefore, in addition to documenting long-term erosion following interruption of longshore sediment transport, this study also illustrates how human modification of the coastal zone can have important and unforseen ramifications affecting future shoreline uses for many decades.

Sardar Sarovar Project—a conservation threat to the Indian wild ass (Equus hemionus khur)

The 4900 sq. km2 Wild Ass Sanctuary (WAS) in western India harbours one of the surviving endangered subspecies of Asian wild ass Equus hemionus khur, and other flora and fauna unique to this area. The proposed irrigation component of the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) threatens the conservation value of the area, since it will cause loss of wildlife habitat, grazing land and will have long-term consequences due to waterlogging caused by excessive irrigation and soil salinization. Wildlife habitat constituting 30—51% of 1.3 million ha in eight administrative units (talukas) around WAS will be affected by changes in land use pattern. Appropriate changes in the canals around WAS are suggested to conserve the biological integrity of the area. Such changes will cause the decline of only 8.6% of the total SSP irrigated (command) area. Compensatory development programmes for 93 villages deprived of SSP benefits due to the changes are suggested.

Impacts of Livestock Grazing Activities on Stream Insect Communities and the Riverine Environment

This stern advisory to federal land managers was Aldo Leopold's response to years of rapidly degrading riparian habitat caused by livestock grazing in the southwestern United States. It was followed not by long-lasting grazing reform, but by decades of expansion of cattle production in riparian habitats from the desert southwest to all points north and east. Today in the western United States, livestock (principally cattle) are grazed on approximately 70% of the landscape, much of which is public (F1eischner 1994). Recent evidence of drinking water contamination, imprudent grazing fee structures, and loss of wildlife habitat has led concerned citizens and scientists to encourage policy makers to restrict grazing, particularly in habitats vulnerable to irreparable damage (Sherer et aI. 1992; Wissmar et al. 1994; Armour et al. 1991, 1994; F1eischner 1994). Range managers and ecologists generally agree that many currently grazed habitats (e.g., alpine meadows [Kondolf 1993], sagebrush steppe [Tait et al. 1994]) cannot sustain conflicting societal demands for inexpensive beef and high-quality water (Minshall et al. 1989, Mosely et al. 1993, Fleischner 1994). However, despite strong public and scientific will to limit the types of public habitat available for pasturing livestock, grazing contracts continually are awarded with little recognition of differing habitat sensitivities, even though restoration costs often far outweigh income from grazing fees (Minshall et al. 1989, Armour et al. 1994, Kondolf 1993). Here, we review the evidence of livestock production impacts on riverine ecosystems. Emphasis is placed on examinations of direct responses of aquatic insects to the activities of cattle (e.g., respiratory stress due to coating of gill structures), and on studies that illustrate the potential of grazing in riparian areas that indirectly affect aquatic insects through habitat alteration (Fig. 1).

Soil erosion and environmental impact of vegetable production in the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

Vegetable production in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia has expanded over the past 25 years and has been implicated in the increase in sedimentation in reservoirs in the region. The present study was executed to evaluate current methods, patterns and profitability of vegetable production; study the causes, environmental impact and externality cost of soil erosion; assess the effectiveness and adoption of soil conservation and management practices; determine the extent of adoption of integrated pest management methods; and elicit farmers' perceptions regarding the main constraints in vegetable cultivation. Recent changes in land use within the area are quantified by a geographical information system, Landsat imagery, a digital elevation model and a 1992 farm survey of 10% of the farmers. Farmers modify the natural environment by mechanical excavations and other earthworks, and compensate for the negative effects of soil erosion on productivity by extensive use of irrigation, chicken manure, lime, and inorganic fertilizers. The preparation of broad platform terraces, cut out of the natural slope, is a major source of soil erosion which is estimated at 24 t ha −1 year −1 on average. However, on a per event basis, soil loss may be as high as 155 t ha −1 per event. Terraces are resurfaced periodically because of impoverished soil and reducing yields. Bench terraces, while reducing erosion, are rare owing to labor shortages. With the exception of polyethylene rain shelters, other agronomic practices do not substantially reduce soil erosion. Recommendations are made regarding the timing of land clearing and resurfacing of terraces, and suggestions for interventions that may improve catchment management are offered. The value of the negative externalities imposed on the Electricity Board as a result of sedimentation in waterways and reservoirs is estimated at M$ 2 × 10 6 per year, or less than 4% of the total annual gross value of vegetable production in the CH. However, soil erosion resulting from vegetable cultivation in the CH is likely to cause other negative off-site effects that cannot easily be quantified, including adverse effects on public health as a result of run-off of chemicals, loss of wildlife habitat, and potential loss of tourism.