Nature Conservation Research Articles

Linking sufficiency and the protection of biodiversity: An issue of political implications, framing, descriptiveness and interdisciplinarity?

The dramatic loss of biodiversity is caused by the use of resources and land. One strategy aiming at reducing the use of resources and land is sufficiency, which consequently could be a strategy for protecting biodiversity. This article therefore examines the extent to which sufficiency in the context of biodiversity conservation is already being addressed by nature conservation associations and the scientific community. To this end, publications were analysed firstly with regards to the understanding of sufficiency, secondly with regards to the considered links between sufficiency and biodiversity as well as thirdly with regards to the considered fields of action. The systematic identification and evaluation of scientific publications (for the years 2017–2021) and publications by German and international nature conservation associations shows that few publications address the link between sufficiency and biodiversity. And when they do, the link often remains unspecific. Possible reasons are that sufficiency potentially has broader political implications, that the term is not descriptive and that other terms are used to describe similar strategies. Other potential explanations are that several framings for the need for sufficiency are possible and that linking sufficiency and biodiversity requires interdisciplinarity. Drawing on the results and the discussion, an argument in favour of using the term ‘sufficiency’ and further research is presented. Moreover, a sufficiency typology is developed and questions are raised that could form the basis for future research on linking biodiversity conservation and the various aspects of sufficiency.

The Indigenous Knowledge and Natural Conservation Aspects of the Life of Baganda, the People of Uganda

The researcher evaluated the role of “The Indigenous Knowledge and Natural Conservation Aspects of Life of Baganda, the people of Uganda’’ Facts are that, in Buganda Kingdom, Uganda, Africa and the world over, wildlife is decreasing and terribly deteriorating at a rate unseen and unheard of before. This could be addressed by the intervention of the Indigenous knowledge and natural conservation aspects of the life of Baganda, the people of Uganda, through the use of totemism, taboos and people’s spirituality. A phenomenological research design in the study was employed since it focused on the commonality of lived experiences (verbatim) within a particular group or individuals, aiming to arrive at a description of the nature of the particular phenomenon. As a qualitative study, sample size of 34 from the population size of 3,392,333 people was used for the study. This was because a qualitative study is supposed to have a large enough sample size to uncover a variety of opinions, but limited the size at the point of saturation which occurs when the collection of new data does not shed any further light on the issue under investigation. Findings showed that, Buganda’s traditional wildlife conservational knowledge based on totemism, taboos and people’s traditional spirituality was very effective in wildlife conservation, and the same knowledge is still applicable and relevant in nature conservation today. A ‘Culturally Based Conservation Model (CBCM) was arrived at aiming at amending the existing conservation policies by the Government of Uganda, integrating them with Buganda’s indigenous traditional conservation knowledge.The study therefore recommends that, environment authorities like National Environment Management authorities and (NEMA) and Uganda Wildlife authority (UWA) should work with various cultural institutions and researchers to ensure integration of the indigenous knowledge into modern conservation strategies.

Preliminary insights on the mutational spectrum of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes in Pakhtun ethnicity breast cancer patients from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan

Gene mutations are a source of genetic instability which fuels the progression of cancer. Mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 are considered as major drivers in the progression of breast cancer and their detection indispensable for devising therapeutic and management approaches. The current study aims to identify novel pathogenic and recurrent mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 in Pakhtun population from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. To determine the BRCA1 and BRCA2 pathogenic mutation prevalence in Pakhtun population from KP, whole exome sequencing of 19 patients along with 6 normal FFPE embedded blocks were performed. The pathogenicity of the mutations were determined and they were further correlated with different hormonal, sociogenetic and clinicopathological features. We obtained a total of 10 mutations (5 somatic and 5 germline) in BRCA1 while 27 mutations (24 somatic and 3 germline) for BRCA2. Five and seventeen pathogenic or deleterious mutations were identified in BRCA1 and BRCA2 respectively by examining the mutational spectrum through SIFT, PolyPhen-2 and Mutation Taster. Among the SNVs, BRCA1 p.P824L, BRCA2 p. P153Q, p.I180F, p.D559Y, p.G1529R, p.L1576F, p.E2229K were identified as mutations of the interaction sites as predicted by the deep algorithm based ISPRED-SEQ prediction tool. SAAFEQ-SEQ web-based algorithm was used to calculate the changes in free energy and effect of SNVs on protein stability. All SNVs were found to have a destabilizing effect on the protein. ConSurf database was used to determine the evolutionary conservation scores and nature of the mutated residues. Gromacs 4.5 was used for the molecular simulations. Ramachandran plots were generated using procheck server. STRING and GeneMania was used for prediction of the gene interactions. The highest number of mutations (BRCA1 7/10, 70 %) were on exon 9 and (BRCA2, 11/27; 40 %) were on exon 11. 40 % and 60 % of the BRCA2 mutations were associated Grade 2 and Grade 3 tumors respectively. The present study reveals unique BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations in Pakhtun population. We further suggest sequencing of the large cohorts for further characterizing the pathogenic mutations.

First molecular identification of Haemonchus contortus (Nematoda: Trichostrongylidae), a blood-sucking gastric nematode of artiodactyles, in the ground beetle Carabus granulatus (Coleoptera: Carabidae).

Among gastrointestinal nematodes, Haemonchus contortus (Rudolphi) Cobb (order Strongylidae; family Trichostrongylidae) is one of pathogenic and economic importance in domestic and wild ruminants, including the European bison, Bison bonasus Linnaeus (order Cetartiodactyla; family Bovidae); a species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species. Carabus granulatus Linnaeus (order Coleoptera; family Carabidae) is one of the most prevalent species of ground beetle, inhabiting a wide range of terrestrial ecosystems in Poland. Twenty-six ground beetles of this species inhabiting the Białowieża Primeval Forest in eastern Poland were screened for the presence of DNA of pathogenic gastrointestinal nematodes of ruminants. Extracted DNA was sequenced and compared to reference sequences. In six insects, the presence of H. contortus DNA was detected. The obtained nucleotide sequences were homologous to each other and to the majority of the published DNA sequences of H. contortus isolates. The sequences were also identical to a sequence of H. contortus isolated from European bison in Poland. The study provides the first molecular evidence of the presence of H. contortus DNA in C. granulatus. The finding suggests that ground beetles may play a role in the transmission dynamics of this parasite.

Birding under fire

AbstractBirding for nature conservation becomes violent in war when foreign states and industry use it to extract value from countries like Iraq. In wartime Iraq, birding became a pathway to multinational resource extraction by producing “eco‐value,” a form of economic value for species life and, by extension, the ecosystems they inhabit. Iraqi marshland conservationists, including private contractors, produced eco‐value in the context of extreme violence for the purposes of environmental rehabilitation. This eco‐value was then leveraged to mine natural resources that were embedded in the same geological field. Compounding the violence of extraction was the violence conservation introduced for Iraqi citizens who alone performed the dangerous labor of birding; they were recruited to do this in order to safeguard the lives of foreign experts, who did not travel to the marshes of Iraq. The result was a form of nature conservation that made Iraqi lives uniquely expendable in the project of building the occupation's lifeforce.

The Impact of Sustainable Tourism on Resident and Visitor Satisfaction—The Case of the Special Nature Reserve “Titelski Breg”, Vojvodina

The Special Nature Reserve “Titelski Breg” (TB) is a protected area (PA) of category I, located in the AP of Vojvodina in the south-eastern part of Bačka. The reserve covers an area of 496 ha. A protection zone covering an area of 8643 ha has been established around the PA. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) states that this PA is classified as a category IV habitat and species management area. Its good geographical and traffic position and close distance to Romania and Hungary, as well as the nation’s major cities, make this PA accessible to a sizable number of both domestic and foreign tourists. There are numerous plant and animal species in the reserve, which makes this area unique. The population living around this reserve has an exceptional and valuable cultural heritage, which represents significant complementary tourist motives. To examine the state of sustainable tourism (SuT) in TB and the impact of SuT on the satisfaction of the respondents (SoR), the PoS model of study was used. The quantitative methodology in this research included a questionnaire as the survey instrument for residents and visitors. There were 630 respondents altogether (400 locals and 230 guests). Four aspects of sustainability, economic, social, cultural, and institutional, were used to analyze the state of SuT in this PA. The study’s findings show that SuT significantly affected the SoR. Analyzing the role that additional protected areas may have in SuT can be supported by the research outcomes. Additionally, the proportion of each sustainability characteristic in SuT can suggest guidelines for national programs that aim to develop PAs and tourist development at the same time.

POTENSI DAN KELAYAKAN KAWASAN EKOWISATA PADA BLOK PEMANFAATAN TAHURA BONTOBAHARI KABUPATEN BULUKUMBA PROVINSI SULAWESI SELATAN

This study aims to determine the potential and feasibility of Tahura ecotourism. This research was conducted in the ecotourism area of ​​the Bontobahari Tahura Utilization Block. The data analysis method was guided by the Guidelines for Analysis of Working Areas of Natural Tourism Objects and Attractions (ADO-ODTWA) of the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation of 2003 and was analyzed using scoring according to the criteria contained in the Guidelines for Analysis of Operational Areas of Operational Objects and Natural Tourist Attractions of the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation 2003. Calculations for each of these criteria use tabulation where the numbers obtained from the results of the assessment whose weight values ​​are guided by the Assessment of Working Areas of Natural Tourism Objects and Attractions of the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Conservation 2003. Ecotourism Feasibility Assessment Method with a predetermined value for each criterion. The potential and feasibility of Bontobahari Tahura ecotourism has the potential to be developed with a feasibility index of 84%.

Towards Large Certified Radius in Randomized Smoothing Using Quasiconcave Optimization

Randomized smoothing is currently the state-of-the-art method that provides certified robustness for deep neural networks. However, due to its excessively conservative nature, this method of incomplete verification often cannot achieve an adequate certified radius on real-world datasets. One way to obtain a larger certified radius is to use an input-specific algorithm instead of using a fixed Gaussian filter for all data points. Several methods based on this idea have been proposed, but they either suffer from high computational costs or gain marginal improvement in certified radius. In this work, we show that by exploiting the quasiconvex problem structure, we can find the optimal certified radii for most data points with slight computational overhead. This observation leads to an efficient and effective input-specific randomized smoothing algorithm. We conduct extensive experiments and empirical analysis on CIFAR-10 and ImageNet. The results show that the proposed method significantly enhances the certified radii with low computational overhead.

Population demographics and angler exploitation of Suwannee Bass in two Georgia rivers

AbstractObjectiveSuwannee Bass Micropterus notius are a unique black bass that are endemic to riverine systems in Georgia and Florida, USA. Despite their “near threatened” status by the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List, Suwannee Bass are a popular sport fish that can be harvested throughout their range under a single harvest regulation with all black basses (genus Micropterus). However, a single harvest regulation may have disproportion effects on Suwannee Bass because of their rarity, limited distribution, and sex‐specific growth patterns.MethodsBoat electrofishing was used to collect Suwannee Bass and Largemouth Bass M. nigricans from both the Withlacoochee and Ochlockonee rivers to assess population demographics and angler exploitation. Common fisheries assessment metrics were calculated and annual exploitation rate was estimated from high reward (US$100) tags under simulated variability in tag loss and angler reporting rates.ResultWe observed different relative abundance and size structure among river systems. Electrofishing catch per unit effort of Suwannee Bass was higher in the Withlacoochee River (6.89 fish/h) than the Ochlockonee River (2.01 fish/h). Length‐frequency histograms suggested a wide breadth of lengths and presumed ages except for a lack of stock size Suwannee Bass in the Ochlockonee River. Eight percent of monetary reward tags were returned from anglers, yielding an overall exploitation estimate of 3.2%.ConclusionAnnual angler exploitation rates of Suwannee Bass and Largemouth Bass were low (<9.1%) in the Withlacoochee and Ochlockonee rivers of Georgia. Low exploitation coupled with a wide breadth of lengths and ages suggest these populations are currently not at risk of overexploitation.

Identification of Commercial Fish Caught by Fishermen in the Lower Barumun River as Practicum Support Vertebrate Zoology Course

Recognizing fish through morphological traits is an important aspect in developing taxonomic skills. It is evident that current students lack the ability to classify fish by species and group. Equipping students with this skill is essential as it serves as a valuable soft skill for future educators. The main objective of this study was to determine the commercial fish species in the downstream area of Barumun River. This study used an exploratory approach, which aims to obtain information on an unknown problem, using identification techniques involving observation of morphological traits and references from fish identification sources such as fish identification books and the Fishbase website. Fish taxonomy in this study relied on data sourced from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) website. The results showed that there are 18 species of commercial fish living in the Barumun River, all of which belong to the category of true bony fish

Casting a wider net: A national survey of Australian attitudes to marine protected areas

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a key international conservation strategy to regulate human pressures on marine environments and are central to marine management in Australia. Public support is considered crucial to the success of MPAs in achieving the long-term conservation of nature, yet how the broader Australian public understands and values MPAs is not well understood. Previous research has explored attitudes of direct and proximate stakeholder groups or focused on specific regions. Human connections to marine environments, however, are not limited to direct use nor confined to single geographies. We surveyed a nationally representative sample of Australian adults (n = 1049) to explore how the broader public understand, connect to, and value Australia’s marine environments and MPAs. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate general attitudes to Australia’s total MPA system and interconnected marine environments with a nationally representative sample to provide an aggregated overview of Australian public attitudes. Most Australians (53%) acknowledge that they have a knowledge gap regarding the restrictions, requirements, and protections of MPAs as they apply in the Australian context, while 37% incorrectly believe that all MPAs offer uniform protections that, for example, prohibit the extraction of natural resources. Australians want to see an expansion of MPA coverage to represent 73% of Australian waters. Australians value the intrinsic biospheric characteristics of marine environments and want to see marine life as the focus when designing MPAs, above instrumental dimensions including industry and recreation. This study provides important insights for policymakers and managers in meeting broader public expectations in the expansion of Australia’s marine protections.

Experimental Behavior of a Steel Girder–Stringer–Floorbeam Bridge

The presented case study summarizes a quick-response project for the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), which focused on the steel-stringer behavior for a girder–stringer–floorbeam bridge. TDOT was confronted with relatively low stringer load ratings for many of their 31 similar structures. As a result, TDOT initiated this field study to ultimately produce refined load ratings. This information was then to be utilized for deciding whether an intervention (e.g., retrofit) was necessary. Diagnostic load testing was the approach selected and a representative bridge was chosen. Then load testing was comprehensively designed and executed. This included the installation of 42 strain gauges, data-acquisition quality-control testing, weighing and measuring test trucks, load testing of the structure, and then removal of the system. The load-test data provided insight into the true behavior of the bridge. The stringers were subjected to a combined interaction of the global and local response. Overall, the local demands were the largest component, but the magnitudes were well below the predicted values. This was partly because of the lateral distribution of the load. Additionally, partial composite action was identified between the steel stringers and concrete slab. Refined load ratings were calculated using the field-measured data and following the AASHTO Manual for Bridge Evaluation. The comparison of predicted to measured responses clearly indicated the conservative nature of the prior analytical calculations. The stringer load ratings were increased by 68% based on the field testing. In the end, the steel-stringer load ratings were sufficient, with no intervention necessary.

Circles of Coastal Sustainability and Emerald Growth Perspectives for Transitional Waters under Human Stress

Emerald Growth is an overarching sustainable development framework for transitional waters situated between rivers and open sea. The emphasis on connectivity and ecosystem-based management as the underlying principles differentiates Emerald Growth from conventional approaches to managing transitional waters. The study’s primary objective was to conjoin the Emerald Growth concept with the Coastal Circles of Sustainability methodology, an analytical framework to assess indicators of critical processes determining the sustainability of the coastal zone. We hypothesized that applying the CCS is an apt approach to categorizing the Emerald Growth’s aspects using Lake Liepāja, a fresh-to-brackish water lagoon on Latvia’s Baltic Sea coast, as a case study. Based on the document scoping findings on Lake Liepāja’s hydrology, ecology, biodiversity, nature conservation, and management, we addressed the knowledge gaps through the field survey, 4 workshops, and 18 in-depth semi-structured interviews with local stakeholders. The research results show that the challenging socio-economic situation is a crucial obstacle to Emerald Growth in the Lake Liepāja area. Subsistence salary and Housing affordability (Economic Welfare aspect), Population growth and Aging population (Demographic aspect), and Traditional practices (Identity aspect) received the lowest sustainability score (Bad). The results imply that considering the Emerald Growth conditions and drivers for transitional waters worldwide, finding a ‘one-fits-all’ recipe to ensure their sustainability is impossible. The decision-makers, stakeholders, and external experts agreed that for Lake Liepāja, the priority was to bring back to nature part of the polder system, clean the bottom sediments from Soviet-era pollutants, and enhance the transboundary cooperation with Lithuania. These measures would set the right conditions for future Emerald Growth in the area.

ЦЕНА ПРИРОДЫ: ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКАЯ ОЦЕНКА ЭКОЛОГИЧЕСКИХ РЕСУРСОВ И ЕЕ РОЛЬ В УСТОЙЧИВОМ РАЗВИТИИ

The article is devoted to the assessment of environmental resources and their role in sustainable development. In the modern world, awareness of the importance of nature conservation and sustainable use of its resources is becoming increasingly relevant. The features of the economic assessment of natural resources and ecosystem services are considered, as well as the principles and methods of determining their value are analyzed. Special attention is paid to the problems related to the need to integrate the economic assessment of nature into decision-making processes at the level of public policy and business. The importance of taking into account the ecological value of natural resources and ecosystem services in economic models and management practices is emphasized. It is concluded that it is necessary to develop mechanisms that contribute to a more accurate and objective assessment of the value of nature and its consideration in sustainable development.

Flowing perceptions: Exploring secondary students’ perceptions of water

Adolescents’ (i.e., high school students) opinions and preferences are important and less likely to be influenced by political and social norms, especially considering natural resource and climate related issues. Therefore, this study sought to identify and understand the perceptions of secondary students related to water issues and conservation practices utilizing a non-experimental survey research design. The majority (53.8%) of Oklahoma secondary students participating in this study believed water was of concern in the state. The primary water issues affecting Oklahoma according to secondary students (n = 93) were clean drinking water, water for agriculture, water for aquatic habitats, wastewater treatment improvement, and water quality monitoring to detect pollution improvement. Students’ perceptions of water quantity and quality varied across groups based on their primary source of drinking water (i.e., Private Supply, Bottled Water, Municipal Public Supply, or Rural Public Supply). It is imperative for water-related curriculum to be developed for delivery in secondary classrooms across the state. Future research should consider the perceptions of students nationwide related to water and natural resource conservation.

Seminatural Grasslands: An Emblematic Challenge for Nature Conservation in Protected Areas

Seminatural grasslands are among the most threatened habitats in Europe and worldwide, mainly due to changes in/abandonment of their traditional extensive use by grazing animals. This study aimed to develop an innovative model that integrates plant biodiversity, animal husbandry, and geo-informatics to manage and preserve seminatural grasslands in protected areas. With this objective, an integrated study was conducted on the seminatural grasslands in the hilly, montane, and (to a minimum extent) subalpine belts of the Maiella National Park, one of Europe’s most biodiversity-rich protected sites. Plant biodiversity was investigated through 141 phytosociological relevés in homogeneous areas; the pastoral value was calculated, and grasslands’ productivity was measured together with the main nutritional parameters. Uni- and multivariate statistical analyses were performed to identify the main grassland vegetation types, their indicator species and ecological–environmental characteristics, and their pastoral and nutritional values’ variability and differences. A total of 17 grassland types, most of which correspond to habitat types listed in Annex I to the 92/43/EEC Directive, were identified and characterised in terms of their biodiversity and potential animal load. To allow for near-real-time analysis of grasslands, an NDVI-based web interface running on Google Earth Engine was implemented. This integrated approach can provide decision-making support for protected-area managers seeking to develop and implement sustainable grassland management practices that ensure the long-term maintenance of their biodiversity.

Catchwater colonialism: reshaping Hong Kong’s hydrology, infrastructure, metabolism and landscape, 1937–1968

Abstract This article explores the development of hydrological infrastructure in colonial Hong Kong between the late 1930s and the late 1960s. Utilizing archival sources in Hong Kong and London, it shows how this infrastructure fundamentally reshaped Hong Kong’s geography. By way of concrete catchwaters and metal pipes, both ‘green’ and ‘urban’ Hong Kong became counter-intuitively interconnected. This interconnection created both unintended consequences and novel opportunities for colonial governance, driving forward natural conservation, state intervention into rural society and the development of new carceral institutions. Exploring these developments provides pivotal insight into the urban history of Hong Kong, with implications for global studies of historical urban political ecology.

The Responsibility of Natural Resources Conservation Center in Preventing Encroachment of Conservation Forest Areas in East Nusa Tenggara

This research aims to examine the relationship between the increase in encroachment on conservation forests and the classification of forests based on their ownership status, as well as assess the East Nusa Tenggara BBKSDA's responsibility in addressing conservation forest encroachment. This research uses an empirical legal research method. All collected data is then qualitatively analyzed to describe the problem and answer the research objectives. The results show that land ownership claims, boundary disputes, and a lack of community understanding regarding conservation forest status are the primary causes of encroachment. Although the East Nusa Tenggara BBKSDA has taken various proactive steps to address conservation forest encroachment, the issue has not yet been fundamentally resolved. Therefore, it is recommended that the Local Government and East Nusa Tenggara BBKSDA take concrete measures to tackle the ambiguity of land ownership status, which is one of the root problems of conservation forest encroachment. These measures could begin with reviewing and updating data related to land boundaries and ownership status, followed by mediation between the government and the community to resolve border disputes fairly and transparently. Furthermore, it is essential for traditional institutions and local communities to actively participate in this process actively, utilizing local knowledge and traditions in determining fair and mutually recognized land boundaries. The Local Government and BBKSDA must also enhance efforts to socialize and educate the community about the importance of conservation forests, including the long-term benefits of forest conservation for environmental sustainability and the local economy. These efforts should be carried out through effective communication appropriate to the local cultural context so that the community can accept and value the importance of conservation forests.

Shark Dive and Hologram Zoo: Two Case Studies of Virtual Animal Encounters as Possible Models for Sustainable Wildlife Tourism.

Wildlife tourism is commonly argued to positively contribute to nature conservation by providing humans with educational and meaningful first-hand experiences with animals. However, concern for the sustainability of nature due to the negative impacts of wildlife tourism on animals and the environment invites alternative virtual opportunities for close encounters. Participant Observation framed by an Animal Studies perspective is employed to interpret two contemporary Australian family entertainments, Shark Dive and Hologram Zoo, centred on providing people with wild animal interactions but without real animals present. Shark Dive is a theatrical puppetry production replicating a real shark dive, and Hologram Zoo is an augmented reality experience that displays a variety of animals in 3D. The content of both is examined to understand how the animals are imagined, experienced, and given significance to determine whether they offer viable alternatives or complementary additions to in situ wildlife tourism. Findings reveal both hold potential for virtual wildlife tourism. Shark Dive provides a positive representation of marine life, generating awareness about conservation and encouraging self-reflection. Hologram Zoo's depiction of wild animals is impressive, but to more closely align with contemporary wildlife tourism ideals, the experience could enhance its conservation messaging and positive human-animal interactions.

GIS TOOLS IN THE CONSERVATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT NATIONAL PARKS, FORESTS AND RURAL AREAS

The problem of optimising the location of crops/plots in protected areas, national parks, farmland or forests involves trying to reconcile their proper functioning with nature conservation, the preservation of unique ecosystems or sustainable development. Such areas are crucial for the preservation of biodiversity and wildlife. This paper examines and discusses the impact of land consolidation in rural areas using GIS (Geographic Information System) tools. It performs a series of network analyses to determine the real distances (following the road network) and linear distances (rectilinear distances) between habitats and farmland. A tool was also developed to automate this process. The results obtained were visualised using map compositions, tables and graphs. The implemented project had a significant beneficial effect on the change in the land structure in the analysed village. The number of registered plots decreased by 40% (from 1,189 to 711) due to the consolidation process.