Reaching Conservation Goals Research Articles

Determining the location of protected areas in France: Does “scientific interest” matter?

Protected areas are one of the main policy instruments used by policymakers to tackle the current biodiversity crisis. While numerous studies highlight the inability of such areas to protect the full range of biodiversity, the procedures by which protected areas are created nevertheless remain understudied. A better understanding of the related policy processes is necessary to overcome the “research-implementation gap” and, hopefully, decrease biodiversity loss. This article seeks to fill this blind spot in conservation by conducting interdisciplinary research at the crossroads of ecology and policy studies. We applied mixed methods (i.e. quantitative and qualitative analysis) to the historical archives of national nature reserve (NNR) projects to identify the weight of scientific statements and other factors involved in the decision-making process. Our results reveal a two-step process. Scientific opinion about NNR projects operates as the primary filter. Then, another triage is made under social, political and economic interests. Such situation challenges the idea that more evidence would lead to better conservation. In our opinion, the key issue is to determine the ways to improve the success of NNR projects rather than improving data and algorithms. In this sense, we call for the implementation of an “informed opportunism” approach and suggest some leads to favor its practical application. This research highlights the importance of interdisciplinary research to reach conservation goals.

Evaluating Organizational Identity of Zoos to Enhance Conservation

AbstractZoos, aquariums, and museums are expanding their identities and efforts to support wildlife conservation, but their impact is unclear. We apply a business theory of organizational identity to assess how conservation identities are created and applied. We examine three foundational and three practical components of identity using semi‐structured interviews with zoo directors and conservation directors at eight institutions. Our qualitative analysis highlights the well‐established organizational identity constructs among zoos and aquariums, while elucidating the constructs with room for further development and application to activate conservation identities. Each organization shared some conservation strategies and successes, yet the leaders also identified gaps and barriers to reaching conservation goals, including how some zoos perceive their conservation identity competes against other organizational identities and goals. This research provides insights into ways museums can build and reinforce their identities when supporting environmental and social causes. Additionally, the organizational identity framework provides an evaluation tool for examining museums’ integrated identities, strategies, and practices.

Demographic responses to protection from harvesting in a long-lived marine species

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are usually considered to have positive effects on the recovery of over-exploited populations. However, resolving the extent to which MPAs function according to their conservation goals requires that essential demographic information such as individual survival and population size are quantified. To this end, we analyzed a 16-year replicated mark-recapture study on European lobster (Homarus gammarus, n = 8793) conducted at several protected and unprotected sites in southern Norway, quantifying the impact of MPAs on local population dynamics by means of a “before-after control-impact” study approach (BACI). Lobster survival and abundance were estimated by applying multi-state and robust design models to the mark-recapture data. These models revealed underlying positive responses to protection. Annual survival rates and population abundances reached higher values in the MPAs, compared to the unprotected sites (abundance range: MPAs = 96–1172, control areas = 92–747). In general, female survival was higher than male survival (range of survival: male = 0.13–0.75, female = 0.37–0.85), while larger males benefited more from protection compared to smaller males (range of increase in survival after protection: big = 100–125%, small = 55–101%). We also detected regional differences in demographic responses to protection, as not all MPAs showed the same changes in abundance over time. Our results show that MPAs can reach conservation goals by increasing the local survival and abundance of lobster, but they also highlight demographic differences between sexes and geographic areas that are worth considering for the management and design of both current and future MPAs.

Determinants of herder attitudes towards the Vulnerable snow leopardPanthera unciain Yushu Prefecture, China

AbstractYushu Prefecture in Qinghai Province provides some of the largest known stretches of habitat for the Vulnerable snow leopardPanthera unciain China. People living in these areas are dependent on agropastoralism. Support from local communities is necessary for effective long-term conservation action for snow leopards, but loss of livestock to snow leopards can create financial burdens that induce negative attitudes and encourage retaliatory killing. We assessed factors driving herders' attitudes towards snow leopards and their conservation. We found that herders had higher agreement with positive than with negative statements about snow leopards despite nearly half reporting livestock loss to snow leopards within the last 5 years. No retaliatory killing was reported. Herders with more years of formal education and fewer livestock losses were more likely to have positive attitudes whereas those with lower importance of snow leopards to their religion, fewer livestock losses, and fewer years of education were more likely to have negative attitudes. Understanding the multifaceted mechanisms responsible for positive views towards species is imperative for reaching conservation goals. Our findings ascribe to the importance of increased education and adherence to Tibetan beliefs in promoting conservation tolerance towards snow leopards in Qinghai Province, but also indicate a need for further research into the impact of livestock loss.

Conservation Biologists and the Representation of At-Risk Species: Navigating Ethical Tensions in an Evolving Discipline

Conservation biology is a discipline with the explicit goal of protecting species from extinction. We examine how conservation biologists represent at-risk species, how they navigate values and ethical tensions in the discipline, and how they might be more effective in reaching conservation goals. While these topics are discussed in the literature, we offer a unique empirical examination of how individuals perceive and perform conservation work. We conducted 29 interviews with conservation biologists and found that most respondents viewed their work as providing information but also felt that other species have intrinsic value and we should extend our ethical standards to include other species. However, many attempted to separate science from values, and some felt it was necessary to hide their values and ethical positions and avoid advocacy. While conservation biologists navigate these tensions differently, those who engage in advocacy will likely be more effective in reaching conservation goals. Current societal values and views on ethical extension, rather than a lack of science, represent the most significant impediment to addressing the extinction crisis.

Plant species richness record in Brazilian Pampa grasslands and implications

Species richness remains one of the most valuable type of information for biodiversity conservation. Here, we report a plant richness record in the Brazilian Pampa. We found 56 vascular plant species in a single plot of 1 × 1 m in a privately owned grazed grassland in a region with shallow soils. This number is considerably higher than common species numbers in similar surveys and highlights the high plant diversity in South Brazilian grasslands. We take our record as an opportunity to reflect on some issues of high importance if we wish to reach conservation goals: much of the biodiversity is inside private lands, and these should be more in the focus of conservation efforts; field research, especially quantitative sampling, continues to be essential to improve knowledge on biodiversity and its distribution patterns; training biologists to be able to carry out biodiversity assessments and to interpret the results should be a key issue for universities. We hope that the communication of this record will encourage new scientific discoveries and raise social interest about the conservation of grasslands in South Brazil.

Visitors’ perceived impacts of interpretation on knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions at Miquelon Lake Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada

Interpretation in protected areas can help reach conservation goals and inspire a new generation of knowledgeable and dedicated park supporters. However, few research projects have examined this connection in a comprehensive manner. This 2011 study evaluated perceived knowledge, interest, appreciation, and advocacy impacts from interpretive programs at Miquelon Lake Provincial Park (MLPP), Alberta, Canada. Of 497 respondents, 19.7% attended an interpretive program. Among attendees, 89% rated the programs as excellent or very good, and most agreed that interpretation increased knowledge about nature (88%), interest in future programs (87%), and appreciation for MLPP (82%). Somewhat fewer but still a majority of attendees agreed that interpretation increased their desire to support AB Parks (71%), their awareness of environmental issues (69%), and their desire to help the environment (61%). Attendees (and nonattendees to a lesser extent) supported the role of interpretation in the park. The key constraints for not attending were lack of awareness, awkward timing, and being too busy. Park interpretation at MLPP appears to generate positive impacts related to the environment, regarding learning, awareness, appreciation, and a desire to help.

Canada and Aichi Biodiversity Target 11: understanding ‘other effective area-based conservation measures’ in the context of the broader target

A renewed global agenda to address biodiversity loss was sanctioned by adoption of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets in 2010 by Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. However, Aichi Biodiversity Target 11 contained a significant policy and reporting challenge, conceding that both protected areas (PAs) and 'other effective area-based conservation measures' (OEABCMs) could be used to meet national targets of protecting 17 and 10 % of terrestrial and marine areas, respectively. We report on a consensus-based approach used to (1) operationalize OEABCMs in the Canadian context and (2) develop a decision-screening tool to assess sites for inclusion in Canada's Aichi Target 11 commitment. Participants in workshops determined that for OEABCMs to be effective, they must share a core set of traits with PAs, consistent with the intent of Target 11. (1) Criteria for inclusion of OEABCMs in the Target 11 commitment should be consistent with the overall intent of PAs, with the exception that they may be governed by regimes not previously recognized by reporting agencies. (2) These areas should have an expressed objective to conserve nature, be long-term, generate effective nature conservation outcomes, and have governance regimes that ensure effective management. A decision-screening tool was devel- oped that can reduce the risk that areas with limited conservation value are included in national accounting. The findings are relevant to jurisdictions where the debate on what can count is distracting Parties to the Convention from reaching conservation goals.

Global Protected Area Expansion: Creating More than Paper Parks.

Aichi target 11 of the Convention of Biological Diversity promotes the expansion of the global protected area network to cover 17 percent of all terrestrial land and ­10 percent of coastal and marine areas by 2020 (www.cbd.int/sp/targets). At the recent World Parks Congress, organized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Sydney, Australia, 12 innovative approaches were promoted as part of the “Promise of Sydney” to help transform decisionmaking, policy, capacity, and financing for protected areas in the next decade (http://io.aibs.org/syd). The first of such approaches includes a list of 20 important recommendations to help reach conservation goals. Many of these ­recommendations are provided for ­single countries to take action individually. In addition, the final recommendation advocates that a more ambitious target of protection (50 percent global protection) should be promoted to more adequately conserve biodiversity. Both points are problematic: recent research shows that facilitating international collaboration among countries is crucial to identifying and implementing a well-connected system of protected areas that can better represent threatened biodiversity, and setting unrealistic and politically challenging global protection targets is unneeded. This Viewpoint presents three main themes of the recommendations that would benefit from greater emphasis and the promotion of the importance of international collaborations.

World Parks Congress 2014: Parks, people and planet

No abstract available

Combining natural history collections with fisher knowledge for community-based conservation in Fiji.

Harnessing the traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) of local communities has the potential to enhance conservation planning in developing regions. Marine protected areas (MPAs) that incorporate traditional beliefs about reef tenure are generally more successful in reaching conservation goals and ensuring the participation of local fishermen on vulnerable tropical reef systems. Fiji possesses a unique system of traditional reef management in which local clans or villages, called mataqali, control individual units of a reef, known as qoliqoli, and make independent management decisions based on traditional beliefs and conservation concerns. This is an example of a system, known as customary marine tenure, which has attracted interest from conservation scientists hoping to set up MPAs in vulnerable regions. As one example of this grassroots participation, Nagigi village on the Fijian island of Vanua Levu has expressed interest in setting up an MPA in part of its qoliqoli because of concerns about overfishing. In response to this interest, we took a two-pronged approach to assessing Nagigi's fishery status and conservation needs, first conducting a fishery-independent species survey using destructive sampling and then focusing on fisheries targets identified through fisher interviews. These interviews allowed us to identify heavily targeted species, assess villagers' understanding of reef dynamics over 30 or 40 years of fisheries expansion, and evaluate village support and expectations for a proposed conservation program. Based on our findings we recommend a temporary closure to be in effect for at least three years, allowing one of the more important fishery targets, Lethrinus harak (Forsskål, 1775; Lethrinidae), to complete at least one generation within the reserve. The methodology of matching the proposed marine protected area with the life histories and ecologies of heavily targeted species identified through fisherman and -woman interviews can offer a template for future conservation projects that seek to synthesize indigenous peoples' needs and knowledge with ecological data.

Forest Owners’ Willingness to Accept Compensation for Voluntary Conservation: A Contingent Valuation Approach

To avoid conflicts often associated with mandatory regulations, it is crucial to motivate and incentivize forest owners to participate in voluntary conservation programs. To investigate forest owner preferences and willingness to accept compensation (WTA) to participate, we conduct a contingent valuation survey of non-industrial private forest owners in Norway. We find that WTA is negatively related to the size of the forest holding and absentee ownership, and positively related to the share of the forest classified as productive. The overall mean WTA per year per hectare is estimated at NOK 1800. Costs of reaching conservation goals can be saved by targeting small and relatively less productive forests and absentee owners first, before considering increasingly expensive forest areas. However, this recommendation only holds if desirable biological characteristics are not substantially less likely to be found in such areas. Results are potentially important both for our understanding of forest owner preferences and the costs of voluntary forest conservation schemes currently in use in many countries.

Forest owners’ willingness to accept compensation for voluntary conservation: A contingent valuation approach

Abstract To avoid conflicts often associated with mandatory regulations, it is crucial to motivate and incentivize forest owners to participate in voluntary conservation programs. To investigate forest owner preferences and willingness to accept compensation (WTA) to participate, we conduct a contingent valuation survey of non-industrial private forest owners in Norway. We find that WTA is negatively related to the size of the forest holding and absentee ownership, and positively related to the share of the forest classified as productive. The overall mean WTA per year per hectare is estimated at NOK 1800. Costs of reaching conservation goals can be saved by targeting small and relatively less productive forests and absentee owners first, before considering increasingly expensive forest areas. However, this recommendation only holds if desirable biological characteristics are not substantially less likely to be found in such areas. Results are potentially important both for our understanding of forest owner preferences and the costs of voluntary forest conservation schemes currently in use in many countries.

Coastal poverty and MPA management in mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar

Poverty and resource degradation are persistent features of the lives of a large proportion of the coastal people of Tanzania and Zanzibar. A useful question to raise in preparing poverty reduction and resource management strategies is therefore “how does marine protected area management impact the lives of the poor and reduce poverty?” This paper summarizes selected results of a study on poverty alleviation and marine protected areas (MPAs) in Tanzania and Zanzibar. The data are based on 749 household surveys and 72 focus group meetings in 24 coastal villages conducted in May, June 2003. Unveiling the linkages between poverty and coastal conservation found that poverty is a reality for villagers in the study sites and that it sometimes drives people to break management rules—hence poverty makes it more difficult to reach conservation goals. We conclude that the effectiveness and success of the MPA programs in achieving both conservation and development goals varies, but communities’ perceptions of impacts and progress are most positive in those programs that have had the longest and greatest investment of time and resources.

PROTECTED SPECIES AND NEW ENGLAND FISHERIES: AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROBLEM AND CONSERVATION STRATEGIES

Protected species issues are an integral part of New England fishery management. Significant interactions of marine mammals and sea turtles with commercial fishing gear have been documented for many years. Statutes and regulations governing commercial fishery/protected species inter- actions provide for conservation and recovery of protected marine species. Some species of marine mammals, sea turtles, and fish are listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and all marine mammals are managed under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. Both these statues have provisions linking them to commercial fisheries and provide varied strategies for reaching conservation goals. Interactions of protected species with commercial fishing gear range from direct entanglement, capture, and disruption of normal behav- iors, to adverse modification of critical habitats. For the foreseeable future of New England fisheries, it is likely that wherever protected species and fishing activity co-occur, interactions will continue. Management trends include in- creased stakeholder involvement, close coordination with fishery management, and emphasis on technological solutions to interaction problems.