Optimal sampling of plant populations for ex-situ conservation of genetic biodiversity: spatial considerations

As habitat loss, environmental degradation, and climate change accelerate, there is a pressing need to preserve genetic diversity of plant species in ex situ conservation collections (e.g. seed banks). However, current guidelines for sampling populations to conserve genetic diversity are primarily based on decades-old probabilistic models that do not consider population genetic structure. Population structure, which is common among plants, is an important consideration because it results in alleles or traits restricted to particular populations or regions, which are of high conservation value. We propose a methodology utilizing computer simulations of realistic genetic structure patterns to test the ability of different sampling strategies (spatial distribution) and intensities (number of samples) to capture genetic diversity (especially locally restricted alleles). We simulate three species having different levels of connectivity. We find that spatial strategies strongly differ in performance: sampling one population per region is more effective (~175% more alleles captured) than sampling all populations in one region. The effect is strongest for poorly connected species. Modest sample sizes (~20 samples per population) perform well. We use a case study in the highly threatened butternut tree to argue for samples sizes of 25 trees from 10 states. We conclude that simulations are a valuable tool to help tailor sampling strategy for threatened plants.

Econics is an adaptive ecosystem-based approach to management that draws on the theory of non-equilibrium thermodynamics to help understand ecological problems, and promote ecosystem integrity and resilience. Forest ecosystems support higher biomass storage and greater functional diversity, collectively enhancing energy degradation and resilience against uncertain changes. Under human-induced disturbance they can suffer from functional impairment, which reduces their ability to degrade energy. In this study, replicated plots across a chronosequence of forest ecosystems in the UK, Finland, Germany and Ukraine were sampled over twelve months for surface temperature and vegetation characteristics. Analysed data on plant functional traits and proxy indicators for above-ground biomass suggested that old-growth and mature semi-natural forests were characterised by competitor-stress tolerant communities and higher biomass. These factors appeared to contribute significantly to attenuation in surface temperature when contrasted with secondary forests or managed stands. Analysing data at both local and landscape scales revealed similar trends in temperature patterns. The results have important applications for the management of forests undergoing environmental change. Practices that promote higher thermodynamic functionality by mimicking natural processes in forests are more likely to conserve eco-exergy and so enhance resilience of forests facing impacts of climate change

The complexity of conserving endemic species can be even greater when local communities interact with focal species. Community participation in, and commitment to, conservation measures greatly enhance long-term chances of success and increase the likelihood that such initiatives will become self-sustaining. As a central part of our long-term conservation program for several endemic endangered land- and seabird species, we have led community-based conservation efforts in the Juan Fernandez Islands and Mocha Island, Chile, for 11 and 3 years, respectively. We have focused community-based efforts on two principal areas: (1) community awareness development through creative artistic and educational activities and (2) capacity building, training and hiring of local residents. For example, we have led writing, painting and drawing workshops and contests, developed active-learning modules for the environmental education programs, established conservation-themed soccer tournaments for island residents and created volunteer programs in monitoring and invasive plant control. Our second focus, local capacity building, has produced teams of local residents (>20) trained and hired to work as field technicians and local coordinators on conservation, monitoring and restoration projects. Bottom-up community-based initiatives, using a suite of activities, have tremendous potential to complement on-the-ground conservation and restoration activities focused on threatened bird species.

Marine and coastal areas provide the valuable ecosystem services of fish foraging, nursery and protection. The delivery of these services depends on the size, location and proximity of key habitats including mangroves forests, coral reefs and seagrass beds. Ecosystem Based Management (EBA) in the Caribbean should account for the proximity and perceived connectivity of these habitats to support the ontogenetic and diurnal movements of coral reef fish. In the St. Thomas East End Reserves (STEER), a marine protected area in the U.S. Virgin Islands, NOAA's Habitat Priority Planner was employed to assess which mangrove, seagrass and coral habitat patches are highly connected to other habitat types. Results identify coral reef, mangrove and seagrass patches that are more likely to support fish migration. Given that habitat size and quality is decreasing for mangrove forests, seagrass beds and coral reefs on St. Thomas, consistent with other areas in the Caribbean, management recommendations include additional research and protection for mangrove forests and proximate coral reefs and seagrass beds to maximize ecosystem services.

An effort is underway in a small Vermont town to make a comprehensive plan for the protection of biodiversity. The landscape to which the plan applies belongs to hundreds of private owners whose cooperation is necessary for its success. Supporters of the plan hope to secure landowner cooperation by means of an educational campaign about the importance of protecting biodiversity. But even if most landowners come to favor conservation in principle, it does not necessarily follow that they will actively support the plan, since the shared goals of a group are often undermined by the incentives faced by each individual member. A mail survey of all households was used to investigate whether education is the sticking point, or whether landowner commitment to conservation is undermined by problems of collective action. It was found that most landowners are already in favor of conservation and would be willing to make conservation commitments in the context of a mutually binding agreement with other landowners.

Limited knowledge of the 21st Century distribution of African mammals strongly inhibits our ability to manage and conserve them. Launched in 2012 by two South African universities, MammalMAP aims to fill this knowledge gap by updating the distribution records of all African mammal species. Through extensive collaboration with scientists, citizen scientists, conservation organisations, and wildlife authorities, we consolidate reliable evidence of current (post 2010) mammal occurrence into an online, open-access digital database, in an exercise with four primary conservation benefits. Firstly, comparisons of current distribution records with historical and future records, and analyses of distributions shifts in relation to changes in habitat and climate, will yield both explanatory and predictive results that can inform species- and continent-level conservation policies. Secondly, by identifying and documenting the threats facing the most vulnerable of African mammal species, these data will provide crucial guidance to the IUCN Red Data Lists. Thirdly, these data will direct landscape conservation regulations for maximum biodiversity protection, and guide the effective spending of scarce conservation resources. Finally, MammalMAP provides a platform for involving Africa's citizens in, and educating them about, wildlife conservation. In short, MammalMAP represents a comprehensive, multi-species conservation initiative that bridges ecosystem, political, and disciplinary divides.

Mammalian carnivores (carnivorans) play a key role in the functioning of many ecosystems. Therefore, preserving these species is important to maintaining the integrity of these systems. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in the carnivoran fauna since European colonization on an early colonized mid-Atlantic peninsula. We used archaeological and colonial records to reconstruct the native fauna, and contrasted this with evidence of existing species from field data, museum specimens, and other sources. Ten species were found to be native (Table 1). Of these, four are extirpated, one appears reduced to a single population, and a sixth is restricted to several isolated populations. This indicates 60% of the native carnivorans have either been extirpated or nearly so.

In 2009, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MNDNR) identified climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies as top priorities. The agency established new programs, positions, and teams to integrate climate change strategies into management. Initial efforts focused on synthesizing and communicating scientific information. Now we are sharpening our focus on adaptation. Starting with strategies compiled from the literature and regional adaptation efforts, interdisciplinary expert teams are using a multi-criteria ranking approach to evaluate adaptation strategies for four major systems that MNDNR manages: forests and woodlands, wetlands, aquatic systems, and prairie-grasslands. Instead of only providing an overall ranking of importance, this approach allows land and water managers to sort the strategies by any of the importance criteria (i.e. number of management objectives addressed or temporal applicability of the strategy) or other factors. These strategy worksheets will be key resources for staff to begin using through four eco-regional climate change adaptation workshops being planned for 2013. We will share lessons learned from the strategy evaluation approach and MNDNR's initial adaptation work in general.

Sea turtles bury their eggs up to 70-80 cm deep and sand above the nest is an important resistance to gas exchange. Leatherback eggs have low hatching success. On Bioko Island nest hatching success is 10% and it decreases to 3% in a less productive year. Tidal movements of the water table under the nest can ventilate the nest. To make predictions about factors that control hatching success of sea turtle eggs we measured tidal water table fluctuations in nesting beaches on Bioko Island. Large water table movements suggest that tides can ventilate nests more vigorously. The amplitude and timing of water table fluctuations varied with distance of the nest from the water, with lunar phase, and between successive tides. Amplitude of the tidal water table fluctuations was attenuated with increased distance from the water. Simulations using our measured tidal fluctuations, show the potential to decrease time averaged oxygen deficits and carbon dioxide concentrations by 25-30%. Peak predicted oxygen deficits were also ameliorated, in contrast to predictions with smaller water table fluctuations. Thus, water table movements and potential effects on respiratory gas exchange, metabolism, and developmental rates all increase in nests laid closer to the water. We will predict which beaches will be favorable for sea turtle egg incubation in the face of rising seas and warming temperatures and the effects of human alterations of sand composition on development of sea turtle embryos.

Locally established marine protected areas (MPAs) have proven effective in achieving local fisheries and conservation objectives. However, the contributions of these MPAs to broader-scale objectives are limited because they were not designed as ecologically connected networks. In contrast, MPA networks designed with systematic conservation planning (SCP) are assumed to have benefits over collections of local MPAs. However, empirical evidence demonstrating these advantages is lacking, due to poor records of implementing systematic designs. An intermediate scenario for MPA expansion is to scale up local decisions by coordinating local MPA initiatives through collaborative partnerships between muncipalities. We evaluated potential benefits of scaling up local MPAs by simulating seven MPA expansion scenarios in the Verde Island Passage: uncoordinated local establishment, two levels of coordinated expansion by collaborative partnerships, and four scenarios guided by SCP at different spatial scales of governance. We measured benefits through time in terms of achievement of habitat representation in each scenario. We also determined the tradeoffs between achievement of objectives and likelihood of implementation based on spatial scales of governance. Our results provide evidence for the benefits of coordinating MPA initiatives and can assist researchers, natural resource planners, MPA managers, and policy makers to better understand the benefits of scaling up local MPAs.

There is great and growing potential for using portable digital imaging devices and other sensors on low altitude aerial platforms such as poles, kites, balloons and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to map and monitor landscapes. With recent hardware and software advances the conservation community and, in fact, the general public can now access the technology required to conduct sophisticated aerial mapping and monitoring projects that were impractical even a few years ago. The goal of this presentation is to raise awareness of and improve accessibility to these inexpensive photo mapping and monitoring hardware and software tools. Strengths and limitations of different systems will be discussed and an overview of important regulations pertaining to aerial platforms and other equipment will be presented. Becoming familiar with these low-cost aerial systems will provide conservation practitioners access to new tools to collect spatial data to support conservation projects.

Informed conservation and management actions require the assessment of biodiversity. Invertebrates make up a large and underrepresented portion of biodiversity. Locations with similar vegetation might provide different conditions for soil invertebrates depending on availability of microclimatic shelters, disturbance history and landscape context. Therefore we developed scoring methods for Hungarian terrestrial isopods and gastropods to be used in the habitat quality assessment, thus allowing invertebrates part of the evaluation and decision process. Our scoring methods for species (Mollusc Rarity Index, MRI; Terrestrial Isopod Naturalness Index, TINI) combined range size, national area of occurrence, and tolerance to human disturbance. The habitat based index is the average MRI or TINI score for the species found weighted by their local relative abundance. We tested our indices on data collected from managed and unmanaged forests for gastropods and along an urban-rural gradient for isopods to compare habitat naturalness. Our results generally reiterate the positive relationship between measures of rarity at different spatial scales, but we also provide examples where this expectation was not met. Therefore, habitat quality assessment should rely on different and complementary indices. Incongruences of multiple indices might be useful in identifying potentially idiosyncratic biotas.

In a time of environmental crisis, with biodiversity loss and an ineffective conservation record, community conservation is a major solution to environmental degradation. During the past 28 years, Community Conservation (CC) catalyzed communities, in 24 projects in 14 countries, to protect private, community and public lands. CC's flexible formula, based on trust, asked communities for help and encouraged them to form over 40 community-based organizations (CBOs) and federations that monitor and protect forests and wildlife. For example, the Community Baboon Sanctuary in Belize, begun in 1985, is community-owned, protects the black howler monkey and served as a model for 24 community-managed sanctuaries under government policy. The Golden Langur Conservation Project catalyzed a federation of 18 CBOs to protect the Manas Biosphere Reserve and the Indian golden langur population that increased from1500 to 5600 langurs. Tigers and elephants also increased and UNESCO " in danger" label was lifted. In northern Peru, CC partners catalyzed 12 CBOs to gain conservation concessions of over 80,000 hectares of cloud forest habitat of 3 endangered endemic primates. In Papua New Guinea, CC helped clan landowners create the first Conservation Area to protect the Huon tree kangaroo. In Ghana, communities protect the last coastal forests and 3 endangered primates. When treated as equals, rural communities are powerful on-site conservation partners that will protect their forest when asked.

American ginseng has an unusual form of rarity, as it is found in numerous small populations across a broad ecological niche. These population characteristics, along with its cultural and economic value as a medicinal plant, have made American ginseng a model species for rare plant conservation studies. American ginseng is adapted to local temperature conditions, which places populations at risk throughout its range in a rapidly changing climate in the absence of long-distance dispersal. Small mammals (mice and chipmunks) are potential dispersers, as they have been frequently observed near fruiting plants using wildlife cameras. A feeding study was conducted at three field sites, two in WV and one in NY, to investigate the role of small mammals as potential dispersers and whether or not they preferred ginseng berries over other fruits available simultaneously. Results show high small mammal activity within feeding boxes in New York but limited activity at the West Virginia sites. At the NY site small mammals demonstrated a preference for ginseng fruits. Video recorded during the study also showed that mice are primarily predating ginseng seed in NY. Small mammals, and mice in particular, do not appear to be significant dispersers of ginseng. Songbirds are a more likely candidate for long-distance dispersers of this species.