Do Ethiopian church forests provide ecosystem services on a landscape scale?

The arid highlands of Ethiopia have been converted to farmland during the last 100 years and an estimated 35,000 Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church forests comprise the last remnants of Afromontane forest in the country. Locally known as debr or geddam, the churches and forests surrounding them are considered holy and act as powerful local religious and social institutions. These forest fragments serve as seed banks for native plants, deposits of ecological memory in the agricultural landscape. We identify 464 church forests via Google Earth in the Gondar region of northern Ethiopia, bounded by Lake Tana to the west, Simien Mountains National Park to the north, and the Blue Nile to the south; the aerial view of church domes in patches of green forest contrasts with the surrounding brown agricultural landscape. We assess the ecosystem service of pollination provided by church forests on a landscape scale by creating an animal pollination distance layer using crop cover maps and FAO Pollination Information Management System data in ArcGIS v.10. We employ crop suitability maps derived from bioclimatic factors to determine the potential ecosystem service of pollination in alternative cropping scenarios. Here we show that church forests support pollinators that enable crop diversification, necessitated by bioclimatic (e.g. climate change, pests and disease) or social (e.g. market trends, seed access) factors, adding adaptive capacity to the social-ecological system and enabling adaptation to future conditions. Culturally protected forests can contribute to the CBD’s 2020 Aichi Targets, which aim to conserve areas particularly important for ecosystem services.

Agricultural expansion and intensification drive the fragmentation of dry Chaco forests. Designing interventions capable of reconciling agricultural production and biological conservation requires the integration of ecological and social disciplines. This study evaluated conservation costs (changes in bird species richness) and production benefits (changes in beef cattle yields) along an intensification gradient in cattle production systems of the Argentine Chaco (n=33). Silvopastoral systems integrating native trees and exotic pastures achieved high yields (60-70% of potential yields) and high bird species richness (70-90% compared to nearest forest), however, remnant forest fragments were critical for the conservation of forest-restricted bird species. Therefore, factors influencing intentions to conserve forest remnants were evaluated in surveys to landholders (n=89). The psycho-social model of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) explained more variance in conservation intentions (r2=0.41) than a model combining the TPB, pro-social motives and landholder identity (∆AIC=14.76). Beliefs that conserving remnant forests is approved by others (social norms) and positive evaluations of remnant forests (attitudes) had the largest influence on intentions (β=0.59 and β=0.23). Interventions should promote existing pro-conservation norms within smallholders groups and establish higher environmental benchmarks among commercial producers to encourage conservation of forest remnants.

There are always robust debates over how much administrative flexibility the institutional process should have, and the process for identifying and delivering biodiversity offset is no exception. Although some researches indicate the need for the more flexible operation of the biodiversity offset program in marine or coastal area, it is still not clear that what level of flexibility is appropriate for the biodiversity offset process. The present study analyzes the institutional structure and current implementation status of the marine fish habitat offset program in Queensland, which has a highly flexible operational method over the selection of offset measures, for validity verification of flexibility in biodiversity offset, and discusses advantages and disadvantages of the flexibility to increase the knowledge and perception of appropriate flexibility level for the biodiversity offset process. I conclude that the flexibility contributes to achieve better outcomes to some extent in this case, yet, appropriate flexibility depends on the conditions of scientific uncertainty and geographical limitations, and marine or coastal areas may require higher flexibility than terrestrial areas.

Agricultural productivity and protection of the biodiversity that underpins it are greatly dependent on the integration of theories, disciplines and technologies. While ecological engineering tools involving integrated pest management (IPM) practices has a wider public acceptability, agricultural biotechnology using genetic engineering on the other hand has limited uptake and has given both, commercial production of 'biopesticides' and the making of GM crops, Bt brinjal (Eggplant) being the first vegetable for Indian agricultural sector for the management of eggplant shoot and fruit borer (ESFB). Since IPM limits over reliance on any specific technology and its consequences such as pest resistance, resurgence and environmental contamination, the present study reviews IPM modules for the management of ESFB like resistant cultivars, use of biopesticides, botanicals, microbial formulations and sex pheromones. Results revealed that integration of different IPM modules helped in development of successful IPM strategies. In the recent past there has been much debate regarding the insect-resistant Bt Brinjal and the influence that a single mortality agent such as 'Bt gene' can have on the insect pest regulation and control. Although it can keep pest populations at extremely low ebb, it could potentially harm natural enemies disrupting ecosystem processes in long run. A scope for synergy thus reflects that GM crops can be most effective when they are used as part of IPM strategies.

Terrestrial, aquatic, and estuarine protected area managers are all water resources managers, whether they realize it or not. How then do we integrate freshwater effectively into conservation and protected areas? Freshwater is more than rivers, lakes, and wetlands; freshwater spans the whole hydrological cycle, incuding evapotranspiration, soil moisture, precipitation, and groundwater. By extension, managing freshwater resources in protected areas means managing across the whole of the cycle in a way that can reflect (and sometimes buffer) key eco-hydrological processes and functions. Water is also contested terrain, and dynamic in response to climate and economic pressures in ways that are critical for PA managers to understand. Here we discuss how to approaches for managing water resources coherently and effectively to sustain the water embedded within ecosystems and protected areas.

A trade-off commonly faced by decision-makers in natural resource management is whether to spend scarce resources on acting in the face of uncertainty, or gaining additional information in hope that it will improve management performance in the future. Value of information analysis can help facilitate this trade-off by determining how much management performance could improve if additional information is acquired. This study applies the concept of value of information analysis to the management of a declining koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) population in Queensland, Australia. Decision-makers managing this population must choose management strategies despite uncertainty about the accuracy of koala survival and fecundity rates, and the influence of forest cover on these rates. An age-structured matrix model of the koala population was used to evaluate the expected management performance for a range of budgets with current levels of information, and if uncertainty were to be resolved. This study is the first to translate the improvement in management performance due to resolving uncertainty into a dollar value. The results of the value of information analysis suggest that resolving uncertainty will do little to improve koala management performance, and that no more than 1.7% of a budget should be spent on gaining additional information. In this case, allocating resources to direct management action will probably give a better return on investment than gaining information.

It’s been 140 years since Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first great terrestrial park, was established in the western United States. Since that time, virtually every country on Earth has protected important sites for biological, cultural, geological, historic, and scenic reasons. Unfortunately, conservation in the sea has taken a profoundly different course, with a remarkably small area of the world’s oceans protected to date. The Pew Environment Group’s Global Ocean Legacy project was created to protect and conserve some of the Earth’s most important and unspoiled marine ecosystems through the establishment of very large, fully-protected marine reserves. Through these efforts we hope to secure the designation of up to 15 oceanic-scale no-take marine reserves by 2020, thereby creating the first generation of the world’s great marine parks. To date, the first four of these parks have been designated, three of which are the world’s largest. Those include Papahânaumokuâkea Marine National Monument, the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument, the Chagos Marine Reserve, and the newly designated Coral Sea Marine Park in Australia.

Elicitation of expert opinion is a widely-used tool when data is limited or patchy. It is potentially useful for making conservation decisions because there is often a lack of empirical data on population numbers and trends. We conducted a structured elicitation procedure to quantify demographic trends for the Koala, that is declining throughout much of its natural range. Fifteen koala experts were asked to make bioregional estimations about koala population numbers and trends using a sliding window of the past three and future three generations, in a four-step question format. They were required to provide: a lowest plausible population estimate; a highest plausible population estimate; a best estimate and confidence that the true values were contained within the upper and lower bounds (range 50-100%). We found that bioregional koala populations in the states of Queensland and New South Wales, where they are now listed federally as vulnerable, have declined by 20% - 73% and 4% - 50% respectively, with the exception of one bioregion where koalas increased by 6%. In Victoria and South Australia, where koalas are not listed, populations have declined by 2% - 29%, with a 16% increase in one bioregion where koalas have been reintroduced. This elicitation process provides, for the first time, quantitative information to inform decision makers and land managers. It will assist in the implementation of a Recovery Plan for a species of national and international significance.

SeaSketch (seasketch.org) is a software service launched in October, 2012, as an end-to-end mapping solution for marine spatial planning. Building on our experience developing MarineMap for MPA planning in California, we developed SeaSketch to reflect "geodesign" principals where anyone, regardless of their technical abilities, may sketch prospective management plans and receive analytical feedback on the consequences of their designs. Importantly, a web-based interface may be accessed by planners to (a) define the geographic scope of the project, (b) create users and groups with specific permissions, (c) add map layers, (d) create "sketch classes" for each type of management tool (e.g., MPAs, aquaculture sites, energy sites, transportation zones, etc.), (e) associate sketch classes with analytical scripts, (f) create discussion forums that are dynamically tied to maps, and (e) define and launch geospatial surveys to collect information about the distribution of resources and human activities. SeaSketch is being used for marine spatial planning in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand, the Galapagos Islands, the Mediterranean Sea, the United States, and Barbuda by partners in the New Zealand Department of Conservation, the United Nations Environment Program - World Conservation Monitoring Center, NOAA, and a host of academic partners. We will highlight how SeaSketch is being used to facilitate stakeholder engagement and the use of the best available science for decision making.

Islands are global hotspots of biodiversity and threat: island species make up a disproportionately large number of historic extinctions and currently endangered taxa. The leading threat to island biodiversity is invasive alien species (IAS), particularly mammals associated with human activity. The relative impacts of different IAS on native populations are unknown, making it difficult to prioritize the most damaging species for eradication programs. We used the first comprehensive global island dataset of native and introduced species to quantify all known co-occurrences of native vertebrates and common invasive mammals, and identified cases of confirmed and suspected extirpations of the native fauna. Island vertebrates were most often extirpated in the presence of rats, mice, cats, mongoose, and mustelids. Native birds were 2-10 times more likely than native reptiles, amphibians, or mammals to disappear on islands with IAS. We used a logistic regression analysis to investigate additional predictors of extinction risk, including the number and combination of IAS and island size, latitude, and climate. We demonstrate that extinction risk for island species can be quantified and predicted using historical species records and simple island characteristics. The ability to explicitly measure extinction risk, and thus to predict the extinction risk averted via IAS eradication, is a critical step forward in developing robust conservation plans for islands globally.

Harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) are periodically caught in groundfish fishing gear in the northeastern U.S. (called bycatch). To mitigate bycatch, the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 directs the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to convene a group of fishermen, scientists, environmentalists, and government managers, called a Take Reduction Team (TRT), to develop and execute a consensus-based Take Reduction Plan (TRP). TRTs create policy change by focusing on empirical issues and building trust. We employed multiple disciplines (natural and social sciences) to examine the impact of the Harbor Porpoise TRT on harbor porpoise bycatch. The TRT first convened in 1996 and implemented a TRP in 1999. Prior to 1999, bycatch had been declining, but was above the maximum removal level (termed PBR). Although bycatch fell below PBR early on, it has exceeded PBR in five of the most recent seven years. TRT members attributed this to non-compliance with TRP regulations. They created a new plan that was implemented in 2010. In 2012 a NMFS official altered one of the consensus-based actions without consulting the team. This undermined the TRT's long-term trust and social capital, outraged some TRT members, and triggered a boycott of one stakeholder group. Even if the TRT cannot achieve consensus in the future, NMFS must take action. These actions could lead to litigation and politicization begging the question, can stakeholder participation save the harbor porpoise?

Palmyra Atoll, a remote Central Pacific National Wildlife Refuge, is described as a pristine ecosystem because of its remarkably intact food web and the absence of current anthropogenic stressors. However during WWII it was structurally reconfigured into a military installation. Questions remain about what contaminants may have been released, and their potential effects on the atoll's ecosystems and species. We assessed the health of green sea turtles at Palmyra, a major foraging ground for this globally endangered herbivore. We sampled blood from 157 green turtles from 2008- 2012 for hematology, plasma chemistries and heavy metal exposure. Hematological and plasma chemistries were consistent with reported levels for healthy green turtles, and body condition indices indicated that less than 1% had poor body condition. Heavy metal screenings revealed low levels of most metals and toxins including arsenic, magnesium, cadmium, lead, and copper. However very high levels of iron and silicon indicated some toxins may be leaching into the food web. While these abnormal levels need to be further investigated, most health results indicate green turtles at Palmyra are free from contamination at levels one might expect in light of the Refuge's history. The research provides key insights into the previously unknown health status of a globally endangered species at an isolated protected area of complex history, with conservation and management applications.

The Healthy Reefs Initiative (HRI) is a collaboration of 48 international, regional, and local partner organizations working to conserve the Mesoamerican Reef (MAR). HRI produces biennial Report Cards on the ecological health of the reef and Eco-Audits measuring the management response. The 2012 Report Card includes almost 200 sampling sites measuring reef condition based on a Simplified Index of reef health, which ranks values for: coral cover, fleshy macroalgal cover, herbivore biomass and commercial fish biomass. The majority of reefs were found to be in poor (40%) or critical (24%) condition, with only 10% ranked as good or very good, and 25% in fair condition. However, this report did measure a slight improvement in overall reef health compared with the 2010 assessment. In light of global coral reef declines, even such a slight improvement is noteworthy and encouraging. While the Index is useful for summarizing the complexity of reef health taking a closer look at individual indicators helps to understand the sources of declines and develop management actions. The Report Card includes reef management recommendations developed and prioritized in a regional workshop with partner organizations. The extent to which these recommendations are implemented in the MAR countries is then evaluated through the Eco-Audits, which help to catalyze stronger management actions.