Auditing Conservation
There is no question that conservationists need to have clear goals and know whether and how well they are reaching them. “Auditing Conservation” in the Summer 2003 issue of Conservation In Practice makes this point well but it is naïve on a number of other counts, leading to bad advice.
The author seems […] Read More »
Books
Singing the Turtles to Sea: The Comcáac (Seri) Art and Science of Reptiles
By Gary Paul Nabhan
University of California Press, 2003
Reviewed by David B. Williams
Only one serpent lives in the Sea of Cortez, the yellow-bellied seasnake. Biologists consider it to be extremely dangerous; full envenomation can kill a person in two […] Read More »
Although endangered populations are typically delisted once they reach a certain population threshold, this doesn’t tell the whole story. Yellowstone Ecosystem wolves and grizzly bears are close to being delisted — but new research suggests that their wide-ranging ecological effects have not yet been restored.
“What will we have achieved by putting wolves and grizzly […] Read More »
Although European environmentalists see quarries as scars in the Earth, these industrial operations may actually play a critical role in preserving rare species. New research shows that quarries provide the only suitable habitat for at-risk butterflies in some places, suggesting that current policies of filling in old quarries are misguided.
“Increasing evidence is revealing the […] Read More »
Many boaters exceed the speed limits set to protect manatees, and boat collisions cause about a quarter of the deaths of these endangered marine mammals in Florida. New research suggests that increased social pressure and law enforcement would encourage more boaters to comply with speed limits.
“An understanding of boaters’ beliefs and attitudes towards manatees […] Read More »
Global live seafood trade is barely regulated even though it could be a significant conservation threat. New research shows that “fresh” shellfish sold in markets are still alive enough to feed—and so presumably to spawn. This suggests that the seafood trade could spread invasive nonnative marine species around the world.
It wouldn’t take much. “Introduced […] Read More »
Animal welfare advocates want to ban fox hunting in Britain, and most Members of Parliament agree. But new research shows that this could be detrimental to conservation — British landowners who engage in such field sports maintain far more wildlife habitat.
“Landowners who hunt with hounds are more likely to conserve woodland habitat and plant […] Read More »
Although the high ocean surface temperatures during the 1997-1998 El Niño bleached coral reefs in more than 50 tropical countries worldwide, patches of coral did survive in or near the damaged reefs. A new study of these patches identifies factors likely to protect these threatened marine ecosystems during climate change.
“As baseline sea surface temperatures […] Read More »
Restoration efforts often over-look the importance of “phenotype diversity,” or non-heritable variations in morphology and behavior that suit different parts of a habitat.
A new analysis shows how restoring a habitat’s diversity can increase phenotype diversity, which in turn can increase a population’s chances of surviving rapid environmental change.
“Phenotype management is essentially a bet-hedging […] Read More »
By Douglas Fox
Fall 2003 (Vol. 4, No. 4)
Two hours ago the last scratchy FM radio signal sputtered out. One hour ago, the pavement gave way to a dirt road that now alternates between washboard stutter and smooth dusty dunes as it weaves through an unending maze of spider-branched mallee trees. Driving with […] Read More »
By Carrie Brownstein, Mercédès Lee, and Carl Safina
Fall 2003 (Vol. 4, No. 4)
One hundred miles from their rock-bound Nova Scotia homeport, Franklyn d’Entremont and his crew gaze with satisfaction upon their biggest fish of the day—a 147-kilogram (325-pound) swordfish (Xiphias gladius) just hoisted aboard. It’s been an unusually productive day for these harpoon […] Read More »
By Katherine Ellison
Fall 2003 (Vol. 4, No. 4)
Jared Hardner felt more than slightly anxious as he followed the skinny man beckoning to him from a hut along a dangling catwalk. The Palo Alto, California, consultant had traveled two days by fishing boat to this village on Indonesia’s Togean islands, where “sea-gypsies” build homes […] Read More »
By W. Wayt Gibbs
Fall 2003 (Vol. 4, No. 4)
Conservation biology is an endless struggle with complexity. Most people try to focus their work sharply enough that they can ignore the myriad external factors beyond the scope of their project or theory. But a few step back, survey the larger landscape, and try […] Read More »
