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At least 397 records · Page 22Linked to original sources

The sands of time: Predicting sea level rise impacts to barrier island habitats

Coastal beach ecosystems support critical habitat for numerous species and are vulnerable to sea level rise. Sand beaches are spatially and temporally dynamic, making it difficult to accurately predict future habitat loss – estimates that are crucial as species are being assessed for protection. We mapped sand beach habitat on 12 focal barrier islands and low-lying beaches off the Gulf Coast of Florida, USA using two methods for comparison - a remotely sensed land cover and hand-digitized aerial imagery that was collected concurrently with digital elevation data. We then compared estimates of beach habitat lost to sea level rise between the two methods and compared this sensitivity to control mangrove islands. Predictions suggest that most of the beach habitat in our study areas will be underwater within the next century. These beaches represent critical nesting habitat for vulnerable vertebrate species such as the snowy plover ( Charadrius nivosus ) and the loggerhead turtle ( Caretta caretta ). Importantly, we found that for some islands, using remotely sensed land cover data led us to under- or over-estimate the amount of beach habitat lost to sea level rise relative to the digitized data because of the temporal mismatch between land cover and elevation data. In contrast, we found relatively little difference between methods in the amount of mangrove forest lost to sea level rise on nearby control islands. We suggest that using land cover data collected at the same time as elevation data can produce more accurate predictions of beach habitat inundation from sea level rise.

Florida

Effects of landcover on mesocarnivore density and detection rate along an urban to rural gradient

Human development has major implications for wildlife populations. Urban-exploiter species can benefit from human subsidized resources, whereas urban-avoider species can vanish from wildlife communities in highly developed areas. Therefore, understanding how the density of different species varies in response to landcover changes associated with human development can provide important insight into how wildlife communities are likely to change and provide a starting point for predicting the consequences of those changes. Here, we estimated the population density of five common mesocarnivore species (coyote ( Canis latrans ), bobcat ( Lynx rufus ), red fox ( Vulpes vulpes ), raccoon ( Procyon lotor ), and Virginia opossum ( Didelphis virginiana) ) at 12 study sites along an urban to rural gradient in the greater Fayetteville Area, Northwest Arkansas, USA between November 2021, and March 2022. At each study site, we applied the Random Encounter Model (REM) to data from camera traps to calculate the density of five focal species. Coyote density ranged from 0.5 to 0.93 individuals/km 2 . Raccoon density ranged from 0.19 to 20.25 individuals/km 2 . Bobcat density ranged from 0 to 1.06 individuals/km 2 . Opossum density ranged from 0 to 3.43 individuals/km 2 . Red fox density ranged from 0 to 0.10 individuals/km 2 . Coyote and raccoon density showed a positive relationship with anthropogenic noise. Opossum density increased with HUD. Red Fox and bobcat density showed a negative relationship with forest area and a positive relationship with distance to water respectively, however confidence intervals for both species overlapped zero. The density estimates we report based on camera trap data of unmarked animals were consistent with reports from the literature for these same species derived from traditional methods, providing additional support to the REM as a viable, non-invasive method to calculate density of unmarked species. Our second analysis consisted of taking camera level density estimates and treating them as detection rates corrected for camera viewshed and animal movement. Coyote and raccoon detection rate showed a positive relationship with anthropogenic noise. Red Fox detection rate was positively related to developed open space, and negatively related to distance to water. Similarly to red fox, opossums detection rate was higher in areas with more developed open space. We found no evidence that bobcat density or detection rate varied with any of the landcover or anthropogenic variables we measured.

Arkansas

Strengths and opportunities in gopher tortoise population modeling: Reply to Loope et al.

We read the letter written by Loope et al. (2024) that evaluated the predictive population model for gopher tortoises from our previous paper ( Folt et al., 2022 ), and, despite criticism raised, we contend that our effort remains a valuable contribution. In our previous paper, we performed an unprecedented and exhaustive review of gopher tortoise population demography, which synthesized a large volume of literature about the current state of knowledge on gopher tortoise population dynamics and factors that influence demographic rates, including anthropogenic threats ( Folt et al., 2022 ). We then built a predictive population model that examined the relative influence of multiple anthropogenic stressors on tortoise populations into the future, while accounting for important geographic variation ( Folt et al., 2022 ).

Global Ecology and Conservation

Predicting bat roosts in bridges using Bayesian Additive Regression Trees

Human-built structures can provide important habitat for wildlife, but predicting which structures are most likely to be used remains challenging. To evaluate the predictive capabilities of data-driven ensemble modeling approaches, we conducted surveys for bats and signs of bat use, such as urine and guano staining, at bridges across the southwestern United States. We developed a bat roost discovery tool using Bayesian Additive Regression Trees (BART) and evaluated the predictive ability of this model against other commonly used approaches. We found that the lack of nearby water resources was associated with a lower predicted probability of bat presence or signs of bat use at bridges. While the presence of nearby water resources was associated with higher average predicted probability of bat presence or signs of bat use, high uncertainty surrounding these estimates indicates that other factors also play a role in determining which bridge roosts bats are more likely to use. As such, our model could be particularly useful for predicting which bridges can be excluded from survey efforts due to low probability of bat presence or signs of bat use. We extrapolated our model to unsurveyed bridges across the study region and provide an interactive dashboard application interface for the exploration of these results. Overall, this study demonstrates the application of BART as a predictive tool for prioritizing future bridge surveys for bats roosting in transportation structures.

Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas

Reproductive habitat mismatch influences chytrid infection dynamics in a tropical amphibian community

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ( Bd ) has been decimating amphibian populations globally; previous work indicates that infection risk increases with moisture and thermal mismatch from a host’s optimum. We hypothesized that, in addition to these abiotic influences, mismatch of hosts from their reproductive habitat heightens infection risk via exposure and/or susceptibility mechanisms. We evaluated this “reproductive habitat mismatch hypothesis” by quantifying the interplay of host breeding mode, habitat, and rainfall on Bd infection dynamics using two years of frog survey data—including swab data for 3427 captures representing 44 species—from Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. We modeled infection prevalence, infection intensity, and the number of frogs captured as a function of rainfall, reproductive mode (aquatic or terrestrial), and habitat (aquatic or terrestrial) using hierarchical models. High rainfall was associated with increases in infection prevalence and infection intensity; however, these increases were particularly apparent for species in habitats that were mismatched from the species’ reproductive habitat. Tropical regions experiencing increases in precipitation will likely see higher Bd risk, and our results indicate that such increases in rainfall will be particularly problematic for species that are forced to move from their reproductive habitats by factors such as habitat loss or thermal stress.

Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar–Núcleo Santa Virgí

Hakalau’s moving castle: How climate change and restoration are shifting an island fortress for forest birds

Hakalau Forest Unit of the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex (hereafter, Hakalau) protects the largest area with the highest endemic forest bird diversity in Hawaiʻi, including four federally listed species. Hakalau’s higher elevation montane forest provides refuge from avian malaria ( Plasmodium relictum ), a primary driver of Hawaiian honeycreeper extinctions. However, recent declines in Hakalau’s birds at lower elevations could indicate that conditions have become suitable for disease vector Culex quinquefasciatus . We evaluated the statuses of Hakalau’s bird populations in the context of recent climatic changes using new survey data from point-transect distance sampling, producing abundance estimates from 1999 to 2024. We stratified our analysis across four elevation ranges (<1500 m, 1500–1700 m, 1700–1900 m, and >1900 m) and assessed trends for each species using state-space models (SSMs). We constrained population trajectories to be biologically realistic by incorporating population dynamic models within the SSMs. We observed highly species-specific abundance trends below 1500 m, predominantly stable to upward trends within 1500–1700 m, stable trends within 1700–1900 m, and upward trends above 1900 m. Declines in Hawaiʻi ʻamakihi ( Chlorodrepanis v. virens ) and endangered ʻakiapōlāʻau ( Hemignathus wilsoni ) abundance coincided with lengthening warm seasonal temperatures indicative of shrinking disease-free habitat below 1700 m. Above 1900 m, however, increases in nearly all species indicate that reforestation has likely restored disease-free habitat since 1999. While most species were stable to increasing overall, surveillance for mosquitoes and disease at lower elevations, documenting changes in habitat, and continuing bird population monitoring can help to gauge their long-term persistence at Hakalau.

Hawaii

AIMS for wildlife: Developing an automated interactive monitoring system to integrate real-time movement and environmental data for true adaptive management

To effectively manage species and habitats at multiple scales, population and land managers require rapid information on wildlife use of managed areas and responses to landscape conditions and management actions. GPS tracking studies of wildlife are particularly informative to species ecology, habitat use, and conservation. Combining GPS data with administrative data and a diverse suite of remotely sensed, geo-referenced environmental (e.g., climatic) data, would more comprehensively inform how animals interact with and utilize habitats and ecosystems and our goal was to create a conceptual model for a system that would accomplish this – the ‘Automated Interactive Monitoring System (AIMS) for Wildlife’. Our objective for this study was to develop a Customized Wildlife Report (CWR) - the first AIMS for Wildlife deliverable product. CWRs collate and summarize our 8-year GPS tracking dataset of ∼11 million locations from 1338 individual (16 species) avifauna and make actionable, real-time data on animal movements and trends in a specific area of interest available to managers and stakeholders for rapid application in day-to-day management. The CWR exemplar presented in this paper was developed to address needs identified by habitat managers of Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge and illustrates the highly specific, information offered and how it contributes to assessing the efficacy of conservation actions while allowing for near real-time adaptive management. The report can be easily customized for any of the thousands of wildlife refuges or regional areas of interest in the United States, emphasizing the broad application of an animal movement data stream. Utilizing diverse, extensive telemetry data streams through scientific collaboration can aid managers and conservation stakeholders with short and long-term research and conservation planning and help address a cadre of issues from local-scale habitat management to improving the understanding of landscape level impacts like drought, wildfire, and climate change on wildlife populations.

Journal of Environmental Management

A method to implement natural flow regimes for regulated rivers

Rivers throughout the world have been dammed for flood control, irrigation, hydropower, and water storage for centuries. Dams service the economic and development needs of societies, but degrade the ecology of rivers. To conserve diminishing aquatic species and their habitats, methods are needed to help managers implement flow releases with timescales and patterns that are relevant to aquatic species and physical processes. We present a method to synchronize flow releases from dams with local hydrology, while ensuring constraints of flood control and water allocations are met. We demonstrate an optimization technique that scales flows of a proximal unregulated river and results in discharges that are synchronized with natural hydrologic patterns. Importantly, our method preserves operational and regulatory requirements such as water allocation volumes and flood control thresholds. This technique can be used at various timescales, and can incorporate many system-specific constraints. We selected the Trinity River, California as an example, and scale flows according to a proximal gage on the Salmon River in California. We evaluate our technique using an array of flow regime metrics from the literature, and our method produced hydrographs with greater flow variation throughout a larger portion of the water year than current management strategies. These hydrographs yielded flow metrics more similar to those from unimpaired flow patterns, including those measuring within and among year flow variability. The Real Time Management framework is a new tool that can be implemented to improve the health of rivers and the aquatic species that depend upon them.

California

Post-independence fledgling ecology in a migratory songbird: Implications for breeding-grounds conservation

For migratory songbirds, breeding-grounds conservation and management plans are generally focused on habitat associated with locations of singing males and sometimes nesting females. However, habitat structure is often different in areas used for raising fledglings compared with areas used for song territories, and very little is known about habitat use by fledglings after independence from adult care. From 2010 to 2012, we used radiotelemetry to monitor 68 fledgling golden-winged warblers V ermivora chrysoptera after independence from adult care in mixed managed forests of Minnesota, US and Manitoba, Canada. This species is of high conservation concern in the US, is listed as threatened in Canada and is listed as near threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. We assessed distance and orientation of independent fledgling movements and we used compositional analysis to test for selection among cover types. Fledglings of this species, commonly described as a shrubland specialist, selected mature forest (78% of locations) over all other cover types, and foraged in forest canopy and understory in mixed-species flocks. Fledgling golden-winged warbler movements were apparently associated with habitat optimization (although prioritizing foraging over predator avoidance), and likely not with commencement of migration, or scouting future breeding territories. Ten days after independence, fledglings were an average of 1238&thinsp;m north of their nest, which may be related to homing-target formation and the species' northward range expansion. We conclude that consideration for independent fledgling habitat associations is necessary for developing full-fledged forest management plans on the breeding grounds of migratory songbirds.

Manitoba, Minnesota

Computational approaches improve evidence synthesis and inform broad fisheries trends

Addressing ecological impacts with effective conservation actions requires information on the links between human pressures and localized responses. Understanding links is a priority for many conservation contexts, including the world's fresh waters, which face intensifying threats to disproportionately high species diversity, including more than half of the world's fish species. Literature synthesis can uncover links and highlight potential research gaps, yet can be very cumbersome and time consuming. Emerging tools like text mining can improve efficiency in extracting relevant information from vast scientific outputs. This study synthesizes evidence of direct anthropogenic threats to major inland fisheries and examines driver-impact-response patterns using coupled automated and manual text classification methods. We screened 9336 abstracts from 45 river basins of high importance to inland fish production; 1152 abstracts contained evidence of direct threats to fish. The most common documented drivers were pollution, dams, and fishing pressure, which were most strongly linked to decreased fitness, altered reproduction, and mortality, respectively. Strong impact-response links to pollution signal potential bias toward documenting acute threats that generate more visible and immediate impacts. The use of machine learning-based text classification performed best in classifying extraneous information. Results can inform the development of inland fisheries indicators and threat-based metrics, highlight possible evidence gaps in linking global drivers to fishery-level responses, and illustrate the application of a coupled synthesis approach for improved efficiency and extraction of information relevant to conservation outcomes. The associated user and interpretation guides address accessibility and technical barriers faced by conservation scientists to improve efficiency in evidence synthesis.

Conservation Science and Practice

Drivers of chaparral type conversion to herbaceous vegetation in coastal Southern California

Aim In Southern California, native woody shrublands known as chaparral support exceptional biodiversity. However, large‐scale conversion of chaparral into largely exotic herbaceous cover is a major ecological threat and serious conservation concern. Due to substantial uncertainty regarding the causes and extent of this vegetation change, we aimed to quantify the primary drivers of and map potentially vulnerable locations for vegetation type conversion from woody into herbaceous cover. Location Santa Monica Mountains National Recreational Area, Southern California, USA. Methods We used air photograph image interpretation to quantify the extent to which chaparral shrublands transitioned to herbaceous cover from 1943 to 2014 across nearly 800 randomly located plots. Comparing plots that remained chaparral to those that converted to herbaceous cover, we performed hierarchical partitioning to quantify the independent contribution of a range of explanatory variables, and then used classification trees to explore variable interactions. We also developed a spatial model to create a seamless map delineating relative probability of type conversion. Results Of the original plots that were chaparral in 1943, 284 (36%) changed cover by 2014, with 79 completely converting, and 142 mostly converting to herbaceous cover. The primary mechanism behind shrubland decline and replacement was short intervals between fires (<=10 years), and type conversion was most likely to occur in arid parts of the landscape with low topographic heterogeneity and close proximity to trails and roads. Predictive maps delineated several hotspots with environmental conditions similar to those of type‐converted plots. Main conclusions Chaparral type conversion is a widespread conservation concern, and results here suggest that short‐interval fire and landscape disturbance are the most likely factors to exacerbate it, particularly in water‐limited portions of the landscape where chaparral is subject to greater physiological stress and slower recovery. Reducing fire ignitions and mapping vulnerable areas may be important strategies for prevention.

California

Factors associated with succession of abandoned agricultural lands along the Lower Missouri River, U.S.A

The 1993 flood of the Missouri River led to the abandonment of agriculture on considerable land in the floodplain. This abandonment led to a restoration opportunity for the U.S. Federal Government, purchasing those lands being sold by farmers. Restoration of this floodplain is complicated, however, by an imperfect understanding of its past environmental and vegetative conditions. We examined environmental conditions associated with the current placement of young forests and wet prairies as a guide to the potential successional trajectory for abandoned agricultural land subject to flooding. We used Bayesian mixed-effects logistic regression to examine the effects of flood frequency, soil drainage, distance from the main channel, and elevation on whether a site was in wet prairie or in forest. Study site was included as a random effect, controlling for site-specific differences not measured in our study. We found, after controlling for the effect of site, that early-successional forest sites were closer to the river and at a lower elevation but occurred on drier soils than wet prairie. In a regulated river such as the lower Missouri River, wet prairie sites are relatively isolated from the main channel compared to early-successional forest, despite occurring on relatively moister soils. The modeled results from this study may be used to predict the potential successional fate of the acquired agricultural lands, and along with information on wildlife assemblages associated with wet prairie and forest can be used to predict potential benefit of these acquisitions to wildlife conservation. ?? 2009 Society for Ecological Restoration International.

Restoration Ecology

Standards for documenting and monitoring bird reintroduction projects

It would be much easier to assess the effectiveness of different reintroduction methods, and so improve the success of reintroductions, if there was greater standardization in documentation of the methods and outcomes. We suggest a series of standards for documenting and monitoring the methods and outcomes associated with reintroduction projects for birds. Key suggestions are: documenting the planned release before it occurs, specifying the information required on each release, postrelease monitoring occurring at standard intervals of 1 and 5 years (and 10 for long-lived species), carrying out a population estimate unless impractical, distinguishing restocked and existing individuals when supplementing populations, and documenting the results. We suggest these principles would apply, largely unchanged, to other vertebrate classes. Similar methods could be adopted for invertebrates and plants with appropriate modification. We suggest that organizations publicly state whether they will adopt these approaches when undertaking reintroductions. Similar standardization would be beneficial for a wide range of topics in environmental monitoring, ecological studies, and practical conservation.

Conservation Letters

Roosting and foraging social structure of the endangered Indiana bat ( Myotis sodalis )

Social dynamics are an important but poorly understood aspect of bat ecology. Herein we use a combination of graph theoretic and spatial approaches to describe the roost and social network characteristics and foraging associations of an Indiana bat ( Myotis sodalis ) maternity colony in an agricultural landscape in Ohio, USA. We tracked 46 bats to 50 roosts (423 total relocations) and collected 2,306 foraging locations for 40 bats during the summers of 2009 and 2010. We found the colony roosting network was highly centralized in both years and that roost and social networks differed significantly from random networks. Roost and social network structure also differed substantially between years. Social network structure appeared to be unrelated to segregation of roosts between age classes. For bats whose individual foraging ranges were calculated, many shared foraging space with at least one other bat. Compared across all possible bat dyads, 47% and 43% of the dyads showed more than expected overlap of foraging areas in 2009 and 2010 respectively. Colony roosting area differed between years, but the roosting area centroid shifted only 332 m. In contrast, whole colony foraging area use was similar between years. Random roost removal simulations suggest that Indiana bat colonies may be robust to loss of a limited number of roosts but may respond differently from year to year. Our study emphasizes the utility of graphic theoretic and spatial approaches for examining the sociality and roosting behavior of bats. Detailed knowledge of the relationships between social and spatial aspects of bat ecology could greatly increase conservation effectiveness by allowing more structured approaches to roost and habitat retention for tree-roosting, socially-aggregating bat species.

Ohio

Evaluating multi-level models to test occupancy state responses of Plethodontid salamanders

Plethodontid salamanders are diverse and widely distributed taxa and play critical roles in ecosystem processes. Due to salamander use of structurally complex habitats, and because only a portion of a population is available for sampling, evaluation of sampling designs and estimators is critical to provide strong inference about Plethodontid ecology and responses to conservation and management activities. We conducted a simulation study to evaluate the effectiveness of multi-scale and hierarchical single-scale occupancy models in the context of a Before-After Control-Impact (BACI) experimental design with multiple levels of sampling. Also, we fit the hierarchical single-scale model to empirical data collected for Oregon slender and Ensatina salamanders across two years on 66 forest stands in the Cascade Range, Oregon, USA. All models were fit within a Bayesian framework. Estimator precision in both models improved with increasing numbers of primary and secondary sampling units, underscoring the potential gains accrued when adding secondary sampling units. Both models showed evidence of estimator bias at low detection probabilities and low sample sizes; this problem was particularly acute for the multi-scale model. Our results suggested that sufficient sample sizes at both the primary and secondary sampling levels could ameliorate this issue. Empirical data indicated Oregon slender salamander occupancy was associated strongly with the amount of coarse woody debris (posterior mean = 0.74; SD = 0.24); Ensatina occupancy was not associated with amount of coarse woody debris (posterior mean = -0.01; SD = 0.29) . Our simulation results indicate that either model is suitable for use in an experimental study of Plethodontid salamanders provided that sample sizes are sufficiently large. However, hierarchical single-scale and multi-scale models describe different processes and estimate different parameters. As a result, we recommend careful consideration of study questions and objectives prior to sampling data and fitting models.

PLoS ONE

Metabarcoding of fecal samples to determine herbivore diets: A case study of the endangered Pacific pocket mouse

Understanding the diet of an endangered species illuminates the animal’s ecology, habitat requirements, and conservation needs. However, direct observation of diet can be difficult, particularly for small, nocturnal animals such as the Pacific pocket mouse (Heteromyidae: Perognathus longimembris pacificus ). Very little is known of the dietary habits of this federally endangered rodent, hindering management and restoration efforts. We used a metabarcoding approach to identify source plants in fecal samples (N = 52) from the three remaining populations known. The internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of the nuclear ribosomal loci were sequenced following the Illumina MiSeq amplicon strategy and processed reads were mapped to reference databases. We evaluated a range of threshold mapping criteria and found the best-performing setting generally recovered two distinct mock communities in proportions similar to expectation. We tested our method on captive animals fed a known diet and recovered almost all plant sources, but found substantial heterogeneity among fecal pellets collected from the same individual at the same time. Observed richness did not increase with pooling of pellets from the same individual. In field-collected samples, we identified 4–14 plant genera in individual samples and 74 genera overall, but over 50 percent of reads mapped to just six species in five genera. We simulated the effects of sequencing error, variable read length, and chimera formation to infer taxon-specific rates of misassignment for the local flora, which were generally low with some exceptions. Richness at the species and genus levels did not reach a clear asymptote, suggesting that diet breadth remained underestimated in the current pool of samples. Large numbers of scat samples are therefore needed to make inferences about diet and resource selection in future studies of the Pacific pocket mouse. We conclude that our minimally invasive method is promising for determining herbivore diets given a library of sequences from local plants.

California

A hidden heelsplitter: Distribution of an undescribed endemic freshwater mussel in the Barrens Plateau

Malacologists generally acknowledge that the Alasminota holstonia (Tennessee Heelsplitter) populations in the Caney Fork, Elk, and Duck river drainages in the Barrens Plateau region of middle Tennessee likely represent a closely related, but distinct, species, collectively referred to as Alasminota sp. (Barrens Heelsplitter). Recent surveys indicate that the species persists in at least 5 streams: Collins River, Pocahontas Branch, Witty Creek, and Pepper Hollow Branch in the Caney Fork River drainage and Little Duck River in the Duck River drainage, with evidence of recruitment in 2 of these streams. These findings suggest a restricted distribution and highlight the need for taxonomic assessment through genetic analysis. If elevated to species status, the Barrens Heelsplitter would represent a narrow endemic that may require conservation attention, underscoring the ecological significance of Tennessee's Barrens Plateau Region.

Tennessee

Recovery of imperiled species under the Endangered Species Act: The need for a new approach

The recovery (delisting) of a threatened or endangered species is often accompanied by the expectation that conservation management of the species will no longer be necessary. However, the magnitude and pace of human impacts on the environment make it unlikely that substantial progress will be made in delisting many species unless the definition of "recovery" includes some form of active management. Preventing delisted species from again being at risk of extinction may require continuing, species-specific management actions. We characterize such species as "conservation-reliant", and suggest that viewing "recovery" as a continuum of states rather than as a simple "recovered/not recovered" dichotomy may enhance our ability to manage such species within the framework of the Endangered Species Act. With ongoing loss of habitat, disruption of natural disturbance regimes, and the increasing impacts of non-native invasive species, it is probable that the number of conservation-reliant species will increase. We propose the development of "recovery management agreements", with legally and biologically defensible contracts that would provide for continu-ing conservation management following delisting. The use of such formalized agreements will facilitate shared management responsibilities between federal wildlife agencies and other federal agencies, and with state, local, and tribal governments, as well as with private entities that have demonstrated the capability to meet the needs of conservation-reliant species. ?? The Ecological Society of America.

Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment