Search

Conservation translocations may be a useful tool for the restoration of declining freshwater invertebrates, but they are poorly represented in the literature. We conducted a before‐after/control‐impact (BACI) experiment to test the efficacy of conservation translocation for re‐establishing abundant populations of the amphipod Gammarus lacustris, a declining species and wildlife food resource in depressional wetlands in the upper Midwest of the United States of America. Each study site (n = 19) contained at least one treatment wetland receiving translocated G. lacustris from a local donor and one control wetland. We selected study wetlands based on a suite of wetland characteristics and randomly assigned recipient versus control treatment. Gammarus lacustris was detected post‐translocation at only 2 of 22 recipient wetlands (1 of 19 sites). Overall, there was a statistical increase in G. lacustris density in recipient wetlands compared to controls; however, the results were of minimal biological significance due to being driven by a single site with low G. lacustris densities. Accordingly, our results suggest that future conservation translocations of amphipods might be successful if limited to recently restored wetlands or informed by a more complex habitat suitability model to differentiate dispersal limitations from habitat limitations. To develop such a model would involve identifying the fewest, most influential physical and biological factors (e.g. wetland size/structure, fish, aquatic vegetation, and water chemistry) from the numerous inter‐related factors that correlate with the abundance of naturally occurring G. lacustris; candidate wetlands to receive amphipods would be those for which the model predicts abundant G. lacustris but in which they do not presently occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid increase of urbanization across the tropics has transformed natural landscapes into intensely modified environments, challenging native species to thrive in human-dominated spaces. Frugivorous bats perform vital ecological roles in urban landscapes, preventing the further decline of seed dispersal dynamics. The "cumbaru" tree Dipteryx alata – a large native species widely distributed throughout Cerrado savannahs of South America – serves as an important food resource for wildlife. In this study, we documented and quantified the cumbaru potential dispersal performed by Artibeus sp. in an urban area located in the limits between Cerrado and Pantanal (Cáceres municipality, Mato Grosso, Brazil). Our results revealed that, during 21 nights of observation, individuals of Artibeus sp. transported 27 fruits at a distance of approximately 35 m. Our observations on the dynamics of seed dispersal by bats in an urban context provide preliminary, but important, insights for management actions to ensure the maintaining of species interactions and biodiversity conservation across human-dominated landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community‐based conservation (CBC) is a popular governance approach that asks rural populations to sustainably manage local wildlife resources. CBC programs often rely on the distribution of wildlife benefits to communities to foster tolerance of wildlife, with the idea that those benefits can offset costs arising from human‐wildlife conflict. A survey of residents in four Namibian CBC areas found that different benefit types varied significantly in their relationship with whether respondents felt that wildlife improved their lives. Some higher monetary value benefits evidenced a negative and/or non‐significant relationship with respondents' perceptions, whereas meat‐based benefits were associated with a greater likelihood of residents feeling that they benefited from wildlife. These findings suggest that the impact of different benefit types in CBC programs may depend on a host of cultural/social, psychological, and community‐specific factors. From a practical standpoint, the form of direct monetary benefits may matter, and cultural considerations likely play an important role in determining which and when specific benefits are more effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rich variety of wild animal resources during the Paleolithic period in northeast China was an important guarantee for human sustainable survival and development. This study comprehensively adopts statistical analysis, species composition, natural environment restoration and other methods to investigate the distribution of wildlife resources, natural environment evolution, human hunting strategies, and other aspects. The research results indicate that during the early and middle Paleolithic periods, there were relatively more wild animal resources in lower latitude areas, hilly and plateau types, and mountainous and hilly types; During the late Paleolithic period, there were relatively more wild animal resources in higher latitude areas, river lake terrace types, and hilly and plateau types. From the perspective of the impact of natural environmental changes on the way humans acquired wildlife resources, in the early Paleolithic period, which was generally warm and humid, people tended to hunt large and medium-sized mammals, resulting in lower utilization efficiency; In the cold and dry Middle Paleolithic period, humans changed their hunting strategies and improved their utilization efficiency; In the late Paleolithic period with frequent fluctuations in temperature, humans responded to the reduction of wildlife resources in the context of the climate crisis by strengthening the use of large mammals, innovating stone technology, and expanding hunting targets. At the same time, the extinction process of large mammal populations in the northeast region was accelerated accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a qualitative approach, this study assessed the contribution of state and community initiatives to the sustainable management of the Buabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary (BFMS) in Ghana. The study found an evolving trend in the management of the sanctuary from its earlier ineffective sole community and state-led management models to the current co-management model involving communities' representatives and state actors. The co-management model was widely seen as being more effective as it facilitates effective planning, policy formulation, revenue mobilization and utilization, monitoring, and evaluation as well as protecting the environment and wildlife resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban areas—characterized by high human densities, buildings, and impermeable surfaces—are increasing globally and represent a leading threat to wildlife by drastically altering the natural resources wildlife species are accustomed to. Prior work suggests that living in urban habitats can cause wildlife to show increased cholesterol levels. In biomedical research, elevated cholesterol is linked to disease, but the consequence of elevated cholesterol in wildlife remains unclear. We measured total cholesterol in European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), an urban-adapted species, across an urban and a rural site. We asked: (1) Do urban starlings have elevated cholesterol? and (2) Is elevated cholesterol correlated to negative physiological outcomes in starlings? We found that nestlings from the urban (N = 16) and rural (N = 98) sites showed similar cholesterol, but adult starlings from the urban (N = 5) habitat showed elevated cholesterol compared to rural (N = 36) birds. However, elevated cholesterol was not correlated with increased oxidative damage to DNA, lowered body condition, or increased baseline glucocorticoids across any age class, suggesting that elevated cholesterol did not come at a physiological cost to starlings. Future work is needed to explore what mechanism(s) drive variation in cholesterol across urban and rural birds, as well as whether any long-term consequences of elevated cholesterol exist. Les zones urbaines, caractérisées par de densités humaines élevées et des bâtiments et des surfaces imperméables, augmentent au niveau mondial et représentent une menace majeure pour la faune sauvage en modifiant radicalement les ressources naturelles auxquelles les espèces sont habituées. Des travaux antérieurs suggèrent que vivre dans des habitats urbains peut entraîner une augmentation des taux de cholestérol chez la faune sauvage. Dans la recherche biomédicale, un taux de cholestérol élevé est lié à la maladie, mais les conséquences d'un taux de cholestérol élevé chez la faune sauvage ne sont pas claires. Nous mesurâmes le cholestérol total chez l'étourneau sansonnet (Sturnus vulgaris), une espèce adaptée à la ville, sur un site urbain et un site rural. Nous demandâmes: (1) est-ce que les étourneaux sansonnets urbains ont un taux de cholestérol élevé? et (2) est-ce qu'un taux de cholestérol élevé est corrélé à des résultats physiologiques négatifs chez les étourneaux? Nous constatâmes que les oisillons des sites urbains (N = 16) et ruraux (N = 98) présentaient un taux de cholestérol similaire, mais que les étourneaux adultes de l'habitat urbain (N = 5) présentaient un taux de cholestérol élevé par rapport aux étourneaux adultes de l'habitat rural (N = 36). Cependant, un taux de cholestérol élevé n'était pas corrélé à une augmentation des dommages oxydatifs de l'ADN, à une condition corporelle réduite ou à une augmentation des glucocorticoïdes de base dans toutes les classes d'âge, ce qui suggère qu'un taux de cholestérol élevé n'a pas eu de coût physiologique pour les étourneaux. Des travaux futurs sont nécessaires pour explorer le(s) mécanisme(s) qui déterminent la variation du cholestérol chez les oiseaux urbains et ruraux, ainsi que pour déterminer s'il existe des conséquences à long terme d'un taux de cholestérol élevé. Mots-clés: condition corporelle, dommage à l'ADN, glucocorticoïdes, urbanisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many tropical countries, the use of wild animals, plants and their by-products for traditional medicine is very popular. The Bode Wasinmi Wildlife Market in the Ibadan metropolis was intentionally selected for this study to investigate which wild animals and/or their body parts, were being sold for traditional medicinal purposes. The study was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative research designs, with data being collected by randomly administering 150 semi-structured questionnaires, coupled with key informant interviews, to traditional medicine vendors and 'Baba Oloja'. In total, 15 bird, 13 mammal and 5 reptile species or their various parts were sold and used for medicinal purposes. Various parts of wild animals and their derivatives are commonly sold at the market for either spiritual fortification or curing illnesses ranging from viral infections to aches and pains to epilepsy. In terms of the conservation statuses of the wild animal species on display in the market, 12 were common (not of concern by (IUCN) International Union for Conservation of Nature status), 11 were of least concern, 4 were vulnerable, 2 were endangered and 5 were critically endangered. We conclude that the use of wild animals for traditional medicine is widespread in the area regardless of the conservation status of the species. Improved access to effective and affordable health care as well as conservation education is therefore recommended as a long-term solution to prevent the further depletion of wildlife resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The document is an open letter to graduate students in the field of wildlife management. The author, a professor with decades of experience, addresses recurring patterns among graduate students that can impact their professional success. The letter emphasizes the importance of personal qualifications, such as enthusiasm for wildlife and its conservation, as well as the willingness to use intellectual tools from various fields. The author encourages students to go beyond their assigned research, help others, develop professional relationships, and continuously learn and improve their skills. The letter concludes with a reminder of the importance of the students' work in maintaining and managing wildlife and wildlife habitats. [Extracted from the article]

The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offer an opportunity to improve soil science education on sustainability because they provide specific context to educate faculty and students from various disciplines, including Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) about SDGs. Soil science is a STEM discipline with a wide range of applications in the SDGs. The objectives of this study were to use a matrix approach (framework for presenting options for discussion and implementation) to integrate SDGs into an existing introductory soil science course taught to undergraduate students from different STEM fields (environmental and natural resources; wildlife biology; and forestry). The course was enriched with a lecture on SDGs and students were asked to link soil properties and class activities to specific SDGs. A post-assessment survey revealed an increase in students' familiarity with SDGs, and their relevance to soil properties and course activities. Students acknowledged the importance of soils and individual actions for achieving the SDGs. There was an overall increase in student familiarity (+59.4%) with SDGs. Most students agreed (46.7%) and strongly agreed (23.3%) that the course activities were an effective way to learn about SDGs with examples from soil science. Identified learning gaps in subject matter found through the surveys on SDGs were clarified during later classroom discussions. The advantage of this teaching approach is that it seamlessly integrates SDGs with existing course materials while relying on students' critical thinking skills to effectively analyze soil science information and form a judgement on how it relates to SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildlife has the potential to support people’s livelihoods and economic development in many African countries. The objective of the review was to evaluate the potential contribution of wildlife to people’s livelihoods and economic development in Africa. Several databases were searched to identify articles that have explored the contributions of wildlife to people’s livelihoods and economic development. The results indicate that wildlife contributes both consumptive and non-consumptive resources towards people’s livelihoods, with bush meat being the greatest consumptive contribution and employment the greatest non-consumptive contribution. Revenue collected from tourists, trophy hunting, and game viewing have been used for infrastructure and rural development. However, wildlife has declined in many African countries due to land redistribution, drought, habitat fragmentation, human population growth, and illegal hunting. Setting up law enforcement agents and creating community-based wildlife management could restore the benefits of wildlife.

The Kunming‐Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework requires effective actions to bend the curve of biodiversity loss by 2030. Wildlife trade, a direct drive of biodiversity decline, calls for more effective regulations to both protect wildlife populations in the wild and facilitate sustainable use of wildlife resources to meet human needs. This call has become particularly urgent in light of the COVID‐19 pandemic. In 2021, China's List of State Key Protected Wild Animals, a list of fauna under the strictest protection by national legislation, has been updated in the year 2021, 32 years after its first release, increasing its coverage (from the original 13%) an 11% of species across taxa. Combined with the updated List of State Protected Terrestrial Wild Animals which covers species with lower protection priority, these two national lists already cover 77% terrestrial vertebrate species of China. Such a blacklist approach, placing threatened species under a list of legal protection, is a common practice globally in species conservation. We discussed pros and cons of this dominant strategy and further explored the potential integration with a whitelist approach, listing all wildlife and only permitting regulated uses of certain species. We propose a mixed approach combining black and whitelists at different administration levels which could perhaps be first adopted in China. This is mainly due to the fact that in addition to illegal harvesting from the wild, traded wildlife in China are mostly from captive breeding and related laundering of wild‐caught animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human–wildlife conflict (HWC) involves any interaction between human and wildlife that result in negative impacts on human social, economic, or cultural life, on the habitat and conservation of wildlife populations, or on the environment. HWC is frequent in the Junnar forest division (JFD) in the Pune district of Maharashtra, India, where Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) attacks on humans and livestock have a long history and increasing in severity due to changes in land use land cover and infrastructure. Domestic animals are the preferred prey of leopards in the study area, and people compete with wildlife for food and resources. Thus, managing adverse interactions is essential for conserving the lives and livelihoods of large carnivores, domestic animals, and people. The purpose of this study is to examine the spatial–temporal patterns of human–leopard conflict in the JFD. The study is based on leopard attack records on humans and livestock for the years 2001 to 2019 and livestock compensation and incidents data for the years 2017–2019 compiled from the JFD. The data has been analyzed using interpolation techniques on geospatial platform to identify leopard movement areas and significant spatial clustering of actual conflict locations. The analysis revealed that spatial predation threats for cattle have high-risk hotspots predominantly around sugarcane fields, waterbodies, and fallow land for grazing. The temporal analysis based on daytime duration revealed that livestock is mostly killed in mid- and early evening and during August, September, and October. The spatial–temporal studies on human–wildlife interactions would strengthen the effectiveness of conflict mitigation strategies and enable coexistence between people and wildlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities have altered the availability of resources for wildlife. Landfill sites now provide abundant and predictable anthropogenic food subsidies worldwide, sustaining increasing numbers of opportunistic species and shaping their foraging behaviour. However, although individuals may differ in their ability to use these resources, the factors influencing this variability within species are still poorly known. Using GPS data from 68 adult and 67 juvenile white storks, Ciconia ciconia , tracked during their premigratory periods between 2018 and 2020, we investigated whether age determines landfill attendance and the ability to compete for space and food. Additionally, using video recordings of 165 adults and 124 juveniles obtained in the 2020 premigratory period, we investigated whether age influences landfill foraging proficiency and dominance over resources. Adult storks visited landfills on 57% of the days, while juveniles only visited landfills on 29% of the days. There was strong competition for food at landfills, with adults exerting dominance over juveniles, foraging predominantly in areas with higher food availability and outcompeting juveniles in food acquisition. Juveniles had significantly lower food intake rates in the best foraging areas and showed less aggressiveness, being forced to use adjacent lower quality areas. Overall, juveniles had limited access to landfill resources, suggesting that landfill diet specialization is mediated by age-related improvements in foraging expertise and increased competitiveness developed during maturation. Thus, landfill use is shaping foraging strategies and species behaviour from an early age, with potential consequences for population dynamics. • In Iberian landfills, competition for food between white storks is high. • Adult storks visit landfills considerably more often than juveniles. • Adults have higher feeding success and are more aggressive towards conspecifics. • Juveniles are outcompeted by adults and displaced to areas with less food. • Skills for foraging in landfills are likely to develop with age and experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildlife has the potential to support people's livelihoods and economic development in many African countries. The objective of the review was to evaluate the potential contribution of wildlife to people's livelihoods and economic development in Africa. Several databases were searched to identify articles that have explored the contributions of wildlife to people's livelihoods and economic development. The results indicate that wildlife contributes both consumptive and non-consumptive resources towards people's livelihoods, with bush meat being the greatest consumptive contribution and employment the greatest non-consumptive contribution. Revenue collected from tourists, trophy hunting, and game viewing have been used for infrastructure and rural development. However, wildlife has declined in many African countries due to land redistribution, drought, habitat fragmentation, human population growth, and illegal hunting. Setting up law enforcement agents and creating community-based wildlife management could restore the benefits of wildlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, titled "Natural Vegetation Biomass and the Dimension of Forest Quality in Tropical Agricultural Landscapes," explores the measurement of aboveground biomass (AGB) in Brazilian agro-industrial regions to assess habitat quality and wildlife conservation. The study finds that most areas mapped as forests are actually sparse pioneer woodlands, regardless of land use types, ages, and intensities. Agricultural expansion has significantly reduced natural AGB, posing a threat to trophic resources for wildlife. The article emphasizes the importance of small forests for both wildlife and rural communities. [Extracted from the article]

With 227,000 km of railways in the United States, wildlife-train collisions are more common than generally recognized and could be an important carrion source for Black Vultures (Coragyps atratus) and Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura). We conducted a five-year study (2018-2022) in Dutchess and Putnam Counties, New York, USA to 1) estimate the biomass of mammal carrion available to vultures along 32.6 km of commuter railway, and 2) determine if vultures utilize train-killed wildlife as a food resource. During our study we recorded 154 individual mammals of 12 species killed by commuter trains. The number of train-killed mammals averaged 30.8/yr (SD ±13.1 mammals/yr), but varied widely, ranging from 13 to 45 individuals/yr. White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) contributed the most to this total, followed by Raccoon (Procyon lotor), Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana), and Coyote (Canis latrans). We estimated that 6722.0 kg of mammal carrion resulted from train-wildlife collisions during our five-year study, and of this total, 4778.3 kg were potentially available for consumption by vultures. We estimated that 29.3 kg of mammal carrion per km of railway was available for consumption by vultures each year. During our five-year study, we found evidence that vultures fed on >90% of the train-killed mammal carcasses. Our results suggest the commuter railway is attractive to foraging vultures because 1) carrion occurs at high concentrations relative to the adjacent "natural habitat", 2) the massive traumatic injuries associated with train-wildlife collisions facilitate utilization of carrion, and 3) disturbance is minimal owing to the infrequent passage of trains (ca. 1 train/hr). Given that train-killed birds, frogs, snakes, and turtles were not included in our analysis, the total biomass of carrion available to foraging vultures along the commuter railway may be considerably greater than we estimated in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic developments alter the environment and resources available to wildlife communities. In response to these real or perceived threats from this development, species may adjust their spatial occurrence. Additionally, wildlife species may adjust when in diel time (24‐h light–dark cycle) they occupy sites on the landscape to adapt to changing conditions. However, many wildlife studies only focus on where a species does and does not occur, ignoring how species may shift their diel activity at sites to mitigate threats. We used a multi‐state diel occupancy modeling framework to investigate how a community of mammals (mesocarnivores, urban‐adapted omnivores, and herbivore/small mammals) respond to differing levels of anthropogenic development and forest cover across two climatic seasons. We collected camera trap data at 240 survey locations across the summer and winter of 2021–2022. We modeled multi‐state diel occupancy for 14 mammal species with extent of development/forest and season hypothesized to influence diel occupancy and season hypothesized to influence the probability of detection. We found that all species displayed heterogeneity in both diel occupancy and detection either by extent of development/forest and or season. Within the mesocarnivore species group, coyote and red fox were less sensitive to development and had higher occupancy probability at these sites in general but used them more during the night, while more sensitive mesocarnivores including fisher and bobcat occupied the day state only when there was increasing forest cover. Our results highlight the importance of incorporating diel activity in habitat modeling to better understand the relationship between a species and its landscape, particularly in a region that is vulnerable to increased anthropogenic pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the use of anthropogenic resources by wildlife in degraded habitats has been frequently documented, the use of such alternative resources in natural and semi‐natural habitats is not yet well understood. We explored the use of artificial water sources by bats in a semi‐natural habitat by conducting acoustic monitoring surveys at swimming pools on Amakhala Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape of South Africa from 2018 to 2020. We identified 7 of 23 local species in 24,909 recorded activities associated with resource use at the swimming pools, including 1,374 feeding buzzes and 9,286 drinking buzzes. This study confirmed that bats were using swimming pools in the game reserve as a foraging and drinking resource and indicates that such anthropogenic features could be of value to bats and potentially other wildlife in natural and semi‐natural habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human‐wildlife conflict is a global issue that poses a major threat to biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. Wildlife adapted to human‐modified landscapes in developing countries can threaten the safety and livelihood of local communities. In such landscapes, where people and wildlife compete for resources, community involvement is promoted to achieve workable coexistence. We used a choice experiment methodology approach to identify community‐preferred policy alternatives in Chitwan National Park in south‐central Nepal. The results indicated that conflicts between the local community and wildlife are on the rise, crop damage being the highest form of damage and most perceived compensation and fencing as conflict‐mitigation tools. The choice experiment showed that residents have a positive preference for enhancing livelihood diversification skills, cultivating buffer crops, promoting alternative livelihoods, and strengthening rapid response teams. We identified concerned mitigators who are younger age group, encountered and concurred that HWC is increasing, and agreed that fencing and compensation are conflict‐mitigation tools. We designed scenario planning using community‐preferred policy alternatives to assist the park management. This is the first‐choice experiment study to design an evaluation framework under community resilience perspectives to achieve workable coexistence. Our study has potential implications for promoting coexistence in a human‐dominated landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed an R package for the Inland Fisheries Division of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission to help team members share R functions and data sets. The {NCIFD} package stores several functions that were developed for agency research, including cleanBIODE(), which cleans query results from a database of standardized fish samples and imports the data into an R session. In addition, {NCIFD} stores a variety of data sets including observations from ongoing research projects, hatchery records, and administrative information. Stored in a package, data sets are instantly available for exploration and analysis in an R session, can share a common naming convention, and retain their metadata. Although developing an R package requires effort, we believe it is a useful tool that other fisheries agencies should encourage interested staff to explore. We share advice to help others get started while avoiding some missteps we encountered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper assesses the local communities' interest in institutional reform in wildlife conservation in Tanzania. Data were collected from 281 heads of households through questionnaire surveys, interviews, focus group discussions and documentary review and analysed by content, thematic analysis, and SPSS version 21. The study found that the local community was generally excluded from decision-making on the Wildlife Management Area (WMA). The wildlife-related benefits did not reach the household, reducing the community's interest in supporting wildlife conservation. The local community should be required by law to participate in establishing and managing WMA to ensure full participation in planning, management, and benefit sharing from wildlife resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teeth are commonly preserved in the zooarchaeological record and can be used to estimate the age of individuals in a faunal assemblage. However, there are currently no criteria for discerning the sex of elk based on dental metric characteristics. Here, we present the results of an osteometric analysis of modern elk (Cervus elaphus manitobensis) from Great Smoky Mountains National Park to create an age profile for the sample, establish metrical parameters for evaluating sex, and discern the relationship between age and size. The analysis of tooth development stages in younger elk was combined with the assessment of occlusal wear in older elk to create an age profile of our sample population. The length and breadth of mandibular third molars produced bimodal distributions that suggest these measurements can be used to differentiate sex in this population, and diastema length showed a curvilinear association with age (R2 = 0.71). This dataset provides a useful comparative sample for future studies on ageing and sexing in zooarchaeology, conservation paleobiology, and wildlife resources management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on analyzing species turnover patterns of small mammals in the Mountains of Southwest China using the zeta diversity framework, highlighting the impact of elevation zones and differences in dispersal ability between glires and insectivores. Topics discussed include the observed elevation-dependent species turnover, the influence of species dispersal abilities on turnover rates, and the role of spatial distance in driving species turnover patterns.

Background: Despite conservationist' efforts to safeguard natural resources, wildlife continues to disappear at an alarming rate around the world. This research focused on evaluating community perceptions and factors affecting wildlife conservation in Borana National Park in Southern Ethiopia. The study was conducted by the year 2020. Methods: Questionnaires, focus group discussions, key informant interviews and personal observation were utilized to collect data from 95 households. Quantitative data was compiled and presented in tables using a five-point rating scale with scores of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 correspondingly. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20 and transformed into frequency, percentages and mean. Result: Despite the abundance of wildlife and communities' long-standing indigenous conservation practices, the study area faced challenges such as extreme resource competitions, human-wildlife conflicts, a lack of compensation, illegal hunting, settlement, variability and unfavorable weather conditions. Furthermore, invasive species expansion and increasing commercialization of wildlife products were feasible problems that require immediate attention in order to achieve sustainable wildlife resource development in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on anthropogenic waste ingestion and associated foreign-body gastric pathology in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) within the North Slope Borough, Alaska, from stomach content analysis of 42 bears during 2010 to 2020. User plastics and rubbish other than plastics were observed in 28.6% (12/42) and 11.9% (5/42), respectively. Acute gastritis was present in 33.3% (14/42) of polar bear stomachs. Fifty percent of the acute gastritis cases (n = 7) were observed in animals with user plastics in their stomach content. The findings of our multiyear polar bear stomach-content analysis emphasize that anthropogenic waste ingestion is common in polar bears of the Southern Beaufort Sea subpopulation. For the future, controlling access to anthropogenic foods (e.g., garbage dumps, stored wildlife resources) will be an important component of proactive human polar bear management on the North Slope, Alaska, and for the entire Arctic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding wildlife spatiotemporal dynamics at protected area boundaries is critical to conservation. In SE Asia, protected areas are often bordered by indigenous communities whose traditional practices result in increased landscape heterogeneity within their community managed forests (CF). Because SE Asian forests exhibit supra‐annual mast fruiting (3–7 yrs) and sustained fruit scarcity, wildlife using CF may benefit from greater availability of fruits and seeds encouraged by traditional management, but incur greater risk of being hunted. We examined shifts in wildlife activity in forests within and adjacent to Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary (LEWS), in Sarawak, Malaysia. Using camera traps and surveys of fruiting phenology, we related presence of fruits and seeds to shifts in large mammal activity over 3 years (October 2016–2019). We first compared relative frequency of five focal species (sun bear, bearded pig, muntjac, mouse deer, and sambar) by forest type for a given survey year and season (rainy vs. dry). We then modeled activity to assess how fruit availability, landscape features, and proxies for hunting risk, influence seasonal shifts in habitat use. Our results suggested seasonal variation in concert with increased landscape heterogeneity influenced patterns of activity. We found no evidence that CF excluded any detected mammal species, suggesting CF contribute important habitat to wildlife, particularly during periods of fruit scarcity in primary forest. However, our findings also imply increased hunting risk for wildlife attracted to resources near human settlements, emphasizing the need to consider the influence of both annual and supra‐annual seasonality when developing best practices for the sustainable management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to rapid biodiversity losses in recent decades, zoos have become more engaged in conservation issues. Solutions to conservation challenges are complex and require collaborative efforts across organizations. Zoos can be effective partners that can contribute diverse expertise and resources to protect wildlife and their habitats. While zoos often partner with international organizations to facilitate field-based conservation projects on the exotic animals they exhibit, some of the most meaningful conservation and education initiatives are conducted locally in partnership with local organizations. A core part of the mission of the North Carolina Zoo (Asheboro, NC, USA) is the conservation of wildlife and their natural habitats, both regionally and internationally. The goal of this article is to review the North Carolina Zoo's regional conservation programs and the importance of partnerships with other local organizations in accomplishing shared goals. North Carolina Zoo plays an important role in regional conservation by protecting and managing natural lands, protecting declining amphibians through headstarting and habitat management, rehabilitating native wildlife, and working on local outreach and sustainability projects to reduce impacts on natural resources and inspire others to get involved in conservation. These programs were developed through partnerships with local and state government agencies, academic institutions, non-profit organizations, other zoos and aquariums, schools, libraries, and businesses. These collaborations have been instrumental in developing and implementing successful projects by pooling limited resources and sharing crucial expertise. They demonstrate how zoos are evolving to become leaders and partners in conservation, research, and education to protect local species and natural resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Wildlife rehabilitation is the practice of caring for sick, injured, or orphaned wild animals with the goal of releasing them back to the wild. This review demonstrates the complexity of considerations rehabilitators and veterinarians face while trying to optimize the welfare of wildlife in need of care and rehabilitation. The welfare of animals, including the thousands of wild animals presented for rehabilitation each year in the United States, is of increasing concern to the public. Almost all wildlife rehabilitation in the United States requires practitioners to have a federal or state permit and is privately funded. The process of rehabilitation is inherently stressful for wildlife and maintaining the individual animal's welfare at the center of the rehabilitation process requires deliberate, timely, and humane decision making. The welfare of wild animals can be improved by preventing human-related causes of admission, providing much-needed resources and support for those animals in rehabilitation, further developing evidence-based wildlife rehabilitation methods and welfare measures, increasing engagement of the veterinary profession, harmonizing regulatory oversight with standards of care, training, and accountability, and raising public awareness regarding the steps that can be taken to mitigate the number of wild animals in need of rehabilitation. Each year in the United States, thousands of sick, injured, or displaced wild animals are presented to individuals or organizations who have either a federal or state permit that allows them to care for these animals with the goal of releasing them back to the wild. The purpose of this review is to demonstrate the complexity of considerations rehabilitators and veterinarians face while trying to optimize the welfare of wild animals in need of care and rehabilitation. The process of rehabilitation is inherently stressful for wildlife. Maintaining an animal's welfare during the rehabilitation process—from initial contact and tria+ge to the animal's euthanasia, release, or captive placement—requires deliberate, timely and humane decision making. The welfare of wild animals can be improved by preventing human-related causes of admission, providing resources and support for wildlife rehabilitation (almost all rehabilitation in the United States is privately funded and access to veterinary care is often limited); further developing evidence-based wildlife rehabilitation methods and welfare measures, attracting more veterinary professionals to the field, harmonizing regulatory oversight with standards of care, training, and accountability, and increasing public education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildlife and natural resource institutions play key roles in invasive species monitoring and management. Paradoxically, the extensive fieldwork undertaken by these institutions and their partners may result in the inadvertent movement and spread of invasive species within and between sensitive ecosystems. In this work, we consider the potential effects of internal guidelines and policies designed to prevent the spread of invasive species by the field activities of management institutions and their partners. Such policies could be high-leverage tools for invasive species prevention, however, as large, complex organizations seek to implement policies to limit the spread of invasive species, it may be challenging to accommodate the wide diversity of potential invasion pathways and mitigation efforts facilitated via the programs, activities, and ecosystems they manage. Prevention policies may also be met with resistance due to the costs of implementation unless concrete benefits can be demonstrated. Assessing and communicating the effects of prevention policies could motivate improved implementation and adherence by institutional units and partners and could help inform adaptive policy changes. However, assessing the effectiveness of invasive species prevention presents a unique set of challenges, including incomplete data on invasive species distribution and pathways, that make it difficult to measure the effects of prevention efforts. In this work, we present a conceptual framework for evaluating institutional policies for invasive species prevention. We describe a flexible, multifaceted approach that considers policy implementation and adherence as well as ecological outcomes. We discuss potential application of this framework using a policy recently implemented by the Pacific Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species by service personnel and partners during field activities as a case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we examine selected sustainability initiatives from the perspective of local communities to improve our understanding of how putative participatory schemes manage legitimacy. Understanding the legitimacy dynamics of sustainability initiatives is important, as it potentially minimizes the power gaps likely to open across scales and jurisdictions. We analyze selected sustainability initiatives in southern Tanzania dealing with wildlife, forest, and coastal resources and find that they have generally struggled to manage input, process, and impact legitimacy—except for the community-based forestry initiatives. They have been more inclined towards providing training on conservation issues than facilitating alternative livelihood activities. While they are perceived as having achieved some improvements in environmental conditions, they have had minimal effects on socio-economic and livelihood outcomes. This has culminated into significant levels of community dissatisfaction with their performance, which questions their long-term viability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hunters can affect the behavior of wildlife by inducing a landscape of fear, selecting individuals with specific traits, or altering resource availability across the landscape. Most research investigating the influence of hunting on wildlife resource selection has focused on target species and less attention has been devoted to nontarget species, such as scavengers that can be both attracted or repelled by hunting activities. We used resource selection functions to identify areas where hunters were most likely to kill moose (Alces alces) in south‐central Sweden during the fall. Then, we used step‐selection functions to determine whether female brown bears (Ursus arctos) selected or avoided these areas and specific resources during the moose hunting season. We found that, during both day and nighttime, female brown bears avoided areas where hunters were more likely to kill moose. We found evidence that resource selection by brown bears varied substantially during the fall and that some behavioral changes were consistent with disturbance associated with moose hunters. Brown bears were more likely to select concealed locations in young (i.e., regenerating) and coniferous forests and areas further away from roads during the moose hunting season. Our results suggest that brown bears react to both spatial and temporal variations in apparent risk during the fall: moose hunters create a landscape of fear and trigger an antipredator response in a large carnivore even if bears are not specifically targeted during the moose hunting season. Such antipredator responses might lead to indirect habitat loss and lower foraging efficiency and the resulting consequences should be considered when planning hunting seasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we propose a socioecological model to describe the effects of visiting tourists in biological attractive sites. We model conditioned interactions between the forest resources and the wildlife with the tourists. This allows us to describe the net benefits–costs rates that the species and their habitats receive from the interaction with tourists. We show that when a scenario of sustainable tourism exists, it is always at risk. This occurs because there is at least a component of the socioecological system that can go to zero when the initial conditions belong to the basin of attraction of a border equilibrium. However, a sustainable equilibrium can be reached when the initial conditions belong to the basin of attraction of a positive attractor. The analysis of the model shows that increasing the tourism carrying capacities can lead to different dynamical patterns. Sometimes, these patterns describe scenarios of unsustainable tourism. When this is the case, by decreasing the negative impact due to the nature and wildlife‐based tourism industry, a tourism sustainability can be reached. Among the scenarios of unsustainable tourism, there are scenarios without wildlife and/or tourists or without both; scenarios in which the ecological and the social variable show sustained oscillations, or scenarios with chaotic patterns for these variables. We show numerical solutions of the model to display different scenarios when the touristic carrying capacities are varied. Recommendations for Resource Managers: Sustainable tourism is possible if one proposes moderated values for the carrying capacities of the touristic site.The socioecological system is sustainable if the initial conditions belong to the basin of attraction of a positive attractor (a sustainable scenario). When this is not the case, an extinction scenario of the wildlife or a scenario without tourist or a scenario without wildlife and tourists occurs.An increase in the carrying capacity of the forest resources and the wildlife of the touristic site can lead to sustained oscillations. This undesirable scenario can be avoided if the tourists are more friendly with nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historically, the North American river otter (Lontra canadensis; otter) was distributed across North Carolina, USA, but populations were decimated by the early 1900s. Otter trapping was prohibited in 1938, reopened in 1947, and gradually expanded until it was opened statewide in 2005. Between 1986 and 1992, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission and Great Smoky Mountains National Park released 404 otters to restore populations in western North Carolina. Our objective was to determine if the age structure and reproductive rates of otters throughout North Carolina shifted from 1978 to 2018 between remnant and reintroduced populations. During the 1978–1980 (period 1; Coastal Plain) and the 2009–2013 and 2014–2016 (period 2; statewide) trapping seasons, we collected 1,439 otter carcasses from licensed trappers, fur buyers, and wildlife damage control agents throughout the 3 Furbearer Management Units (FMUs) and 14 river basins in North Carolina. We conducted necropsies, used cementum annuli of the lower canine for age analysis, and counted corpora lutea and fetuses for fecundity estimates. Age distributions for all otters were skewed toward the younger age classes and did not differ between collection periods. During period 1, adults in the Coastal Plain had higher corpora lutea counts than during period 2, whereas Coastal Plain yearlings and juveniles had higher numbers of corpora lutea during period 2. During period 2, corpora lutea counts differed among FMUs; counts in the Mountain FMU (x̄ = 2.56) were higher than in the Coastal Plain FMU (x̄ = 1.62) or the Piedmont FMU (x̄ = 1.91). Within the Coastal Plain FMU and pooling all age classes, fecundity increased by 45% from period 1 to period 2. Adult fecundity in the Coastal Plain FMU declined 16% from period 1 to period 2, while juveniles and yearlings began reproducing between the periods, indicating that reproduction has shifted to younger age classes between 1978 and 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In biology class, climate change is relevant because of its impact on biodiversity. While the subject of climate change should be taught in science classes, problems with teaching it involve preconceived ideas that can create barriers. Instruction is also hindered by a lack of materials that support direct observation by students in both rural and urban areas. An inquiry-based approach incorporating phenology offers a possible solution to the problem, giving students the ability to observe climate change firsthand. Phenology is the practice of observing flora or fauna over a time period within a geographic area and recording seasonal changes. The data can be uploaded into the National Phenology Network for study purposes. This website also provides materials, lesson plans, and instructions for observing seasonal changes and connecting them to climate change, which can then be correlated to impacts on biodiversity. The Department of Natural Resources National Wildlife Federation also has material that can help the instructional process. When students are involved in direct observational activities, climate change moves from an abstract concept to a concrete phenomenon. Their new knowledge can empower students to try and make a difference at a local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invasive weeds may provide habitat for wildlife in altered landscapes. We compare fauna within three types of sites in You Yangs Regional Park in central Victoria, Australia, that is, sites with an invasive shrub understory (African boneseed, Chrysanthemoides monilifera subsp. monilifera (DC.) T. Norl.), native shrub understory (snowy mintbush Prostanthera nivea), and sites without an understory (open sites). Sites with an understory dominated by boneseed provided habitat for avian species and an introduced small mammal, comparable with sites with mintbush as the understory. Species‐specific models of common species suggest vegetation structure, rather than composition, drove this effect. Open sites differed in terms of avifaunal assemblage, and the abundance of three common native birds and one common invasive small mammal. Boneseed additionally showed phenological differences in fruiting and flowering and differences in flowering abundance when compared with mintbush, comparably offering resources to wildlife. Transitioning vegetation communities to more natural states should consider wildlife already depending on weeds, a dependency likely driven by a paucity of alternative native vegetation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative paleoclimate reconstructions can provide crucial climate context to test the hypothesis of climatic impact on prehistoric human activities. However, the climate change in Nenjiang River Basin is poorly understood due to the lack of reliable paleoclimate records. In this study, we report paired quantitative temperature (MAAT 0) and soil pH records based on the branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (brGDGTs) since the mid-Holocene in an alluvial sedimentary sequence near the Honghe Neolithic site in the middle reaches of Nenjiang River Basin. The result of MAAT 0 shows an obvious cooling interval at 6.5–4.0 kyr BP, which is consistent with paleotemperature reconstruction results in EASM margin. The strengthened westerlies may play a crucial role in shaping the cooling mid-Holocene in EASM margin. The soil pH variations yield a peak at 6.0–3.5 kyr BP, which is roughly consistent with other precipitation reconstruction from northeastern China. From the middle Neolithic to Bronze period, the prehistoric humans gradually settled in Nenjiang River Basin. Cool-wet climate during 6.0–4.0 kyr BP provide enough water & wildlife resources and broader space for human survival and thus prompted the settlement and cultivation development. With the deterioration of the climate since 4.0 kyr BP, the ancient inhabitants have to move southward along the Nenjiang River to lower reaches to find more suitable places for settlement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conservationists speculated on potential benefits to wildlife of lockdown restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic but voiced concern that restrictions impeded nature conservation. We assessed the effects of lockdown restrictions on biodiversity conservation in South Africa, a biodiverse country with economic inequality and reliance on wildlife resources. We solicited expert opinion using the IUCN's Threats Classification Scheme to structure a questionnaire and illustrated responses with individual case studies from government parastatal and non-governmental conservation organisations. The most highly reported threats were biological resource use, residential/commercial developments, invasive species, and human intrusions. The trends reported by 90 survey respondents were supported by case studies using environmental compliance data from parastatal conservation organisations. Lack of tourism revenue and funding were cited as hindrances to conservation. Mechanisms to prevent environmental degradation in the face of global emergencies must be implemented and 'ring-fenced' to ensure conservation is not a casualty during future global crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lake Anna State Park is a 1,265.5 hectare park in Spotsylvania County with wetlands, woodland habitats, edge habitats, and open fields. The survey occurred on two dates, 14 May 2022 and 19 June 2022 and was conducted by 45 volunteers. There were 107 individuals of 27 species of herpetofauna recorded (14 amphibians and 13 reptiles). Of the 27 species documented, one was a Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources Tier IVb species (Snapping Turtle). Future small-scale, long-term surveys of the park could uncover additional records for Spotsylvania County. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Naturaliste Canadien is the property of La Societe Provancher and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In Africa, game reserves have been shifting away from protectorate conservation towards integration of community participation to ensure sustainable development. Thus, this study sought to investigate the challenges faced in managing wildlife resources in the Matusadonha game park. The study used a qualitative research methodology. A semi-structuredinterview survey was conducted in Nyamhunga, Mahombekombe, Siakobvu and Mola-Kasvisva. The study results showed that all the 100 participants identified illegal killing of animal as a major challenge to the park authorities. Amongst the solutions suggested to a low effective wildlife management were, technical systems and relocation of communities was lowly ranked, with participants favoring community integration and employment creation. The major benefit of game reserve activities was maintenance of roads. Other development needs were not supported such as schools, health facilities and construction of bridges. In conclusion, the communities in the around Matusadonha game reserves realise limited benefits from the game reserve and in part this has created challenges in the sustainable management of wildlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]