Artificial nest boxes may increase the abundance of nest sites for secondary cavity-nesting birds and provide more breeding opportunities. Since birds have strong preferences for certain characteristics of nest boxes, careful selection of installation sites can improve the occupancy rate of nest boxes and enhance reproduction. From 2016 to 2019, we studied the parameters affecting birds’ occupation

Species-rich grasslands suffer from significant loss and degradation all over the world. In particular in lowland Europe, the vast majority of these habitats are in an unfavourable conservation status which requires urgent restoration measures. A significant amount of information on the results of previous restorations exists thanks to the implementation of numerous projects and the publication of

Afrotheria is an ancient radiation of African mammals which includes the Chrysochloridae (Golden Moles), a highly specialized family of fossorial, range-restricted species, and the regionally endangered forest-dependent Dendrohyrax arboreus (Southern Tree Hyrax). South Africa is home to 17 of the 21 currently described Golden Moles, of which 16 are endemic and 10 listed as either Vulnerable, Endangered

Protected Areas (PAs) are the cornerstone of global conservation action and the most effective strategy for conserving the Earth’s biodiversity. Nevertheless, there is evidence that PAs are increasingly viewed by politicians and policy-makers as opportunity costs that constrain economic development. In the absence of societal resistance (‘push-back’) in the form of campaigns and/or lobbying, such attitudes

The integration of biodiversity knowledge with management needs in coastal protected ecosystems is a current challenge that requires a social-ecological perspective, especially in view of the current scenario regarding climate changes. At the southeastern Brazil, estuaries inside protected areas highlight as a great source of ecosystem services connected to the biodiversity, such as the food provisioning

Setting conservation priorities is an important step when resources are finite. In developing countries such as Iraq, information about aquatic habitats is quite limited and prioritizing such habitats for conservation requires a multidisciplinary approach to utilize available types of data efficiently. We divided aquatic ecosystems of the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq into 76 planning units. Next

The European Union is the forefront supra-national Institution leading worldwide the environmental and biodiversity conservation strategy evolution. However, European citizens appear as poorly aware of the core relative concepts and policies within the EU’s territory. This paper examines whether: (1) there are ‘imbalances’ in Europeans’ attitudes towards biodiversity between the Member States and more

Despite their global distribution across major oceans, biological and fisheries information related to the crocodile shark (Pseudocarcharias kamoharai) is still scarce. The crocodile shark has become a frequently observed bycatch shark in many commercial fisheries. Their catch rates might be underreported by commercial fisheries, maybe because of the species’ small size and low commercial value. Moreover

The high demand for syngnathid species in the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) trade is drastically affecting seahorse populations worldwide. Powdered seahorse not only represents the main material for the preparation of remedies in either TCM or folk medicine but is also being used to facilitate smuggling and avoid customs authorities in different countries. Here, we present the first primer set

The Natura 2000 network of protected sites is the pillar of biodiversity conservation in Europe. Although the Natura 2000 network directly addresses birds, these have shown worrying declining trends. It is therefore crucial to assess the potential contribution of Natura 2000 conservation measures. In this paper, we use a replicable method to model bird trends in the period 2000–2015 and the effects

Mineral exploitation threatens wildlife by the contamination of soil and water sources, vegetation suppression, and due to changes in landscape configuration. The large and mid-sized forest-dependent mammals need large areas to support their ecological needs, and are frequently impacted by these landscape alterations. Hitherto, there have not been comprehensive reviews of scientific papers reporting

Biodiversity conservation depends on influencing human behaviors, but when activities are illegal or otherwise sensitive, e.g. because the behavior in question is taboo to a particular society, actors can be hesitant to admit engagement with illicit behaviors. We applied Specialized Questioning Techniques (SQT) to estimate and compare the behavioral prevalence of giraffe meat consumption from 2017

The High Conservation Value (HCV) concept, developed by the Forest Stewardship Council to promote sustainable forest management, is widely employed for certification of forestry and agriculture concessions, and has been adopted by many logging and palm oil companies. HCV criterion 1, which deals with “endemic, and rare, threatened or endangered species”, is rarely used in certification, mainly because

Calcareous grasslands are of high conservation importance and have been maintained by livestock grazing over many centuries. Following the reduction in traditional livestock grazing (cattle and sheep) of semi-natural grassland during the twentieth century, conservation-based grazing management was introduced in order to conserve remaining grasslands. In UK semi-natural grasslands, grazing pressure

Endangered species lists (or red lists) are important tools for species conservation, but if they are not supported by data and they are inappropriately applied, they can be sources of conflict. Here, we present and discuss the dilemma of the trigonal clam Tivela mactroides, a beach bivalve used as a subsistence, economic and recreational resource by residents and tourists on the northern coast of

Investigating the local people’s perception of the primate species in question, as well as the impressions of and experiences with conservation measures in their neighbourhood, is important in order to devise an appropriate conservation strategy. Here, we provide our findings on the knowledge of the Bilar local community about the Philippine tarsier (Tarsius [Carlito] syrichta) and its population endangerment

This study attempts to estimate the household’s Willingness to Pay (WTP) for biodiversity conservation in Dachigam National Park, India. The park houses the last viable population of Asiatic Black Bear and the Hangul. To complement our analysis, we propose a robust estimation of willingness to pay through an augmented probit model. The estimates reveal that respondents were willing to pay a significant

For plant species of conservation concern, knowledge of changes in abundance through time is a minimum requirement for informed management. This information is usually acquired through on-the-ground monitoring, which entails counting individuals in defined areas over multiple years. Demographic studies, which involve tracking individual plants through time, are usually carried out at limited spatial

Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) are new conservation tools intended to complement protected areas (PAs) at achieving effective biodiversity conservation and meeting international area-based targets. However, OECMs have been rarely considered in practical terms until recently. Here, we performed a rapid evaluation on the degree of fulfilment of current area-based international

Counting latrines is a standard method to estimate European wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) abundance. This method plays an important role in endangered predators’ conservation programs in the Iberian Peninsula, especially in potential reintroduction areas for the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus). However, since the last half-century, rabbit populations have declined dramatically within their native

Successful recovery and management of threatened and endangered species requires an understanding of the capacity of the available habitat to support the species. Measuring habitat supply, or specific elements of that habitat, has been a key objective and challenge in wildlife management, especially for wide-ranging omnivorous species. In this study, we provide a framework for estimating the carrying

Invasive alien species are considered a major threat to biodiversity and seriously impact the economy and public health of recipient regions. Identifying the determinants of protected areas’ vulnerability to the establishment of invasive alien species (IAS) may improve management, prevention and early warning systems of biological invasions. We elicited the perceptions of 106 experts working in 56

Economical profitability of pasture-based beef production is necessary for continued maintenance of semi-natural pastures. In a situation of decreased cattle stocks, there is a potential to castrate male calves from dairy cows and raise them as grazing steers instead of intact bulls reared indoors, which is the common way in the Nordic countries. We examined the profitability in model enterprises with

The Cerrado is the most diverse tropical savanna in the world. As a fire-prone ecosystem, natural fire in the Cerrado shapes plant communities and drives evolutionary processes. Human activities and landscape management can alter natural fire regimes and reshape Cerrado dynamics, making biodiversity conservation a challenge, particularly in densely populated areas. We reconstructed the historical fire

Countless animals, including threatened species from invertebrates to vertebrates, are the victims of the world's largest illegitimate business—illicit sales of wildlife. Botia striata (zebra loach) is an endangered freshwater fish endemic to the Western Ghats of India. Because of its distinctive stripes, it is heavily exported and ranks second in the volume of trade in aquarium pets from India. However

Primula boveana Decne ex Duby is a threatened paleo-endemic plant in St. Catherine Protected Area (SCPA), south Sinai, Egypt which represents the remaining evidence from the Tertiary relict floras. Listed by IUCN Red List in 2014 as Critically Endangered, and there are urgent needs to carry out on-ground conservation actions. In this research we present steps to conserve Primula boveana through in-situ

Conservation genetics is a well‐established and essential scientific field in the toolkit of conservation planning, management, and decision‐making. Within its framework, phylogeography allows the definition of conservation strategies, especially in threatened endemic plants. Gypsum and salt-rich outcrops constitute a model example of an edaphic island-like habitat and contain rare and endemic species

African houbara (Chlamydotis undulata) and Asian houbara (C. macqueenii), classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, have been over-exploited across their global ranges. The highest-profile conservation response has been large-scale releases of captive-bred birds, potentially threatening wild populations through introgression. Options for increasing numbers of the species are habitat management

Using bio-economic modelling, this paper analyses conflicts between legal and illegal activities in the Campo-Ma’an National Park, Cameroon. We consider two different agents, a local community living near the Park - who hunt illegally to fulfil their welfare -, and a park manager who has received from the Cameroonian government the mandate to manage the wildlife found in the park. The park manager

Conservation initiatives carried out by informed, enthusiastic participants can be highly effective in conserving biodiversity, including the biodiversity of insect pollinators. It is important to understand how the public perceives insect pollinators, as it may have implications for the success of conservation initiatives and the initiation of protective policies. We used Ireland as a case study to

In the Northeast Atlantic deep-water shrimp (Pandalus borealis) trawl fishery, the bycatch of juvenile fish and shrimp represents a problem. This study evaluated if inserting a 200 mm mesh size top-panel in the last three sections of the tapered upper belly section of the trawl could reduce bycatch of juveniles while maintaining the catch efficiency for deep-water shrimp. The bycatch species investigated

Restoration of plant-pollinator interaction has emerged as a critical issue in the maintenance of resilient and healthy ecosystems. However, some challenges remain, such as integrating ecological and practical information in plant species' choices to restore mutualistic interactions. We present a case-based experience that combines ecological information (i.e., plant attractiveness to pollinators as

Assessing wildlife habitat suitability has been an important tool in species conservation for generations of wildlife managers, despite changes in technology and theoretical frameworks. The goal of this study was to quantify differences in habitat suitability indices (HSIs) for blue-winged teal derived from our re-creation of traditional paper-based outputs and GIS-based outputs using the same inputs

We evaluated the vulnerability of nesting sites (sandbanks) available to Podocnemis expansa, P. unifilis and P. sextuberculata to human threats and the coverage of these areas by a public policy created to conserve turtles. Species distribution models were used to identify potential nesting areas in the Brazilian Amazon, where sandbanks were mapped through satellite imagery. Values of threats (deforestation

Expansive native species have the same ecological and economic consequences as invasive alien species through the reduction of ecosystem goods and services. We assessed human disturbance and environmental factors that are contributing to the expansion of two expansive shrubs, Cadia purpurea and Tarchonanthus camphoratus in Desa’a dry Afromontane forest, northern Ethiopia. We also evaluated their expansion

In the Alps, mires, ranging from fens to bogs, are rare habitats mainly restricted to high elevation ranges where anthropogenic pressures are relatively low. However, they are threatened by multiple impacts, among which intensive cattle grazing and draining predominate. In particular, overgrazing effects are still poorly explored and we urgently need an assessment of the conservation status of these

The use of lethal methods to manage locally overabundant wildlife populations is rarely without some level of public opposition or debate. While a range of factors have been found to be associated with public support for the use of lethal methods, research has predominately focused on a small set of species in a limited number of countries. We build the evidence base in this area by presenting the

Mediterranean coastal ecosystems are major tourist destinations that support intensive real estate business developments. However, these areas are also important as biodiversity hotspots. Coastal spiders have been poorly studied as indicators of habitat disturbance, especially those that depend on certain environmental variables. Plesiolena bonneti is a trapdoor spider that exclusively inhabits the

Erosion of natural habitats due to urban sprawl constitutes a major threat to biodiversity. The development of the Plant Micro-Reserve (PMR) is an efficient concept for the in situ conservation of rare plants with narrow ecological niche and threatened by human impacts. We provide a framework for initiating site selection of PMRs, including evolutionary and ecological uniqueness. The proposed cross-analysis

Wildlife rehabilitation is the treatment and subsequent release of injured wildlife. Wildlife rehabilitation benefits individual animals receiving care, but also supports Conservation Medicine approaches by providing opportunities to monitor wildlife health, contaminant loads, and disease prevalence. However, it is typically considered to have negligible effects on population growth, and has not traditionally

Roads constitute just 1% of the total land in the US, but their impacts on wildlife are significant and far-reaching. Snakes are particularly susceptible to road mortality because many species do not avoid crossing roads, may use the road’s surface to thermoregulate, or freeze when approached by a vehicle. We conducted opportunistic surveys to collect road mortality points for snakes in southeastern

This paper presents a methodology that uses fishery data collected for the purpose of administering and monitoring harvest quotas in a recreational fishery to give additional insights into effectiveness of various fishing methods, and expected catch rates associated with different licence types. The empirical application is based on the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) recreational fishery in Ireland

Deforestation is considered the main human-induced and short-term threat to the persistence of forest species in the Amazon. Long-lasting and high-intensity deforestation, low coverage of protected areas, and high level of species endemism make the Belém Endemism Area (BEA) particularly more vulnerable than the rest of the Amazon area. However, this occurrence remains strongly neglected in global and

Strategies to achieve agricultural production and biodiversity conservation fall into two categories, land-sparing or land-sharing. Plant species richness under organic arable (land sharing) versus conventional arable with land set-aside for conservation (land sparing) was evaluated on adjacent farms to compare these strategies. Sampled plant species richness was significantly higher under organic

Leopard print is a proliferating fashion design with perpetual, cross–market appeal. But as demand for textiles replicating the leopard’s pattern soar, leopards themselves have disappeared from more than 75 % of the historic range. This study quantifies the fashion interest in leopard print to evaluate whether its popularity reflects an interest in wildlife, specifically in leopards or spotted cats

African elephant populations are under substantial anthropogenic pressure, but these are not spatially homogenous. Elephant densities are high in parts of southern Africa, leading to conflict with human populations. Conservationists working to mitigate impacts of human-elephant conflict (HEC) will turn to mechanisms or incentives to achieve this, mostly financial (such as compensation, or income generation

Endemic marine species are useful in determining and evaluating areas for conservation. Particularly Warm Temperate Province of the Northeast Pacific (WTPNP) includes priority conservation areas, but records of endemic marine species are limited, their distributions remains generally unknown, and often excluded in extant conservation plans. Within the WTPNP, the Balandra Protected Natural Area (BPNA)

The wild camel (Camelus ferus) is a critically endangered species found in extremely arid environments of Central Asia. The wild camel population and its distribution areas have decreased significantly since the middle of the 19th century. The species is now restricted to four isolated habitats in China and Mongolia, and more than 20 years have passed since the most recent surveys of its status and

The chelonian fauna of West Africa is relatively understudied and experiencing a multitude of threats. Moreover, the IUCN Red List status of several African species is both outdated and, we believe, underestimated. Herein, we cover projections for freshwater turtle and tortoise status trends in West Africa over the next decade. This geographic prioritization was chosen based on our current understanding

It is widely accepted that nature conservation practice benefits from incorporating scientific evidence into decision-making. However, even when the evidence is already collated, the task of applying evidence to all of the decisions undertaken by conservation professionals can seem overwhelming. The apparent magnitude of this task may deter individuals and organisations from applying evidence-based

Habitat fragmentation and isolation are considered important causes of biodiversity loss in cultural landscapes. To counter the negative effects of fragmentation such as reduced connectivity and increased risks of population extinction due to stochastic processes and genetic erosion, it has been proposed to establish linear ecological corridors to facilitate dispersal between isolated habitat patches

Social norms are commonly used to investigate visitor beliefs about acceptable wildlife encounters in parks and protected areas. However, there is little information detailing if self-reported norms match actual behaviors. This study compared self-reported norms (n = 304) for viewing distances of adult and cub black bears with behavioral observations (n = 355) of actual encounters at Alligator River

The ecology of most squamates from the Republic of Korea is poorly understood: information on tolerances to environmental variables, movement patterns, home range sizes, and other aspects of their natural history and ecological requirements are lacking. In turn, this lack of knowledge presents an obstacle to effective conservation management. Currently and at the national level, two of Korea’s eleven

The decline of numerous bird species worldwide has been attributed to increased nest predation pressure often associated with anthropogenic factors. Identifying effective management strategies to reduce nest predation is therefore a conservation priority, but tests of management strategies often lack appropriate control treatments. Conditioned Food Aversion (CFA) is a non-lethal method of predator

The Mongolian plateau is a hotspot for mammals and a perfect environment for nomadic herding. The long-term co-existence with the local wildlife is nowadays threatened by a recent drastic increase of livestock numbers, and associated modifications in the ecosystems. Official hunting and livestock data were used to understand historical links between certain selected species (grey wolf, red fox, corsac

In this study we aimed to assess the perceived impacts of a Western conservation program, the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program (TKCP), on communities in the Yopno, Uruwa, Som landscape in Papua New Guinea, with regard to local livelihoods, tradition and culture, hunting and wildlife populations. We interviewed 104 households from across the landscape to gain a broad understanding of perceptions of

Abstract The piedmont dry forest of northwestern Argentina has been under intensive and unplanned forest logging focused on 12 tree species, without any attempts having been made to ensure their regeneration or long-term conservation. In this study, we assessed the conservation status of these timber species in the piedmont dry forest of northwestern Argentina and compared our results with the IUCN

Abstract Understanding the human influence on ecosystems and their services is crucial to achieve sustainable development and ensure the conservation of biodiversity. In this context, the human footprint index (HFI) represents the anthropogenic impacts on the ecosystems and the natural environments. Our objective was to characterize the HFI in Southern Patagonia (Argentina) across the landscape, qualifying

Abstract National parks occur in most nations around the globe and tend to have a dual role of protecting natural heritage features while also providing opportunities for the public to interact with natural areas through recreation and leisure. National parks are afforded varying degrees of protection with recreational fishing allowed in some form within the boundaries of some parks. However, little