tag:theconversation.com,2011:/ca/topics/habitat-destruction-98911/articlesHabitat destruction – The Conversation2023-02-27T17:15:13Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2001502023-02-27T17:15:13Z2023-02-27T17:15:13ZWhat Denmark’s dead hedgehogs tell us about their lives – and how we can help them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512429/original/file-20230227-28-81w410.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C0%2C3876%2C2572&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many hedgehogs are killed when crossing roads.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hedgehog-crossing-street-front-oncoming-car-489006694">Photo-SD/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The European hedgehog is in decline all over Europe. In Britain, the species is already deemed <a href="https://www.mammal.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/MS_RL20_Britain.pdf">vulnerable to extinction</a> having seen its population fall by at least 46% in the past 13 years to an estimated 500,000 animals. </p>
<p>I have <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sophie-Rasmussen">researched</a> what is causing their disappearance for a decade. This has involved several <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sophie-Rasmussen/publications">research projects</a> at the University of Oxford’s <a href="https://www.wildcru.org/members/dr-sophie-lund-rasmussen/">Wildlife Conservation Research Unit</a> focused on optimising conservation strategies to protect wild hedgehogs. </p>
<p>One of these projects – the “Danish Hedgehog Project” – involved more than 400 volunteers collecting 697 dead hedgehogs from all over Denmark, where my research is based. My colleagues and I then <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/4/626">studied</a> how long these hedgehogs typically lived for and why they died.</p>
<p>The method for ageing a dead hedgehog is similar to counting growth rings on trees. When hedgehogs hibernate over winter, their calcium metabolism slows down, which shows as a line of arrested growth in their jawbones. This allowed us to determine how old 388 of these hedgehogs were when they died.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Eight images of stained sections of hedgehog jaws showing year rings." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=304&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=304&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=304&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512408/original/file-20230227-20-t2s8nz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Researchers can determine the age of a hedgehog by looking at growth rings on a hedgehog’s jaw bone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Thomas Bjørneboe Berg</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found the world’s oldest scientifically-confirmed European hedgehogs. The oldest, called Thorvald, was 16 years old and surpassed the previous record by seven years. Thorvald died in 2016 after being attacked by a dog, a sadly rather common cause of death for hedgehogs, but alongside the other hedgehogs we studied, he now contributes important knowledge on the mysterious lives of these animals. </p>
<h2>The state of Denmark’s hedgehogs</h2>
<p>A few more surprisingly old hedgehogs, aged ten, 11 and 13 years, were also collected. But on average, the Danish hedgehogs we studied only lived to around the age of two.</p>
<p>The male hedgehogs tended to live longer than females. Males lived to 2.1 years on average compared to just 1.6 years for the average female. This finding is uncommon in mammals and is likely caused by the fact that it is simply easier being a male hedgehog. </p>
<p>Hedgehogs are not territorial, so males rarely fight, and females raise their offspring alone. The high fitness cost of raising offspring alone may partly explain why the risk of death for female hedgehogs increases with age compared with a constant risk of death for male hedgehogs throughout their life.</p>
<p>Over half (216) of the hedgehogs had been killed when crossing roads. These deaths, 70% of which were males, also peaked in July during the mating season. Male hedgehogs tend to have larger home ranges than females and as they expand their range during the mating season, they will frequently cross roads. <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.5764">Research</a> that I co-authored in 2019 found that the home range size of male hedgehogs in suburban areas around Copenhagen in Denmark increased fivefold during the mating season.</p>
<p>Of the animals not killed by road traffic, 22.2% (86) died in wildlife rehabilitation centres after having been found by the public either sick or injured and a further 21.6% (84) died from natural causes in the wild. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A person with blue gloves holding a dead hedgehog." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512406/original/file-20230227-20-pnggpe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One of the dead hedgehogs collected for the Danish Hedgehog Project.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tue Sørensen</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Low genetic diversity</h2>
<p>We also investigated the impact of inbreeding on the life expectancy of European hedgehogs. <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0227205">My previous research</a> found that the Danish hedgehog population has low genetic diversity, indicating a high degree of inbreeding. Low genetic diversity can reduce the fitness of an individual animal and may lead to several potentially lethal hereditary conditions. </p>
<p>Inbreeding can occur when hedgehogs are restricted in their search for suitable mates. The likelihood of inbreeding increases as their habitats become fragmented by roads, buildings, fences and railway tracks, and as population decline restricts the pool of potential mates. </p>
<p>Surprisingly, we found no association between the degree of inbreeding and age at death in our hedgehogs. This is interesting, as there is a general lack of knowledge on the effects of inbreeding in wildlife. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman looking into a microscope with a hedgehog jawbone printed on a computer screen in front of her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/512425/original/file-20230227-18-sbkd1w.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sophie Lund Rasmussen studying a hedgehog jawbone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Thomas Degner</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How you can help</h2>
<p>Hedgehogs are increasingly <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169204611002118?casa_token=nkdIsEwl4roAAAAA:8Z3bdj1jUrK1si1G_ygwSrK1gLIvjpECh7Uuk_cs1UFu2wwpQbrEcZXtvkI483_pO0Gpw__wiIA">inhabiting areas</a> that are occupied by humans. But our study reveals that humans are the major drivers behind the decline of hedgehogs. </p>
<p>Many hedgehogs will only live long enough to take part in one or two breeding seasons. Yet our discovery of Thorvald and several other old hedgehogs suggests that their ability to avoid dangers such as cars and predators will improve if they manage to survive a minimum of two years. </p>
<p>There are several steps that you can take to help hedgehogs navigate the dangers they face. <a href="https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/">Hedgehog Street</a>, a conservation campaign jointly funded by <a href="https://ptes.org/">People’s Trust for Endangered Species</a> (PTES) and the <a href="https://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/">British Hedgehog Preservation Society</a> (BHPS), offers some useful advice.</p>
<p>For example, removing barriers between our gardens to create <a href="https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/link-your-garden/">hedgehog highways</a> will allow hedgehogs to move freely between gardens in search for food, nest sites and mates. This may reduce the need for hedgehogs to cross roads so often.</p>
<p>Making sure our gardens are <a href="https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/helpful-garden-features/">hedgehog-friendly</a> is another option. Log and leaf piles, or purpose-designed boxes called <a href="https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/hedgehog-homes/">hedgehog houses</a> provide safe and secure sites for breeding and nesting. Ensuring your garden has plenty of greenery will also attract insects, slugs, earthworms and snails for hedgehogs to feed on. </p>
<p>But it’s important to remove anything from your garden that can harm hedgehogs. This includes poisons, netting, garden tools, aggressive dogs, deep holes and steep edges around pools or ponds.</p>
<p>Any improvement in our knowledge of hedgehogs in the wild will also be important. The Zoological Society of London surveys Greater London’s hedgehog populations through its <a href="https://www.zsl.org/what-we-do/projects/london-hogwatch">London Hogwatch</a> project. And the BHPS funds the <a href="https://www.hedgehogfriendlycampus.co.uk/">Hedgehog Friendly Campus</a> initiative which offers universities, colleges and primary schools awards for completing actions to help hedgehogs thrive on their campus. </p>
<p>The BHPS and the PTES’ latest report on the <a href="https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/about-our-hedgehog-street-campaign/stateof/">state of Britain’s hedgehogs</a> indicates that the decline in UK hedgehog populations may be stabilising in the urban areas. This could be due to the efforts of the public that have been inspired by these campaigns.</p>
<p>The fact that Thorvald lived to the age of 16 offers hope for the future of European hedgehogs. If we work together, we can save this charismatic species.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200150/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Lund Rasmussen receives funding from Carlsberg Foundation</span></em></p>Research on Denmark’s hedgehogs offers insight into their cause of death – and how to help them.Sophie Lund Rasmussen, Postdoctoral fellow, University of OxfordLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1921732022-10-18T19:04:16Z2022-10-18T19:04:16Z‘Gut-wrenching and infuriating’: why Australia is the world leader in mammal extinctions, and what to do about it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490280/original/file-20221018-21168-2wtt2m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C10%2C1733%2C1221&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A museum specimen of the extinct northern pig-footed bandicoot</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Vassil/Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle via Wikimedia</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In fewer than 250 years, the ravages of colonisation have eroded the evolutionary splendour forged in this continent’s relative isolation. Australia has suffered a horrific demise of arguably the world’s most remarkable mammal assemblage, around <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/env/pages/2ee3f4a1-f130-465b-9c7a-79373680a067/files/nlsaw-2nd-complete.pdf">87% of which is found nowhere else</a>. </p>
<p>Being an Australian native mammal is perilous. <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna">Thirty-eight</a> native mammal species have been driven to extinction since colonisation and <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/book/7010/">possibly</a> seven <a href="https://australianmammals.org.au/publications/amtc-species-list">subspecies</a>. These include:</p>
<ul>
<li>Yirratji (northern pig-footed bandicoot)</li>
<li>Parroo (white-footed rabbit-rat)</li>
<li>Kuluwarri (central hare-wallaby)</li>
<li>Yallara (lesser bilby)</li>
<li>Tjooyalpi (lesser stick-nest rat) </li>
<li>Tjawalpa (crescent nailtail wallaby)</li>
<li>Yoontoo (short-tailed hopping-mouse)</li>
<li>Walilya (desert bandicoot) </li>
<li>toolache wallaby </li>
<li>thylacine </li>
</ul>
<p>This makes us the world leader of mammal species extinctions in recent centuries. But this is far from just an historical tragedy. </p>
<p>A further 52 mammal species are classified as either <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna">critically endangered or endangered</a>, such as the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/amoty/southern-bent-winged-bat-amoty-22/">southern bent-wing bat</a>, which was recently crowned the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/amoty/">2022 Australian Mammal of the Year</a>. Fifty-eight mammal species are classed as vulnerable.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-sad-reality-is-many-dont-survive-how-floods-affect-wildlife-and-how-you-can-help-them-178310">'The sad reality is many don't survive': how floods affect wildlife, and how you can help them</a>
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<p>Many <a href="https://theconversation.com/mourn-our-lost-mammals-while-helping-the-survivors-battle-back-36126">once-abundant species</a>, some spread over large expanses of Australia, have greatly diminished and the distributions of their populations have become disjointed. Such mammals include the Mala (rufous hare-wallaby), Yaminon (northern hairy-nosed wombat), Woylie (brush-tailed bettong) and the Numbat.</p>
<p>This means their populations are more susceptible to being wiped out by chance events and changes – such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/six-million-hectares-of-threatened-species-habitat-up-in-smoke-129438">fires</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-sad-reality-is-many-dont-survive-how-floods-affect-wildlife-and-how-you-can-help-them-178310">floods</a>, disease, <a href="https://www.couriermail.com.au/ipad/feral-cats-wreak-havoc-in-raid-on-enclosed-refuge-for-endangered-bilbies/news-story/25e73bc2a4af49fadf19729585e1afcb">invasive predators</a> – and <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-01182-3">genetic issues</a>. The ongoing existence of many species <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/wr/wr17172">depends greatly upon predator-free</a> fenced sanctuaries and offshore islands.</p>
<p>Without substantial and rapid change, Australia’s list of extinct mammal species is <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/PC18006">almost certain to grow</a>. So what exactly has gone so horribly wrong? What can and should be done to prevent further casualties and turn things around?</p>
<h2>Up to two mammal species gone per decade</h2>
<p>Australia’s <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/au/academic/subjects/life-sciences/zoology/australias-mammal-extinctions-50000-year-history?format=PB&isbn=9780521686600">post-colonisation</a> mammal extinctions may have begun <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000632071930895X">as early as the 1840s</a>, when it’s believed the Noompa and Payi (large-eared and Darling Downs hopping mice, respectively) and the Liverpool Plains striped bandicoot went extinct.</p>
<p>Many extinct species were ground dwellers, and within the so-called “<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1442-9993.2008.01878.x">critical weight range</a>” of between 35 grams and 5.5 kilograms. This means they’re especially vulnerable to <a href="https://theconversation.com/1-7-million-foxes-300-million-native-animals-killed-every-year-now-we-know-the-damage-foxes-wreak-177832">predation by cats and foxes</a>.</p>
<p>Small macropods (such as bettongs, potoroos and hare wallabies) and rodents have suffered <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna#mammals_extinct">most extinctions</a> – 13 species each, nearly 70% of all Australia’s mammal extinctions. </p>
<p>Eight bilby and bandicoot species and three bats species are also extinct, making up 21% and 8% of extinctions, respectively.</p>
<p>The most recent fatalities are thought to be the <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/book/7791/">Christmas Island pipistrelle</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jun/01/extinction-obituary-bramble-cay-melomys-climate-change-aoe">Bramble Cay melomys</a>, the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000632071930895X">last known record</a> for both species was 2009. The Bramble Cay melomys is perhaps the first mammal species driven to extinction <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jun/01/extinction-obituary-bramble-cay-melomys-climate-change-aoe">by climate change</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Brown rodent" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=312&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/408578/original/file-20210628-13-rw4gnl.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bramble Cay melomys was declared extinct in 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ian Bell, EHP, State of Queensland</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Overall, research estimates that since 1788, about <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1417301112#sec-1">one to two</a> land-based mammal species have been driven to extinction each decade. </p>
<h2>When mammals re-emerge</h2>
<p>It’s hard to be certain about the timing of extinction events and, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.13421">in some cases</a>, even if they’re <em>actually</em> extinct. </p>
<p>For example, Ngilkat (Gilbert’s potoroo), the mountain pygmy possum, Antina (the central rock rat), and Leadbeater’s possum were once thought extinct, but were eventually rediscovered. Such species are often called <a href="https://theconversation.com/meet-the-lazarus-creatures-six-species-we-thought-were-extinct-but-arent-50274">Lazarus species</a>. </p>
<p>Our confidence in determining whether a species is extinct largely depends on how extensively and for how long we’ve searched for evidence of their persistence or absence.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/meet-the-lazarus-creatures-six-species-we-thought-were-extinct-but-arent-50274">Meet the Lazarus creatures – six species we thought were extinct, but aren't</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/bigfoot-the-kraken-and-night-parrots-searching-for-the-mythical-or-mysterious-75695">Modern approaches to wildlife survey</a> such as camera traps, audio recorders, conservation dogs and environmental DNA, make the task of searching much easier than it once was. </p>
<p>But sadly, <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-has-hundreds-of-mammal-species-we-want-to-find-them-all-before-theyre-gone-185495">ongoing examination and analysis of museum specimens</a> also means that we’re still discovering species not known to Western science and that tragically are already extinct. </p>
<h2>What’s driving their demise?</h2>
<p>Following colonisation, Australia’s landscapes have suffered extensive, severe, sustained and often <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2664.13427">compounding blows</a>. These include: </p>
<ul>
<li>widespread <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/pc18024">habitat modification and destruction</a> </li>
<li>the introduction of <a href="https://theconversation.com/1-7-million-foxes-300-million-native-animals-killed-every-year-now-we-know-the-damage-foxes-wreak-177832">invasive predators</a>, such as feral cats, red foxes and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-mystery-of-the-top-ends-vanishing-wildlife-and-the-unexpected-culprits-143268">herbivores</a> (European rabbits, feral horses, goats, deer, water buffalo, donkeys)</li>
<li>toxic “prey” (<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-ultimate-invader-high-tech-tool-promises-scientists-an-edge-over-the-cane-toad-scourge-186542">cane toads</a>) </li>
<li>intense <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/csp2.52">livestock grazing</a></li>
<li><a href="https://theconversation.com/world-first-research-confirms-australias-forests-became-catastrophic-fire-risk-after-british-invasion-176563">changed fire patterns</a> associated with the forced displacement of First Nations peoples and cultural practices </li>
<li><a href="https://theconversation.com/killer-climate-tens-of-thousands-of-flying-foxes-dead-in-a-day-23227">climate change</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://endangeredlist.org/animal/toolache-wallaby/">hunting</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://wildlifehealthaustralia.com.au/FactSheets.aspx">disease</a>.<br></li>
</ul>
<p>And importantly, the ongoing persecution of Australia’s largest land-based predator: <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/amoty/dingo-charismatic-controversial-canid/">the dingo</a>. In some circumstances, dingoes may help reduce the activity and abundance of large herbivores and invasive predators. But in others, <a href="https://theconversation.com/dingo-dinners-whats-on-the-menu-for-australias-top-predator-103846">they may threaten native species</a> with small and restricted distributions. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/1-7-million-foxes-300-million-native-animals-killed-every-year-now-we-know-the-damage-foxes-wreak-177832">1.7 million foxes, 300 million native animals killed every year: now we know the damage foxes wreak</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Through widespread land clearing, urbanisation, livestock grazing and fire, some habitats have been obliterated and others dramatically altered and reduced, often resulting in less diverse and more open vegetation. Such simplified habitats can be <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0006320715002086">fertile hunting grounds</a> for red foxes and feral cats to find and kill native mammals. </p>
<p>To make matters worse, <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-underestimate-rabbits-these-powerful-pests-threaten-more-native-wildlife-than-cats-or-foxes-168288">European rabbits</a> compete with native mammals for food and space. Their grazing reduces vegetation and cover, <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/PC/PC18024">endangering many native plant species in the process</a>. And they are prey to cats and foxes, <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.12684">sustaining their populations</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Rabbit" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=385&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490277/original/file-20221018-21181-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Feral rabbits reduce the ground cover of vegetation.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While cats and foxes, fire, and habitat modification and destruction are often cited as key threats to native mammals, it’s important to recognise how these threats and others may interact. They must be managed together accordingly. </p>
<p>For instance, reducing both overgrazing and preventing frequent, large and intense fires may help maintain vegetation cover and complexity. In turn, this will <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0109097">make it harder</a> for invasive predators to hunt native prey. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-underestimate-rabbits-these-powerful-pests-threaten-more-native-wildlife-than-cats-or-foxes-168288">Don't underestimate rabbits: these powerful pests threaten more native wildlife than cats or foxes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What must change?</h2>
<p>Above all else, we genuinely need to care about what’s transpiring, and to act swiftly and substantially to prevent further damage. </p>
<p>As a mammalogist of some 30 years, the continuing demise of Australia’s mammals is gut-wrenching and infuriating. We have the expertise and solutions at hand, but the frequent warnings and calls for change continue to be met with mediocre responses. At other times, a seemingly apathetic shrug of shoulders. </p>
<p>So many species are now gone, <a href="https://theconversation.com/should-we-bring-back-the-thylacine-we-asked-5-experts-188894">probably forever</a>, but so many more are hurtling down the extinction highway because of sheer and utter neglect. </p>
<p>Encouragingly, when we care for and invest in species, we <em>can</em> turn things around. Increasing numbers of <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/numbat-stripes-reveal-endangered-population-is-twice-as-big-as-we-thought-20220506-p5aj40.html#:%7E:text=There%20were%20thought%20to%20be,is%20actually%20twice%20as%20large.">Numbats</a>, <a href="https://www.australianwildlife.org/new-hope-for-critically-endangered-northern-hairy-nosed-wombat/">Yaminon</a> and <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/bandicoots-back-from-the-brink-as-status-downgraded-to-endangered-20210914-p58rgd.html">eastern-barred bandicoots</a> provide three celebrated examples. </p>
<p>Improving the prognosis for mammals is eminently achievable but conditional on political will. Broadly speaking, we must:</p>
<ul>
<li>minimise or remove their key threats </li>
<li>align policies (such as energy sources, resource use, and biodiversity conservation)</li>
<li>strengthen and enforce environmental laws </li>
<li>listen to, learn from and work with First Nations peoples as part of healing Country </li>
<li>invest what’s actually required – <a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-plan-to-save-threatened-species-is-an-improvement-but-its-still-well-short-of-what-we-need-191845">billions, not breadcrumbs</a>.</li>
</ul>
<p>The recently announced Threatened Species Action plan sets an ambitious objective of preventing new extinctions. Of the 110 species considered a “priority” to save, <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/biodiversity/threatened/publications/priority-species">21 are mammals</a>. The plan, however, is not fit for purpose and is <a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-plan-to-save-threatened-species-is-an-improvement-but-its-still-well-short-of-what-we-need-191845">highly unlikely</a> to succeed.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-plan-to-save-threatened-species-is-an-improvement-but-its-still-well-short-of-what-we-need-191845">Labor's plan to save threatened species is an improvement – but it's still well short of what we need</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Political commitments appear wafer thin when the same politicians continue to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jul/26/wa-ring-road-approved-by-federal-government-threatens-ancient-trees-and-endangered-wildlife">approve the destruction</a> of the homes critically endangered species depend upon. What’s more, greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets are far below what climate scientists say are essential and extremely urgent. </p>
<p>There’s simply no time for platitudes and further dithering. Australia’s remaining mammals deserve far better, they deserve secure futures.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192173/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Euan G. Ritchie is the Chair of the Media and Communications Working Group of the Ecological Society of Australia, Deputy Convenor (Communication and Outreach) for the Deakin Science and Society Network, and a member of the Australian Mammal Society.</span></em></p>38 mammals have been driven to extinction since colonisation, and many more are close to joining them. We have the solutions at hand, but warnings continue to be met with mediocre responses.Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1884582022-09-07T23:48:20Z2022-09-07T23:48:20ZFrom microbes to forest bathing, here are 4 ways healing nature is vital to our recovery from COVID-19<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482424/original/file-20220902-11-4yd8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5464%2C3631&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s been more than two years since the World Health Organization <a href="https://www.who.int/director-general/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-media-briefing-on-covid-19---11-march-2020">declared</a> the COVID-19 pandemic. Each of us vividly recalls the first confirmed cases being reported in our home towns. COVID-19 spread across the planet at lightning speed, and the confirmed death toll is approaching <a href="https://covid19.who.int/">6.5 million</a>. Communities and economies around the world have been devastated, and many societies need a recovery plan. </p>
<p>A growing number of <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(21)00031-0/fulltext">scientists</a>, including us in an <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(22)00171-1/fulltext">article published today</a> in The Lancet Planetary Health, argue protecting and restoring nature can help societies recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and even help prevent future pandemics. Thriving ecosystems are vital for humans and the rest of nature. </p>
<p>The ongoing destruction of nature is a recipe for disaster. <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(21)00031-0/fulltext">Research points to direct links</a> between the destruction of nature and infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19. </p>
<p>For instance, the removal of rainforests for agriculture and new towns increases our contact with wildlife that host novel viruses – the kind that “jump the species barrier”. Some cause major disease <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abp8337">outbreaks like COVID-19</a>. </p>
<p>In our Lancet Planetary Health paper, we use COVID-19 as a case study to demonstrate how restoring ecosystems can help to combat the health and social problems associated with pandemics. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/stealth-privatisation-in-iconic-national-parks-threatens-public-access-to-natures-health-boost-188063">'Stealth privatisation' in iconic national parks threatens public access to nature's health boost</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>We are running out of time to restore ecosystems</h2>
<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restoration_ecology">Ecosystem restoration</a> is the repair of natural systems – such as forests, grasslands and coral reefs – that have been damaged or destroyed. Unfortunately, human activities such as urbanisation, deforestation and pollution could leave <a href="https://www.thegef.org/what-we-do/topics/land-degradation">95% of the planet’s land</a> severely damaged by 2050. </p>
<p>The UN has declared 2021 to 2030 the <a href="https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/">Decade on Ecosystem Restoration</a>. The declaration reflects the growing urgency and scale of ecosystem restoration that we must undertake. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1482351990361538562"}"></div></p>
<p>There are several ways in which protecting and restoring nature are vital to humanity’s recovery from COVID-19.</p>
<h2>1. Enhancing the immune system</h2>
<p>The environment is brimful of microscopic life forms: dense clouds of bacteria, tiny fungi, algae and other life forms live in the soil, plants, water and air. Growing evidence suggests exposure to a diverse range of these invisible critters from an early age is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651322007400">vital to our health</a>. </p>
<p>This exposure “primes” our immune systems and allows them to build strong armies of cells that protect us from pathogens. Indeed, having a healthy immune system is important in combating diseases such as COVID-19. </p>
<p>However, the diversity of these beneficial microbes is often much lower in degraded ecosystems than in more natural and diverse areas, such as forests with many different species of <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-89065-y">plants and animals</a>. Therefore, restoring degraded ecosystems is important for both wildlife and our immune systems. </p>
<p>Furthermore, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/039463200902200410">research</a> suggests exposure to chemicals emitted by some plants – called phytoncides – can boost our immune system and help us fight off viral infections. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-trees-in-your-local-park-help-protect-you-from-disease-160312">How the trees in your local park help protect you from disease</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>2. Letting nature be thy medicine</h2>
<p>Spending time in natural environments is widely recognised as important for our health and wellbeing. After all, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969720311372">we are part of nature</a>! </p>
<p><a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/10/3460/htm">Evidence</a> shows engaging with natural spaces such as forests, meadows and lakes can improve our mental health, reduce blood pressure and enhance our recovery from stress. In Japan, forest bathing – <em>shinrin-yoku</em> – is <a href="https://www.weforum.org/videos/2801-2021-the-japanese-practice-of-forest-bathing-is-scientifically-proven-to-improve-your-health-folder-uplink">officially endorsed</a> as a form of nature therapy. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/5/2227">another of our studies</a>, we showed spending time in nature helped people cope with the COVID-19 pandemic. </p>
<p>However, many people don’t have easy access to high-quality, biodiverse environments. Restoring these environments in urban areas is fundamental to people’s ability to cope with current and future pandemics. And some cities are doing just that; the <a href="https://www.adelaidenationalparkcity.org/">Adelaide National Park City</a> is a case in point.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gmgUzrkfD0I?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Adelaide became the second city in the world to gain National Park City status in December 2021.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/1-in-4-australians-is-lonely-quality-green-spaces-in-our-cities-offer-a-solution-188007">1 in 4 Australians is lonely. Quality green spaces in our cities offer a solution</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>3. Reducing the risk of future pandemics</h2>
<p>Restoring wild places and reducing human-wildlife interactions could keep diseases at bay and minimise the risk of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2530064420300584">spillover events</a>. These events occur when a pathogen in one species jumps to another, such as humans. This pathogen can then wreak havoc on human populations and lead to the next pandemic. </p>
<p>It’s important to prevent further encroachment by humans into these wild places for our own sake! </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/historic-amazon-rainforest-fires-threaten-climate-and-raise-risk-of-new-diseases-146720">Historic Amazon rainforest fires threaten climate and raise risk of new diseases</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>4. Improving social equity</h2>
<p>The pandemic shone a spotlight on social inequity and its impacts on public health. Many people in deprived areas:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>were <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(22)00007-X/fulltext">more easily infected</a> by the SARS-CoV-2 virus</p></li>
<li><p>suffered from <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(22)00007-X/fulltext">more severe COVID-19 symptoms</a></p></li>
<li><p>had <a href="https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msystems.01240-21">fewer opportunities</a> to enhance their general wellbeing. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Our paper discusses the importance of ensuring equal access to biodiverse environments. Restoring ecosystems can improve people’s living environments and create “green job” opportunities in deprived areas. Actions such as tree planting, ecotherapy and environmental management are emerging areas of job growth. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-cities-can-add-accessible-green-space-in-a-post-coronavirus-world-139194">How cities can add accessible green space in a post-coronavirus world</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>However, we also have a warning: creating green spaces in urban areas can lead to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7908481/">deprived residents being displaced</a> by more affluent ones. Effective safeguards against this gentrification are needed. </p>
<p>Ecosystem restoration should be viewed as a public health intervention. Urgent policy action is required at all levels, from local government to intergovernmental platforms, to transform social, economic and financial models to deliver a simultaneous healthy recovery of ecosystems and humanity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188458/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jake M Robinson is affiliated with Flinders University and is a member of the UNFCCC Resilience Frontiers think tank. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Daniels receives funding from the Department for Environment and Water South Australia via the Koala Life not for profit foundation and from the Australian Research Council. He is Chair of the Green Adelaide Landscape Board and holds Adjunct Professor positions at the University of South Australia and Adelaide University.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Martin Breed receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Flinders Foundation, and New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment. </span></em></p>Exposure to diverse microbes boosts our immunity, while spending time in nature restores wellbeing. And COVID reminds us of the risks of new viruses when we intrude on and degrade natural habitats.Jake M Robinson, Ecologist and Researcher, Flinders UniversityChristopher Daniels, Professor of Biology, University of South AustraliaMartin Breed, Senior Lecturer in Biology, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1819012022-04-27T15:37:49Z2022-04-27T15:37:49ZReptiles: why one in five species face extinction<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460029/original/file-20220427-24-6xgf41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3814%2C2540&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A yacare caiman (_Caiman yacare_) in the Pantanal wetlands of Bolivia.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/crocodile-catch-fish-river-water-evening-1112389226">Ondrej Prosicky/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Reptiles are cold-blooded and scaly animals, the majority of which are predators. They include some of the <a href="https://www.animalwised.com/the-8-most-dangerous-reptiles-in-the-world-2758.html">most deadly and venomous</a> creatures on Earth, including the spitting cobra and saltwater crocodile.</p>
<p>Many of these fascinating creatures are <a href="https://www.history.com/news/snake-symbol-history-mythology">feared by humans</a> and inhabit hard-to-traverse places such as swamps. Compared with <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/">birds, amphibians and mammals</a>, there is little data available on the distribution, population size and extinction risk of reptiles. This has meant that wildlife conservationists have largely helped reptiles indirectly in the past by meeting the needs of other animals (for food and habitat for example) living in similar places.</p>
<p>Now, a first-of-its-kind <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04664-7">global assessment</a> of more than 10,000 species of reptiles (around 90% of the known total) has revealed that 21% need urgent support to prevent them going extinct. But since <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0059741">reptiles are so diverse</a>, ranging from lizards and snakes to turtles and crocodiles, the threats to the survival of each species are likely to be equally varied. </p>
<p>Here are five important findings the new study has unveiled.</p>
<h2>Crocodiles and turtles among most threatened</h2>
<p>Well over half (58%) of all crocodile species and 50% of all turtles are at risk of extinction, making them the most threatened among reptiles. This is comparable to the most threatened groups of amphibians and mammals, so reptiles are not faring any better than other animals. </p>
<p>The biggest threats to crocodiles and turtles are hunting and the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18523-4">illegal wildlife trade</a>. This trade, often to supply distant customers with pets (or luxury handbags), threatens 31% of turtles. They are also the groups of reptiles most frequently associated with <a href="https://www.wwt.org.uk/our-work/threats-to-wetlands/#:%7E:text=Unsustainable%20development,for%20housing%2C%20industry%20and%20agriculture.">wetlands</a>, habitats which are <a href="https://www.global-wetland-outlook.ramsar.org/">under siege globally</a> by the development of urban space and farmland, as well as climate change.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/reptiles-one-in-three-species-traded-online-and-75-arent-protected-by-international-law-147122">Reptiles: one in three species traded online – and 75% aren't protected by international law</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Conservation works</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44JUXPzEI2U">tuatara</a> is the only survivor of an ancient order of reptiles called the Rhynchocephalia, which roamed the Earth alongside dinosaurs 200 million years ago. </p>
<p>To help you understand how isolated this species is in evolutionary terms, rodents belong to a single order which makes up 40% of mammals. Thankfully, populations of this species have stabilised, largely due to the protection they have received by law since 1895, which makes it an offence to kill individuals or their eggs or to take them from the wild.</p>
<p>Tuataras, which are greenish brown and grey, measure up to 80cm from head to tail and have a spiny crest along their backs, were once widespread across New Zealand but became extinct on the main islands around 200 years ago – the same time that invasive rats, brought there by European colonisers, became established. <a href="https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/reptiles-and-frogs/tuatara/">Conservation efforts</a>, such as captive breeding and targeted reintroductions, have meant that tuataras are once again breeding in the wild on New Zealand’s North Island.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/tuataras-rare-reptiles-genes-longevity-cool-weather">Interestingly</a>, this species has one of the longest lifespans of any reptile (more than 100 years) and a body temperature of around 10°C – more than 10°C lower than most reptiles. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A green iguana-like reptile." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460031/original/file-20220427-26-h8cxkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tuataras can continue breeding well past their 100th birthday.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/new-zealand-native-tuatara-1345787294">Mark Walshe/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Habitat destruction the biggest threat overall</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989421004157">Habitat loss</a>, caused by expanding farmlands, urbanisation and logging, contributes more to the extinction risk of most reptiles than any other factor. <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/50/8/653/243214">Other major threats</a> include the displacement of native reptiles by invasive species and hunting. These threats are all <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/10/earths-sixth-mass-extinction-event-already-underway-scientists-warn">human-induced</a> and pose a problem for all other groups of animals.</p>
<h2>Most threatened in the tropics</h2>
<p>South-east Asia, west Africa, Madagascar and the Caribbean are <a href="http://www.gardinitiative.org/">hotspots</a> for reptiles at risk of extinction. According to the new assessment, some of these areas contain twice as many threatened reptiles as those from other groups of animals. </p>
<p>More than half of threatened reptile species <a href="https://rainforests.mongabay.com/kids/elementary/204.html">live in forests</a>, where habitat destruction is a looming threat. The picture is similar for birds and mammals, so conserving forested areas for one group of species will help to protect them all.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-forest-loss-has-changed-biodiversity-around-the-globe-over-the-last-150-years-140968">How forest loss has changed biodiversity around the globe over the last 150 years</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Climate change</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/kidspost/ever-wondered-about-warm-blooded-and-cold-blooded-animals/2015/11/27/575d30ca-6c57-11e5-aa5b-f78a98956699_story.html">Cold-blooded</a> reptiles must warm up in the sun to function properly. But if they are heated above their optimum temperature, their metabolism is less efficient and they need to move into the shade to cool down. </p>
<p>Increasing global temperatures reduce the windows available to reptiles for daily foraging – when it is not too cold but not too hot either – and shrink their habitable range overall. For some reptile species, ambient temperature influences the <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/experts-temperature-sex-determination-reptiles/">sex of offspring</a>. Cooler temperatures cause many turtle eggs to develop into males, so climate change may see <a href="https://inews.co.uk/news/environment/turtle-populations-danger-hatchlings-female-climate-change-981184">male turtles die out</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A large sea turtle depositing white eggs in the sand." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460034/original/file-20220427-10052-6cn3i6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A male-female imbalance could prevent populations reproducing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/turtles-nesting-during-sunrise-ostional-beach-1921648922">Jarib/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s good for other animals…</h2>
<p>Where reptiles are restricted to a particular range – endemic to a single small island, for example – the species is generally so specialised that a conservation effort focused on the <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12210-020-00922-w">needs of that species</a> is prudent.</p>
<p>But on the whole, birds and mammals are good surrogates for the conservation of reptiles, despite being so different. This is because the threats imposed on all groups of animals are broadly the same. Conservation efforts employed for one species can benefit all. </p>
<p>While this new assessment casts more light than has ever been shed before on the plight of the world’s scaly masses, it nevertheless shares universal lessons for what’s needed to preserve Earth’s biodiversity: space and freedom from persecution in a stable climate. </p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
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<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/181901/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Louise Gentle does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>More than half of all crocodile species are a high priority for conservation according to the assessment.Louise Gentle, Principal Lecturer in Wildlife Conservation, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1804942022-04-06T01:36:02Z2022-04-06T01:36:02ZNew research shows planting trees and shrubs brings woodland birds back to farms, from superb fairy wrens to spotted pardalotes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456297/original/file-20220405-14-wcxbos.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C0%2C2345%2C1568&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rohan Clarke</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Rural landscapes are changing in southern Australia. Thanks to landholders, community volunteers and Landcare groups, farms are increasingly home to corridors of trees and shrubs along creeks, and paddocks bordered by trees. </p>
<p><a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2664.14148">Our research</a>, published today, shows these efforts to revegetate farmland has made an important difference for woodland birds. </p>
<p>We surveyed and compared bird communities in farm landscapes with differing amounts of tree cover. We found when the amount of revegetation in open farmland increased, the number of woodland bird species did, too. For example, an increase in revegetation from 1% to 10% of the landscape doubled the number of woodland bird species.</p>
<p>This is important, because populations of woodland birds have been steeply declining in southern Australia, with species such as the southern whiteface, brown treecreeper and white-browed babbler now of conservation concern. The collective efforts of landholders can help reverse these declines by attracting species back into otherwise-cleared farmland.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456303/original/file-20220405-19-kz816y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Patches of vegetation, such as shrubs along creeks, are important habitats in farmland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Restoring habitat for woodland birds</h2>
<p>Look closely among native vegetation on farmland and you’ll find an array of birdlife, such as flame robins and superb fairy-wrens foraging for insects on the ground, and striated pardalotes and yellow thornbills feeding in canopy foliage.</p>
<p>Yet extensive habitat destruction, replaced by vast areas of intensive farmland, have caused the number of once-abundant woodland birds to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1071/MU09115">decline greatly</a>. Indeed, in many rural districts, such as in western and northern Victoria, more than 90% of native wooded vegetation has been cleared.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/more-than-200-australian-birds-are-now-threatened-with-extinction-and-climate-change-is-the-biggest-danger-172751">More than 200 Australian birds are now threatened with extinction – and climate change is the biggest danger</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>To help address this issue, the Morrison government last year announced an additional A$32.1 million for <a href="https://www.awe.gov.au/agriculture-land/farm-food-drought/natural-resources/landcare/sustaining-future-australian-farming">biodiversity stewardship on agricultural land</a>. </p>
<p>A key activity under the stewardship scheme is revegetation. Our research clarifies how revegetation can help in the recovery of woodland birds. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456299/original/file-20220405-24-6kmllr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Revegetating farms can help boost the number of bird species present.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rohan Clarke</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How does revegetation benefit birds?</h2>
<p>Most research on the value of revegetation looks at individual “patches”. Our approach differed, as we sampled entire landscapes. Each landscape was 8 square kilometres in size, spanning one to three farms in south-western Victoria.</p>
<p>We identified three groups of landscapes, each having 1-18% tree cover. In one group, the tree cover was from revegetation. A second group comprised remnant native vegetation (natural vegetation that remains after the land was cleared). And a third had a mix of both revegetation and remnants.</p>
<p>We investigated important questions such as:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>does the number of woodland species increase if more of the landscape is revegetated?</p></li>
<li><p>does revegetation attract new species back into the landscape, or simply provide more habitat for common species already present? </p></li>
<li><p>is the bird community in revegetated landscapes similar to that in remnant landscapes?</p></li>
</ol>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/birdbath-food-or-water-how-to-attract-your-favourite-birds-to-your-garden-70258">Birdbath, food or water? How to attract your favourite birds to your garden</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In answer to the first two questions, we found the number of bird species in a landscape did increase with increasing wooded cover.</p>
<p>For example, in landscapes with only 1% revegetation cover, most birds were open-country species such as galah, red-rumped parrot and willie wagtail, with only 11 woodland species on average. On the other hand, landscapes with 15% revegetation cover had 25 woodland species, on average, as part of the bird community. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456300/original/file-20220405-3023-8jtn0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">New Holland honeyeater.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rohan Clarke</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In response to the third question, we found that revegetated landscapes and those with remnant native vegetation don’t offer the same benefits. For a given amount of wooded vegetation, revegetated landscapes had fewer species in total and supported different types of woodland species. </p>
<p>For example, revegetation favours birds that forage in shrubby areas, such as the New Holland honeyeater and brown thornbill. </p>
<p>In contrast, those that depend on older trees were less likely to be found in revegetated landscapes. This includes the white-throated treecreeper and varied sitella which forage on tree trunks and large branches, and the spotted pardalote and white-naped honeyeater that feed within canopy foliage.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=935&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=935&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=935&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1175&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1175&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456302/original/file-20220405-26-gng22g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1175&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">White throated treecreeper.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rohan Clarke</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Where will revegetation be most effective?</h2>
<p>Our research shows revegetation has greatest value when it’s interspersed among remnant vegetation. </p>
<p>These mixed landscapes have similar numbers and types of woodland birds to the remnant landscapes, and provide complementary resources for feeding, nesting and refuge.</p>
<p>We also found <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.13988">individual patches</a> of revegetation have the greatest value for birds when they include a diverse range of trees and shrubs, are close to or connected with native vegetation, and are older (meaning the plants have had longer to grow).</p>
<p>Another valuable feature for birds is scattered trees. These veteran trees act as stepping stones that help birds move, and provide foraging and nesting habitat for species such as the brown treecreeper, laughing kookaburra and eastern rosella.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-lone-tree-makes-it-easier-for-birds-and-bees-to-navigate-farmland-like-a-stepping-stone-between-habitats-162083">A lone tree makes it easier for birds and bees to navigate farmland, like a stepping stone between habitats</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/456301/original/file-20220405-26-30nfbo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Scattered trees act as stepping stones between habitats for birds.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rohan Clark</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Working together</h2>
<p>These results are encouraging, but there’s a long way to go to restore farmland environments. At least 11 of the 60 woodland species recorded in the study weren’t detected in revegetated landscapes, such as sacred kingfisher and black-chinned honeyeater. Others, such as jacky winter and eastern yellow robin were rare. </p>
<p>Increasing wooded vegetation to cover <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2005.01.039">at least 10-30%</a> of farmland is an important long-term goal to ensure sufficient habitat to sustain healthy populations of many species. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-asked-landholders-how-they-feel-about-biodiversity-offsets-and-the-nsw-government-has-a-lot-to-learn-164934">We asked landholders how they feel about biodiversity offsets — and the NSW government has a lot to learn</a>
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<p>Of course, it’s not just for woodland birds – revegetating farms has a number of benefits. Planting along creeks helps stabilise stream banks and improve aquatic environments, trees store more carbon as they grow and age, and tree lines (shelterbelts) and shade benefit livestock and farm production. </p>
<p>In this <a href="https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/">United Nations Decade of Ecosystem Restoration</a>, the actions we take now will benefit the lives of future generations.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180494/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Bennett received funding towards this research project from the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority, and the Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning (Victoria). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jim Radford receives funding from the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, and the Victorian Department of Environment Land Water and Planning. He is also the Chair of Birdlife Australia's Research and Conservation Committee.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Angie Haslem, Greg Holland, and Rohan Clarke do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Increasing revegetation from 1% to 10% of the landscape doubled the number of woodland bird species. The collective efforts of landowners can make a real difference for native wildlife.Andrew Bennett, Professor of Ecology, La Trobe UniversityAngie Haslem, Research Fellow, La Trobe UniversityGreg Holland, Associate Research Fellow, La Trobe UniversityJim Radford, Principal Research Fellow, Research Centre for Future Landscapes, La Trobe UniversityRohan Clarke, Director, Monash Drone Discovery Platform, and Senior Lecturer in Ecology, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1697932021-10-25T16:23:42Z2021-10-25T16:23:42ZThe ‘Lord God Bird’ might be extinct, but the story of the ivory-billed woodpecker isn’t over yet<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427888/original/file-20211021-25-yox8f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=386%2C48%2C3633%2C2631&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An ivory-billed woodpecker on display at the California Academy of Sciences. The U.S. government is preparing to declare them extinct. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Haven Daley) </span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 175px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/the-‘lord-god-bird’-might-be-extinct--but-the-story-of-the-ivory-billed-woodpecker-isn’t-over-yet" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Since the Endangered Species Act was established nearly 50 years ago in the United States, the Fish and Wildlife Service has <a href="https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?_ID=37017">prevented the extinction of more than 99 per cent of the species listed in the act</a>. Unfortunately, even federal protection cannot totally protect American wildlife from what scientists call the “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/10/earths-sixth-mass-extinction-event-already-underway-scientists-warn">sixth mass extinction</a>.” </p>
<p>In its most recent report to the U.S. government, the Fish and Wildlife Service identified 23 lost causes, including the Kauai O'o, Bachman’s warbler and seven freshwater mussel species. Few have caused as much outcry, though, as the iconic ivory-billed woodpecker.</p>
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<img alt="a black and white photo showing two birds on a tree." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427912/original/file-20211021-22-izee0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=569&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The male ivorybill leaves as the female returns. Photo taken in Singer Tract, La., in April 1935. The last undisputed observation of an ivory-billed woodpecker occurred in 1944.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Arthur A. Allen/Wikipedia)</span></span>
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<p>Known as the “Lord God Bird” or “Holy Grail Bird” due to its impressive stature, striking plumage, loud drumming and incredible rarity, the ivory-billed woodpecker was once found in the old-growth forests of the southeastern U.S., from Florida to southern Illinois and from North Carolina to eastern Texas, as well as in Cuba. </p>
<p>It was all but decimated in the U.S. in the 1800s due to the combination of industrial <a href="https://www.fws.gov/ivorybill/pdf/ibwrecoveryplan2010.pdf">logging after the Civil War and hunting by scientific specimen collectors</a>, and it has <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/is-it-really-time-write-ivory-billed-woodpeckers-epitaph-0?fbclid=IwAR0U1qzBkpNMldOy0vEF9_5SrfLNgqa62h7PE2h3kRwJHMSdbWdLlszjg2M">dipped in and out of presumed extinction ever since</a>.</p>
<p>On Sept. 20, after decades of debate and nearly 80 years since the last undisputed sighting, the Fish and Wildlife Service declared its intention to remove the ivorybill from the Endangered Species List because it considers the bird extinct. </p>
<p>As a graduate student studying the culture and politics of the ivorybill — and its conservation and extinction — I believe the announcement may be one of the most disputed extinction events in American history. The ivorybill is a symbol of the Southern wilderness, a region that <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=va2rKC49EhYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Shadow+and+Shelter:+The+Swamp+in+Southern+Culture&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjHh8PIp97zAhXLc98KHYVRDj8Q6wF6BAgJEAE#v=onepage&q&f=false">some argue has not been at the forefront of U.S. conservation policy</a>. And advocates worry that removing the bird from federal protection will <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-science-animals-wildlife-fish-b6e61676548a1d7b2f81a6512cbed7a7">open up its habitat for exploitation</a>. </p>
<h2>A blurry four-second video</h2>
<p>The last commonly accepted sighting of the ivorybill was in 1944, when the National Audubon Society president sent Don Eckelberry, a 23-year-old wildlife artist, <a href="https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/mqr/2016/01/unsolved-histories-a-bird-lost-a-sketch-found-and-a-dream-to-bring-it-back/">to Louisiana’s Singer Tract to sketch a female bird</a>, rumoured to be the last in the U.S.</p>
<p>Dozens of alleged sightings of the bird have been reported since then. Many of them are amateur reports easily dismissed as sightings of pileated woodpeckers, <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ivory-billed_Woodpecker/species-compare/#">a smaller, more common relative</a>. Others are less clear cut. For instance, photos presented to the American Ornithological Union in 1971 were rejected as fraud, a taxidermied specimen the photographer had mounted on trees. But <a href="http://imperial-dreams.blogspot.com/2019/02/fielding-lewis-and-ivory-billed.html">some ornithologists now believe they were authentic</a>.</p>
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<img alt="A large black bird with a red comb on the side of a tree" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=836&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=836&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427911/original/file-20211021-14-1yuq5h5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=836&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The pileated woodpecker is easily confused with the ivory-billed woodpecker. Pileated woodpeckers have smaller, darker bills and a white throat.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Joshlaymon/Wikimedia)</span></span>
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<p>There have been other alleged sightings. Ornithologists from Auburn University <a href="https://www.ace-eco.org/vol1/iss3/art2/">repeatedly observed and heard birds they identified as ivorybills in the swamp forest in Florida in 2005 and 2006</a>. Acoustic scientist and amateur birder Michael Collins <a href="https://www.worldscientific.com/doi/abs/10.1142/S2591728521500201">recorded sounds resembling ivorybill knocks and calls</a> in Louisiana from 2006 to 2008. In this same search period, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2017.e00230">he also captured several blurry video recordings of what he believes are ivory-billed woodpeckers</a>. </p>
<p>The ivorybill debate peaked in 2005, when a team of researchers from the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1114103">claimed to have rediscovered the ivorybill at a wildlife refuge in eastern Arkansas</a>. The seven reported sightings and the blurry four-second-long video they offered as evidence weren’t exactly clear, but the group’s reputation sparked excitement that the ivory-billed woodpecker had been resurrected. Based on the evidence, the <a href="https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?newsId=897957A5-1143-3066-401A20C9DFF1CE36">U.S. government pledged over US$10 million towards the bird’s recovery effort</a>. </p>
<p>Skeptics, however, soon questioned the reports. Ivorybill expert Jerome Jackson <a href="https://academic.oup.com/auk/article/123/1/1/5562496">published an influential rebuttal seven months later</a>, claiming that the ornithologists had actually seen a pileated woodpecker. Although it initially believed the 2005 sightings, the Fish and Wildlife Service’s recent report dismisses these and all post-1944 sightings, saying <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/09/30/2021-21219/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-removal-of-23-extinct-species-from-the-lists-of">none has the necessary evidence to back them up</a>. </p>
<h2>Avian doppelgangers</h2>
<p>Objective evidence, in the view of the Fish and Wildlife Service, would include “clear photographs, feathers of demonstrated recent origins, specimens, etc.” Blurry photos and video could easily be images of another bird. Sound recordings could be of other birds too, and with only one surviving undisputed recording from 1935, there is plenty of room for doubt.</p>
<iframe width="100%" height="380" src="https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/6784/embed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<p>Ivorybill searchers, including Collins, argue the agency’s benchmark is unfair, as the ivorybill’s habitat of deep, unforgiving swamps — and its elusive nature — make such evidence near impossible to gather. </p>
<p>But the agency’s criteria is informed by what they believe is appropriate for this species. They say the ivorybill’s distinctive markings and decades of extensive survey efforts mean that if the bird does still live, it would have been conclusively documented by now. </p>
<p>For other species, the benchmark is different. For example, the Kauai O'o — also declared extinct in the same report — is a smaller and less visually detectable bird. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5THqAY3u5oY">Since its vocalizations are distinctive</a>, sound recordings might have been enough to prove its existence. </p>
<h2>Grassroots searches continue</h2>
<p>This chapter of American natural history isn’t closed yet. The public has until Nov. 29 to <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/09/30/2021-21219/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-removal-of-23-extinct-species-from-the-lists-of">present evidence of the ivorybill’s existence</a> to stop its removal from the Endangered Species Act. </p>
<p>There can be detrimental outcomes if a species is declared extinct too early. Removing federal protection eliminates conservation funding for the species and removes the pressure from states to protect the habitat. Other birds and vulnerable species in the area could also suffer. On the other hand, the agency’s decision is practical — removing a species with a low probability of revival frees up resources for others that might be saved. </p>
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<img alt="A woman wearing gloves and a mask holds a bird in front of a stack of specimen drawers." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427908/original/file-20211021-17-193zww7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Moe Flannery, senior collections manager for ornithology and mammalogy at the California Academy of Sciences, holds an Ivory-billed woodpecker, one of the species in their specimen collection, in San Francisco.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Haven Daley)</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>Even if the ivorybill is officially extinct, people will continue to look for it. The grassroots group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MissionIvorybill/">Mission Ivorybill</a> begins a three-year search effort in Louisiana on Nov. 1. Matt Courtman, a former president of the Louisiana Ornithological Society who founded the group, told me that he saw a pair of ivorybills as recently as 2019. The group hopes to provide evidence to overturn the extinction declaration.</p>
<p>Species have been rediscovered after declared or presumed extinction before. In 1951, <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/visit-animal-species-back-from-dead-lazarus-taxon">scientists rediscovered the Bermuda petrel</a> after it had been “extinct” for 330 years. These “Lazarus” species — named after the Biblical story of Lazarus rising from the dead — include a whale, a buckwheat species and a stick insect.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/meet-the-lazarus-creatures-six-species-we-thought-were-extinct-but-arent-50274">Meet the Lazarus creatures – six species we thought were extinct, but aren't</a>
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<p>Hope for the ivory-billed woodpecker may be found in Cuba, where some scientists, including those associated with the International Union of the Conservation of Nature, believe it may persist. Yet if the ivorybill is still living in the remote forests of the Southeastern U.S., the race is on to prove it in time to protect these iconic birds and their habitats.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169793/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hannah Hunter receives funding from the Social Sciences and Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p>It’s been 80 years since the last undisputed sighting of the striking black-and-white bird. The U.S. government believes the ivory-billed woodpecker is extinct — but many will keep searching for it.Hannah Hunter, PhD Candidate, Department of Geography and Planning, Queen's University, OntarioLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1627672021-06-20T20:17:59Z2021-06-20T20:17:59ZChina’s efforts to save its wandering elephants are laudable, but let’s not forget its bloody conflicts with the giants<p>Wild elephants are awe-inspiring — even if they’re trying to kill you, as I discovered in 2004. </p>
<p>At the time I was studying how <a href="https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/4193/Laurance_Croes_et_al._2006.pdf">poachers and loggers threaten native mammals</a> in Africa’s Congo Basin. I was sneaking up on a herd of forest elephants when they suddenly charged, rushing at me like enraged, out-of-control bulldozers. With the angry animals hot on my heels, I barely escaped by diving into a tangle of vines, shuddering with fear but oddly enthralled by it all, too. </p>
<p>Many residents of southern China must be feeling similarly. A herd of 15 Asian elephants, led by adult females, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-03/elephants-on-the-loose-in-china/100181904">departed last year</a> from <a href="http://www.yunnanadventure.com/index.php/Attraction/show/id/294.html">Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve</a>, near China’s border with Myanmar and Laos. Since then they’ve travelled <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-06-china-trekking-elephants-youngster.html">about 500 kilometres northward</a>, and are now approaching the bustling city of Kunming and its seven million inhabitants. </p>
<p>No one knows exactly where the elephants are going, or why. But two things are clear: the elephants were probably struggling to survive in their native habitat, and Chinese efforts to save the elephants clash with the nation’s <a href="https://www.thecivilengineer.org/news-center/latest-news/item/1638-china-s-belt-and-road-initiative-is-probably-the-riskiest-environmental-venture-in-history-researcher-warns">aggressive strategies of investment and global development</a>.</p>
<h2>Hope for the homeless</h2>
<p>As I’ve seen elsewhere, in Africa and Southeast Asia, hungry wild elephants can severely damage human crops, flattening gardens and orchards in their quest for a free meal. </p>
<p>During their sojourn in China, the behemoths — which can weigh over five tonnes as adults (more than three cars) — have indeed been helping themselves to farmers’ crops and anything else they deem edible from local villages and townships. In fact, they’ve caused <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-03/elephants-on-the-loose-in-china/100181904">more than US$1 million in damage</a> to crops so far. </p>
<p>This whole journey has captured the imagination of millions of Chinese citizens, with state broadcaster CCTV carrying a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-03/elephants-on-the-loose-in-china/100181904">24-hour live feed</a> of the spectacle. </p>
<p>At first blush, this sounds like a scenario that could go very badly for the elephants. When pachyderms and people collide, elephants usually lose. </p>
<p>But hope remains for the wandering herd. Asian elephants are a legally protected species in China. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/06/12/1005885975/china-elephants-kunming-yunnan-chinese-wandering-moving">Hundreds of police officers assisted by drones</a> have been monitoring the intrepid animals, while wildlife officials are trying to steer them away from populated areas with food baits and roadblocks involving hundreds of trucks. So far, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-06-china-trekking-elephants-youngster.html">some 3,500 people</a> have been evacuated temporarily to clear a path for the elephants.</p>
<h2>Missing the big picture</h2>
<p>Such efforts are laudable but misplaced. They address only the symptoms of environmental stress (displaced elephants) but not the “diseases” afflicting elephants in China and beyond.</p>
<p>Firstly, the wandering elephants may well have been forced to move because their home in southern China has been devastated by human development. </p>
<p>Even 15 years ago, when I first visited the Xishuangbanna region, the native rainforests there were being devastated, especially by clearing for <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0150062">exotic rubber-tree plantations</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Rubber-tree plantation in the Xishuangbanna region." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407291/original/file-20210618-20-1t3sr1x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In southern China, most native rainforests have been felled for crops such as rubber-tree plantations, as shown here in the Xishuangbanna region.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">William Laurance</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As a result, only <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-06-china-trekking-elephants-youngster.html">about 300 wild elephants</a> survive in all of China today.</p>
<p>Secondly, even with government efforts since 2018 to ban domestic ivory trading, illegal ivory is <a href="https://c402277.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/publications/1465/files/original/WWF_4th_Ivory_survey_report_FINAL.pdf?1618234920">still being consumed</a> at a terrifying rate. </p>
<p>This bloody trade is one of the main drivers of elephant poaching in Asia and Africa. Chinese citizens working overseas have been widely implicated in wildlife smuggling activities, including illegal ivory.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/chinas-growing-footprint-on-the-globe-threatens-to-trample-the-natural-world-88312">China’s growing footprint on the globe threatens to trample the natural world</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Finally, as it promotes new roads, dams and other large developments, China’s Belt & Road Initiative, which now spans <a href="https://www.cfr.org/blog/countries-chinas-belt-and-road-initiative-whos-and-whos-out">139 nations worldwide</a>, is rapidly increasing the <a href="https://theconversation.com/chinas-growing-footprint-on-the-globe-threatens-to-trample-the-natural-world-88312">effects of habitat destruction and human persecution</a> on elephants and other native wildlife. </p>
<p>In Latin America, for example, entrepreneurs and workers from China are causing a dramatic increase in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/11/science/jaguars-poaching-china.html">illegal poaching of jaguars</a>, the teeth and body parts of which are being used to produce certain traditional Chinese “medicines”.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407295/original/file-20210618-24-1ps1tjb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">China-funded road-construction project in the Congo Basin.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">William Laurance</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Take-home lessons</h2>
<p>What can we learn from China’s wandering elephants? At the outset, it’s clear many people, in China and beyond, are motivated far more easily by large, charismatic animals such as elephants than they are by rather nebulous concepts like ecosystem loss and degradation. </p>
<p>So, as we seek environmental sustainability in our densely populated world, we need to tell more <a href="https://theconversation.com/empathy-in-conservation-is-hotly-debated-still-the-world-needs-more-stories-like-my-octopus-teacher-149975">evocative stories that inspire hope</a> and capture the popular imagination.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/empathy-in-conservation-is-hotly-debated-still-the-world-needs-more-stories-like-my-octopus-teacher-149975">Empathy in conservation is hotly debated. Still, the world needs more stories like My Octopus Teacher</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>China’s wandering elephants also show us nature often needs large expanses of habitat to survive. </p>
<p>The potential habitat for elephants in China has been severely reduced and fragmented, and now totals less than 250,000 hectares overall in the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225379362_A_preliminary_study_on_designing_ecological_corridors_in_Xishuangbanna_National_Nature_Reserve_with_3S_techniques#pf2">critical Xishuangbanna region</a>. </p>
<p>Globally, scores of large-bodied species such as elephants and apex predators such as tigers are in big trouble because of the fatal one-two punch of habitat destruction and human persecution. To sustain these iconic species, we urgently need to conserve Earth’s remaining large ecosystems.</p>
<p>Further, China’s homeless elephants could give us a glimpse into the future. On a planet where most <a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">native ecosystems</a> are being <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-global-road-building-explosion-is-shattering-nature-70489">sliced and diced</a> to meet humanity’s needs, and where the climate is changing apace, wild animals like the Chinese elephants may increasingly need to pull up roots and move to new territories. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Forest elephant killed by poachers in the Congo Basin." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407293/original/file-20210618-14-1e7vbgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A forest elephant killed by poachers in the Republic of Congo. The animal’s face was hacked off with machetes to remove its valuable ivory tusks.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">William Laurance</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At great expense and effort, China is attempting to save its beleaguered band of elephants as they search for a new home.</p>
<p>But as the nation responsible for more <a href="https://www.ecologicalcitizen.net/article.php?t=thin-green-line-scientists-must-do-more-limit-toll-burgeoning-infrastructure-nature-society">habitat destruction</a>, wildlife poaching and <a href="https://www.activesustainability.com/environment/top-5-most-polluting-countries/">greenhouse-gas emissions</a> than any other, China bears a special responsibility to promote sustainable development — not just inside China but overseas as well. </p>
<p>Let’s applaud China’s efforts to save its wandering elephants while we bear in mind that, as a nation and economic superpower, it has far more left to do to ensure our planet remains liveable for vulnerable wildlife — and for us too.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/existential-threat-to-our-survival-see-the-19-australian-ecosystems-already-collapsing-154077">'Existential threat to our survival': see the 19 Australian ecosystems already collapsing</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/162767/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bill Laurance receives funding from the Australian Research Council and other scientific and philanthropic organisations. He is the director of the Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science at James Cook University and founder and director of ALERT--the Alliance of Leading Environmental Researchers & Thinkers.</span></em></p>As an economic superpower, China has far more left to do to ensure our planet remains liveable for vulnerable wildlife.Bill Laurance, Distinguished Research Professor and Australian Laureate, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1476692021-01-21T04:09:45Z2021-01-21T04:09:45ZIt’s not too late to save them: 5 ways to improve the government’s plan to protect threatened wildlife<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379859/original/file-20210121-21-1cy00a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C33%2C5514%2C3637&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Numbats are among 20 mammals on the federal government's priority list. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia’s Threatened Species Strategy — a <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/threatened-species-strategy">five-year plan</a> for protecting our imperilled species and ecosystems — fizzled to an end last year. A <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/strategy-home">new 10-year plan</a> is being developed to take its place, likely from March.</p>
<p>It comes as Australia’s list of <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/sprat.pl">threatened species</a> continues to grow. Relatively <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cobi.12852">recent extinctions</a>, such as the Christmas Island forest skink, Bramble Cay melomys and <a href="https://www.livescience.com/handfish-extinct.html">smooth handfish</a>, add to an already <a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-re-counted-australias-extinct-species-and-the-result-is-devastating-127611">heavy toll</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379866/original/file-20210121-13-1l5d58c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Red handfish (<em>Thymichthys politus</em>), cousin of the recently extinct smooth handfish, are critically endangered. They’re small, bottom-dwelling fish that tend to ‘walk’ on their pectoral and pelvic fins rather than swim.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">CSIRO Science Image</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now, more than ever, Australia’s remarkable species and environments need <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-must-rip-up-our-environmental-laws-to-address-the-extinction-crisis-116746">strong</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/environment-laws-have-failed-to-tackle-the-extinction-emergency-heres-the-proof-122936">effective</a> policies to strengthen their protection and boost their recovery. </p>
<p>So as we settle into the new year, let’s reflect on what’s worked and what must urgently be improved upon, to turn around Australia’s extinction crisis. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/let-there-be-no-doubt-blame-for-our-failing-environment-laws-lies-squarely-at-the-feet-of-government-141482">Let there be no doubt: blame for our failing environment laws lies squarely at the feet of government</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How effective was the first Threatened Species Strategy?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/strategy-home">Threatened Species Strategy</a> is a key guiding document for biodiversity conservation at the national level. It identifies 70 <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/species/20-mammals-by-2020">priority species</a> for conservation, made up of 20 birds, 20 mammals and 30 plants, such as the plains-wanderer, malleefowl, eastern quoll, greater bilby, black grevillea and Kakadu hibiscus.</p>
<p>These were considered among the most urgent in need of assistance of the more than 1,800 <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/species">threatened species</a> in Australia.</p>
<p>The strategy also identifies targets such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/feral-cat-cull-why-the-2-million-target-is-on-scientifically-shaky-ground-111824">numbers of feral cats to be culled</a>, and partnerships across industry, academia and government key to making the strategy successful. </p>
<p>The original strategy (2015-20) was eagerly welcomed for putting the national spotlight on threatened species conservation. It has certainly helped <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/commissioner/tsbakeoff">raise awareness</a> of its priority species. </p>
<p>However, there’s little evidence the strategy has had a significant impact on threatened species conservation to date. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/3-year-review-progress-priority-bird-mammal-species">midterm report</a> in 2019 found only 35% of the priority species (14 in total) had improving trajectories compared to before the strategy (pre-2015). This number included six species — such as the brush-tailed rabbit-rat and western ringtail possum — that were still declining, but just at a slower rate. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=175&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=175&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=175&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372952/original/file-20201203-17-1uzp7oj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Threatened Species Index trends for mammals (left) and birds (right) from 2000 to 2017. The index and y axes show the average change in populations (not actual population numbers) through time.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://tsx.org.au/tsx/#/">The Theatened Species Recovery Hub</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>On average, the trends of threatened mammal and bird populations across Australia are not increasing.</p>
<p>Other targets, such as killing <a href="https://theconversation.com/feral-cat-cull-why-the-2-million-target-is-on-scientifically-shaky-ground-111824">two million</a> feral cats by 2020, were not explicitly linked to measurable conservation outcomes, such as an increase in populations of threatened native animals. Because of this, it’s difficult to judge their success.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/feral-cat-cull-why-the-2-million-target-is-on-scientifically-shaky-ground-111824">Feral cat cull: why the 2 million target is on scientifically shaky ground</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What needs to change?</h2>
<p>The previous strategy focused very heavily on feral cats as a threat and less so on other <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-species-need-an-independent-champion-83580">important and potentially compounding threats</a>, particularly habitat destruction and degradation. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/372945/original/file-20201203-17-1hi3z5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Targets from the first Threatened Species Strategy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.environment.gov.au/resource/threatened-species-strategy-2020-targets">Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For instance, land clearing has contributed to a similar number of <a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-re-counted-australias-extinct-species-and-the-result-is-devastating-127611">extinctions</a> in Australia (62 species) as introduced animals such as feral cats (64). </p>
<p>In fact, 2018 research found <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/pc18024">agricultural activities</a> affect at least 73% of invertebrates, 82% of birds, 69% of amphibians and 73% of mammals listed as threatened in Australia. <a href="https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/202010.0372/v1">Urban development and climate change</a> threaten up to 33% and 56% of threatened species, respectively.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-buffel-kerfuffle-how-one-species-quietly-destroys-native-wildlife-and-cultural-sites-in-arid-australia-149456">The buffel kerfuffle: how one species quietly destroys native wildlife and cultural sites in arid Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Other important threats to native Australian species include pollution, feral herbivores (such as horses and goats), very frequent or hot bushfires and weeds. <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-buffel-kerfuffle-how-one-species-quietly-destroys-native-wildlife-and-cultural-sites-in-arid-australia-149456">Buffel grass</a> was recently identified as a major emerging threat to Australia’s biodiversity, with the risk being as high as the threat posed by cats and foxes. </p>
<h2>Five vital improvements</h2>
<p>We made <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj7y8-NkLHtAhWR7XMBHfeEBhIQFjAAegQIBRAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecolsoc.org.au%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2FSCBO-and-ESA-submission-on-TSS2.0.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1GPgM9I3SjJ3nO9O2PTQK_">a submission</a> to the Morrison government when the Threatened Species Strategy was under review. Below, we detail our key recommendations.</p>
<p><strong>1. A holistic and evidence-based approach encompassing the full range of threats</strong> </p>
<p>This includes <a href="https://theconversation.com/land-clearing-on-the-rise-as-legal-thinning-proves-far-from-clear-cut-79419">reducing rates of land clearing</a> — a major and ongoing issue, but largely overlooked in the previous strategy.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A Leadbeater's possum peers out from behind a tree trunk." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379861/original/file-20210121-15-1uowep5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Leadbeater’s possums are critically endangered. Their biggest threat is the destruction of hollow-bearing trees.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>2. Formal prioritisation of focal species, threats and actions</strong></p>
<p>The previous strategy focused heavily on a small subset of the more than 1,800 threatened species and ecosystems in Australia. It mostly disregarded frog, reptile, fish and invertebrate species also threatened with extinction. </p>
<p>To reduce bias towards primarily “charismatic” species, the federal government should use an evidence-based prioritisation approach, known as “decision science”, like they do in <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0201413">New South Wales</a>, <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2008.01124.x">New Zealand</a> and <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/conl.12604">Canada</a>. This would ensure funds are spent on the most feasible and beneficial recovery efforts. </p>
<p><strong>3. Targets linked to clear and measurable conservation outcomes</strong></p>
<p>Some targets in the first Threatened Species Strategy were difficult to measure, not explicitly linked to conservation outcomes, or weak. Targets need to be more specific. </p>
<p>For example, a target to “improve the trajectory” of threatened species could be achieved if extinction is occurring at a slightly slower rate. Alternatively, a target to “improve the conservation status” of a species is achieved if new assessments rate it as “vulnerable” rather than “endangered”. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379863/original/file-20210121-19-7j39bs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The ant plant (<em>Myrmecodia beccarii</em>) is one of the 30 plants on the federal government’s list of priority species. It is an ‘epiphyte’ (grows on other plants), and is threatened by habitat loss, invasive weeds, and removal by plant and butterfly collectors.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dave Kimble/Wikimedia</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>4. Significant financial investment from government</strong></p>
<p>Investing in conservation <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24295">reduces biodiversity loss</a>. A 2019 study found Australia’s listed threatened species could be recovered for about <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/conl.12682?af=R">A$1.7 billion per year</a>. This money could be raised by removing <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12705">harmful subsidies that directly threaten biodiversity</a>, such as those to industries emitting large volumes of greenhouse gases. </p>
<p>The first strategy featured a call for <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/threatened-species-prospectus">co-investment from industry</a>. But this failed to attract much private sector interest, meaning many important projects aimed at conserving species did not proceed. </p>
<p><strong>5. Government leadership, coordination and policy alignment</strong></p>
<p>The Threatened Species Strategy should be aligned with Australia’s international obligations such as the <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals">United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals</a> and the federal <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/epbc">Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act</a> 1999 (which is also <a href="https://theconversation.com/let-there-be-no-doubt-blame-for-our-failing-environment-laws-lies-squarely-at-the-feet-of-government-141482">currently being reviewed</a>). This will help foster a more coherent and efficient national approach to threatened species conservation. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/379864/original/file-20210121-23-17xnmgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The biggest threat to the critically endangered swift parrot is the clearing of their foraging and breeding habitat.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are also incredible opportunities to better align threatened species conservation with policies and investment in <a href="https://theconversation.com/farming-carbon-can-be-a-win-for-wildlife-if-the-price-is-right-40088">climate change mitigation</a> and <a href="https://www.farmonline.com.au/story/6247226/government-told-to-fund-farmers-who-boost-biodiversity/">sustainable agriculture</a>. </p>
<p>The benefits of investing heavily in wildlife reach beyond preventing extinctions. It would <a href="https://www.farmonline.com.au/story/6885885/support-growing-for-an-environmental-job-stimulus-package/">generate</a> many jobs, including in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jul/01/call-for-4bn-stimulus-that-would-create-50000-jobs-and-care-for-the-environment">regional and Indigenous communities</a>. </p>
<p>Protecting our natural heritage is an investment, not a cost. Now is the time to seize this opportunity.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-re-counted-australias-extinct-species-and-the-result-is-devastating-127611">Scientists re-counted Australia's extinct species, and the result is devastating</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/147669/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Euan Ritchie receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Federal Government’s Bushfire Recovery Program, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, WWF and Parks Victoria. Euan Ritchie is a Director (Media Working Group) and member of the Ecological Society of Australia, and a member of the Australian Mammal Society.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ayesha Tulloch receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the NSW Government's Department of Planning, Industry and Environment. She is the Vice President of Public Policy and Outreach and co-convenes the Science Communication Chapter for the Ecological Society of Australia, and sits on Birdlife Australia's Research and Conservation Committee. She is a member of eBird Australia, the Society for conservation Biology and the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre Citizen Science Node.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Don Driscoll receives funding from the Herman Slade Foundation, OEH NSW Environmental Grants program, DELWP Vic, National Geographic, Rufford Foundation, WWF and Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, Australian Government Bushfire Recovery program. He is Director of the Centre of Integrative Ecology and Director of the TechnEcology Research Network at Deakin University. Don is a member of the Ecological Society of Australia and Society for Conservation Biology. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Megan C Evans receives funding from the Australian Research Council as part of a Discovery Early Career Research Award. Previously she has been funded by the National Environmental Science Program's Threatened Species Recovery Hub.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Doherty is Chair of the Policy Committee for the Society for Conservation Biology Oceania and a member of the Ecological Society of Australia. He receives funding from the Hermon Slade Foundation, Australian Academy of Science, Australian Research Council and NSW Environmental Trust.</span></em></p>The first Threatened Species Strategy fizzled out last year without making a big difference to conservation. With the next strategy due to roll out this year, let’s look at what needs to change.Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin UniversityAyesha Tulloch, DECRA Research Fellow, University of SydneyDon Driscoll, Professor in Terrestrial Ecology, Deakin UniversityMegan C Evans, Lecturer and ARC DECRA Fellow, UNSW SydneyTim Doherty, ARC DECRA Fellow, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.