tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/wildlife-conservation-4235/articlesWildlife conservation – The Conversation2024-03-26T16:03:37Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2248822024-03-26T16:03:37Z2024-03-26T16:03:37ZWe built an AI tool to help set priorities for conservation in Madagascar: what we found<p><em>Artificial Intelligence (AI) – models that process large and diverse datasets and make predictions from them – can have many uses in nature conservation, such as remote monitoring (like the use of camera traps to study animals or plants) or data analysis. Some of these are controversial because AI can be trained to be biased, but others are valuable research tools.</em></p>
<p><em>Biologist Daniele Silvestro has developed an <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-022-00851-6">AI tool</a> that can help identify conservation and restoration priorities. We asked him to tell us more about how it works and what it offers.</em></p>
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<h2>How does your artificial intelligence tool for conservation work?</h2>
<p>Artificial intelligence (AI) is a term indicating a broad family of models used to process large and diverse datasets and make predictions from them. </p>
<p>We built a model using biodiversity datasets as well as socioeconomic data. The aim was to identify optimal strategies to conserve nature. Our AI tool, Conservation Area Prioritisation through Artificial Intelligence (Captain), uses a type of AI called <a href="https://online.york.ac.uk/what-is-reinforcement-learning/">reinforcement learning</a>. This is a family of algorithms that optimises decisions within a dynamic environment. </p>
<p>The tool we built was the result of years of work involving an international team with experience in biology, sustainable economics, maths and computer science.</p>
<p>The software we developed can take multiple types of data as input, including biodiversity maps, species ranges, climate and predicted climate change, as well as socioeconomic data such as cost of land and a budget available for conservation action. It then processes this information and, based on a set conservation target (for example, to include all endangered species in a protected area, or to protect as many species as possible) it suggests a conservation policy.</p>
<p>The tool’s environment is a simulation of biodiversity, an artificial world with species and individuals that reproduce, migrate and die through time. We use the tool to look for the most appropriate conservation policy. </p>
<p>It works similarly to a video game where the player (called the agent) is the “brains” of our software. The goal of the game is to protect biodiversity and prevent as many species as possible from going extinct within a simulated environment that includes human pressure and climate change. </p>
<p>The agent observes the environment and tries to place protected areas in this environment in the best way. At the end of the game the agent gets a reward for each species it manages to save from extinction. It will have to play the game many times to learn how to best interpret the environment and place the protected areas. After that, the model is trained and can be used with real biodiversity data to identify conservation priorities that should maximise biodiversity protection. </p>
<h2>Why did you test the tool in Madagascar? What did you find?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.kew.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/State%20of%20the%20World%27s%20Plants%20and%20Fungi%202023.pdf">State of the World’s Plants and Fungi report</a> showed that biodiversity is facing unprecedented threats, with as many as 45% of all plant species at risk of extinction. Together with climate change, this is one of the major challenges humanity faces, given our dependence on the natural world for our survival. </p>
<p>In a recent <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.adf1466">paper</a> we summarised the extent of Madagascar’s extraordinary concentration of biodiversity with thousands of species of plants, animals and fungi. The project was led by Hélène Ralimanana of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Kew Madagascar Conservation Centre. </p>
<p>By applying the Captain tool to a dataset of endemic trees of Madagascar we were able to identify the most important areas for biodiversity protection in the country, for instance the area in the Sava region, where the Marojejy National Park has long been established. </p>
<p>Madagascar already has number of conservation areas and programmes. What our experiment shows is that the technology we developed can be used with real-world data. We hope it can guide conservation planning.</p>
<h2>Who do you think can use the Captain AI?</h2>
<p>We think it can help policy makers, practitioners and companies in guiding conservation and restoration planning. In particular, the software can use diverse types of data in addition to biodiversity data. For instance it can use costs and opportunity costs related to setting up protected or restoration areas. It can also use future climate scenarios. </p>
<h2>Is technology alone enough to conserve biodiversity?</h2>
<p>Certainly not. Technology can help us by crunching the numbers and disentangling complex data. But there are many aspects of conservation that are not easily quantifiable as numbers. There are aspects of cultural value of land and nature, and social and political issues related to the fair distribution of resources. These are issues for real humans to take into account, rather than artificial intelligence programs. </p>
<p>Technology and science can (and should) assist us in making decisions, but ultimately the protection and conservation of the natural world is and must be in the hands of humans, not software.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224882/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniele Silvestro is a computational biologist at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) and University of Gothenburg (Sweden). He is also a co-founder of CAPTAIN Technologies LTD.
D.S. acknowledges funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation (PCEFP3_187012), the Swedish Research Council (2019-04739), and the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research MISTRA within the framework of the research programme BIOPATH (F 2022/1448).</span></em></p>Conservation of biodiversity is in the hands of humans but artificial intelligence can help guide decisions.Daniele Silvestro, Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, University of FribourgLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2238782024-03-21T14:35:28Z2024-03-21T14:35:28ZPangolins in Africa: expert unpacks why millions have been traded illegally and what can be done about it<p>Pangolins are fascinating creatures known for their unique appearance and distinctive scales. They are mammals belonging to the order Pholidota and are <a href="https://www.savepangolins.org/what-is-a-pangolin">native to Africa and Asia</a>. Due to their primary diet of ants and termites, pangolins are often referred to as “scaly anteaters”.</p>
<p>The African pangolin species are dispersed throughout southern, western, central and east Africa. </p>
<p>Pangolins face rapid declines across Asia and Africa, with all eight species classified as <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/pangolins#:%7E:text=There%20are%20eight%20species%20of,bellied%E2%80%94are%20listed%20as%20vulnerable.">vulnerable, endangered</a>, or critically endangered. They are <a href="https://www.savepangolins.org/threats">threatened</a> by poaching and habitat loss, driven by the demand for their meat and scales.</p>
<p>Pangolins are the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2023-02-17-operation-pangolin-launches-save-world-s-most-trafficked-wild-mammal">most trafficked wild mammal in the world</a>. <a href="https://davidshepherd.org/species/pangolins/trade-statement/">Their meat is considered a delicacy</a> in Asia while their scales are also used in traditional medicines, fetching huge sums on the black market. As many as <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2023-02-17-operation-pangolin-launches-save-world-s-most-trafficked-wild-mammal">8.5 million pangolins</a> are estimated to have been removed from the wild in west and central Africa for the illegal trade between 2014 and 2021. </p>
<p>The trade route analysis of pangolin trafficking <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2665910720300876">points to</a> Lagos as the main connection point both domestically and worldwide, including south-east Asian countries. Malaysia, Laos and Singapore also serve as key transit countries for pangolin-scale shipments from Nigeria.</p>
<p>China and Vietnam are the main <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2665910720300876">destinations for these illegal shipments</a>.</p>
<p>I am a zoologist who’s passionate about the environment and biodiversity conservation. I am also the founder and chair of Pangolin Conservation Guild Nigeria. In my view, effective protection, law enforcement and changes in consumer behaviour are necessary to address the complex drivers of poaching and trafficking.</p>
<h2>What makes pangolins special</h2>
<p>Pangolins are interesting for a number of reasons. </p>
<p><strong>Scales:</strong> Unlike any other mammals, they are covered with keratin scales. This adaptation is a defence against predators. The scales, <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/pangolins">made of the same material as human fingernails</a>, provide armour-like protection as they curl into a ball when threatened, shielding their vulnerable underbelly. The scales can account for up to <a href="https://www.awf.org/blog/5-things-you-didn%E2%80%99t-know-about-pangolin">20% of a pangolin’s total body weight</a>. A pangolin’s scales are a reminder of the incredible diversity of adaptations in the natural world. </p>
<p><strong>Habitats:</strong> Pangolins, as a group, are also adaptable to different environmental conditions. Their habitats include tropical forests, dry woodlands and savannahs. Some pangolin species, like the white-bellied, are adept climbers and spend much of their time in the canopy, foraging for insects among the branches. These arboreal habits provide them with both food and shelter, as well as protection from ground-dwelling predators. Other pangolin species, such as the ground pangolins, live on the forest floor or in grasslands. They may dig burrows underground where they retreat for rest and safety, particularly during the heat of the day or to escape potential threats.</p>
<p><strong>Defence:</strong> The name “pangolin” <a href="https://www.wwf.org.uk/learn/fascinating-facts/pangolins">originates</a> from the Malay word <em>pengguling</em>, which translates to “rolling up”. They tuck in their head and limbs and curl into a tight ball when faced with danger, wrapping their body in a protective layer of overlapping scales. This has helped pangolins survive predators such as big cats, hyenas and humans. </p>
<p><strong>Diet:</strong> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9686612/#:%7E:text=The%20food%20of%20pangolins%20in,feeding%20%5B15%2C16%5D.">Pangolins primarily feed on ants and termites</a>, making them essential players in controlling insect populations within their ecosystems. They find the insects using their keen sense of smell and their tongues – which are often longer than their bodies. These long tongues are coated with sticky saliva, allowing them to probe deep into ant and termite nests to extract their prey. Their strong claws are also well-suited for tearing open insect nests and breaking through hard soil to uncover hidden prey. Pangolins’ diets play a crucial role in maintaining the health and stability of their environments.</p>
<h2>Pangolins in Africa</h2>
<p>In west and central Africa, the giant pangolin is distributed in a variety of habitats, including primary and secondary forests, swamp forests and wooded savannahs. Temminck’s pangolin (<em>Smutsia temminckii</em>) is the <a href="https://africanpangolin.org/discover/temmincks-ground-pangolin/#:%7E:text=Smutsia%20temminckii,to%20date%20weighing%2019%20kg">most widely distributed African pangolin</a>, occurring mainly in southern and east Africa. The <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780128155073000083">black-bellied pangolin</a> (<em>Phataginus tetradactyla</em>) is an arboreal pangolin species, and occurs in west and central Africa. The <a href="https://pangolinsg.org/portfolio/white-bellied-pangolin/#:%7E:text=Distribution,%3B%20Togo%3B%20Uganda%3B%20Zambia">white-bellied pangolin</a> (<em>Phataginus tricuspis</em>) is the most frequently encountered pangolin in Africa. The white-bellied pangolin is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S277281372200018X?via%3Dihub">found in north-central and south-western Nigeria</a>.</p>
<p>In Nigeria, pangolins are found in various habitats, including <a href="https://www.savepangolins.org/what-is-a-pangolin">forests, savannahs and grasslands</a>. Their distribution and abundance in Nigeria are uncertain, highlighting the need for further research and conservation efforts.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/400-000-african-pangolins-are-hunted-for-meat-every-year-why-its-time-to-act-111540">400,000 African pangolins are hunted for meat every year -- why it's time to act</a>
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<p>Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, serves as a hub for the illegal trade of pangolins. It is a transit route to Cameroon and is involved in shipments of pangolins from sub-Saharan Africa to Asia. Cameroon is at <a href="https://www.usip.org/publications/2023/04/peace-poaching-and-pangolins-central-africa">the centre of wildlife trafficking in central Africa</a>. It is both a source country of animal products as well as a transit route for contraband from neighbouring Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic.</p>
<p>In 2022, Nigerian customs officials <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-67134651">seized</a> 1,613 tonnes of pangolin scales and arrested 14 people. In October 2023, Nigeria <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nigeria-destroys-seized-pangolin-parts-deter-wildlife-trafficking-2023-10-17/">burned</a> four tonnes of seized pangolin scales, valued at US$1.4 million. Officials said this was the first time they had publicly destroyed seized wildlife products to discourage illegal trafficking. </p>
<h2>Why pangolin conservation is important</h2>
<p>Pangolin conservation is crucial for several reasons. </p>
<p>Firstly, pangolins play a vital role in ecosystems by controlling insect populations, particularly ants and termites, which helps maintain ecological balance. </p>
<p>They also contribute to soil health through their digging behaviour, which aerates the soil and promotes nutrient cycling.</p>
<p>Moreover, pangolins are indicators of ecosystem health. Their presence or absence can reflect the overall well-being of their habitats. Protecting pangolins helps safeguard biodiversity and the integrity of their ecosystems.</p>
<p>They also have cultural and economic value in many regions, contributing to ecotourism.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223878/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Olajumoke Morenikeji is affiliated with the Pangolin Conservation Guild Nigeria, which she founded. The organisation educates and creates awareness on pangolin conservation, conducts scientific research, collaborates with relevant organisations, advises policymakers, and facilitates pangolin rescue, rehabilitation and release into protected forest areas. I also chair the West Africa region International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission (SSC) Pangolin Specialist Group.</span></em></p>Pangolins are among the most trafficked and poached mammals in the world.Olajumoke Morenikeji, Professor Department of Zoology, University of IbadanLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2187452024-01-04T12:51:25Z2024-01-04T12:51:25ZSpiders really may be more scared of you than you are of them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566276/original/file-20231218-23-ws5uv6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C12%2C8191%2C5456&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Spiders often act passively in response to humans. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/jumping-spider-human-hand-2360829801">Jimmy_Chan/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Spiders have evolved creative strategies to allow them to thrive in habitats across the globe. The one thing that seems to elude them though, is the ability to charm the humans that they encounter. </p>
<p>But what about the spider’s perspective of humans when they find a new home near us? It’s not possible to read a spider’s mind, but research has uncovered some surprising insights about how they behave around humans. </p>
<p>Take the Jorō spider, <em>Trichonephila clavata</em>. News reports have <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1ZXH_eT9c8">spread alarm</a> about the palm-size Jorō spider recently settling in parts of the US. </p>
<p>This spider is native to part of eastern Asia but over the last decade has established itself in the US, following its cousin, the golden silk spider <em>Trichonephila clavipes</em>, which arrived <a href="https://resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/phen.12385">around 160 years ago</a>. </p>
<p>But its behaviour suggests it may be more worried about us than the other way around. The Jorō spider has a tendency to play dead. This ploy is known as <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5769822/">thanatosis</a> among scientists. It is a response to threats used by many creatures in the animal world, including other arachnids such as scorpions. </p>
<h2>Playing dead</h2>
<p>It’s common for spiders to do this in response to a potential hazard, or even as part of their mating strategy. What is unusual about the Jorō spider though, is just how long it keeps up the act. A <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2813-3323/1/2/9">2023 study</a> of ten spider species found most spiders froze for about a minute in response to a few rapid puffs of air. Jorō spiders lay motionless for more than an hour. </p>
<p>Playing dead at specific times is an <a href="https://academic.oup.com/beheco/article/19/3/546/185057">advantageous strategy</a>. It reduces the chances of being eaten by predators or potential mates, such as cannibalistic <em>Pisaura mirabilis</em> (European nursery web spider) females.</p>
<p>It might come with a cost such as missing out on a passing feast in the form of a flying insect. But playing dead is probably a more energy efficient way of staying safe from a predator than active defensive strategies. For example, <em>Pholcus</em> cellar spiders will spend far more energy trying to confuse and deter predators by whirling around in their webs.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/punk-hairstyles-and-pirouettes-why-theres-more-to-spiders-than-people-think-189801">Punk hairstyles and pirouettes: why there's more to spiders than people think</a>
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<p>Aggressive responses spiders use include raising their legs and moving their fangs to scare off other animals. More often though, responses to perceived threats – including an approaching human – <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.12177">are passive</a>. Examples include hiding or camouflaging against a background, masquerading as a different species, or even hiding behind other predators. The latter is adopted by <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-014-1690-2">tiny jumping spiders</a> that take refuge from spiting spiders by hiding in ant nests.</p>
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<img alt="Japanese yellow joro spider in the web close up" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562382/original/file-20231129-21-i6inhf.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">
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<span class="caption">Joro spiders aren’t exactly inconspicuous.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/beautiful-japanese-yellow-joro-spider-net-2228441763">Photo Spirit/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>But the Jorō spider has a conspicuously coloured, gold and black body, and builds large webs one metre in diameter. It’s too large to hide and too distinctive to masquerade or mimic so must rely on other strategies, including playing dead. </p>
<h2>Who is scared of who</h2>
<p>It’s not clear why we are so susceptible to arachnophobia, but studies show humans have similar emotive reactions to very different animals (wolves, crows, spiders). Scientists suggest these fear responses to other animals are driven by a need to control our <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.593501">ecological environment</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pan3.10143">News stories</a> fuel people’s assumptions that spiders have bad intentions towards us. And these sentiments are reinforced by the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9940273/Creepy-crawlies-Homes-invaded-thousands-spiders-mating-season-kicks-UK.html">seasonal appearances</a> of big spiders in our gardens and under the sofa. </p>
<p>Some spiders, such as the recluse spiders of the US, have a bite that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6628458/">sometimes needs medical treatment</a> but even then, the threat they pose is <a href="https://www.wired.com/2013/11/poor-misunderstood-brown-recluse/">often exaggerated</a>. To put it in context, no spider appears on the WHO’s <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/animal-bites">list of dangerous animals</a> but domestic dogs and cats do. </p>
<p>Tens of millions of people are reportedly injured by domestic dogs each year. Stories about the benefits of spider venom, for example as templates for <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6551028/">new medicines</a> that may one day be used to treat pain and diseases such as cancer, get a lot less media attention than spider bites.</p>
<p>People are also almost certainly more dangerous to spiders than the other way around. This is because our food production systems rely on insecticides that are lethal to spiders and are probably contributing to <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-29003-2">their widescale decline</a>. This is a problem for humans because spiders have an important role in agriculture, eating pest insects. Their decline might have long-term consequences for what you put on your table. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/studying-the-stomach-contents-of-spiders-shows-how-they-help-control-crop-pests-201066">Studying the stomach contents of spiders shows how they help control crop pests</a>
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<p>As a biologist, I can’t help but feel impressed by the imaginative solutions spiders use to cope with the world around them. They construct <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221959568_The_Role_of_Behavior_in_the_Evolution_of_Spiders_Silks_and_Webs">elaborate silken structures</a> – from giant orb webs complete with decorations (called stabilimenta), to cunningly disguised trapdoors in the ground. </p>
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<p>Spider silk allows them to live everywhere from the <a href="https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/wildlife/2017/05/cave-spiders/">cold depths of deep caves</a>, to the <a href="https://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/spiders/water-spider#:%7E:text=The%20water%20spider%20is%20the%20only%20spider%20that%20spends%20its,Males%20are%20larger%20than%20females.">underwater realms</a> of ponds, to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/tarantulas-spiders-new-species-high-elevation-news">high altitudes in the mountains</a>. </p>
<p>When small, spiderlings can travel thousands of kilometres by wind, using silken sails. In the same way that our life experiences shape us, the spider’s journey also shapes its future. This is because the environments young spiders experience during development, such as temperature or the amount of food available, can influence later life strategies, <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.12512">for example when foraging</a> or deciding whether to stay somewhere or move away.</p>
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<img alt="White silk spiral." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/562369/original/file-20231129-22-ulz8qc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&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">Spiders can spin elaborate webs: the spiral stabilimentum of Japanese spider Octonoba yaeyamensis.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Octonoba.yaeyamensis.stabilimentum.1.-.takinawa.jpg">Akio Tanikawa/WikiMedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Jorō is also capable of flying in the air as a spiderling, but its recent arrival in the US is probably the result of human activity. For example, hitching a ride in your luggage or on commercially transported goods. And our concern about their spread is best focused not on the spider itself, but on potential ecosystem disruption lower down the food chain.</p>
<p>New arrivals to an area – including this spider – might compete with resident species for food, or influence other types of plant or animal in unexpected ways. In Florida, for example, invasive <em>Cyrtophora</em> spiders sometimes spin so much silk that they cause problems for host plants, potentially <a href="https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/MISC/SPIDERS/Cyrtophora_citricola.htm">damaging farmers’ crops</a>. </p>
<p>This example serves as a reminder that the consequence of a spider’s actions might be more complicated than it first appears – passive or not. We benefit from improving our understanding of spiders. This will be easier if we can stop viewing them through an emotive lens.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218745/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sara Goodacre has received funding from NERC, BBSRC, Wellcome and the Royal Society. She is a member of the British Arachnological Society and the European Society for the study of Arachnology</span></em></p>An expert on why spiders are misunderstood and their fascinating survival strategies.Sara Goodacre, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Genetics, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2179252023-12-27T20:26:29Z2023-12-27T20:26:29ZI collect marsupial poo. A crack team of volunteers across Australia helps me out<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559861/original/file-20231116-15-5v6vpr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C328%2C1484%2C1248&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tracy Dodd</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>I thought convincing my husband of the merits of my returning to study just as he had retired would be a very tricky sell. So his enthusiasm for the idea caught me by surprise.</p>
<p>He helpfully suggested several interesting topics: sea turtles, dugongs and coral reefs. If it involved a boat in a warm climate, he was behind me 100%.</p>
<p>But if you are going to dedicate three and a half years to studying a single topic, it really needs to excite you, and my interest in gut bacteria and health won out. Much to my hubby’s dismay, I chose to immerse myself in the subject of marsupial poo – and in retaliation he started calling me Dr Poo.</p>
<p>Fortunately, I am not alone in my faecal fetish. As any wildlife carer can tell you, monitoring what comes out of an animal is a vital part of keeping an eye on its health. </p>
<p>So when I set out to find volunteers to collect poo from wild and captive marsupials – specifically eastern grey kangaroos, swamp wallabies, red-necked wallabies, bare-nosed wombats, and ringtail and brushtail possums – over an area from Queensland to Tasmania, it was mainly wildlife carers who answered the call. </p>
<h2>The Marsupial Microbiome Poop Troop</h2>
<p>I enlisted a core group of around 20 people who, every season, dutifully went out in all weathers, armed with their forceps and zip-lock bags, to select fresh pellets from their in-care residents or wild animals that passed through. Then they filled in the paperwork, carefully labelled the bags and stored them in freezers until they could be posted in special temperature-controlled packaging to the university for genetic analysis. </p>
<p>We did this to establish a baseline of what the normal wild gut microbiome looks like in different animals in different areas at different times of the year. This lets us recognise if there is an imbalance in captive animals that can be addressed and prevented by changing diet or introducing supplements.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A photo of marsupial droppings in a yellow cloth." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/559862/original/file-20231116-17-i3bmax.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A collection of precious kangaroo poo.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Diane Lane</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To aid my communication with these wonderful volunteers, I started a Facebook group page which became known as the Marsupial Microbiome Poop Troop. And it has some colourful members.</p>
<p>There is Kate, who obtains the freshest wombat poo by stalking wild wombats in her local reserve until they produce the goods. Don’t try this at home. Kate has serious wombat-whisperer skills. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-can-you-learn-from-studying-an-animals-scat-126307">What can you learn from studying an animal's scat?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There’s Darryl, who was devastated when the roof blew off his house in a storm and he was without power for two weeks. Not for his wrecked house or loss of possessions, but because his collection of possum poo thawed and he had to throw it away and start again.</p>
<p>Julie wins the prize for most prolific collector. Her poo parcels are the largest by far, and cover quite a few species. The supervisor of the university’s stores, who receives the poo parcels, is not always a fan of Julie’s efforts. He must have highly attuned olfactory senses as he routinely sends me emails announcing the arrival of more “animal excrement” or “malodorous packages” for immediate collection.</p>
<h2>Saving orphaned joeys</h2>
<p>While it all sounds like fun and games, the research we do with the collected poo has serious potential to save many marsupial lives. We have a particular focus on young orphaned joeys. </p>
<p>Whether their mothers were hit by cars, attacked by dogs, or died of other causes, the joeys arrive at wildlife shelters stressed, often injured, and generally cold and hungry. Because marsupials are born so undeveloped – and normally spend a long time in their mother’s pouch – they require an extended period in care when orphaned. </p>
<p>The gut microbiome of these “pinky” joeys is equivalent in development to that of premature human babies. It is still being established at this crucial time, via the mother’s milk, environmental conditions in the pouch, cleaning and grooming. </p>
<p>The sudden loss of parental care, coupled with the stress of being in captivity and a complete change of diet, can do a great deal of harm to the gut microbiota. This can leave the joey open to infections, diarrhoea and dehydration, which can be fatal. </p>
<p>If it were possible to fix this imbalance, the success rate of rearing orphaned marsupials would rise. Their improved general health should mean greater numbers of animals successfully reintroduced to the wild.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-the-frontline-saving-australias-threatened-mammals-28337">From the frontline: saving Australia's threatened mammals</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>While the animals involved in this study are considered “common”, the same principles may be applied to endangered species held in captive breeding programmes once it has been shown to work on the more prolific species.</p>
<p>Without the help of the Poop Troop volunteers, it would have been impossible to sample so widely and consistently. The remaining poo will be kept frozen and made available to future researchers, so these wonderful people have, through their dedication and persistence, made a real contribution to marsupial microbiome research that will continue to help wildlife in the future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217925/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Angela Russell 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>The Marsupial Microbiome Poop Troop collects the droppings of wild marsupials to help save the lives of orphaned joeys.Angela Russell, Graduate researcher PhD candidate, La Trobe UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2201132023-12-21T16:05:49Z2023-12-21T16:05:49ZEurope has a wolf problem, and a late Norwegian philosopher had the solution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566446/original/file-20231218-19-c0tp3i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=34%2C0%2C3888%2C2560&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/gray-wolf-canis-lupus-portrait-stuck-277826912">Ondrej Prosicky / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Europe’s “wolf problem” is fast becoming a source of social and political tension. Relative <a href="https://lciepub.nina.no/pdf/638036032684557257_LCIE%20CoE%20Wolf%20status%20report%202022.pdf">conservation success</a> across the continent has led to calls for action from worried politicians and farming and hunting groups. And the European Commission has now proposed a <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_6752">change in their international status</a>, from “strictly protected” to “protected”, which could allow people to hunt wolves.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Annotated map of Europe" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=699&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=699&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=699&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566611/original/file-20231219-21-pzoz8b.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">EU wolf populations: only the Baltic, Carpathian and Dinaric-Balkan wolves are of ‘least concern’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://rm.coe.int/inf45e-2022-wolf-assessment-bern-convention-2791-5979-4182-1-2/1680a7fa47">Conservation assessment: Council of Europe 2022; map: IUCN (Boitani 2018)</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>However, changing the protection status may not be the best solution, especially as only <a href="https://rm.coe.int/inf45e-2022-wolf-assessment-bern-convention-2791-5979-4182-1-2/1680a7fa47">three of the nine wolf populations</a> in the EU have reached <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Favourable_conservation_status_of_wolves_in_Europe#:%7E:text=In%20Europe%20the%20favourable%20conservation,their%20connectivity%20with%20neighbouring%20populations.">favourable conservation status</a>.</p>
<p>Instead, perhaps the time is ripe for a renewed focus on learning to live – again – with wolves. Proven prevention strategies, such as fencing and the use of guard dogs, play a critical role in this.</p>
<p>But the question may be fundamentally philosophical. Namely, it boils down to how to coexist – and the cultivation of ethical principles and values which undergird a successful coexistence.</p>
<h2>‘Deep ecology’ and the equal right to exist</h2>
<p>In this task, the work of Norwegian environmental philosopher Arne Næss (1912-2009) might be of help. Næss is known as the father of “deep ecology”, an ethical theory that contends that all life has intrinsic value. Næss argued that all beings, whether human or nonhuman, have an equal right to exist and flourish, a principle he called “biospherical egalitarianism”.</p>
<p>As this applies to wolves, Næss was clear: wolves have just as much a right to be here as we do.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Portrait photo of Arne Næss." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=742&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=742&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=742&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=933&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=933&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566612/original/file-20231219-25-d80i5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=933&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Næss thought early 20th-century ecological thinking was too shallow and hadn’t reckoned with underlying philosophical problems.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://denstoredanske.lex.dk/Arne_N%C3%A6ss">Bård Løken/NTB</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Næss wrote an <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2386123">essay</a> with biologist Ivar Mysterud stating: “The well-being of the species wolf as part of human and nonhuman life on Earth has value in itself!” As a result, they argued, “humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity, including wolf habitats and races, except to satisfy vital needs!”</p>
<p>Despite this ostensibly radical challenge to human-centred ethical norms, Næss demonstrated a pragmatic approach in how the principle of biospherical egalitarianism was applied in practice. For example, he considered the important contextual factors of local wolf-human interactions, writing:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>For some sheep holders, the need to protect their sheep from wolves or to be in some way compensated is today vital. It means protecting the basis of their economy and home where they have lived for generations.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In addition to human interests, he also took seriously the moral obligation to reduce the suffering of sheep and other domestic animals. This is especially salient as humans have reduced the capacity of these species to evade wolves.</p>
<p>Mouflon, the wild ancestor of domestic sheep, do their best to avoid large predators by fleeing into mountains. In contrast, after thousands of years of selective breeding, modern livestock have fewer genetic defences and are left to fend for themselves in fenced-in fields. </p>
<h2>Man has a heart, not just a brain</h2>
<p>Næss avoided a one-size-fits-all answer to the question of wolves (a position other scholars <a href="https://humanimalia.org/article/view/10090">criticised him for</a>). But his focus on articulating general ethical principles to serve as a backdrop for contextual decisions may have importance in the increasingly heated and political nature of this rewilding debate.</p>
<p>For example, Næss used the term <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00201747908601874">“mixed community”</a> to denote places which comprise humans and those species who play a clear role in human affairs. Challenging the tendency to define community only in human terms, Næss contended that this framing helps to “break down some of the barriers commonly erected between humans and any other forms of life within our common space”.</p>
<p>In doing so, this can open pathways for increased identification and empathy for nonhuman others – a capacity Næss believed all humans have, stemming from an inherent continuity between human and nonhuman life.</p>
<p>Indeed, as the pioneering American conservationist <a href="https://booksonthelane.co.uk/books/a-sand-county-almanac-and-sketches-here-and-there/">Aldo Leopold</a> similarly maintained, perceiving ourselves in a community with others is a prerequisite for moral action. In this case, it helps to make concrete the idea of a wolf’s right to exist – they are members of the community just like us.</p>
<p>Applying this ethical framework of “mixed communities” to current EU deliberations can have some benefits. For example, it may inspire the further development of creative, mutually beneficial solutions such as economic compensation for livestock losses – a move which Næss called for – as well as improving wolf-attack prevention. It may also play an effective role in countering the often-baseless fear and hysteria around wolves (Næss blamed the brothers Grimm for the animals’ bad public image).</p>
<p>Perhaps most important of all, though, is the potential for connecting with our emotional elements. As Næss said: “Man has a heart, not only a brain.” </p>
<p>To move towards a sustainable coexistence, it is not enough to appeal to abstractions about scientific benefits or devise perfectly efficient compensation schemes. This must also derive from a sense of solidarity with other species – a full recognition that, in Næss’s words: “Humans are not alone on this planet.”</p>
<p>Interestingly, as a <a href="https://www.eurogroupforanimals.org/news/survey-wolves-should-be-strictly-protected-majority-rural-inhabitants-say">recent study</a> showed, most people living in rural communities in the EU already believe that wolves have a right to exist, corresponding with Næss’s relative optimism about the possibility of mixed communities. This is all the more important to remember in light of the worrying political divisiveness in relation to Europe’s so-called wolf problem.</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>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nora Ward 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>Why Arne Næss’s ideas of ‘deep ecology’ can help us live with wolves.Nora Ward, Lecturer in Philosophy, University of GalwayLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2188992023-12-19T13:16:50Z2023-12-19T13:16:50ZWild ‘super pigs’ from Canada could become a new front in the war on feral hogs<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566082/original/file-20231215-23-irn2uo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C4%2C2986%2C1958&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Feral hogs' long snouts and tusks allow them to rip and root their way across the landscape in search of food. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/ehmMiS">USDA/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>They go by many names – pigs, hogs, swine, razorbacks – but whatever you call them, <a href="https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/profile/wild-boar">wild pigs</a> (<em>Sus scrofa</em>) are one of the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/08/06/think-feral-hogs-is-joke-millions-more-are-rampaging-across-us/">most damaging invasive species</a> in North America. They cause millions of dollars in crop damage yearly and harbor dozens of pathogens that threaten humans and pets, as well as meat production systems.</p>
<p>Although wild pigs have been <a href="https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/wildlifedamage/operational-activities/feral-swine/sa-fs-history">present in North America for centuries</a>, their populations have rapidly expanded over the past several decades. Recent studies estimate that since the 1980s the wild pig population in the United States has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-019-01983-1">nearly tripled</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.808">expanded from 18 to 35 states</a>. More recently, they have <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/invasive-pigs-canada-1.5136431">spread rapidly across Canada</a>, and these populations are <a href="https://apnews.com/article/wild-pigs-feral-swine-canada-minnesota-border-e59a542efb3c64d5f4b136fc137b7665">threatening to invade the U.S. from the north</a>.</p>
<p>The wild pigs in Canada are unique because they were originally crossbred by humans to be larger and more cold-hardy than their feral cousins to the south. This suite of traits has earned them the name “super pigs” for good reason. Adults can reach weights exceeding 500 pounds, which is twice the size of the largest wild pigs sampled across many U.S. sites in <a href="http://dx.doi.ORG/10.1002/ece3.9853">a 2022 study</a>. </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Marcus_Lashley">wildlife ecologist</a>, I study how wild pigs alter their surroundings and affect other wildlife species. <a href="https://www.doi.gov/invasivespecies/early-detection-and-rapid-response">Early detection and rapid response</a> is of utmost importance in eradicating an invasive species, because invasions are more manageable when populations are small and geographically restricted. This is especially true for species like wild pigs that have a high reproductive rate, can readily move into new areas and can change their behavior to avoid being captured or killed.</p>
<figure>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Minnesota wildlife experts are keeping a wary eye on their northern border for signs of wild ‘super pigs’ moving down from Canada.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Omnivores on the hoof</h2>
<p>Much concern over the spread of wild pigs has focused on economic damage, which was recently estimated at <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/11/21/which-states-have-the-worst-wild-hog-problem/71658126007/">about US$2.5 billion annually</a> in the United States.</p>
<p>Wild pigs have a unique collection of traits that make them problematic to humans. When we told one private landowner about the results from our studies, he responded: “That makes sense. Pigs eat all the stuff the other wildlife do – they just eat it first, and then they go ahead and eat the wildlife, too. They pretty much eat anything with a calorie in it.” </p>
<p>More scientifically, wild pigs are called extreme generalist foragers, which means they can survive on many different foods. A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12015">global review of their dietary habits</a> found that plants represent 90% of their diet – primarily agricultural crops, plus the fruits, seeds, leaves, stems and roots of wild plants.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A male lesser prairie-chicken inflates his orange throat sacs to call potential mates." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566078/original/file-20231215-23-4f6gba.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lesser prairie chickens are a ground-nesting species – found in parts of Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas – that is listed under the Endangered Species Act. Feral hogs prey on the birds and their eggs and damage the birds’ habitat by rooting up and consuming native plants and spreading invasive plant seeds.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.fws.gov/media/lesser-prairie-chicken-lek">Greg Kramos/USFWS</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wild pigs also eat most small animals, along with fungi and invertebrates such as insect larvae, clams and mussels, particularly in places where pigs are not native. For example, a 2019 study reported that wild pigs were digging up eggs laid by endangered loggerhead sea turtles on an island off the coast of South Carolina, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actao.2019.103442">reducing the turtles’ nesting success to zero in some years</a>.</p>
<p>And these pigs do “just eat it first.” They compete for resources that other wildlife need, which can have <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10530-012-0229-6">negative effects on other species</a>. </p>
<p>However, they likely do their most severe damage through predation. Wild pigs kill and eat rodents, deer, birds, snakes, frogs, lizards and salamanders. This probably best explains why colleagues and I found in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/ece3.5360">one study</a> that forest patches with wild pigs had 26% fewer mammal and bird species than similar forest patches without pigs. </p>
<p>This decrease in diversity was similar to that found with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.aecr.2016.10.002">other invasive predators</a>. And our findings are consistent with a global analysis showing that invasive mammalian predators that have no natural predators themselves – especially generalist foragers like wild pigs – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1602480113">cause by far the most extinctions</a>. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1734983386941333818"}"></div></p>
<h2>Altering ecosystems</h2>
<p>Many questions about wild pigs’ ecological impacts have yet to be answered. For example, they may harm other wild species indirectly, rather than eating them or depleting their food supply. </p>
<p>Our work shows that wild pigs <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fooweb.2022.e00270">can alter the behavior of common native wildlife species</a>, such as raccoons, squirrels and deer. Using trail cameras, we found that when wild pigs were present, other animals altered their activity patterns in various ways to avoid them. Such shifts may have additional cascading effects on ecosystems, because they change how and when species interact in the food web.</p>
<p>Another major concern is wild pigs’ potential to spread disease. They carry numerous pathogens, including brucellosis and tuberculosis. However, little ecological research has been done on this issue, and scientists have not yet demonstrated that an increasing abundance of wild pigs reduces the abundance of native wildlife via disease transmission. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Feral hogs can be seen rooting up the soil in this trail camera footage from Alabama.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Interestingly, in their native range in Europe and Asia, pigs do not cause as much ecological damage. In fact, some studies indicate that they may <a href="http://biozoojournals.ro/nwjz/content/v13n2/nwjz_e161706_Baruzzi.pdf">modify habitat in important ways</a> for species that have evolved with them, such as frogs and salamanders. </p>
<p>So far, however, there is virtually no scientific evidence that feral pigs provide any benefits in North America. One <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10530-012-0229-6">review of wild pig impacts</a> discussed the potential for private landowners plagued with pigs to generate revenue from selling pig meat or opportunities to hunt them. And it’s possible that wild pigs could serve as an alternative food source for imperiled large predators, or that their wallowing and foraging behavior in some cases could mimic that of locally eradicated or extinct species. </p>
<p>But the scientific consensus today is that in North America, wild pigs are a growing threat to both ecosystems and the economy. It is unclear how invading super pigs would contribute to the overall threat, but bigger pigs likely cause more damage and are generally better predators and competitors. </p>
<p>While efforts to control wild pigs <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/feral-swine-eradication-and-control-pilot-program">are well underway</a> in the U.S., incursions by Canadian super pigs may complicate the job. Invasive super pigs make for catchy headlines, but their potential effects are no joke.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of <a href="https://theconversation.com/feral-pigs-harm-wildlife-and-biodiversity-as-well-as-crops-120066">an article</a> originally published on Aug. 26, 2019.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218899/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marcus Lashley receives funding from USDA Wildlife Services.</span></em></p>Feral hogs are one of the most destructive invasive species in North America, harming land, crops and wildlife.Marcus Lashley, Associate Professor of Wildlife Ecology, University of FloridaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2194642023-12-14T13:12:30Z2023-12-14T13:12:30ZArtificial light lures migrating birds into cities, where they face a gauntlet of threats<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565500/original/file-20231213-21-30h0uo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C33%2C7315%2C4869&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The New York City borough of Manhattan at night, viewed from the Rockefeller Center observation deck.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/manhattan-skyline-with-view-to-empire-state-building-from-news-photo/1749117051">Sergi Reboredo/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Light pollution has steadily intensified and expanded from urban areas, and with the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1582/LEUKOS.2010.06.04001">advent of LED lighting</a>, it is growing in North America by <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abq7781">up to 10% per year</a>, as measured by the visibility of stars in the night sky. In our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43046-z">recent study</a>, we found that the glow from cities and urban outskirts can powerfully attract migratory birds, drawing them into developed areas where food is scarcer and they face threats such as colliding with glass buildings.</p>
<p>Each spring and fall, migratory birds journey to or from their breeding grounds, <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bobolink/maps-range">sometimes traveling thousands of miles</a>. En route, most birds need to <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ele.13618">make stopovers</a> to rest and feed. Some species burn off half of their body mass during migration.</p>
<p>Migratory stopover sites are not random, and birds typically use the same locations from year to year. Because migration takes place on a continental scale, with <a href="https://abcbirds.org/blog/north-american-bird-flyways/">billions of birds crossing North America</a> each migratory season, it’s important for scientists to understand what attracts birds to these locations. </p>
<p>We found that light pollution was a top predictor of the density of migrating birds at stopover locations for both spring and fall migration across the continental U.S.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Artificial light at night is an expanding threat to migrating birds, drawing them into developed areas where they can die from collisions with buildings and are exposed to other threats.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it Matters</h2>
<p>Nearly all birds in North America – some 80% – migrate each spring and fall. And of those species that migrate, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2029">70% travel at night</a>. </p>
<p>Nocturnal migration has many adaptive benefits: For example, the weather conditions are better, and fewer predators are active. But it makes most migratory birds highly susceptible to light pollution. In North America alone, it is estimated that up to 1 billion migrating birds <a href="https://doi.org/10.1650/CONDOR-13-090.1">die each year from collisions with buildings</a>. </p>
<p>Scientists don’t yet know why nocturnally migrating birds are attracted to artificial light, but research has shown that light pollution <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2022.12.006">acts as an amplifying agent</a> that draws more songbirds into urbanized areas. It often <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.13466">co-occurs with other environmental threats</a>, such as water and air pollution and noise. All of these stressors disrupt birds’ behavioral and physiological processes during journeys that already are extremely taxing.</p>
<p>Lighting is part of the fabric of human structures, yet many people don’t think of it as a pollutant or perceive its harmful effects on nature – until events like the <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2023/10/6/23906778/birds-killed-migration-collision-mccormick-place-lakeside-center">mass bird loss in Chicago</a> on Oct. 4-5, 2023, when nearly 1,000 birds were killed after colliding with the McCormick Place Convention Center, make the problem impossible to ignore.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black bird with an orange underside perches on a branch next to half an orange placed there for feeding." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565502/original/file-20231213-15-ti0ti3.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Baltimore orioles migrate twice yearly between their wintering grounds in Florida, the Caribbean and Latin America and their summer breeding zones, which stretch from Louisiana into central Canada.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kyle Horton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How we did our work</h2>
<p>With colleagues at Colorado State University, Michigan State University, the University of Delaware, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Princeton University, the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the National Park Service, we sought to understand the complex drivers and large-scale patterns of stopover density by combining remote sensing data with geospatial tools. Mapping stopover locations has been a bird conservation priority for many years; now, for the first time, we have a complete view of where these stopovers are across the United States.</p>
<p>We were able to make novel maps at a continental scale using <a href="https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/radar/next-generation-weather-radar">U.S. NEXRAD weather surveillance data</a> – information from the same radars that meteorologists draw on to predict weather patterns on television and weather apps. We created 2,500 models using roughly 1 million locations across the U.S. and 49 predictor variables, including forest cover, precipitation, temperature, elevation and <a href="https://www.energy.gov/eere/ssl/text-alternative-version-what-sky-glow">skyglow</a> – diffuse brightness in the night sky from artificial light.</p>
<p>These maps capture fine-scale details that allow us to see increased densities of migrating birds following the winding banks of the Mississippi River, which provide an important refuge for depleted migrants to rest and refuel. We also created fall and spring hotspot maps highlighting regions where especially high numbers of birds made stopovers. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Radar imagery showing masses of light and dark blue above a map of St. Louis." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565636/original/file-20231213-21-au4a3l.gif?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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Radar detecting migrating birds lifting off from the St. Louis landscape on the night of May 10, 2023. Density of bird flocks increases from light blue to dark blue to green.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kyle Horton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found that the presence of light pollution was a better predictor of bird densities than temperature, precipitation or tree canopy cover. These all were variables that we had expected to correlate with periods when birds would be on the ground, or with high-quality habitats where birds would be likely to stop over. </p>
<p>Other variables were associated with areas that birds were unlikely to use as stopovers. One example was the presence of agricultural crops, such as corn or soybeans. Fields planted with a single crop <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2203511120">don’t provide adequate food or shelter for many bird species</a>, so migrants are unlikely to rest there.</p>
<p>Light pollution is a human-induced change to the environment that may act as an <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2021.02.004">ecological trap</a>, drawing birds into substandard habitats and increasing their risk of collisions with buildings. Happily, its immediate effects can be quickly reversed with the flip of a switch. </p>
<p>Working to reduce artificial light through <a href="https://tx.audubon.org/urbanconservation/lights-out-texas">Lights Out campaigns</a> and <a href="https://aeroecolab.com/uslights">migration alerts</a>, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cobi.13740">understanding when birds will be in airspaces</a> and <a href="https://www.audubon.org/bird-friendly-buildings">using bird-friendly glass</a> that has patterns across its surface to make it more visible to birds, will reduce bird deaths from light pollution. Understanding the drivers and macro-scale patterns of stopover densities across the continental U.S. will better inform conservation actions like these. </p>
<p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take on interesting academic work.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/219464/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kyle Horton receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carolyn S. Burt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Migrating birds need stopover locations en route where they can rest and feed. A new study shows that artificial light draws them away from sites they would normally use and into risky zones.Carolyn S. Burt, Convergence Research Coordinator, Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State UniversityKyle Horton, Assistant Professor of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2191422023-12-07T17:40:51Z2023-12-07T17:40:51ZHow bird feeders help small species fight infection<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/563607/original/file-20231205-27-lbvm0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C16%2C3660%2C2620&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Great tits are familiar visitors to gardens. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/parus-major-great-tit-male-351769433">allanw/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every day, throughout the world, people put huge quantities of food out at feeding stations for birds and other wild animals. </p>
<p>Although we know that connecting with nature benefits human health and wellbeing, scientists still know relatively little about the consequences of providing <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/j.0908-8857.2008.04271.x">food for wildlife</a>. My team’s <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.13914">most recent research</a>, however, has found that feeding garden birds in wintertime seems to make them more resilient to infection. </p>
<p>Winter can be tough for small birds. During cold winter nights, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24263568_Patterns_and_dynamics_of_rest-phase_hypothermia_in_wild_and_captive_Blue_Tits_during_winter">small birds reduce their body temperature</a> by several degrees. While this would be lethal for a human, it saves lots of energy, helping birds to survive particularly cold nights. However, reducing body temperature is risky, and hypothermic birds are slow to wake and respond to a predator.</p>
<p>A reliable food supply at bird feeders can help small birds avoid starvation and <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3544122?origin=crossref">survive the harsh winter</a>. <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2020.0133">Our previous research</a> showed that birds with access to feeders do not need to reduce their night-time body temperature as much as birds that did not have access to feeders. The extra energy birds get from human-provided food means they don’t have to take the risk of becoming severely hypothermic.</p>
<p>Supplementary feeding is controversial since it can also negatively affect wildlife. Birds congregate at feeders, often in large numbers, coming into close contact with one another. Some studies suggest bird feeders have contributed to the spread of infectious diseases <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2017.0091">such as trichomonosis</a>, which caused huge greenfinch mortalities in the UK in the mid-2000s.</p>
<p>Some people are also concerned that bird feeders may discourage birds from learning to forage for themselves. However, research suggests that supplementary food makes up only a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/condor/article/113/3/475/5152664">small portion of birds’ diets</a>, and that birds do not become dependent on human-provided food. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two garden birds perch on the rim of a metal feeder." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/563610/original/file-20231205-21-w59ui7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A great tit is joined by a robin at a bird feeder.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/garden-birds-european-robin-erithacus-rubecula-598158890">DJTaylor/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We were curious about whether the frequent use of feeders could boost birds’ immune systems, making them better equipped to fight an infection. </p>
<p>Vaccination readies our bodies to tackle a disease by delivering a small dose of a virus or bacterium. Similarly, regular exposure to low doses of pathogens at feeding stations – as a result of infected birds depositing pathogens on to feeders – could better prepare birds <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03079450701286277">to fight an infection</a>.</p>
<p>So, we investigated whether supplementary feeding could make <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.13914">great tits more tolerant</a> to an infection. In a forest in southern Sweden in October 2022, we set up bird feeders that were routinely visited by large numbers of great tits along with lower numbers of blue tits, chaffinches and crested tits. These bird feeders were refilled every few days to ensure a constant supply of peanuts and sunflower seeds throughout the winter.</p>
<p>In late winter, after birds had been visiting bird feeders for several months, we captured great tits at sunset and gave them a “fake infection” – injecting them with a small amount of material from the cell wall of a bacterium. This triggered the great tits’ immune system to think it was being attacked by an invading pathogen, without introducing any of the harmful components of the bacterium.</p>
<p>At the same time, we simulated infection in great tits from another part of the forest, where there had been no access to feeding stations during the winter.</p>
<h2>Supplementary-fed birds are more tolerant</h2>
<p>One of the first responses of the body to fight off an infection is to raise body temperature and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/endo/article/143/7/2527/2989398">develop a fever</a>. While the “infected” great tits slept, we measured their body temperature throughout the night. We compared the fever responses of great tits that had visited bird feeders throughout the winter with those of great tits that had not visited feeding stations.</p>
<p>We found the great tits that had been using feeders did not increase their body temperature as much as the great tits that didn’t have access to feeding stations. Although fever is important in helping the body fight infection, raising the body’s temperature requires a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306456510001439?via%3Dihub">large investment of energy</a>. Fever and associated inflammation also cause some <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228623768_Evolutionary_Causes_and_Consequences_of_Immunopathology">damage to the body</a>. The best immune response is a careful balance of mounting defences strong enough to tackle the invading pathogen while minimising damage to the body.</p>
<p>So, the supplementary-fed birds seemed to adequately fight the “infection” without using up their precious winter energy supply. </p>
<h2>The effects of bird feeding are complex</h2>
<p>While we found that the use of feeding stations made great tits more tolerant to an infection, this could also enable infected great tits to stay active, spreading infection between birds.</p>
<p>On the other hand, the greater risk of disease transmission at feeders may be countered by the stronger immune systems these birds could develop due to <a href="https://academic.oup.com/conphys/article/3/1/cov058/2571277">better nutrition</a> from the food provided by people in parks and gardens.</p>
<p>You can reduce the risk of disease by keeping <a href="https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/helping-birds-and-wildlife">feeding stations clean</a>. Follow wildlife charities’ guidelines of how to set up a feeding station and what food to put out – and <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/rspb-roast-birds-people-winter-b2244072.html">what food to avoid</a>. Great tits are a common visitor to gardens in Europe, so there’s a good chance a bird feeder could attract these colourful birds to your home.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/219142/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The research was funded by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet) and Stiftelsen Lunds Djurskyddsfond.</span></em></p>Research shows providing food for birds not only stops them going hungry, it may help them fight off infection too.Hannah Watson, Researcher in Evolutionary Ecology, Lund UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2166992023-11-27T11:34:01Z2023-11-27T11:34:01ZStones inside fish ears mark time like tree rings – and now they’re helping us learn about climate change<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/556852/original/file-20231031-23-62b3ms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=44%2C35%2C5939%2C3956&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/large-atlantic-bluefin-tuna-common-tunny-2190003345">Dolores M. Harvey/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As a marine biologist, I’ve always found it fascinating to learn about how animals adapt to their habitat. But climate change has made it more important than ever – wild animals’ futures may depend on how much we understand about them. </p>
<p>Fish have a kind of stone in their ear that scientists can read like tree rings. My team’s <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-41930-2">new research</a> found a way to decode the chemicals in these stones to measure how much energy they used when alive. What we learned could help bluefin tuna survive the climate crisis.</p>
<p>There is still so much <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.13467">we don’t know</a> about how animals respond when their habitat suddenly changes. Temperature is one of the most important puzzle pieces, as it <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780123745538001593">affects the rates of the chemical reactions that define life</a>. </p>
<p>For animals, rising temperatures act like inflation. Rising prices mean housing and food take up more of our budget, leaving less money for luxuries. More heat means more of an animal’s bodily resources, like food and oxygen, are needed to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780123745538001970">fuel basic functions</a>, like breathing and moving, leaving less energy for growth and reproduction.</p>
<p>However, heat changes don’t <a href="https://www.cefas.co.uk/news-and-resources/news/new-research-identifies-winners-and-losers-of-future-climate-change-on-uk-fish-species/">affect all animals the same way</a>. Just as the wealthy can use their large cash reserves to weather inflation, animals differ in how close they are to their energy “ceiling”.</p>
<h2>Warming waters</h2>
<p>Animals living in temperatures in the middle of their species’ range can increase the rate of their metabolism, meeting the extra cost of living in warmer waters. Those on the warm edge of their species’ range might be closer to their limits, where increases in temperature push them into a form of energy debt. </p>
<p>Reserves that might have been used for growth must be diverted to maintain essential life processes. <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abo4259">Rising temperatures</a>, through their effects on metabolism, force species to adapt, move somewhere new or die. </p>
<p>Measuring energy expenditure in wild animals is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S109564331630099X">no easy task</a>. Fortunately, metabolic reactions leave chemical traces in the body. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://uni.hi.is/scampana/otoliths">otolith</a> is a stony lump in the fish ear. Otolith rings, much like tree rings, reveal a fishs’s age. At the University of Southampton we have developed a technique to decode the chemistry of otoliths. </p>
<p>Different forms or isotopes of oxygen in the otolith indicate the temperature the fish experienced when it was alive. Carbon isotopes reveal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-018-0266-5">how quickly food was converted</a> into energy. Fish carry their fitness trackers in their ears.</p>
<p>Studying how animals’ energy needs shift with temperature can help us predict which animals are most at risk from rising temperatures. Juveniles, for instance, which need to grow quickly so they are strong enough to evade predators, might be more vulnerable to the effects of global warming. </p>
<p>Recently, we applied this new technique to <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/bluefin-tuna">Atlantic bluefin tuna</a>. These fish can grow to two metres long and can swim at 40mph. They also have a high metabolism which allows them to thrive in colder waters than most other tuna species. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.msc.org/species/tuna/recent-history-of-bluefin-tuna">Overfishing in the 20th century</a> made Atlantic bluefin tuna populations crash. Fish management policies have allowed bluefin tuna populations in the north Atlantic to recover, and shoals of bluefin are <a href="https://www.mcsuk.org/news/bluefin-tuna-an-ocean-giant-on-the-rise/#:%7E:text=Within%20three%20years%2C%20numbers%20of,Isles%20of%20Scilly%2C%20and%20Ireland">once again regular visitors</a> to waters around the British Isles and northern Europe. </p>
<p>Bluefin tuna spawn in <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/-/media/legacy/uploadedfiles/peg/publications/fact_sheet/atlantic20bluefin20spawning20englishpdf.pdf">both the western and eastern sides</a> of the Atlantic. But these two spawning populations show different rates of recovery. </p>
<p>The proportion of adult fish with a western (Gulf of Mexico) origin has declined over time. Proportionally more eastern (Mediterranean) origin fish are surviving to adulthood each year. </p>
<p>Our study asked whether these differences in recovery can be explained by temperature. We discovered that the metabolic rates for young tuna peak at around 28°C. Tuna in warmer waters had lower metabolic rates, showing that their bodies were unable to keep up with the energy costs of living in temperatures over 28°C. </p>
<p>In the spawning and nursery grounds of the Gulf of Mexico, temperatures often surpass 28°C. While it has always warmer been in the Gulf of Mexico than the Mediterranean Sea, recent warming means that the area of suitable habitat below the 28°C threshold has become smaller and smaller. Sea temperatures in Florida exceeded 36°C in June 2023.</p>
<p>Slow recovery in western tuna populations could be attributed to these warm water conditions and its effect on growth of juvenile tuna. In contrast, most of the Mediterranean currently remains below 28°C during summer.</p>
<h2>Looking ahead</h2>
<p>The recent recovery of bluefin tuna may not last. We used climate models to predict how quickly ocean warming will start to affect juvenile tuna.</p>
<p>Even middle-of-the-road projections suggest that the eastern half of the Mediterranean Sea will cross the 28°C threshold within 50 years. In the last two years we have seen <a href="https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/08/04/ocean-heat-record-broken-and-experts-fear-temperatures-could-rise-even-further">record average temperatures</a> in <a href="http://www.ceam.es/ceamet/SST/SST-trend.html">the Mediterranean</a> already approaching the 28°C threshold. </p>
<p>We need a long-term solution to protect tuna. </p>
<p>As the oceans continue to warm, tuna may establish new spawning and nursery areas in regions that were previously too cold, for instance further north on the US’s eastern coastline. If so, juvenile tuna would be in danger of getting caught unintentionally by fisheries, also known as bycatch, </p>
<p>Bluefin tuna are a sought-after delicacy for sushi in Asia where a single fish <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/01/sushinomics-how-bluefin-tuna-became-a-million-dollar-fish/282826/">can sell for over a million dollars</a>. But they are more than culinary delicacies. Tuna fish are giving us a warning of the challenges that lie ahead for marine wildlife. </p>
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<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">
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<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/216699/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Clive Trueman receives funding from UKRI. </span></em></p>My team studied bluefin tuna otoliths to learn why some populations are recovering faster than others.Clive Trueman, Professor of Marine Biology, University of SouthamptonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2148192023-11-22T13:17:53Z2023-11-22T13:17:53ZDigitized records from wildlife centers show the most common ways that humans harm wild animals<p>At hundreds of wildlife rehabilitation centers across the U.S., people can learn about wild animals and birds at close range. These sites, which may be run by nonprofits or universities, often feature engaging exhibits, including “ambassador” animals that can’t be released – an owl with a damaged wing, for example, or a fox that was found as a kit and became accustomed to being fed by humans. </p>
<p>What’s less visible are the patients – sick and injured wild animals that have been admitted for treatment.</p>
<p>Each year, people bring hundreds of thousands of sick and injured wild animals to wildlife rehab centers. Someone may find an injured squirrel on the side of the road or notice a robin in their backyard that can’t fly, and then call the center to pick up an animal in distress.</p>
<p>We study <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Tara-Miller-8">ecology</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=XfgB_BUAAAAJ&hl=en">biology</a>, and recently used newly digitized records from wildlife rehabilitation centers to identify the human activities that are most harmful to wildlife. In the largest study of its kind, we reviewed 674,320 records, mostly from 2011 to 2019, from 94 centers to paint a comprehensive picture of threats affecting over 1,000 species across much of the U.S. and Canada. </p>
<p>Our findings, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110295">published in the journal Biological Conservation</a>, point to some strategies for reducing harm to wildlife, especially injuries caused by cars.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SEVqsMsvQws?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Minnesota, the largest independent rehab center in the U.S., treats over 1,000 sick and injured animals yearly.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Tracking the toll</h2>
<p>Humans are responsible for the deaths and injuries of billions of animals every year. Bats and birds fly into buildings, power lines and wind turbines. Domestic cats and dogs kill backyard birds and animals. Development, farming and industry alter or destroy wild animals’ habitats and expose wildlife to toxic substances like lead and pesticides. Extreme weather events linked to climate change, such as flooding and wildfires, can be devastating for wildlife.</p>
<p>Most Americans support <a href="https://www.ifaw.org/press-releases/survey-majority-americans-support-candidate-values-protection-endangered-species">protecting threatened and endangered species</a>, and <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/survey-most-americans-believe-human-population-driving-wildlife-extinctions-2020-11-12/">recognize that human activities can harm wildlife</a>. But it is surprisingly difficult to determine which activities are most harmful to wildlife and identify effective solutions. </p>
<p>Information from wildlife rehab centers across the U.S. can help fill in that picture. When an animal is brought into one of these centers, a rehabilitator assesses its condition, documents the cause of injury or illness if it can be determined, and then prepares a treatment plan. </p>
<p>Wildlife rehabbers may be veterinarians, veterinary technicians or other staff or volunteers who are certified by state agencies to treat wildlife. They follow professional codes and standards, and sometimes publish research in peer-reviewed journals.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/reel/CwNiHd5AkSL/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link\u0026igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>A growing data pool</h2>
<p>Until recently, most wildlife rehab records existed only in binders and file cabinets. As a result, studies drawing on these records typically used materials from a single location or focused on a particular species, such as bald eagles or foxes. </p>
<p>Recently, though, rehab centers have digitized hundreds of thousands of case records. Shareable digital records can improve wildlife conservation and public health. </p>
<p>For example, the <a href="https://www.wildlifecenter.org/">Wildlife Center of Virginia</a> has worked with government agencies and other rehab centers to establish the <a href="https://www.wild-one.org/">WILD-ONe database</a> as a tool for assessing trends in wildlife health. This will be an exciting area of research as more records are digitized and shared.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Map showing distribution of wildlife centers that provided data for the study." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560206/original/file-20231117-19-6un51w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Locations in the U.S. and Canada where animals were found (blue dots) before being brought to wildlife rehabilitation centers (red stars) included in Miller et al., 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110295">Miller et al., 2023</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Threats vary by species</h2>
<p>Using this trove of data, we have been exploring patterns of wildlife health across North America. In our study, we <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110295">identified key threats affecting wildlife</a> by region and for iconic and endangered species. </p>
<p>Overall, 12% of the animals brought to rehab centers during this period were harmed by vehicle collisions – the single largest cause of injury. For <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/overview#">great horned owls</a>, which are common across the U.S., cars were the most common cause of admission – possibly because the owls commonly <a href="https://www.fws.gov/story/threats-birds-collisions-road-vehicles">forage at the same height as vehicles</a>, and may feed on road kill. </p>
<p>Other threats reflect various animals’ habitats and life patterns. Window collisions were the most common injury for the <a href="https://www.batcon.org/bat/eptesicus-fuscus/">big brown bat</a>, another species found in many habitats across the U.S. Fishing incidents were the main reason for admission of endangered <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/kemps-ridley-turtle">Kemp’s ridley sea turtles</a>, which are found in the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic coast.</p>
<p>Toxic substances and infectious diseases represented just 3.4% of cases, but were important for some species. <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/overview">Bald eagles</a>, for example, were the species most commonly brought to centers with lead poisoning. Eagles and other raptors <a href="https://www.wildlifecenter.org/lead-toxicity-raptors">consume lead ammunition inadvertently</a> when they feed on carcasses left in the wild by hunters. </p>
<p>In southern Florida, hurricanes and floods resulted in spikes in the numbers of animals brought to rehab centers, reflecting the <a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-at-work-sloshing-through-marshes-to-see-how-birds-survive-hurricanes-146067">impact of climate-driven extreme weather events on wildlife health</a>. </p>
<p>About one-third of animals in the cases we reviewed were successfully released back to the wild, though this varied greatly among species. For example, 68% of brown pelicans were released, but only 20% of bald eagles. Unfortunately, some 60% of the animals died from their injuries or illnesses, or had to be humanely euthanized because they were unable to recover.</p>
<h2>Spotlighting solutions</h2>
<p>Our results spotlight steps that can help conserve wildlife in the face of these threats. For example, transportation departments can build more <a href="https://interestingengineering.com/lists/29-of-the-most-heartwarming-wildlife-crossings-around-the-world">road crossings for wildlife</a>, such as bridges and underpasses, to help animals avoid being hit by cars.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A large wild cat emerges from an underpass beneath a highway." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/560059/original/file-20231116-29-cl09dy.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">A mountain lion uses an underpass to safely traverse Route 97 near Bend, Oregon.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wildlife management agencies can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-018-1132-x">ban or limit use of ammunition and fishing gear that contain lead</a> to reduce lead poisoning. And governments can <a href="https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/wildlife-disaster-preparedness">incorporate wildlife into disaster management plans</a> to account for surges in wildlife rescues after extreme weather events.</p>
<p>People can also make changes on their own. They can drive more slowly and pay closer attention to wildlife crossing roads, switch their fishing and hunting gear to nonlead alternatives, and <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/how-can-i-keep-birds-from-hitting-my-windows/">put decals or other visual indicators on windows</a> to reduce bat and bird collisions with the glass.</p>
<p>To learn more about animals in your area and ways to protect them, you can <a href="https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/how-find-wildlife-rehabilitator">visit or call your local wildlife rehab center</a>. You can also donate to these centers, which we believe do great work, and are often underfunded.</p>
<p>The scale of threats facing wild animals can seem overwhelming, but wildlife rehabbers show that helping one injured animal at a time can identify ways to save many more animal lives.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214819/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tara K. Miller received funding from the National Science Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard B. Primack does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Hundreds of wildlife rehabilitation centers across the US and Canada treat sick and injured animals and birds. Digitizing their records is yielding valuable data on human-wildlife encounters.Tara K. Miller, Policy Research Specialist, Repair Lab, University of VirginiaRichard B. Primack, Professor of Biology, Boston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2168712023-11-06T18:10:14Z2023-11-06T18:10:14ZWildcats lived alongside domestic cats for 2,000 years but only started interbreeding 60 years ago – new study<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557489/original/file-20231103-21-h3kcvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4487%2C2980&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There are very few wildcats like this one left in their natural habitat in Scotland. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/scottish-wildcat-77377831">Mark Bridger</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>You are unlikely to have seen one, but wildcats are still clinging on by a claw in Scotland. Most of the cats living in the wild in Scotland are hybrid cats with a mix of wildcat and domestic cat ancestry or feral domestic cats. But my team’s new study showed they lived alongside domestic cats for almost 2,000 years before interbreeding. </p>
<p>One of our rarest and most elusive mammal species, European wildcats <a href="https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/36089455.pdf">have been in decline</a> across across Europe and Britain for the past few hundred years. Wildcats were lost completely from England and Wales by the end of the 19th century and today are <a href="https://www.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/natural-sciences/scottish-wildcat/">only found in the Scottish Highlands</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/98399/1/38_156_2_PB.pdf">Habitat loss</a> and hunting are two of the biggest threats facing this species across its range, but in Scotland, <a href="https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/355602095/Final_Copy_2022_01_25_Howard_McCombe_J_PhD.pdf">hybridisation with domestic cats</a> is now the biggest threat to this population. Interbreeding between the two species is frequent now. </p>
<p>This gradual erosion of the wildcat genome (<a href="https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Genome">the DNA instructions</a> for everything that makes a wildcat a wildcat) may lead to the complete extinction of this species in Britain. Among scientists, this is known as <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4947151/">genetic swamping</a>.</p>
<h2>How long has this been going on?</h2>
<p>Although domestic cats and wildcats are different species, genetically more different than dogs and wolves, they look similar. Domestic cats, <a href="https://www.shh.mpg.de/446464/cat-adna">descended from the African-Asian wildcat</a>, became widespread in Britain in Roman times. </p>
<p>Wildcats in Scotland are a subpopulation of European wildcats, and have been present in Britain <a href="https://savingwildcats.org.uk/about-saving-wildcats/wildcat-conservation-in-scotland/#:%7E:text=Wildcats%20in%20Scotland&text=European%20wildcats%20crossed%20from%20the,brink%20of%20extinction%20in%20Scotland.">since the end of the last ice age</a>, around 10,000 years ago. Our research, which used the genomes of ancient cats from prehistoric Britain (around 6,000BC) until the present, shows that the two species kept themselves separate until very recently. </p>
<p>This may be expected for two species such as these, which have different patterns of behaviour and habitat preference. Wildcats keep away from people and prefer natural, forested areas – unlike domestic cats which thrive in human-modified environments. </p>
<p>My team’s study showed that around 60 years ago, however, there was a sudden shift to increasingly frequent interbreeding, which quickly overwhelmed the remaining wildcats in Scotland.</p>
<h2>What changed?</h2>
<p>The recent history of hybridisation between the two species strongly suggests that hybridisation is a symptom, rather than the cause, of wildcat declines in Britain. </p>
<p>Wildcats have been hunted for sport, and are also <a href="https://news.exeter.ac.uk/faculty-of-humanities-arts-and-social-sciences/managing-domestic-and-wildcats-is-likely-to-remain-fraught-new-research-warns/">persecuted as a pest species</a> which keeps their numbers down. Modern land management has involved the felling of <a href="https://treesforlife.org.uk/into-the-forest/habitats-and-ecology/human-impacts/deforestation/">large swaths of Scottish forests</a> (often for timber or agriculture), potentially forcing wildcats into more human-dominated environments, where they are more likely to meet a domestic cat. </p>
<p>The 20th century also saw a rise in domestic cat ownership, which is now at an all-time high <a href="https://www.cats.org.uk/media/10005/cats-2021-full-report.pdf">in the UK</a>. While it can be hard to keep track of feral domestic cat numbers, the population size is likely to significantly outnumber the wildcat population.</p>
<p>Our study highlighted the pressure that disease transmission is putting on wildcat populations. Domestic cats are a known source of feline diseases, such as <a href="https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/health-information/feline-health-topics/feline-immunodeficiency-virus-fiv">feline immunodeficiency virus</a>, <a href="https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feline-calicivirus-infection">feline calicivirus</a> and <a href="https://www.langfordvets.co.uk/media/1748/feline-haemoplasma.pdf">haemoplasma infection</a>, which can be passed to wildcats, and can be deadly.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Wildcat kittens play on the forest floor." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557490/original/file-20231103-25-a24sfc.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">Wildcats look similar to domestic cats.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/wild-cat-kittens-fighting-406815661">Libor Fousek/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our study compared the genomes of hybrid, wildcat and domestic cats. The hybrid population showed genetic patterns suggesting they are developing immunity to these diseases, with the help of genes inherited from domestic cat parents. While this may bring short-term protection from cat diseases, it results in domestic cat DNA hitching along for the ride, perhaps accelerating the effect of genetic swamping. </p>
<p>Without intervention, the few wildcats that remain will interbreed with domestic cats and the wildcat genome will contribute a fraction of a percent to the domestic cat genome. The biological and behavioural adaptations that evolved in the European wildcat will be lost.</p>
<h2>Does this matter?</h2>
<p>Human behaviour (such as transporting species around the world, encroachment on wild habitats and climate change) is driving an increase in hybridisation globally. Conservationists are debating the level of risk this poses to wildlife populations, and the best course of action for conservation management.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hybrid-future-interbreeding-can-make-heat-averse-species-more-resilient-to-climate-change-198877">Hybrid future? Interbreeding can make heat-averse species more resilient to climate change</a>
</strong>
</em>
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<hr>
<p>In some cases hybridisation can be beneficial, bringing new genetic diversity that can help species survive in increasingly human-dominated environments. However, the consequences of hybridisation are unpredictable, and it is hard to come up with a solution that works for every case. </p>
<p>For the wildcat, hybridisation is a double-edged sword. It brought disease resistance that aided the population’s short-term survival, but at the cost of threatening the genetic adaptations that made the species unique.</p>
<h2>What next for wildcats?</h2>
<p>My team’s study highlights the value of the <a href="https://www.rewildingbritain.org.uk/reintroductions-key-species/key-species/wildcat">captive wildcat population</a> in the UK. First established in 1960, founders of this population largely predate the onset of hybridisation in Scotland. The captive population now provides an important lifeline to reestablish this species in Britain. </p>
<p>A wildcat conservation breeding for release programme is conducted by <a href="https://savingwildcats.org.uk/">Saving Wildcats</a>, a partnership led by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland. The first releases into the wild started this year, with 19 cats released in the Cairngorms Connect area of the Cairngorms National Park. </p>
<p>Monitoring the newly released cats will give us vital insights about how to protect species like the wildcat. The more we understand about the effects and history of hybridisation, the more we’ll understand about how best to manage wildlife conservation in the future. </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">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
<br><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeTop">Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead.</a> Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeBottom">Join the 20,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.</a></em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216871/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joanna Howard-McCombe received funding from NERC, the RZSS and the People's Trust for Endangered Species. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Beaumont received funding from NERC. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniel J. Lawson 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>And a recent history of wildcat hybridisation.Jo Howard-McCombe, Research scientist, University of BristolDaniel J. Lawson, Associate Professor in Data Science, University of BristolMark Beaumont, Professor of Statistics, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1981122023-10-25T14:25:59Z2023-10-25T14:25:59ZWild animals that survive limb loss are astonishing – and a sign of the havoc humans are wreaking on nature<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554045/original/file-20231016-17-xu2g35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C23%2C2575%2C1912&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/threelegged-tiger-inhabiting-bukit-tinggi-zoo-2275422777">Estharix/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It might seem astounding that a wild animal could survive a limb amputation and still thrive in the wild but videos from social media and research show this may be more common than people realise. Many wild animals not only survive the health risks of amputation, but go on to learn how to adapt to their new bodies, whether by themselves or with the help of others in their family.</p>
<p>Perhaps one of the most unbelievable cases was a video of a <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/01/04/watch-two-legged-fox-darts-couples-garden-like-human/">two-legged adult red fox</a> taken January 2023 in Derbyshire, England.</p>
<p>It’s hard to tell what happened to the fox, but despite the fact it was missing both back legs it appeared to be in good health as it had clean and well-groomed fur. In the video, the fox goes about the business of scent marking with the grace of a gymnast, controlling its body with perfect balance and ease. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ajqoyOkd-lk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
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<p>A 2015 <a href="https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/247/7/javma.247.7.786.xml">study of dog owners</a> found 91% of participants perceived no change in their dog’s attitude after amputation. However, medical aftercare will have reduced the chances of infection, and pets don’t need to forage or hunt if their owner buys food for them. </p>
<p>Wildlife can get caught in snares and may lose a limb trying to escape. If the animal is able to survive the trauma, limb loss will undoubtedly affect its ability to find, catch or eat food, or even outrun a predator. </p>
<p>Limb loss affects every species differently. Foxes, for example, do eat meat but also fruit, vegetables and insects. This omnivorous diet and their <a href="https://www.countryliving.com/uk/wildlife/countryside/a34916405/what-do-foxes-eat/">willingness to scavenge from humans</a> probably contributed to the two legged fox’s survival as it doesn’t have to hunt prey. </p>
<h2>Learning to live with it</h2>
<p>Diet flexibility is not an option for carnivores however. The survival chances of a carnivore who loses a limb depends upon which limb or how much of it is lost. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://bvajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1136/vr.146.6.155">study comparing how dogs move with and without amputations</a> found dogs use front limbs to slow down whereas back limbs are used for moving forward. So losing a back leg means they won’t be able to move as fast. Dogs carry more weight on their front legs so their centre of gravity changes more when a front limb is lost. This will make balancing harder, at least initially. </p>
<p>Both of these changes will affect other four-limbed animals and have serious repercussions on the ability of a predator to catch prey. </p>
<p>In 2011, an adult male lion’s back limb was severed by a poacher’s snare in Uganda, a fate which is <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/08/snares-low-tech-low-profile-killers-of-rare-wildlife-the-world-over/">common across the world</a>. However, he <a href="https://mymodernmet.com/clarence-the-lion-murchison-falls-national-park/">seems to have endured</a> at least five years in Murchison Falls National Park. The sight of a three-legged adult lioness struggling on a muddy river bank in Kafue National Park, Zambia in 2016 <a href="https://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/three-legged-lionness-snares/">prompted an initiative to remove snares</a> in the park. Although it was clearly tough for her, the lioness was surviving. </p>
<p>Both lions’ injury was to a back leg. When hunting large prey like buffalo, lions launch themselves on to the prey using their back limbs, hold on with their front limbs and use their body weight to slow the prey down. </p>
<p>Lions may also use their front limbs to swipe at a prey’s legs during the chase. But crucially, front claws can be used to grip the prey’s neck or head either while delivering the killing bite to the throat or while the lion’s jaw is clamped around the prey’s nose and mouth. The loss of a back limb will make the chase and catch harder. However, the loss of a front leg would affect their ability to kill prey by themselves.</p>
<p>Since lions live in groups, the injured lions may have been able to depend on family members to provide support during a hunt or, more likely, access to food once it has been caught. </p>
<p>Lone hunters, such as male tigers, use their paws <a href="https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/4410/Seidensticker1993.pdf">in a similar way to lions during a hunt</a> but do not normally rely on other tigers’ help. Incredibly though, a healthy looking male tiger was <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna19634022">caught on camera</a> in 2007 with the lower part of his right leg missing in Tesso Nilo National Park, Sumatra. Like all big cats, tigers eat a wide variety of prey from <a href="https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1469-7998.2011.00871.x?casa_token=wyWHA32favcAAAAA%3APNEaYhJULgc3bIvRtvDgazqpMec6MCixPOccIwgeuYsxqOq35XV7yDYzTIW8a7EntGN8dXiMh0geF6I#jzo871-bib-0037">birds to large deer</a>. The injured male may have focused on hunting small prey, which tigers can kill with a bite to the back of the neck. The injured tiger may have also turned to easier sources of food than wild prey such as livestock. </p>
<h2>The devastating effect of snares</h2>
<p>Snares are a problem the world over. While working in South Africa as a guide just over a decade ago, I saw elephants with amputated trunks, sometimes up to two thirds shorter than they should have been. Trunks are <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/elephant-baby-no-trunk-snaring-crocodile-poaching-news">invaluable to an elephant</a> because they have such short necks. An elephant’s trunk allows it to drink, pluck fruit and grass with pinpoint accuracy, pull down out of reach branches and transfer food to their mouth. Elephants also use their trucks to greet and communicate with other elephants. </p>
<p>And yet, some are able to adapt to trunk injuries, probably because elephants have <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/elephant-baby-no-trunk-snaring-crocodile-poaching-news">close family bonds</a>. I do not recall seeing any lone elephants with these injuries. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Small mammal with yellow eyes perches on tree branch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554039/original/file-20231016-17-i1urrx.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">African palm civits are small mammals with a cat-like body.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/nandinia-binotata-african-palm-civet-female-1821427172">Michal Sloviak/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1523-1739.1998.96027.x?casa_token=ZcrJtuh9cXIAAAAA%3APBv-gm6fZnIIfzfJ_UDz96dChlndIZzX-Kw0RT8bOmg5cIyjxGEAr66u7bdl7QfkjF2Nme4FaRzFi-I">study in Central Africa Republic found</a> 38% of animals (including elephants, gorillas and pangolins) caught in snares managed to break them and escape, albeit with the snare still attached to them. But 3% left their limb behind (including African brush-tailed porcupines, small mammals called African palm civets and a type of small antelope called duikers). Another <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320723004044?casa_token=MiVc0bfh-moAAAAA:fOGu3cqUi--r8oJ3gcDUPzpThv9eSCS6ZrtrxzDUuambJpCnMO70xq6lm0StwSMgS0XtOtKS#bb0145">study from India</a> that looked at camera trap images reported sloth bears, leopards, elephants, sambar deer and dhole wild dogs with snares around their bodies.</p>
<p>It shows incredible resilience that these animals survived a snare without succumbing to shock, exhaustion, blood loss or infection, as so many other animals inevitably do. These wild miracles are more than an inspiration – they should be a wake-up call for the damage humans are doing to animals globally.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198112/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tara Pirie 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>When wild animals survive the initial trauma, blood loss and infection risk without medical help, it’s astonishing that they can adapt to life with three limbs.Tara Pirie, Lecturer in Ecology and Conservation, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2153652023-10-18T16:02:46Z2023-10-18T16:02:46ZCompatible seabirds may make better parents, but personality clashes can lead to family tragedy and ‘divorce’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554256/original/file-20231017-27-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C0%2C5455%2C3637&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Black legged kittiwakes often mate for life.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/blacklegged-kittiwake-rissa-tridactyla-iceland-polar-581886376">Frank Fichtmueller/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Is there anything worse than a disappointing first date? It is particularly disheartening when a potential partnership that had so much promise turns out to be one big personality clash. My team’s <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/eth.13405">recent study</a> suggests that other animals may also need to navigate personality clashes, or else face disastrous consequences if they pick the wrong partner. </p>
<p>My team found that seabirds, which usually practice lifelong monogamy, are more likely to lose their chicks when their partner has a dissimilar personality. This, in turn, increases the couple’s chances of re-pairing with other birds, for example through “divorce”. </p>
<p>Defined as “<a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2010.0208">consistent differences in an individual’s behaviour</a>”, personality affects many aspects of an animal’s life, including mating. Previous research has shown that some animals, <a href="https://academic.oup.com/biolinnean/article/132/4/759/6133224">such as Montagu’s harrier</a>, choose a partner with a similar personality to themselves. Personality may also affect the likelihood of <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0301">divorce</a>. In our <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/eth.13405">recent study</a>, we found that pairs of a black-legged kittiwakes, a type of seabird, with similar personalities make better parents and that this reduces the likelihood of re-pairing.</p>
<h2>Don’t seabirds mate for life?</h2>
<p>Divorce is widespread throughout the avian world and some species find a new partner with every breeding attempt. Seabirds are less fickle and rarely divorce but it does happen. They tend to be long-lived and raise only one or two chicks a year, in challenging conditions which preclude being a single parent. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Nesting kittiwake couple." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554257/original/file-20231017-25-d8q4j2.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">Kittiwake populations are struggling to cope with climate change.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/nesting-kittiwake-norway-area-now-sadly-2338934141">Risto Raunio/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Seabirds do not have time to find a new beau every year and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347222003372">evidence suggests</a> that their partnerships find their rhythm over time, leading to stronger cooperation and higher breeding success. So it pays to stick together.</p>
<p>The death of a chick can trigger divorce in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.7775">several seabird species</a>, such as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347222002135">Magellanic penguins</a>. But my team were keen to know whether personality also played a role in this behaviour.</p>
<p>Despite looking similar my team’s study species, the <a href="https://www.birdlife.org/news/2021/10/06/seabird-of-the-month-black-legged-kittiwake-rissa-tridactyla/">black-legged kittiwake</a>, is different from the vagabond seagulls that steal your chips on the promenade. Kittiwakes visit land only to breed. Like swallows, they usually return to the same location every year to reunite with their long-term partner. In summer, you may see this handsome white and grey bird perched atop the UK’s cliffs on its jet black legs. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554259/original/file-20231017-17-6x6ank.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">Black-legged kittiwake flock resting on ice floe in Svalbard,</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/blacklegged-kittiwake-rissa-tridactyla-flock-resting-1585868851">Altrendo Images/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Although we have kittiwakes in the UK, for our study we needed to travel to Svalbard to visit their artic-dwelling cousins. The reason is accessibility. While most kittiwakes build their homes on treacherous cliffs, the Svalbard kittiwakes nest on the abandoned buildings of a Soviet ghost town. </p>
<p>This means researchers do not need to use boats and climbing gear to keep tabs on them, making it much easier to catch and observe the birds on a regular basis. Researchers return every breeding season to record detailed relationship histories. </p>
<h2>How do you give a bird a personality test?</h2>
<p>That’s where Butch the Penguin comes in. Kittiwakes feel differently about this little plastic toy depending on where they sit on the personality spectrum. We <a href="https://twitter.com/FR_McCully/status/1709841711524983256/video/1">observe each bird’s response</a> to Butch’s arrival at their nest to determine whether they are bold, shy or somewhere in between. After testing over 200 birds, we searched for links between the birds’ personalities and their success as parents and partners. </p>
<p>When bold mated with bold, and shy with shy, their chicks were more likely to survive. Bold and shy birds have different priorities when foraging at sea. <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2656.13106">For example</a>, bold kittiwakes tend to visit the same foraging locations repeatedly, while shy birds are quick to adjust their strategy in the face of environmental change. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QlKmE7SfnV4?wmode=transparent&start=1" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Butch the Penguin in action.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If pair members take foraging trips of different lengths, this may lead to one member working harder than the other, which is not ideal when you both need to be at the top of your game to breed in the unforgiving Arctic. Alternatively, couples with different personalities may find it harder to predict their partner’s behaviour, increasing the risk of breeding failure. </p>
<p>Of course the situation is complicated and there’s more than just personality at play when it comes to seabird breeding success. <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2019.00349/full">Environmental conditions</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016648006001110">breeding experience</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/condor/article/103/4/793/5563011">predator attacks</a> are also influences on seabird parents. But perhaps having a partner with a compatible personality makes all these things slightly easier to manage. </p>
<p>As life in the modern world becomes harder and harder for seabirds, <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2021.2112">scientists</a> predict that this will cause divorce rates to rise. Globally, kittiwakes are already in trouble. Their numbers are in dramatic decline as they struggle to breed in a warming climate and empty seas. In Svalbard, the encroachment of warm waters from the south is leading to the “<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-19118-8">Atlanticification</a>” of the Arctic ocean. This changes the building blocks of the Arctic ecosystem, making it harder for seabirds to find food, while rising temperatures put them at risk of <a href="https://journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/224/13/jeb242168/270771/Limited-heat-tolerance-in-a-cold-adapted-seabird">heat stress</a>. </p>
<p>My team’s findings suggest that humans and kittiwake relationships have more in common than you might think. We both thrive on <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2014-19904-008">compatibility and coordination</a>. And for kittiwakes, the stakes are becoming higher than they have ever been before.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215365/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fionnuala McCully has received funding from NERC via the ACCE DTP. </span></em></p>Like humans, seabirds seem less likely to part ways when they have relationships built on similar personalities.Fionnuala McCully, PhD candidate in behavioural ecology, University of LiverpoolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2146222023-10-12T12:31:00Z2023-10-12T12:31:00ZHorseshoe crab blood is vital for testing intravenous drugs, but new synthetic alternatives could mean pharma won’t bleed this unique species dry<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/552874/original/file-20231010-19-onfdw4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C8%2C5579%2C3728&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Horseshoe crabs in spawning season at Reeds Beach, N.J., on June 13, 2023.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/HorseshoeCrabHarvest/053d4f924f9c453f808a4d3724a87e73/photo">AP Photo/Matt Rourke</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you have ever gotten a vaccine or received an intravenous drug and did not come down with a potentially life-threatening fever, you can thank a horseshoe crab (<em>Limulus polyphemus</em>).</p>
<p>How can animals that are <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/horseshoe-crab">often called living fossils</a>, because they have barely changed over millions of years, be so important in modern medicine? Horseshoe crab blood is used to produce a substance called limulus amebocyte lysate, or LAL, which scientists use to test for <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/endotoxin">toxic substances called endotoxins</a> in intravenous drugs. </p>
<p>These toxins, produced by bacteria, are ubiquitous in the environment and can’t be removed simply through sterilization. They can cause a reaction historically referred to as “<a href="https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/inspection-technical-guides/pyrogens-still-danger">injection fever</a>.” A strong concentration can lead to shock and even death. </p>
<p>Identifying LAL as a highly sensitive detector of endotoxins was a 20th-century medical safety breakthrough. Now, however, critics are raising questions about environmental impacts and the process for reviewing and approving synthetic alternatives to horseshoe crab blood.</p>
<p>We study <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Dd_T980AAAAJ&hl=en&authuser=1&oi=ao">science, technology</a> and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jolie-crunelle/%20student">public policy</a>, and recently published a <a href="https://osf.io/3tm9g/">white paper</a> examining social, political and economic issues associated with using horseshoe crabs to produce LAL. We see this issue as a test case for complicated problems that cut across multiple agencies and require attention to both nature and human health.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CgRn3T7vcMw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Protecting horseshoe crabs will require persuading the heavily regulated pharmaceutical industry to embrace change.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>An ocean solution</h2>
<p>Doctors began injecting patients with various solutions <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.06.044">in the mid-1800s</a>, but it was not until the 1920s that biochemist <a href="https://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/florence-seibert">Florence Seibert</a> discovered that febrile reactions were due to contaminated water in these solutions. She created a method for detecting and removing the substances that caused this reaction, and it became the medical standard in the 1940s.</p>
<p>Known as the <a href="https://www.matresearch.com/pyrogen-testing/">rabbit pyrogen test</a>, it required scientists to inject intravenous drugs into rabbits, then monitor the animals. A feverish rabbit meant that a batch of drugs was contaminated.</p>
<p>The LAL method was discovered by accident. Working with horseshoe crabs at the <a href="https://www.mbl.edu/">Marine Biological Laboratory</a> at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, in the 1950s and ’60s, <a href="https://www.goldengooseaward.org/01awardees/horseshoe-crab-blood">pathobiologist Frederik Bang and medical researcher Jack Levin</a> noticed that the animals’ <a href="https://hub.jhu.edu/magazine/2021/summer/horseshoe-crabs-covid19-medical-uses/">blue blood</a> coagulated in a curious manner. Through a series of experiments, they isolated endotoxin as the coagulant and devised a method for extracting LAL from the blood. This compound would gel or clot nearly instantaneously in the presence of fever-inducing toxins.</p>
<p>Academic researchers, biomedical companies and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration refined LAL production and measured it against the rabbit test. By the 1990s, LAL was the <a href="https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/inspection-technical-guides/bacterial-endotoxinspyrogens">FDA-approved method</a> for testing medicines for endotoxin, largely replacing rabbits.</p>
<p>Producing LAL requires harvesting horseshoe crabs from oceans and beaches, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/02/the-blood-harvest/284078/">draining up to 30% of their blood</a> in a laboratory and returning the live crabs to the ocean. There’s dispute about <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/medical-labs-may-be-killing-horseshoe-crabs/">how many crabs die in the process</a> – estimates range from a few percent to 30% or more – and about possible harmful effects on survivors. </p>
<p>Today there are five FDA-licensed <a href="https://asmfc.org/uploads/file/645bf065HSC_Biomedical_BMPs_2023.pdf">LAL producers</a> along the U.S. East Coast. The amount of LAL they produce, and its sales value, are proprietary. </p>
<h2>Bait versus biotech</h2>
<p>As biomedical LAL production ramped up in the 1990s, so did harvesting horseshoe crabs to use as bait for other species, particularly eel and whelk for foreign seafood markets. Over the past 25 years, hundreds of thousands – and in the early years, millions – of horseshoe crabs have been harvested each year for these purposes. Combined, the two fisheries kill <a href="https://asmfc.org/species/horseshoe-crab">over half a million</a> horseshoe crabs every year.</p>
<p>There’s no agreed total population estimate for <em>Limulus</em>, but the most recent <a href="https://asmfc.org/uploads/file/63d2ed62HSCAssessment_PeerReviewReport_May2019.pdf">federal assessment of horseshoe crab fisheries</a> found the population was neither strongly growing nor declining.</p>
<p>Conservationists are worried, and not just about the crabs. Millions of shorebirds <a href="https://atlanticflywayshorebirds.org/">migrate along the Atlantic coast</a>, and many stop in spring, when horseshoe crabs spawn on mid-Atlantic beaches, to feed on the crabs’ eggs. Particularly for <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red_Knot/overview">red knots</a> – a species that can migrate up to 9,000 miles between the tip of South America and the Canadian Arctic – gorging on horseshoe crab eggs provides a critical energy-rich boost on their grueling journey.</p>
<p>Red knots were <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2014/12/11/2014-28338/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-threatened-species-status-for-the-rufa-red-knot">listed as threatened</a> under the Endangered Species Act in 2015, largely because horseshoe crab fishing threatened this key food source. As biomedical crab harvests came to equal or <a href="https://asmfc.org/species/horseshoe-crab">surpass bait harvests</a>, conservation groups began calling on the LAL industry to find new sources.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/Ct2Aji4xcPJ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link\u0026igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>Biomedical alternatives</h2>
<p>Many important medicines are derived from living organisms. Penicillin, the first important antibiotic, was <a href="https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/how-was-penicillin-developed">originally produced from molds</a>. Other medicines currently in use come from sources including <a href="https://www.goodrx.com/well-being/diet-nutrition/medications-that-contain-animal-byproducts">cows, pigs, chickens and fish</a>. The ocean is a <a href="https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/facts/medicinesfromsea.html">promising source</a> for such products.</p>
<p>When possible, synthesizing these substances in laboratories – especially widely used medications like <a href="https://www.cityofhope.org/breakthroughs/art-riggs-tribute">insulin</a> – offers many benefits. It’s typically cheaper and more efficient, and it avoids putting species at risk, as well as addressing <a href="https://www.uspharmacist.com/article/animal-derived-medications-can-be-problematic-for-some-patients">concerns some patients have</a> about using animal-derived medical products.</p>
<p>In the 1990s, researchers at the National University of Singapore <a href="https://patents.google.com/patent/WO1999015676A1/en?inventor=Jeak+Ling+Ding">invented and patented</a> the first process for creating a synthetic, endotoxin-detecting compound using horseshoe crab DNA and <a href="https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Recombinant-DNA-Technology">recombinant DNA technology</a>. The result, dubbed recombinant Factor C (rFC), mimicked the first step in the three-part cascade reaction that occurs when LAL is exposed to endotoxin. </p>
<p>Later, several biomedical firms <a href="https://www.americanpharmaceuticalreview.com/Featured-Articles/569887-Historical-Milestones-and-Industry-Drivers-in-the-Development-of-Recombinant-Lysate-for-Bacterial-Endotoxin-Testing/">produced their own versions</a> of rFC and compounds called recombinant cascade reagents (rCRs), which reproduce the entire LAL reaction without using horseshoe crab blood. Yet, today, LAL remains the dominant technology for detecting endotoxins in medicine. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A vial partly filled with pale blue fluid" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/552876/original/file-20231010-22-ilv12l.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A sample of horseshoe crab blood.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/riAZsU">Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The main reason is that the <a href="https://www.usp.org/">U.S. Pharmacopeia</a>, a quasi-regulatory organization that sets safety standards for medical products, considers rFC and rCR as “alternative” methods for detecting endotoxins, so they require case-by-case validation for use – a potentially lengthy and expensive process. The FDA generally defers to the U.S. Pharmacopeia.</p>
<p>A few large pharmaceutical companies with deep pockets have committed to <a href="https://www.esg.lilly.com/environmental/biodiversity?redirect-referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F#case-studies">switching from LAL to rFC</a>. But most drug producers are sticking with the tried-and-true method. </p>
<p>Conservation groups want the U.S. Pharmacopeia to <a href="https://www.audubon.org/magazine/summer-2018/inside-biomedical-revolution-save-horseshoe-crabs">fully certify rFC</a> for use in industry with no extra testing or validation. In their view, LAL producers are stalling rFC and rCR approval to protect their <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/06/10/1180761446/coastal-biomedical-labs-are-bleeding-more-horseshoe-crabs-with-little-accountabi">market in endotoxin detection</a>. The U.S. Pharmacopeia and LAL producers counter that they are doing due diligence to <a href="https://hsc.criver.com/#lal-endo">protect public health</a>.</p>
<h2>Change in the offing</h2>
<p>Change may be coming. All major LAL producers now have their own recombinant products – a tacit acknowledgment that markets and regulations are moving toward <em>Limulus</em>-free ways to test for endotoxins. </p>
<p>Atlantic fisheries regulators are currently considering <a href="https://www.asmfc.org/home/2023-annual-meeting">new harvest limits for horseshoe crabs</a>, and the U.S. Pharmacopeia is <a href="https://www.uspnf.com/notices/86-bet-using-recombinant-tests-gen-annc-20230822">weighing guidance</a> on recombinant alternatives to LAL. Public comments will be solicited over the winter of 2024, followed by U.S. Pharmacopeia and FDA review. </p>
<p>Even if rFC and rCR don’t win immediate approval, we believe that collecting more complete data on horseshoe crab populations and requiring more transparency from the LAL industry on <a href="https://asmfc.org/uploads/file/645bf065HSC_Biomedical_BMPs_2023.pdf">how it handles the crabs</a> would represent progress. So would directing medical companies to use recombinant products for testing during the manufacturing process, while saving LAL solely for final product testing. </p>
<p>Making policy on complex scientific issues across diverse agencies is never easy. But in our view, incremental actions that protect both human health and the environment could be important steps forward.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214622/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. 2121146, as well as the Leverhulme Trust through a Leverhulme Trust Research Project Grant. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation or the Leverhulme Trust.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jolie Crunelle receives funding from the Aberg Family Fellowship at Rochester Institute of Technology. </span></em></p>Horseshoe crabs play a unique role in medicine, but they’re also ecologically important in their home waters along the Atlantic coast. Can regulators balance the needs of humans and nature?Kristoffer Whitney, Associate Professor of Science, Technology and Society, Rochester Institute of TechnologyJolie Crunelle, Master's Degree Student in Science, Technology, and Public Policy, Rochester Institute of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2143292023-10-02T15:01:35Z2023-10-02T15:01:35ZNew species of cobra-like snake discovered – but it may already be extinct<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550600/original/file-20230927-23-z2mshp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C0%2C852%2C668&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Hemachatus nyangensis in Nyanga National Park, Zimbabwe</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Donald Broadley</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Around the world, natural history museums hold a treasure trove of knowledge about Earth’s animals. But much of the precious information is sealed off to genetic scientists because <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/formalin">formalin</a>, the chemical often used to preserve specimens, <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.6828890#:%7E:text=Formaldehyde%20caused%20the%20formation%20of,breaks%20produced%20by%20ionizing%20radiation.">damages DNA</a> and makes sequences hard to recover. </p>
<p>However, recent <a href="https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/43127/1/1446584_Barlow.pdf">advances in DNA extraction techniques</a> mean that biologists can study the genetic code of old museum specimens, which include extremely rare or even recently extinct species. We <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0291432">harnessed this new technology </a> to study a snake from the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe that was run over in 1982, and discovered it was a new species. Our research was recently published in PLOS One. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://zimfieldguide.com/manicaland/manicaland-zimbabwe%E2%80%99s-eastern-highlands">Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe</a>, a mountain chain on the border with Mozambique, <a href="https://www.gbif.org/dataset/1160e07d-3285-403e-8770-8426ef450bbf">create a haven</a> of cool and wet habitats surrounded by savannas and dry forest. They are home to many species that are <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/23502383?typeAccessWorkflow=login">found nowhere else</a>. </p>
<p>Here, a mysterious population of snakes first drew the attention of scientists around 1920. An unusual snake displaying a cobra-like defensive hooding posture was spotted in the grounds of <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-32131829">Cecil Rhodes’</a> (prime minister of the Cape Colony in the late 19th century) Inyanga Estate in Nyanga. </p>
<p>This snake had unusual markings with red skin between its scales, creating the effect of black dots on a red background when its hood is extended. None of the other cobras found in the area match this description. </p>
<p>More snakes like this were reported in the 1950s, but no specimens were collected.</p>
<h2>A rare find</h2>
<p>The mystery surrounding these sightings piqued the interest of the late <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325450946_Donald_George_Broadley_Bibliography_taxonomic_discoveries_and_patronyms">Donald G. Broadley</a>, now considered to be the most eminent herpetologist (<a href="https://www.environmentalscience.org/career/herpetologist#:%7E:text=A%20herpetologist%20is%20a%20zoologist,conditions%20in%20a%20particular%20area.">reptile and amphibian expert</a>) of southern Africa. In 1961, Broadley was given some severed snake heads and identified the mystery snake as a <a href="https://www.africansnakebiteinstitute.com/snake/rinkhals/">rinkhals (<em>Hemachatus haemachatus</em>)</a>, a species otherwise only found in South Africa, Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland) and Lesotho. </p>
<figure>
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<p>A handful of specimens were observed and measured in later years, but the landscape has been drastically altered by forestry. The rinkhals from Zimbabwe has not been seen in the wild since 1988 and is feared to be extinct.</p>
<p>This population lives 700km away from other, more southerly populations, which made us suspect it may be a separate species. But the genetic material contained within the specimen from Zimbabwe was degraded, meaning we couldn’t do the DNA studies needed to confirm whether it is a different species from other rinkhals. </p>
<h2>New technology</h2>
<p>However, the latest DNA extraction and sequencing methods have been developed over the last ten years to help biologists study the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1111/1755-0998.13433">remains of ancient animals</a>. We used the new techniques to examine the Zimbabwe rinkhals specimen. Our study showed they represent a long-isolated population, highly distinct from the southern rinkhals populations. </p>
<p>Based on their genetic divergence from the other rinkhals, we estimate that the snakes in Zimbabwe diverged from their southern relatives 7-14 million years ago. Counting a snake’s scales can help identify what species it is. Subtle differences in scale counts, revealed by our analysis of other specimens, provided enough evidence to classify the Zimbabwe rinkhals as a new species, <em>Hemachatus nyangensis</em>, the Nyanga rinkhals.</p>
<p>The scientific name <em>nyangensis</em> means “from Nyanga” in Latin.</p>
<p><em>Hemachatus nyangensis</em> has fangs modified to spit venom, although the behaviour was not reported from the few recorded interactions with humans. The closely related true cobras (<a href="http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/advanced_search?genus=Naja&submit=Search">genus Naja</a>), some of which are known to spit venom, do so with the same specialised fangs that allow venom to be forced forwards through narrow slits, spraying it toward animals that are threatening them. </p>
<p>Venom in the eyes causes severe pain, may damage the eye, and can cause blindness if left untreated. <a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/spitting-cobras-venom-evolved-inflict-pain">Venom spitting</a> appears to have <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.abb9303">evolved three times</a> within the broader group of cobra-like snakes, once in the rinkhals, and twice in the <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/30475-Naja">true cobras</a> in south-east Asia and in Africa.</p>
<h2>A connection between human and snake evolution</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/spitting-cobras-may-have-evolved-unique-venom-to-defend-from-ancient-humans-153570">Scientists think</a> this defence mechanism may have evolved in response to the first hominins (our ancestors). Tool-using apes who walked upright would have posed a serious threat to the snakes, and the evolution of spitting in African cobras roughly coincides with when hominins split from chimpanzees and bonobos 7 million years ago.</p>
<p>Similarly, the venom spitting in Asian cobras is thought to have emerged around <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.abb9303">2.5 million years</a> ago, which is around the time the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/homo-erectus-our-ancient-ancestor.html">extinct human species <em>Homo erectus</em></a> would have become a threat to those species. Our study of Nyanga rinkhals suggests that the third time venom spitting evolved independently in snakes may also have coincided with the origin of upright-walking hominins. </p>
<p>If a living population of Nyanga rinkhals was found, fresh DNA samples would help us to more accurately determine the timing of the split between the two species of rinkhals and how this compares to hominin evolution. Technological advances may be giving us incredible insights into ancient animal lineages but they can’t make up for an extinction. We still hope a living population of Nyanga rinkhals will be found. </p>
<p>The possible relationship between venom spitting and our early ancestors is a reminder that we are part of the Earth’s ecosystem. Our own evolution is intertwined with that of other animals. When animals become extinct, we don’t just lose a species - they take part of our history with them.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214329/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Axel Barlow has no active funding. He has previously received funding from NERC and Horizon 2020. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wolfgang Wüster receives funding from the Leverhulme Trust. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Major 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>The Nyanga rinkhals can tell us about our own evolution.Tom Major, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Bournemouth UniversityAxel Barlow, Lecturer in Zoology, Bangor UniversityWolfgang Wüster, Reader in Zoology, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2056262023-10-02T12:28:48Z2023-10-02T12:28:48ZThere’s a thriving global market in turtles, and much of that trade is illegal<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549993/original/file-20230925-24-nz5ob8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C3%2C2422%2C1912&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smuggled rare Mexican box turtles intercepted by U.S. officials at the Port of Memphis.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.fws.gov/story/2021-05/us-fish-and-wildlife-service-works-partners-rescue-rare-turtles-memphis-port-entry">USFWS</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Hatchling turtles are cute, small and inexpensive. Handled improperly, they also can make you sick. </p>
<p>Turtles are well-known carriers of <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/salmonella/symptoms-causes/syc-20355329">salmonella, a common bacterial disease</a> that causes fever, stomach cramps and dehydration and can lead to severe illness, especially in young children and elderly people. In August 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/turtles-08-23/index.html">released an advisory</a> about an 11-state outbreak of salmonella bacteria linked to pet turtles.</p>
<p>“Don’t kiss or snuggle your turtle, and don’t eat or drink around it. This can spread Salmonella germs to your mouth and make you sick,” the agency warned.</p>
<p>Global trade in turtles is big business, and the U.S. is a leading <a href="https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2005)055%5B0256:CIETIO%5D2.0.CO;2">source, destination and transit country</a>. Some of this commerce is legal, some is not. For example, it has been illegal in the U.S. since 1975 to sell turtles with shells less than 4 inches (10 centimeters) in diameter because young children often contract salmonella from them. But it’s easy to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278443">find them for sale</a> nonetheless. </p>
<p>However, humans are a much bigger threat to turtles than vice versa. Over half of the world’s turtle species are <a href="https://iucn-tftsg.org/checklist/">classified as threatened or endangered</a>, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.04.088">overharvesting of wild turtles</a> is a major cause. Turtles also face other threats, including habitat loss, climate change, pollution, diseases, invasive species and death or injury while <a href="https://theconversation.com/by-helping-wild-animals-you-could-end-their-freedom-or-even-their-lives-heres-why-you-should-keep-your-distance-207188">trying to cross roads</a>.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-sevin-a38b4b89/">conservation biologist</a>, I work with colleagues from academia, nonprofit organizations and state and federal agencies to protect threatened species and combat wildlife trafficking. I also use the global wildlife trade to teach important ecological concepts and research skills. Here’s what we know about trade in turtles and how it threatens their survival.</p>
<figure>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">U.S. zoos and aquariums are working with government agencies to detect and reduce illegal trade in turtles.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Life in the slow lane</h2>
<p>It’s <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229689">hard to harvest turtles sustainably</a> because they are so long-lived. Individual turtles of some species can survive for more than 100 years. Most turtles reach reproductive maturity late in life and have relatively few eggs, not all of which produce successful offspring.</p>
<p>To put this in context, compare a common female snapping turtle from the northern U.S. with a female white-tailed deer. Begin at the start of their lives and fast-forward 17 years. At this point, the snapping turtle will just be ready to reproduce for the first time; the deer will already be dead, but it may have produced <a href="https://www.fws.gov/story/2022-11/turtles-face-unique-challenges-cites-can-help">over 600 descendants</a>. It can take a female turtle her entire life to generate one or two offspring that in turn reach adulthood and replace her in the population.</p>
<p>Turtles are valuable because they play diverse roles in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biy095">land, freshwater and ocean ecosystems</a>. For example, tortoise burrows provide refuge for hundreds of other species, including <a href="https://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/reptiles/gopher-tortoise">birds, mice, snakes and rabbits</a>. Box turtles – the type you may encounter in your garden – consume practically any kind of plant material and excrete the seeds as they move around, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.6487">helping plants spread</a>. Some seeds even germinate more readily <a href="https://www.bbg.org/article/box_turtles">after passing through a box turtle’s gut</a>.</p>
<p>In lakes and ponds, freshwater turtles serve as both predator and prey, and they help maintain good water quality by consuming decaying organisms. Terrapins reside in brackish water zones, where rivers flow into oceans and bays, and feed heavily on snails. Without terrapins present, the snails would quickly consume all underwater seagrasses, which would harm fish, shellfish, sea urchins and other organisms that <a href="https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/plants-algae/seagrass-and-seagrass-beds">rely on seagrasses for their survival</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CCUOnx7ggav/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link\u0026igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>In global demand</h2>
<p>Humans have long been fascinated with turtles. Revered in many cultures, turtles have <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kurma">symbolized strength</a> and <a href="https://blog.nativehope.org/native-american-animals-turtle-k%C3%A9ya">longevity</a> for centuries. Today, people use turtles as pets; sources of food, <a href="https://flic.kr/p/Rwc4mu">jewelry and other curios</a>; and in traditional medicines and <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/05/balinese-rituals-fuel-spike-in-trafficking-of-endangered-sea-turtles/">religious and cultural practices</a>.</p>
<p>International trade in turtles takes place on a massive scale. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, nearly 127 million turtles were exported just from the U.S. between 2002 and 2012. About one-fifth (24 million) <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0086478">came from the wild</a>.</p>
<p>More recent data indicates that exports declined between 2013 and 2018, but <a href="https://www.fishwildlife.org/application/files/7815/9352/0162/Case_Study_U.S._Freshwater_Turtles_and_Tortoises_CITES_2020_FINAL.pdf">trade in particular species increased</a>. Commercial freshwater turtle farming is still a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0139053">multimillion-dollar industry</a> in the southeastern U.S.; a small number of native turtle species, <a href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2017/Online_Resources/Aquaculture/aqua_1_0020_0020.pdf">largely bred on turtle farms</a>, now make up the bulk of legal U.S. exports, for use as both pets and food.</p>
<p>There’s no good way to quantify how many native turtles are harvested from the wild. But history shows what happens when they are hunted without limits. Historic demand for <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/sea-turtles-are-surviving-despite-threats-from-humans-feature">sea turtles</a>, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2019/07/18/742326830/our-taste-for-turtle-soup-nearly-wiped-out-terrapins-then-prohibition-saved-them">diamondback terrapins</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2016.11.003">snapping turtles</a> as food led to such crashes in populations that management agencies had to regulate their harvesting.</p>
<p>Turtles also are gaining popularity as pets, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/advisor/pet-insurance/pet-ownership-statistics/">particularly for younger adults</a>. Surveys indicate that <a href="https://www.americanpetproducts.org/press_releasedetail.asp?v=ALL&id=1229">more than 2 million Americans own turtles</a>. To curb pressure on wild populations, state agencies are <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/south-carolina-governor-signs-bill-protect-wild-turtles-poaching-trade-2020-10-22/">prohibiting or limiting</a> personal collection and possession of native turtles. </p>
<h2>Black market turtles</h2>
<p>Despite existing regulations, demand for some native North American turtle species is so strong that people collect, smuggle and sell the animals illegally. For example, in 2019 a Pennsylvania man was sentenced to six months in prison and fined $250,000 for trafficking <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/pennsylvania-man-sentenced-trafficking-protected-turtles">thousands of protected diamondback terrapins</a>. </p>
<p>Rare species such as wood turtles and Blanding’s turtles, as well as uniquely patterned individual turtles, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12797">command top value on the black market</a>. Internet commerce, social media apps and online payment mechanisms make it easy for illegal buyers and sellers to connect.</p>
<p>Between 1998 and 2021, U.S. enforcement agencies intercepted at least 24,000 protected freshwater turtles and tortoises <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10448">from 34 native species</a> that were being illegally traded across the U.S. These animals may be held without food and water and in crowded spaces, sometimes wrapped in tape and stuffed in socks.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A turtle roughly 10 inches in diameter, wrapped in duct tape." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549998/original/file-20230925-25-zzb9mu.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A live smuggled Mexican box turtle intercepted by U.S. officials at the Port of Memphis in 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/2kZn2Af">USFWS</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How to help</h2>
<p>To curtail the illegal turtle trade, regulators are working to <a href="https://www.fws.gov/story/joining-forces-combat-turtle-trafficking">strengthen regulations and increase enforcement</a>. Private citizens can also help reduce the demand and protect wild turtles. Here are some simple steps:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Before you purchase any live animal or wildlife-related product, review relevant local, state, national and international regulations. Just because something is for sale doesn’t mean it’s legal.</p></li>
<li><p>Make an informed decision about owning a turtle. Consider the size it will reach as an adult, its care requirements and its life span. Prioritize adopting one from a reputable rescue organization, and seek out a captive-bred turtle instead of a wild one.</p></li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A small terrapin with a red streak on the side of its head." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550000/original/file-20230925-27-u1z8wx.jpeg?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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The red-eared slider (<em>Trachemys scripta elegans</em>) is a terrapin that has become highly invasive in the U.S., outcompeting native species.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-eared_slider#/media/File:Tortue_floride_france.JPG">Galano~commonswiki/Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<ul>
<li><p>Don’t release an animal that you no longer want or can’t care for into the wild. This is illegal and can have serious ecological impacts. The <a href="https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=1261">red-eared slider</a> (<em>Trachemys scripta elegans</em>), a freshwater turtle that’s native to the Mississippi River basin, was sold by the millions in recent decades and released by many pet owners. Now it is considered one of the <a href="https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/aquatic/fish-and-other-vertebrates/red-eared-slider">world’s most invasive species</a> because it <a href="https://portals.iucn.org/library/sites/library/files/documents/2000-126.pdf">outcompetes native turtles for food and space</a>.</p></li>
<li><p>If you encounter illegal wildlife collection, smuggling or sales, report them to your state fish and wildlife agency or the <a href="https://www.fws.gov/form/refuge-law-enforcement">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</a> for investigation.</p></li>
<li><p>Support efforts to conserve and restore turtle habitat and minimize other threats, such as pollution and <a href="https://daily.jstor.org/road-density-threatens-turtle-populations/">road traffic</a>.</p></li>
</ul><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205626/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jennifer Sevin is a co-founder and serves on the steering committee of the Collaborative to Combat the Illegal Trade in Turtles.</span></em></p>More than half of the world’s turtle species are endangered or threatened, and overhunting of wild species is a major cause.Jennifer Sevin, Director of Biological Instruction, University of RichmondLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2119542023-09-07T14:58:27Z2023-09-07T14:58:27ZChimpanzees are not pets, no matter what social media tells you<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546731/original/file-20230906-27-bnebzz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=45%2C0%2C5111%2C3358&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Miriam, a rescued chimpanzee brought to the Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage in 2018.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jake Brooker</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Trading wild <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/chimpanzee">chimpanzees</a>, including their meat and body parts, is <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15933/129038584">illegal</a>. And yet, social media influencers and companies still reap profits from sharing “cute” images and videos of chimpanzees and other primates poached from the wild. All the while, sanctuaries worldwide continue to receive orphaned victims of this illicit trade. </p>
<p>As a comparative psychologist who studies the social and emotional behaviour of great apes, I have worked with chimpanzee populations both in the wild and in sanctuaries. Currently, I’m working at <a href="https://chimfunshiwildlife.org/">Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage Trust</a>, a sanctuary located in Zambia. Over the past 40 years, Chimfunshi has provided sanctuary to over 100 chimpanzees rescued from the pet and bushmeat trades.</p>
<p>In May 2023, Chimfunshi welcomed three new rescues. Following their rehabilitation, Abbie, Francis and Vanessa* will be integrated into a small community of eight other chimps who were rescued from similar conditions in 2018.</p>
<p>Chimpanzees are not native to Zambia. So, why do these animals still end up in these circumstances, and how can we help to keep them in their wild homes where they belong?</p>
<h2>Chimp trafficking</h2>
<p>Chimpanzees live across sub-Saharan Africa, in habitats ranging from savannah-woodland mosaics to tropical rainforests. These habitats that chimps depend on are threatened by the expansion of agricultural activities, alongside the encroachment of the logging, mining and oil industries. </p>
<p>The fragmentation of chimpanzee habitats makes it easier for poachers to hunt them. Chimpanzees are now listed as endangered by the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15933/129038584">International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List</a>.</p>
<p>Chimfunshi is home to chimpanzees stolen from the wild and sold for sums as high as US$10,000 (£7,900). Prior to their rescue, some of Chimfunshi’s chimps were forced to surf for tourists (nearly drowning in the process) and smoke cigarettes. One was even taught to masturbate on circus stages in front of families.</p>
<p>In these conditions, they are in an environment alien to their species. The chimpanzees’ natural inclinations are inhibited by chains or harsh training to keep them on their best behaviour for social media or tourists. Typically, “pet” chimps are unable to even interact with their own kind, preventing these incredibly social animals from knowing how to be themselves. </p>
<p>María Laura Cordonet Castagneto, a University of Girona researcher I have worked with at Chimfunshi, told me that one nine-year-old does not even know how to play or groom, as she was not raised among other chimps. Part of this chimp’s rehabilitation is to help her learn such crucial social behaviours from watching and engaging with her new peers.</p>
<p>Most of Chimfunshi’s rescues are physically or emotionally scarred from beatings by their previous captors to keep them disciplined. Many will have watched their mothers and peers try to protect them from capture, and being slaughtered in the process. </p>
<p>Like most primates that are imprisoned in human homes or used by the entertainment industry, chimpanzees quickly outgrow their attraction as “pets” as they age. Their canines grow, they become uncontrollably strong and their behaviour more erratic. For every chimp that is saved, many more are abandoned or <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/video/bodycam-shows-oregon-police-kill-pet-chimpanzee-after-attacking-owners-115336261793">killed</a> when they can no longer be controlled.</p>
<h2>Not so cute</h2>
<p>For a chimp to wear human clothing, play the piano, ride a skateboard or hang out with <a href="https://theconversation.com/before-you-hit-share-on-that-cute-animal-photo-consider-the-harm-it-can-cause-126182">tourists paying US$700</a> (£560) for a ten-minute session, so much suffering must occur. This is the cruel reality that “cute” TikTok videos and Instagram reels neglect. </p>
<p>Such content is pushed virally to our newsfeeds, regardless of whether the animal is a family dog or a creature illegally poached from the wild. Research has found that depicting wild animals in human contexts can <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0235451">increase the desire</a> of a viewer to buy their own exotic pet.</p>
<p>But social media companies ignore this problem because this type of content drives considerable online engagement. The Instagram account for <a href="https://www.instagram.com/limbanizwf/?hl=en">Limbani</a>, a chimpanzee who lives in Miami, has nearly 800,000 followers and a <a href="https://www.speakrj.com/audit/">1.5% engagement rate</a> (a measure of how much of your audience actively engages with the content). To put this in context, Kim Kardashian’s Instagram account has an engagement rate of around 0.65%.</p>
<h2>What can be done?</h2>
<p>We can all individually make choices towards the future we want to support. Only sharing responsible online content of wild animals in their natural habitats is one option. But you can take a more active role in wildlife conservation by <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel/2018/11/hot-topic-how-to-avoid-unethical-wildlife-tours">avoiding unethical wildlife tourism activities</a>.</p>
<p>However, the long-term survival of endangered species can only be guaranteed through a systemic shift in how we perceive and treat the natural world. First and foremost, we must start by making it socially undesirable to own wild animals as pets.</p>
<p>Steps have been taken in recent years to reduce and restrict the trade of exotic animals. More than 50 countries <a href="https://www.four-paws.org/campaigns-topics/topics/wild-animals/worldwide-circus-bans">have banned (or have announced impending bans on)</a> the use of wild animals in circuses. And the UK government has <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-sets-out-proposals-to-ban-the-keeping-primates-as-pets">set out proposals</a> to finally outlaw primate pet ownership in 2024.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/putting-primates-on-screen-is-fuelling-the-illegal-pet-trade-91995">Putting primates on screen is fuelling the illegal pet trade</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Even Hollywood – which has a long history of using trained monkey or ape “actors” – is <a href="https://theconversation.com/putting-primates-on-screen-is-fuelling-the-illegal-pet-trade-91995">shifting to the use of computer-generated imagery</a> to depict primates on screen. Social media must catch up, and recognise that holding exotic animals in human contexts represents a grizzly and exploitative industry – and thus reflects animal abuse.</p>
<p>Chimpanzees are our closest living relatives. They are thoughtful, emotional and have complex social needs. They belong in their wild homes where they can be themselves. Primates are not pets.</p>
<p><em>*The names of Chimfunshi’s new rescues have been changed to protect the identities of the chimpanzees and those who rescued them.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211954/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jake Brooker's salary is funded by a grant from the Templeton World Charity Foundation.
</span></em></p>Why wild chimpanzees end up as pets and how we can keep them in the wild.Jake Brooker, Research Associate in the Department of Psychology, Durham UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2102632023-08-30T12:15:57Z2023-08-30T12:15:57ZGiraffes range across diverse African habitats − we’re using GPS, satellites and statistics to track and protect them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/544746/original/file-20230825-17-am7gat.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C0%2C3768%2C2345&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An average giraffe has a home range almost as large as Philadelphia.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Brown</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Nearly 6,000 years ago, our ancestors climbed arid rocky outcrops in what is now the Nigerian Sahara and carved spectacularly intricate, larger-than-life renditions of giraffes into the exposed sandstone. The remarkably detailed Dabous giraffe rock art petroglyphs are among <a href="https://journals.co.za/doi/pdf/10.10520/AJA00382353_1067">many ancient petroglyphs featuring giraffes across Africa</a> – a testament to early humans’ fascination with these unique creatures. </p>
<p>We are still <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0199149">captivated by giraffes today</a>, but many of these animals are at risk, largely due to habitat loss and illegal hunting. Some <a href="https://giraffeconservation.org/programmes/giraffe-conservation-status-assessment/">are critically endangered</a>. </p>
<p>To understand how giraffes are faring across Africa, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=f3D2QOcAAAAJ&hl=en">conservation ecologists like me</a> are studying how they interact with their habitats across vast geographic scales. We use space-age technology and advanced statistical approaches that our ancient ancestors could have scarcely imagined to understand how giraffes can better coexist with people. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Image of a giraffe carved in red rock." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542627/original/file-20230814-22-vdxtbu.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Giraffes are featured prominently in ancient petroglyphs across Africa, such as this one in Twyfelfontein, Namibia, which dates back thousands of years.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Brown</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Many habitats and challenges</h2>
<p>Giraffes may all look similar to the casual viewer, but in fact there are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.033">four distinct species</a>. By our best estimates, there are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-821139-7.00139-2">roughly 117,000 giraffes remaining in the wild</a>, living in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12165">21 African countries</a>. </p>
<p>Across this huge expanse, giraffes make their homes in many different environments with varied levels of human influence. For example, in the relatively arid Sahel region of Niger, they live among communal farmers entirely outside of formally protected areas. In contrast, along the Nile in Uganda’s national parks, they browse through lush savannas that are formally protected by dedicated rangers. </p>
<p>Each of these areas has unique bioclimatic conditions and conservation philosophies. There is <a href="https://giraffeconservation.org/programmes/conservation-strategies/">no one-size-fits-all approach</a> for protecting giraffe habitats and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10871209.2021.1885768">promoting coexistence with people</a>. </p>
<p>Researchers are taking advantage of these diverse conditions to learn how giraffes move throughout this range. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.0912">In a recently published paper</a>, I worked with colleagues from academia and conservation organizations to conduct the largest ever tracking study to better understand how and why giraffes move at large scales. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Four images of giraffes in diverse African settings." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542628/original/file-20230814-24-pw6hay.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=377&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 four species of giraffes inhabit remarkably different habitats across Africa, from lush savannas to desert.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Brown</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Tracking wide-ranging animals</h2>
<p>Over the past decade, our collaborative conservation research team, spearheaded by the <a href="https://giraffeconservation.org/">Giraffe Conservation Foundation</a>, has embarked on an ambitious pan-African giraffe-tracking study to better understand giraffes’ movements across these diverse landscapes. </p>
<p>Each tracking operation contributes to local studies by telling us something interesting about giraffe behavior. For example, we published the first description of <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2019.00524">partial migration in a Ugandan giraffe population</a>, showing that giraffes can have complicated seasonal movements. </p>
<p>These studies also are important for guiding local management of giraffes. Partnering with organizations like <a href="https://www.earthranger.com/">EarthRanger</a>, which develops software to support conservation initiatives, we have pioneered the use of animal movement data to inform active conservation management. </p>
<p>We share giraffe location data in real time with rangers in protected areas to guide day-to-day conservation actions. As an example, we run continuous analytics on the giraffe data that alert teams on the ground when a giraffe stops moving or leaves the boundaries of a national park. With this information, teams can follow up quickly and address risks, such as when giraffes might be straying into dangerous areas.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bry-gJU-cis?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">In October 2021, conservation scientists and local wildlife officials translocated 10 South African giraffes over 1,600 miles (2,600 kilometers) from South Africa to Malawi. There they joined 13 giraffes already in Majete Wildlife Reserve, helping to expand the group into a sustainable population.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To look at these patterns at a larger scale in our recent study, we analyzed GPS tracking data from 148 giraffes, representing all four species from across 10 countries. We wanted to understand how giraffes may change their movements in response to human pressures and the availability of vegetation.</p>
<p>We used environmental data from satellite imagery, linking the giraffes’ locations to the exact conditions that the animals were moving through. Since the work drew from information collected across Africa through different GPS devices, we developed statistical techniques to harmonize the datasets and make the results directly comparable across ecosystems. </p>
<p>Overall, we found that giraffes cover impressively large areas. On average, each animal has a home range of about 140 square miles (360 square kilometers) – <a href="https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/philadelphiacitypennsylvania/PST045222">nearly equivalent to the surface area of Philadelphia</a> – and travels about 8.5 miles (14 kilometers) every day. One of the biggest movers in our study, a female northern giraffe in Niger that navigated among communities raising livestock in the dry Sahel, covered a home range of nearly 1,500 square miles (3,860 square kilometers) – larger than the <a href="https://www.ri.gov/facts/history.php">land area of Rhode Island</a>. </p>
<p>Giraffes’ movements changed significantly based on the availability of woody vegetation and the level of human presence. Those in areas with plenty of woody vegetation didn’t cover as much ground as their counterparts in more barren zones, since the former had most of the resources they needed close by. Giraffes also tended to move less in places with significant human development – probably because of man-made barriers to their movements, like settlements, fences and roads.</p>
<p>In mixed areas with some development and some open spaces, we observed that giraffes covered more ground as they navigated these patchy environments. They traveled faster and covered larger areas when they were moving between resource-rich zones and more heavily developed areas.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two giraffes at the edge of a road watch a car pass." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540456/original/file-20230801-21-xj7o8h.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Across their range, giraffes are navigating increasingly developed landscapes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Michael Brown, GCF</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Giraffe movements inform conservation</h2>
<p>Understanding how giraffes respond to changes in environmental conditions is critical for their conservation. Climate change is making the availability of vegetation less predictable, and human populations in these areas are continuing to grow. Conservation strategies will need to account for giraffes’ changing movements as the animals respond to these shifts. </p>
<p>It also is important to develop principles for giraffe movement so that we can better predict how they might move in new environments. Conservation groups and governments are increasingly using <a href="https://giraffeconservation.org/programmes/conservation-translocations/">conservation translocations</a> – capturing wild giraffes and moving them to new habitats – as a tool to reestablish populations in areas where giraffes had previously become extinct. </p>
<p>Our movement data from giraffes across Africa is casting new light on their responses to different conditions and providing important information for conserving these iconic animals in a rapidly changing world.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210263/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Brown works for the Giraffe Conservation Foundation and is an affiliated researcher for the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. He receives funding from the Giraffe Conservation Foundation and its many supporters and is affiliated with the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.</span></em></p>The largest ever giraffe tracking study shows how these massive animals are responding to human pressures across many different habitats throughout Africa.Michael Brown, Conservation Science Fellow, Smithsonian InstitutionLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2042142023-08-16T14:50:28Z2023-08-16T14:50:28ZWhy moths might be more efficient pollinators than bees and butterflies<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542831/original/file-20230815-19-7lgapk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C20%2C3493%2C2308&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Yellow underwing moths were one of the species in the study</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/large-yellow-underwing-moth-1026230716">Eileen Kumpf/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you’ve ever felt underestimated and ignored, spare a thought for your local moths. Honeybees, bumblebees and butterflies are almost synonomous with pollination. People love them for their intimate relationship with flowers – we can’t grow a lot of our food or enjoy the sight of fragile springtime blossom without them. But our recent research showed moths may actually be more efficient pollinators. </p>
<p>Almost all scientific research on pollinators happens during the day, which means we know little about what happens at night. So we <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0281810">designed a study</a> to compare the contribution of nocturnal and day-active pollinators. We focused on bramble, which is widespread across Europe. People often look at <a href="https://www.rhs.org.uk/weeds/brambles-and-other-woody-weeds">bramble as a prickly pest</a> that needs to be removed from our green spaces. But it is a <a href="https://resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/icad.12436">crucial source of nectar</a> and pollen for bees, butterflies and moths, flowering from early spring through until the autumn. </p>
<p>During peak summer in the UK, when we carried out our experiment, the night is only around one-third of the entire day cycle. During this time, moths are almost the only insects that visit flowers. Even though 83% of all flower visits in our study happened during the day, pollination rates were higher at night time. This suggests moths are more efficient pollinators than species that are active during the day. </p>
<p>We used trail cameras to record visitors to bramble flowers over three days and placed special bags over the flowers so we could compare their pollination rates. One group of flowers was covered for the whole three days. The second group was covered only during the day time and a last set was covered only at night. It wasn’t possible to identify the species of every moth that visited the flowers, but among them were <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/silver-y">silver Y</a> and <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/large-yellow-underwing">large yellow underwing moths</a>, which are both in the family <em>Noctuidae</em>. </p>
<p>While it remains unclear precisely why moths had higher pollination rates, it may be that they spend more time visiting each flower than honeybees, hoverflies and other daytime pollinators. In any case, it’s certain that the importance of moths as nocturnal pollinators is undervalued. Despite the fact there are only 60 species of butterfly and over 2,500 species of moth in the UK, a far higher proportion of research and environmental policies focus on butterflies. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Moth perches on purple flower." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542832/original/file-20230815-19-ky4ndg.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A silver Y moth visiting a flower.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/isolated-specimen-silver-y-moth-autographa-1894448098">Davide Bonora/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our study showed that the pollination of valuable crop plants and threatened species of wildflowers may rely upon on moths. Many of the UK’s macro-moths (which tend to be larger) are declining, with over 40% of species
<a href="https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/530375/">declining in abundance</a>. </p>
<h2>Under pressure</h2>
<p>Moths face the same challenges as <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-08974-9">daytime pollinators</a>, such as pesticides, habitat loss and climate change. But nocturnal moths are also threatened by artificial light at night. Recent research has highlighted how street lighting is <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.abi8322">disrupting the feeding behaviour of caterpillars</a> and reducing moth numbers. Previous work has also shown the light <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5377031/#:%7E:text=Feeding%20behaviour%20of%20adult%20moths,experimentally%20subjected%20to%20artificial%20light.">disrupts adult moths</a> from feeding, <a href="https://resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/icad.12447">breeding and laying eggs</a>.</p>
<p>Moths are not only <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0187">important pollinators</a> – they are key links in the food chain and shape the structure and composition of habitats. Their caterpillars feed on grasses and other plants. When caterpillars are dispersed throughout a habitat, some areas are grazed and others are not, which creates a varied structure. This variety bodes well for biodiversity, by creating a greater range of habitats for different species to live in. Not to mention the importance of moths as a vital food source for bats, birds and other small mammals.</p>
<p>New approaches to research are being developed and tested, which will help address gaps in our understanding about the role of moths as important pollinators. </p>
<p>For example, <a href="https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/rse2.245">automated identification and tracking</a> of insects through machine learning can allow us to remotely monitor pollinator activity, saving time in collecting and processing data. Understanding more about moths will give us the knowledge we urgently need to protect them. </p>
<h2>What you can do</h2>
<p>You can help these pollinating insects by allowing some patches of bramble and other flowering, scrubby plants to grow in your garden, allotments and hedgerows. You can also encourage your council to do the same across the <a href="https://news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/2022/04/07/love-your-verge-protecting-wildflowers-and-wildlife-on-dorsets-roadsides/">network of road verges</a> and parks in the UK.</p>
<p>The harmful effects of artificial light can be managed by dimming or limiting the operating time of street-lighting during the night, as <a href="https://www.southdevonaonb.org.uk/projects/reducing-light-pollution/">pioneered by Devon</a> and some other district councils. At home, you can switch off or reduce the use of outdoor lights at night and close your curtains and blinds to prevent light from spilling outside. Tackling light spill from shop fronts and glass office blocks could also help moths stay focused on pollination. </p>
<p>In light of the huge <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/11/insect-populations-suffering-death-1000-cuts-scientists">declines in populations of pollinating insects</a> across the globe, it’s more important than ever to protect our pollinators. These small and simple changes will provide more homes for wildlife. Spreading the word could have a crucial impact on moth conservation – some of the most underappreciated and important animals on our planet.</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>
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
<br><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeTop">Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead.</a> Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/imagine-57?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=Imagine&utm_content=DontHaveTimeBottom">Join the 20,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.</a></em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204214/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fiona Mathews receives funding from Research Councils UK, and has previously been funded for work on light pollution by the UK's Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. She is chair of Mammal Conservation Europe. There are no conflicts of interest with the publication of this article. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Max Anderson works for Butterfly Conservation, a charity that has the conservation of butterflies, moths and the environment as its core aim and the publication of this article may help to achieve that aim in terms of increasing awareness. However, there is unlikely to be any financial benefit to the charity from the publication of the article.</span></em></p>But pesticides and climate change are threatening moths’ future.Fiona Mathews, Professor of Environmental Biology, University of SussexMax Anderson, South West Landscape Officer for Butterfly ConservationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2111302023-08-09T13:20:50Z2023-08-09T13:20:50ZThe fast, furious, and brutally short life of an African male lion<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541739/original/file-20230808-30-wgjkzn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo by DeAgostini/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The death of a lion in Kenya’s picturesque savannas rarely tugs at people’s hearts, even in a country where wildlife tourism is a key pillar of the nation’s economy. But when one of the most tracked male lions in Kenya’s famous Masaai Mara was <a href="https://nation.africa/kenya/news/jesse-king-of-maasai-mara-dies-in-tragic-rivalry-battle--4316734">killed</a> on 24 July 2023 the world took notice. Known as Jesse, he was killed during a fight with a coalition of three male lions from a rival pride, drawing attention to the brutally risky and dangerous lives of male lions.</p>
<p>Lions are organised in family groups known as a pride. Each pride is comprised of several related lionesses. One or more adult male lions will also be present. In the public imagination, male lions are better known by their popularised image as <a href="https://www.ourendangeredworld.com/are-lions-the-king-of-the-jungle/">kings of the jungle</a>. Their bravery, strength, and size (only tigers are larger) fits this profile.</p>
<p>But in reality, male lions live a life far more vulnerable. One in two male lions die in the first year of life. From the moment a male lion is born it faces a gauntlet of challenges – from snakebite and hungry hyenas to infanticide at the hands of other male lions. </p>
<p>If a male lion makes it out of their first year of life, and then to independence at around 3, they leave their pride for a period of nomadism. Nomads lead a dangerous existence, skirting the territories of established male coalitions. Out there on their own, few will make it to the age of 10. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541939/original/file-20230809-5449-78bb4n.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 young male lion rests in the branches of a tree in Uganda’s Ishasha sector. This particular cub was the son of a three male coalition of lions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Courtesy: Alexander Richard Braczkowski</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At no time, it seems, is the male lion safe. We know from the evidence collected by the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=683919633775825&set=a.642108107956978&type=3&ref=embed_post">Kenya Wildlife Trust</a>, resident guides, and tourists that Jesse administered and received many beatings from other male lions. We also know that Jesse, who lived to the ripe old age of 12, was eventually killed by three younger, stronger lions. Life comes full circle: killers frequently become victims themselves, of younger, brasher lions, or those in larger and thus more powerful coalitions. </p>
<p>We are three researchers with over 50 years of combined experience in big cat <a href="https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?view_op=view_citation&hl=en&user=hnAe1zYAAAAJ&citation_for_view=hnAe1zYAAAAJ:F2VeH06lQh8C">ecology</a>, <a href="https://www.resilientconservation.org/founder-duan-biggs">conservation</a>, and <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-environ-120920-125536">the complexities of people and wildlife living together</a>. </p>
<p>We base our commentary on the extensive information gathered by conservation organisations, independent scientists and tourism guides working in the Maasai Mara. Information on Jesse has been collected mainly through sightings data compiled by these entities over time. </p>
<p>Often the survival of male lions will be dictated by the size and strength of their coalitions, and the make up of the lion landscape at large. This sometimes has bearing for conservation especially when lions stray out of national parks or <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0073808">when male lions are hunted after leaving the safety of a protected area</a>.</p>
<h2>The trials of a young lion</h2>
<p>A young male lion’s biggest threat is his exposure to other male lions that aren’t their father or uncle. A host of <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2664.12594">studies from the Serengeti in Tanzania to Zimbabwe</a> show that the most significant single cause of lion mortality in the first year of a lion’s life is attributed to other <a href="https://userpages.umbc.edu/%7Ehanson/Jane'sLions.pdf">male lions that kill them during infanticide</a>. </p>
<p>This involves incoming males seeking out and killing the cubs of other males or driving young males away, and attempting to take over prides. Killing cubs <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.1257226?casa_token=DNGxjnBmO-EAAAAA%3A6peluEktzB8JVLut4SBuIMDVOMsiM_lBAmv-kAQDlDwEllpBWirZ68LnI-c11jzIN5sV3pder_KVf1rO">accelerates the onset of oestrus in pride females</a> and so is likely to increase the reproductive success of incoming males. </p>
<p>Most lions that get <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.01266?casa_token=VqaDeZN7ZI8AAAAA:_vhYFHLGSO1jHTthWAkJaRoitzJrqq_4nMPjeY8xnxJ2yh2qgYfGs1xDOTDJPs8TKcnIFqFLUw-8quTe">pushed out of their pride when very young </a> don’t survive.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/getting-closer-to-a-much-better-count-of-africas-lions-140945">Getting closer to a much better count of Africa's lions</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p>Cubs that survive to independence – around 3 years of age – must leave their pride for a period of nomadism. During this time, they join up with cousins, brothers, and sometimes unrelated males of similar age to form what biologists term ‘coalitions’. The power of coalitions increases dramatically with the size of the group. This power can be defined by the number of different prides these coalitions are likely to rule, the number of offspring they will sire, and the number of times they will successfully be able to defend their prides from violent incursions from neighbouring male lions and their coalitions. </p>
<p>The tradeoff of larger coalitions is a watering down of a male lion’s reproductive opportunities. </p>
<p>Examples of such powerful coalitions include the six-strong <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mapogo_lion_coalition">Mapogo</a>, and <a href="https://secretafrica.com/the-majingilane-lions-of-sabi-sands/">five-strong Majingilane</a> from South Africa. There is also the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dg680YugRtc">Lake Quintet coalition from Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania</a>. </p>
<p>Contrastingly, Jesse had only one coalition mate, a lion known as Frank. The two were strong enough to kick out the duo of Dere and Barrikoi from the Offbeat pride in May 2014. After his coalition mate Frank disappeared, Jesse left the Offbeat Pride and led a largely nomadic lifestyle except when he unsuccessfully tried to take over the Rakero pride and even fought with his own son Jesse 2. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541450/original/file-20230807-20-8nygn4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Birmingham coalition of five male lions in the Kruger National Park of South Africa. They regularly clashed with other powerful coalitions including the famed Majingilane lion coalition.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Three laws of the wild</h2>
<p>Mate, protect, fight. <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=9IWaqAOGyt4C&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=what+is+the+purpose+of+mammal+life+on+earth&ots=1GBV4cKe6D&sig=5LtExzK4__-My_ZA5CkytjjIKRA&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20the%20purpose%20of%20mammal%20life%20on%20earth&f=false">These are the three tenets most male animals live and die by in the animal kingdom </a> and this could not be truer for male lions. When male lions are in the prime of their lives somewhere between 5 and 9 years of age they will attempt to have as many cubs as they can. And they will do their best to protect and guard over as many prides as possible.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/lions-are-still-being-farmed-in-south-africa-for-hunters-and-tourism-they-shouldnt-be-208584">Lions are still being farmed in South Africa for hunters and tourism – they shouldn't be</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>But there is a fine line between holding tenure over many different prides, and successfully being able to defend them and their young. When fights do breakout between male lions they are usually over territorial and breeding rights. </p>
<p>At times they are mere squabbles between coalition mates. At other times, the battles are big enough to cause rifts and splits within coalitions. But in most cases fights are between rival coalitions. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Om5nM54a1Wo">During these fights lions engage in a suite of bodily and olfactory engagements</a> including posturing, roaring and growling, swatting, and biting, and even urination and territorial demarcation. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541448/original/file-20230807-15-nodvp1.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">Michael, a male lion sits on the Kasenyi Plains with his two sons in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park. Michael killed multiple litters of cubs in this area during his takeover after leaving the south of the park.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>For conservation: look to the lionesses</h2>
<p>When it comes to the conservation of the lion species it is important to look to the lionesses. They are the sentinels of a populations health, specifically the number of animals in a group, and more importantly the ratio of lionesses to lions. Healthy populations can expect ratios of roughly <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/2688-8319.12015">2 females for every male, but when under pressure due to poaching, killings by cattle farmers and a loss of prey these ratios invert towards males</a>. </p>
<p>The story of Jesse highlights how, in spite of their status as king of the beasts, lions are vulnerable. While in this instance, the cause of death was another lion, much more commonly, lions die at the hands of humans. This can be through being shot or poisoned to protect livestock, <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-019-01866-w">being poached for their body parts</a> or being caught as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320723002483">by-catch in traps and snares set for other animals by bushmeat poachers</a>. </p>
<p>On the plus side, the fascinating pride dynamics and trials and tribulations of individual lions can help capture the public’s imagination and foster a love for the species and other wildlife. Although human pressures are high, Kenya retains a large lion population and a suite of iconic wildlife areas. These assets are a great source of pride for many Kenyans, and rightly so.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211130/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexander Richard Braczkowski received funding from Griffith University and the Southern University of Science and Technology when carrying out this study.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Duan Biggs is the Olajos Goslow Chair at Northern Arizona University. Dr Biggs previously received funding from the Australian Research Council and WWF the Luc Hoffmann Institute. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Lindsey 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>From the moment a male lion is born it faces a gauntlet of challenges, ranging from snakebite to infanticide.Alexander Richard Braczkowski, Research Fellow at the Centre for Planetary Health and Resilient Conservation Group, Griffith UniversityDuan Biggs, Professor and Chair, Southwestern Environmental Science and Policy, Northern Arizona UniversityPeter Lindsey, Research associate, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2074722023-07-25T12:25:16Z2023-07-25T12:25:16ZIn search of the world’s largest freshwater fish – the wonderfully weird giants lurking in Earth’s rivers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536146/original/file-20230706-27-zfk4cs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=357%2C393%2C3941%2C2417&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Alligator gar can grow to gargantuan sizes.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zeb Hogan</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Rivers have been the lifeblood of human civilization throughout history, and yet we know surprisingly little about what lives in many of them – including the giant creatures that prowl their depths.</p>
<p>While we know the biggest animal in the ocean is the blue whale and the largest marine fish is the whale shark, the identity of the world’s largest freshwater fish species long remained a mystery.</p>
<p>Until 2022, that is, when fishers in Cambodia <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-61862169">caught a giant freshwater stingray</a> in the remote reaches of the Mekong River. </p>
<p>Weighing an astounding 661 pounds, the stingray surpassed by 15 pounds a giant catfish caught in Thailand in 2005 that had previously been considered the unofficial record holder.</p>
<p>The discovery marked a milestone in fish biologist Zeb Hogan’s more than two-decade quest to study and protect giant freshwater fish. As a group, these megafish are <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/one-third-of-freshwater-fish-face-extinction-and-other-freshwater-fish-facts">among the most endangered</a> animals on the planet.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FprTA4lOMOk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The world’s largest freshwater fish confirmed so far is a stingray caught in the Mekong River.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Before releasing the female ray back into the river, Hogan’s research team put an acoustic tracker on her. She has been sending back clues about stingrays’ elusive behavior ever since.</p>
<h2>Colossal catfish and gargantuan gars</h2>
<p>In a new book, “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Giants-Search-Largest-Freshwater/dp/1647790573">Chasing Giants:</a> In Search of the World’s Largest Freshwater Fish,” Hogan and I tell the troubling story of the 30 or so fish species that live exclusively in rivers and lakes and can grow to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/wild-explorers-zeb-hogan-monster-fish">more than 200 pounds</a> or at least 6 feet (1.8 meters) long.</p>
<p>Found on all continents except Antarctica, they are a wonderfully weird bunch of creatures, from colossal catfish and carp to gargantuan gars. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man in the water next to a giant catfish. The fish's giant eye appears to be looking toward the camera. The fish's head is far larger than the man's." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536168/original/file-20230706-24-puzybz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Mekong’s giant catfish can grow to lengths and weights much larger than those of the humans catching them.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zeb Hogan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But freshwater vertebrate populations have declined over the past five decades at <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/our_focus/freshwater_practice/freshwater_biodiversity_222/">twice the rate</a> experienced by species within terrestrial or marine ecosystems. Megafish numbers in particular fell by a shocking 94%, according to <a href="https://www.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.14753">one study</a> of more than 200 large freshwater species.</p>
<p>One of the largest species, the Chinese paddlefish, is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.136242">believed to have gone extinct</a> sometime in the 2000s. “This is a fish that had been on Earth for more than 100 million years before disappearing in a flash,” says Hogan, who used to host National Geographic’s “<a href="https://www.natgeotv.com/za/shows/natgeo/monster-fish">Monster Fish</a>” television show and now leads a University of Nevada, Reno, research project I am involved with called <a href="https://www.usaid.gov/cambodia/fact-sheet/wonders-mekong">Wonders of the Mekong</a>, supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Several preserved fish in a museum display, with the top one a long fish with a long snout." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536169/original/file-20230706-17-cgavp5.jpeg?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">A specimen of Chinese paddlefish, <em>Psephurus gladius</em> (top), with other types of fish at the Tianjin Natural History Museum.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_specimen_of_Psephurus_gladius_with_a_few_sort_of_fish,_Tianjin_Natural_History_Museum.jpg">Calliston3/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The importance of very large fish to freshwater ecosystems has been woefully understudied. Many giant freshwater fish are <a href="https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/apex-predators-what-they-are/">apex predators</a> that can have profound effects on the ecosystems in which they live by keeping their prey populations in check and maintaining biodiversity.</p>
<h2>What’s killing off the megafish</h2>
<p>The decline of giant freshwater fish is due to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/freshwater-threats">human impacts</a>, such as overfishing, dam building and climate change.</p>
<p>Large fish are disproportionately targeted by fishing. Since many of these species are slow to mature, they may never reach the age to reproduce. Dam building is <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/migratory-freshwater-fish-in-peril-as-report-shows-population-plunge/">another major threat</a>, because large fish often need to make long migrations to complete their life cycles, and a new dam can block their migration paths.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two men stand beside a giant fish much longer than they are. On its side, its body is as high as a man's knee." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536229/original/file-20230707-16-znrg45.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">This 646-pound Mekong giant catfish was caught in 2005.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Suthep Kritsanavarin</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the Mekong, where more giant fish species are found <a href="https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2005)055%5B1041:OOIW%5D2.0.CO;2">than in any other river</a>, climate change is causing more severe droughts and disrupting the monsoon seasons that govern the river’s essential flood regime.</p>
<p>There are signs that interest in freshwater species is gaining momentum, including increasing calls to explicitly include freshwater ecosystems in the <a href="https://theconversation.com/protecting-30-of-earths-surface-for-nature-means-thinking-about-connections-near-and-far-180296">30x30 initiative</a>, a global effort to set aside 30% of land and sea area for conservation by 2030. So far, however, <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/inside-the-plan-to-save-some-of-the-biggest-freshwater-fish">conservation efforts</a> to protect endangered giant freshwater fish species are mostly regional. </p>
<h2>Alligator gars and sturgeon make a comeback</h2>
<p>Although the outlook for most giant fish remains grim, some species, like <a href="https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.00887">the air-breathing arapaima</a> in South America, may be bucking the trend.</p>
<p>The arapaima, a torpedo-shaped giant that can grow to lengths of more than 12 feet, has long been overharvested by fishers in the Amazon, where it’s known as the Amazonian cod. But <a href="https://freshwaterblog.net/2019/01/14/community-based-conservation-of-arapaima-and-giant-turtles-in-the-amazon-basin/">stricter fishing regulations</a> introduced by Indigenous communities appear to have led to populations’ rebounding in many places.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A large fish with a flat head and scales that look like shell imprints in sand swims underwater." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536190/original/file-20230707-17-17u4zh.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">Arapaima, found in South America, are often over 200 pounds and can grow much larger.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Zeb Hogan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the United States, <a href="https://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/management/alligator-gar/">the alligator gar</a>, another air-breathing megafish, was once largely considered a “trash fish” thought to devour game fish, so it was systematically exterminated from much of its southern range. But then scientists began to study the species and found it was an important contributor to ecosystem functions. Today, alligator gar populations have <a href="https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/all-hail-the-alligator-gar-a-giant-and-primordial-river-monster/">bounced back</a> in rivers like the Trinity in Texas.</p>
<p>A similar case involves the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/lake-sturgeon">lake sturgeon</a>, one of the few true freshwater sturgeons, whose populations in Wisconsin have benefited from <a href="https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/Fishing/sturgeon/SturgeonInlandFishery.html">long-term conservation efforts</a> and science-driven management that includes strictly regulated seasonal recreational fishing.</p>
<h2>Protecting the giants of the Mekong</h2>
<p>Back in Cambodia, our Wonders of the Mekong project is raising public awareness about the plight of the megafish, and we are working closely with local fishers to encourage them to protect threatened species.</p>
<p>In an example of those efforts’ paying off, fishers in early 2023 caught a <a href="https://www.wwf.org.kh/projects_and_reports2/endangered_species/fish/mekong_giant_catfish/">Mekong giant catfish</a> weighing more than 200 pounds. Instead of killing it and selling the meat for a sizable profit, the fishers decided to release the fish in an elaborate ceremony in which it was sprinkled with flowers before it was let go.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="People fill the prow of a large fishing boat as people release a very big fish into the water below from a tarp." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536150/original/file-20230706-16-yjmdkg.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">The giant catfish released into the Mekong River with a ceremony in early 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wonders of the Mekong</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In recent months, our project has also reintroduced into the Mekong rare giant catfish that were captured as young fish and raised in Cambodia, and giant barb, another critically endangered megafish species that historically has grown to 600 pounds. </p>
<p>While giant freshwater stingray numbers have plummeted in other parts of its native Southeast Asian range, the population appears to be relatively robust in the upper stretches of the Mekong River in Cambodia where the record ray was discovered. Data collected from that female, and reported <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/15/10/1936">in a study</a> I co-authored, shows it is staying in much the same location, leading researchers to believe the area could be an important refuge for the stingrays and possibly other megafish.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A close up of the head of a sting ray shows the large breathing openings and smaller eyes." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536148/original/file-20230706-15-a89wwd.JPEG?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">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Giant freshwater stingray like this one can breath air.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stefan Lovgren</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Long-standing plans by the Cambodian government to build two large dams on this section of the river appear to have been scrapped, at least for now. At the end of 2022, the government instead put forth <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2022/12/cambodia-seeks-unesco-world-heritage-status-to-protect-a-mekong-biodiversity-hotspot/">a proposal</a> to turn the biodiverse stretch of the river, which is also home to a critically endangered population of Irrawaddy river dolphins, into a <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/faq/19">UNESCO World Heritage site</a>.</p>
<p>While the record stingray is big, it might not be the largest of this species of ray in the Mekong. Local fishers speak of rays growing up to 200 pounds heavier.</p>
<p>It’s also possible the giant stingray is not the largest freshwater fish species. Research on the arapaima, for example, suggests it could grow <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165783620302095">as big, or even bigger</a>, in places like Guyana. But, as Hogan says, “It’s not about finding the biggest fish. It’s about learning more about these amazing creatures to figure out how to better protect them.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207472/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stefan Lovgren is a research scientist at the University of Nevada, Reno, and affiliated with the Wonders of the Mekong research project, which is financed by USAID</span></em></p>Freshwater megafish numbers have fallen by 94%, according to one study.Stefan Lovgren, Research Scientist in River Ecosystems, University of Nevada, RenoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2090332023-07-23T19:58:28Z2023-07-23T19:58:28ZGlide poles: the great Aussie invention helping flying possums cross the road<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536949/original/file-20230712-25-prm6on.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/sugar-gliders-seen-green-garden-jump-1813747193">Anom Harya, Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Next time you’re road-tripping along the east coast, keep an eye out for a little-known Aussie invention piercing the skyline: glide poles. For Australia’s gliding possums, or gliders, they’re the next best thing since tall trees. </p>
<p>These tall timber structures, with timber cross arms near the top, give gliders a way to cross big roads. They can shimmy up a pole on one side of the road and then leap to another (and another) to get to the other side. </p>
<p>After witnessing the earliest experiments with glide poles decades ago, it’s heartening to see the design refined and replicated up and down the east coast. </p>
<p>The world’s largest gliding marsupial, the greater glider, was listed nationally as endangered a year ago this month. That’s because their populations had declined by 80% in just 20 years. As land-clearing and bushfires continue to destroy old growth forests with tall trees and hollows, gliders need all the help they can get. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aTj4cxYf8Gg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Watch squirrel gliders getting used to their new road crossing device in Forster, New South Wales (2022)</span></figcaption>
</figure>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/greater-gliders-are-hurtling-towards-extinction-and-the-blame-lies-squarely-with-australian-governments-186469">Greater gliders are hurtling towards extinction, and the blame lies squarely with Australian governments</a>
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</p>
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<h2>Biomimicry with wooden poles</h2>
<p>From the match-box sized feathertail glider to the small cat-sized greater glider, Australia’s 11 species each have a gliding membrane, or patagium. This a thin area of skin stretching from the ankles to the wrists or hands. </p>
<p>When a glider leaps from a tree (or glide pole), it extends its front and hind limbs, stretching out its patagium, which allows it to glide. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/marsupials-and-other-mammals-separately-evolved-flight-many-times-and-we-are-finally-learning-how-202152">Marsupials and other mammals separately evolved flight many times, and we are finally learning how</a>
</strong>
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<p>In 1993 Ross Goldingay, one of Australia’s leading glider ecologists, <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/59374e666a4963c6df22569f/t/59faac7771c10b386ab87091/1509600406866/Goldingay_Glideways_Symposium_Pres1.pdf">came up with the idea</a> of using tall wooden power poles (without wires) as road-crossing stepping-stones for gliders. The glide poles would act as substitutes for tall trees, so it was a very simple and elegant form of what’s known as “biomimicry”.</p>
<p>Ross directed the placement of glide poles on either side of a powerline easement at Bomaderry Creek near Nowra in southern New South Wales. <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/am/AM10023">The trial</a> aimed to ensure yellow-bellied gliders could still cross the easement if it was developed into a local road. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, the Bomaderry Creek glide poles were never monitored. More than ten years later, a series of successful trials at Mackay and Compton Road in Brisbane demonstrated gliders would readily use glide poles. I recall showing Ross early images of squirrel gliders shimmying up the smooth, hardwood poles on the Compton Road land bridge soon after we installed cameras. We were blown away!</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536567/original/file-20230710-15681-2wnorq.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">Before trees grew up, a series of glide poles on the Compton Road land bridge in Brisbane provided stepping-stone connections between forest on either side.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Brendan Taylor</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The poles needed to be tall enough to enable a comfortable glide crossing of the intervening gap. This is where trigonometry and the laws of physics come in, to <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/zo/ZO09003">get the calculations right</a> for the species being targeted. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536557/original/file-20230710-12553-bkplhu.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">Roadside glide poles connect forest habitat for squirrel gliders across Scrub Road in Brisbane.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Brendan Taylor</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Since then, glide poles have become a fixture of upgrades along the <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/WR/WR14067">Hume Highway in Victoria</a>, the <a href="https://www.pacifichighway.nsw.gov.au/environment/wildlife-management/wildlife">Pacific Highway in NSW</a> and the <a href="https://wildlife.org.au/project/mahogany-glider-recovery-project/">Bruce Highway in Queensland</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536551/original/file-20230710-6018-5kvje7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Glide poles rise from the roadside landscape along the Hume Highway near Holbrook in western New South Wales.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Brendan Taylor</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Do the poles reconnect glider populations?</h2>
<p>We are gradually gathering more evidence of glide pole use. Squirrel gliders, sugar gliders and feathertail gliders have been recorded <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2664.12966">using glide poles</a> to cross roads <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/am/AM18008">at several locations</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://wildlife.org.au/project/mahogany-glider-recovery-project/">Mahogany gliders</a>, <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/am/AM20015">yellow-bellied gliders</a> and <a href="http://www.ecologyandtransport.com/anet-2018">southern greater gliders</a> have also been recorded using glide poles. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=223&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=223&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=223&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536572/original/file-20230710-27-fwys8r.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=280&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A yellow-belled glider launches into a glide crossing of the Pacific Higway at Halfway Creek, NSW.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sandpiper Ecological/Transport for NSW</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most notably, retrofitting a glider crossing into a road that previously presented a barrier to squirrel glider movement <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1365-2664.12966">restored gene flow</a> between populations on either side within five years.</p>
<h2>Celebrating some of Australia’s most iconic wildlife crossings</h2>
<p>Glide poles are one of many structures designed to provide safe road crossing opportunities for wildlife. </p>
<p>Pipes and box culverts can provide safe passage under the road, while land bridges and rope canopy bridges offer an alternative pathway over the road. </p>
<p>When combined with fencing, these structures reduce roadkill, provide access to resources on both sides of the road, and enable gene flow. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.cambridgescholars.com/product/978-1-5275-0142-3">My new book</a> combines an exploration of the how, when, where and why wildlife crossings evolved in eastern Australia with a travel guide to 57 of its most iconic sites.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZDvOzeWqPx4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Here’s a great example of a land bridge that’s created a successful wildlife corridor on Gardening Australia.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The road ahead</h2>
<p>We need to conserve, protect and restore our natural landscapes. This is especially the case in a rapidly changing climate. Our unique native species need to be able to move and adapt to the changing environment.</p>
<p>Carving up the landscape for road networks has been particularly bad for wildlife, with many populations becoming increasingly fragmented and increasingly isolated. But roads no longer need to act as roadblocks for the movement of many native species. </p>
<p>Engineers and ecologists have come together over recent years to find new ways to support the safe passage of animals from one side of the road to another. Their efforts deserve to be celebrated. Especially glide poles. They may not be as famous as the good old Hills Hoist clothesline, but they certainly deserve a gong as a great Australian invention. Certainly worth a nod when you pass by on your next great Aussie road trip.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209033/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brendan Taylor received funding from Brisbane City Council and Transport for NSW to conduct fieldwork reported in this article. </span></em></p>It’s not as well-known as the Hills Hoist clothesline, but here’s another Aussie invention worth celebrating: Glide poles are reconnecting severed landscapes for a special group of marsupials.Brendan Taylor, Adjunct Research Fellow in the Faculty of Science & Engineering, Southern Cross UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2089302023-07-03T20:07:16Z2023-07-03T20:07:16ZTurtles on the tarmac could delay flights at Western Sydney airport<p>Amid the controversy surrounding <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-27/western-sydney-airport-flight-paths-made-public/102524808">preliminary flight paths</a> for <a href="https://www.westernsydneyairport.gov.au/">Western Sydney’s new airport</a>, another potential challenge is looming: turtles on the tarmac. </p>
<p>The land surrounding Sydney’s newest airport is prime nesting area for native turtles. This may create problems for the airport’s operations. </p>
<p>Turtle invasions at airports are not unprecedented. In recent years, a freshwater turtle was found wandering around <a href="https://m.facebook.com/SydneyAirport/photos/a.302787769759897/2906361926069122/?type=3&locale=zh_CN">Sydney Airport</a>, which is built on Botany Bay. In 2021, a turtle strolling across a runway in Japan <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/28/turtle-slow-moving-reptile-delays-five-planes-at-japan-airport">delayed five planes</a>. A few years earlier, a passenger plane <a href="https://qcostarica.com/turtle-shuts-down-limon-airport/">aborted takeoff</a> because a 1.5m leatherback turtle was on the runway. And at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, employees <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/644989/nyc-airport-gets-barrier-to-protect-runway-from-armoured-short-slow-moving-turtle-threat/">carried 1,300 turtles</a> off the tarmac in one nesting season alone. </p>
<p>Our expertise spans zoology, conservation biology and ecology. We know individual freshwater turtles can wander well beyond their wetland habitat into areas where they pose a risk to aviation safety, if proper planning is not in place. We urge authorities to incorporate turtle-friendly features into the airport’s design and make contingency plans for these remarkable reptiles.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vHbM3ytHKdA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Western Sydney airport: construction is well underway.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/our-turtle-program-shows-citizen-science-isnt-just-great-for-data-it-makes-science-feel-personal-155142">Our turtle program shows citizen science isn't just great for data, it makes science feel personal</a>
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<hr>
<h2>Western Sydney airport is turtle nesting habitat</h2>
<p>Freshwater turtles face an <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982220306369">uncertain future</a>. Their numbers in Australia are <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-39096-3">declining</a>. Globally, more than half of all freshwater turtle species face <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(20)30636-9">extinction</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/zo/zo17065">Collisions with vehicles</a> are a main cause of death for adult freshwater turtles across south-eastern Australia. And data collected through the <a href="https://1millionturtles.com">1 Million Turtles</a> citizen science tool <a href="https://TurtleSAT.org.au">TurtleSAT</a> reveals Western Sydney is a roadkill hotspot. </p>
<p>Wetlands, including the area around the new airport at Badgerys Creek, serve as prime nesting habitat. Citizen science data also feeds into our world-first predictive <a href="https://emydura6.users.earthengine.app/view/predicted-nests-and-water-bodies">nest mapping tool</a>, which confirms Sydney’s newest airport is prime nesting area for both long- and short-neck turtles. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535185/original/file-20230703-213604-aa70gw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=675&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Left, hotspots of turtle roadkill in Western Sydney. Right, predicting turtle nesting areas at Western Sydney airport.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">TurtleSAT and 1 Million Turtles</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Turtles nest throughout the airport district from November to January. Given the number of wetlands and the extent of cleared, open vegetation, turtles can be expected to emerge from the water and traverse the entire area during this period.</p>
<p>Between nesting seasons, eastern long-necked turtles often move between wetlands on rainy days.</p>
<p>Redirecting turtles away from runways (and roads) is a challenging but feasible task. It requires proactive planning, integration of turtle-friendly design elements, and recognition of their significance in environmental impact assessments. </p>
<p>Construction of the Western Sydney airport involved filling in streams and farm dams. The Environmental Impact Statement for the project, released in 2016, <a href="https://www.westernsydneyairport.gov.au/sites/default/files/WSA-EIS-Volume-2a-Chapter-16-Biodiversity.pdf">recognised</a> the threat to turtles. To mitigate the impact on aquatic animals generally, the proponents planned to salvage and relocate them to nearby habitats deemed suitable. </p>
<p>A spokesperson for Western Sydney airport, contacted for comment on this story, said all of the required wildlife and risk management procedures would be in place when the airport opens in late 2026. She said the turtle habitat was well outside of the airport site, so the risk of turtles on the runway was negligible.</p>
<p>But around the airport, many streams and wetlands remain. So we believe there’s still a chance turtles will enter the airport grounds and, potentially, walk onto runways.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/young-cold-blooded-animals-are-suffering-the-most-as-earth-heats-up-research-finds-190606">Young cold-blooded animals are suffering the most as Earth heats up, research finds</a>
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<hr>
<h2>Turtles at the crossroads</h2>
<p>Turtles are often little more than an afterthought in hectic construction plans and timetables. Wetlands are often filled in and roads built without any thought to wildlife crossings. </p>
<p>Our study of the wetlands of Western Sydney, and the corridor between north-western and south-western Sydney, found up to 25% of wetlands were lost <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.22.12736">in the last decade alone</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A map showing the change in western Sydney wetland surface area between 2010 and 2017 by local government area" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=948&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=948&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535249/original/file-20230703-240908-y2xpsk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=948&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Change in western Sydney wetland surface area between 2010 and 2017 by local government area: more than 1% increase (green), 0-10% decrease (orange), more than 10% decrease (red).</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Harriet Gabites</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While groups such as <a href="https://www.wildconservation.com.au/turtle-rescues-nsw/">Turtle Rescue NSW</a> can relocate wildlife such as turtles, eels and fish, many animals die when streams and wetlands are <a href="https://www.westernsydneyairport.gov.au/sites/default/files/WSA-EIS-Volume-2a-Chapter-16-Biodiversity.pdf">drained and filled</a> during development.</p>
<p>Western Sydney’s new airport offers an opportunity to break this pattern. Construction has passed the half-way mark but it’s not too late to incorporate turtle-friendly infrastructure such as <a href="https://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1466&context=theses">specialised underpasses</a> and <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wlb3.01012">fencing</a> to guide these slow-paced wanderers away from high-risk areas. We also need monitoring programs to check interventions are working and identify any problems along the way. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/our-turtle-program-shows-citizen-science-isnt-just-great-for-data-it-makes-science-feel-personal-155142">Our research</a> emphasises education and awareness campaigns foster a culture of understanding and respect. This is important to ensure the long-term survival of turtles in the region. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=282&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535178/original/file-20230703-120725-20iemj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A short neck turtle, with a swamp hen photobomber in the background, basking in a freshwater pond at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">TurtleSAT</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>It’s not too late for Western Sydney’s turtles</h2>
<p>We must prioritise turtle-friendly design and integrate turtles into environmental impact assessments for major developments. </p>
<p>The likely presence of turtles on runways at Western Sydney’s new airport warrants immediate attention. The project and its network of major roads are a chance to demonstrate how major urban infrastructure and wildlife can coexist harmoniously. </p>
<hr>
<p><em>We acknowledge the vital contribution of Western Sydney University masters student Harriet Gabites to research on the turtles of Western Sydney and this article.</em></p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-western-sydney-is-feeling-the-heat-from-climate-change-more-than-the-rest-of-the-city-201477">Why Western Sydney is feeling the heat from climate change more than the rest of the city</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/208930/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ricky Spencer receives funding from Australian Research Council, Department of Industry, Science and Resources, Aussie Ark and WIRES. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Deborah Bower works for the University of New England and receives funding from the Australian Research Council, NSW Department of Planning and Environment, NSW Northern Tablelands Local Land Service, SA Department of Environment and Water, and the Australian Federal Citizen Science Program.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Van Dyke receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Australian Federal Citizen Science program. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael B. Thompson receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Thomas 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>Turtles could spell trouble for Western Sydney Airport, which is being built in a wetland. But it’s not too late to include turtle-friendly infrastructure such as underpasses and fences.Ricky Spencer, Associate Professor of Ecology, Western Sydney UniversityDeborah Bower, Associate Professor in Zoology and Ecology, University of New EnglandJames Van Dyke, Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences, La Trobe UniversityMichael B Thompson, Emeritus Professor in Zoology, University of SydneyRichard Thomas, Senior lecturer, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2073512023-06-08T19:17:59Z2023-06-08T19:17:59ZWhile humans were in strict lockdown, wild mammals roamed further – new research<p>At one point in 2020, 4.4 billion people – more than half of the world’s population – were under lockdown restrictions to stem the spread of COVID-19. This was such a sudden and substantial event that it has become known as the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-1237-z">anthropause</a>.</p>
<p>Many bustling cities fell silent, often with restaurants, shops and schools closing, and only essential services allowed to operate. It was around this time when people started to report animals appearing in unusual places. For example, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-chile-puma-idUKKBN21K36U">cougars</a> were seen prowling through the suburbs of Santiago, Chile, <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/jackals-roam-deserted-tel-aviv-park-as-virus-forces-public-indoors/">golden jackals</a> became more active during the day in Tel Aviv, Israel, and dolphins appeared in the normally busy harbour of Trieste, Italy.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, scientists began to wonder whether this tragic event could provide an opportunity to learn how humans impact the behaviour of wildlife. A group of animal movement researchers came together in 2020 and formed the <a href="https://www.bio-logging.net/">COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative</a>, which I joined in 2021.</p>
<p>The initiative includes researchers who were already studying animals before the pandemic, and who were using bio-logging devices, such as GPS tags, to record animal movements. These devices – which use technology that you might find in a smartphone or watch – were still recording information while research teams were under lockdown.</p>
<h2>What animals did in lockdown</h2>
<p>We were interested in finding out how animal movements might have changed when human activities were restricted – were the animals really altering their behaviour because human mobility had changed, or was it that people had more time to notice animals in these apparently unusual places? The initiative includes several projects tackling this question from different angles, with our first findings now published. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Small deer in deserted street beside shuttered shops" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530958/original/file-20230608-17666-hfat5o.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"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Japan, May 2020: no humans to be seen.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">worldlandscape / shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>My colleague Marlee Tucker, an ecologist from Radboud University in the Netherlands, led an international team of 174 scientists who focused on studying whether the behaviour of large land mammals changed during the pandemic. Our results are in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abo6499">Science</a>.</p>
<p>By pooling data from over 2,300 individual tracked mammals, from 43 species including elephants, giraffes, bears, deer and cougars, we were able to look at how their behaviour and movement patterns changed during the lockdowns in 2020 compared to the same period one year earlier.</p>
<p>Animal movements can be influenced both by human mobility – people and vehicles moving in the landscape – and the built environment. It is normally impossible to distinguish these two effects because they are closely matched with each other, but the lockdown provided a chance for us to do this.</p>
<h2>Exploring new areas</h2>
<p>We found that mammals were 36% closer to roads during lockdown, and that their movement distances over ten days were 73% longer during strict lockdowns compared to the same period one year earlier. It may be that mammals ventured closer to roads with reduced levels of traffic, while the absence of humans in the environment may have allowed them to explore new areas.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2021.06.050">For example</a>, a team led by ecologist Chris Wilmers found that cougars, which are typically secretive animals that avoid areas of human habitation, ventured far closer to the built-up areas of Santa Cruz, California, in 2020 than in previous years.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Three cougars crossing a road." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=378&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531097/original/file-20230609-9440-byp5nm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cougars – or mountain lions – moved nearer to urban areas during lockdown.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/three-wild-cougars-puma-concolor-torres-1283588818">Agami Photo Agency/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our results were quite variable across species, which may be a result of lockdown policies varying between countries, but it could also be related to other factors, such as differences between species in their ability to change behaviour. Perhaps some species are more flexible in how they respond to changes in human activities.</p>
<p>These findings are important as they tell us that humans moving in the environment directly influence animal movements and behaviour, in addition to the effects of the built environment. With this knowledge we can start to think of new ways to change our behaviour that will positively impact wildlife. For example, we could adjust traffic flows in areas important for animal movement – in some national parks you can only drive during the day to avoid disturbing animals at night.</p>
<p>The COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative continues to investigate how changes in human mobility impact animal movements, with ongoing work that includes a study focusing on birds of prey, another on the marine environment, and a project comparing responses of birds and mammals in North America. Some members of the team recently had the chance to meet in-person for the first time at a workshop to discuss our projects and it was so exciting to meet these people that I had only ever worked with online.</p>
<p>Of course, humans moving around the landscape is only one of many impacts we have on wildlife. But the information gained from this research gives us the opportunity to think of new approaches to improve human-wildlife coexistence, and there is no time to lose.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207351/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Patchett is a member of the COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative, which is funded in part by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (GBMF9881) and the National Geographic Society (NGS-82515R-20) (grants to C. Rutz).</span></em></p>Researchers tracked 2,300 wild mammals during the strict 2020 lockdowns and found they moved 73% further than in the previous year.Robert Patchett, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Covid-19 Bio-Logging Initiative, University of St AndrewsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2058602023-05-30T11:17:11Z2023-05-30T11:17:11ZHalf of Africa’s white rhino population is in private hands – it’s time for a new conservation approach<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527956/original/file-20230524-18-lohud9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A white rhino in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Enrico Di Minin</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Southern white rhinos are widely known as a <a href="https://rhinos.org/blog/facing-down-a-crisis-how-we-almost-lost-the-white-rhino/">conservation success story</a>. Their population grew from fewer than 100 individuals in the 1920s <a href="https://rhinos.org/blog/facing-down-a-crisis-how-we-almost-lost-the-white-rhino/">to 20,000</a> in 2012, mostly in South Africa. </p>
<p>This success was partially due to the inclusion of the private sector, which started in the 1960s when white rhinos were moved from their last remaining population in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park and placed in other state reserves as well as on private land. In 1991 the <a href="https://lawfulliving.co.za/book/text/agriculture--game-theft.html">Game Theft Act</a> formalised conditions for private rhino ownership and use. Poaching pressure was low at the time, and the demand for rhinos by ecotourists and trophy hunters gave private landowners incentives to grow their rhino populations. </p>
<p>Based on publicly available data, <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fee.2593">our recent paper</a> shows that, today, private landholders conserve over half of South Africa’s white rhinos. Communities conserve a further 1% of the white rhinos. This trend is not unique to South Africa. More than 75% of Zimbabwe’s and Namibia’s white rhinos are on private lands. Although outside their natural range, in east Africa 72% of Kenya’s white rhino populations are conserved by private landowners.</p>
<p>In South Africa, the increasing contribution of private rhino custodians over the past few decades is partly due to their success and partly due to shrinking rhino populations in <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-02-14-saving-private-rhino-non-government-owners-of-the-animals-succeed-in-stemming-poaching-carnage/">key state parks</a>. Poaching is largely to blame for shrinking populations. A decade ago, the 2-million-hectare Kruger National Park held over half of the world’s 20,000 white rhinos. Today the park has just over 2,000 of the <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/kruger-rhino-poaching-update-75-population-reduction-in-10-years/">remaining 16,000 white rhinos</a>. Kruger lost 6% of its population to poaching in <a href="https://sajs.co.za/article/view/11300">2020 alone</a>. Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park has suffered <a href="https://mg.co.za/environment/2023-02-08-rhino-poaching-declines-in-kruger-but-poachers-are-on-the-rampage-in-kzn/">similar declines</a>.</p>
<p>Private ranches in South Africa, meanwhile, lost <a href="https://sajs.co.za/article/view/11300">just 0.5%</a> of their rhinos to poaching in 2020. This is likely because smaller private properties are easier to secure and because private ranchers spend more per rhino on security – <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/fee.2593#page=4">R28,600 (US$2200)</a> per rhino in 2017, <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/fee.2593#page=4">compared with an estimated R8,600 (US$520)</a> per rhino spent by South African National Parks.</p>
<p>This high spend on security may have reduced poaching risk, but it has also reduced the <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12741">benefits accrued</a> from owning rhinos. Even for rhino owners who are not financially motivated, the growing costs of protecting rhinos from poaching are difficult to sustain. </p>
<p>In our <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fee.2593">paper</a>, we outline potential policy pathways to support rhino conservation beyond state parks. Additional revenue streams are needed to give private and community rhino custodians the incentive. These could include tapping into markets beyond ecotourism and trophy hunting, such as carbon and biodiversity credits. Incentives could also include private sector funding through impact investments, and government funding through tax incentives. New community custodians are likely to require state support, at least initially.</p>
<p>As large grazers, rhinos play <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/why-are-rhinos-important-for-ecosystems/">an important role</a> in their ecosystem. Their decline is evoking <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320719305099">strong sentimental reactions</a> from people around the world. This raises the question: to what extent should the costs of protecting globally valued rhinos be carried by their local custodians?</p>
<h2>The cost is too high</h2>
<p>In 2018 we <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12741">estimated</a> that 28% of private rhino owners in South Africa were disinvesting, while 57% were continuing as usual and 15% were investing in more rhinos. </p>
<p>At that time rhino breeder John Hume was one of the flagship investors. He and some other private rhino owners had been investing in rhinos in the hope that rhino horn trade would be legalised, which would make the cost-benefit ratio of owning rhinos <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.12412">considerably more favourable</a>. </p>
<p>But in April 2023, Hume held an online auction to sell the 2,000 white rhinos he owned – representing about 13% of the continental population. <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-05-01-shaky-future-for-2000-rhinos-after-mega-breeders-auction-fails-to-attract-bidders/">He said</a> he could no longer afford his costly rhino breeding operation. The auction failed to attract any bidders. </p>
<p>There are three possible outcomes for Hume’s rhinos. One, a buyer could take over the operation. Two, the animals could be relocated to parks in South Africa or other <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/4185/45813880#geographic-range">countries in sub-Saharan Africa</a>. Or they might be relocated abroad, beyond their historical range (for instance to Asia or Australia).</p>
<p>The first outcome would be the simplest. But it doesn’t solve the problem that rhinos are increasingly expensive to support. </p>
<p>The second option is attractive because it would boost population numbers in parks that have lost their populations. However, the “space” for rhinos in many of these parks likely signals their failure at protecting their rhinos in the first place. Rewilding would require a new strategy for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320721004705">protecting them</a>.</p>
<p>Moving rhinos beyond their historical range has been considered before. A multi-million-dollar <a href="https://theaustralianrhinoproject.org/index.php/about">proposal</a> to move rhinos to Australia (where they do not naturally occur) received support but also <a href="https://theecologist.org/2017/may/02/rhinos-should-be-conserved-africa-not-moved-australia">criticism</a>. Almost 1,000 white rhinos are already in captivity around the world and such projects arguably divert funds and expertise away from conservation efforts in the countries where rhinos naturally occur.</p>
<p>It’s important to consider how to support private rhino custodianship so that we don’t end up with more rhinos for sale that <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-01-16-private-and-communal-lands-conserve-half-of-africas-rhinos-and-call-for-adaptive-policies/">no one wants to buy</a>.</p>
<h2>Innovative solutions, partnerships</h2>
<p>A diversity of models and a <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2021-08-05-saving-private-rhino-we-must-reimagine-the-future-of-species-conservation-in-south-africa/">common vision</a> is needed to conserve thriving populations of rhinos across state, private and community land. </p>
<p>Rhinos should not unjustly burden those who serve as their custodians. Income from ecotourism and trophy hunting is insufficient under current poaching conditions and costs. How can the cost-benefit ratio of conserving rhinos be shifted?</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Several rhinos are seen at a distance against the backdrop of grassland and a mountain" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527955/original/file-20230524-7504-w56bss.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">
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<span class="caption">White rhinos on a large private game reserve in South Africa.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Hayley Clements</span></span>
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<p>Legalising international horn trade would certainly shift the ratio, but there is <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/will-legal-international-rhino-horn-trade-save-wild-rhino-populations/">strong pushback</a>. At best horn trade is a medium-term solution since international policy moves slowly.</p>
<p>Additional, nearer-term options include <a href="https://conservationnamibia.com/articles/cnam2020-wildlife-credits.php">rhino credits</a> and <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2022/03/23/wildlife-conservation-bond-boosts-south-africa-s-efforts-to-protect-black-rhinos-and-support-local-communities">impact bonds</a> – large-scale philanthropy that pays for conservation success. </p>
<p>There is <a href="https://www.oneearth.org/how-restoring-key-wildlife-species-can-be-a-game-changing-climate-solution/">growing evidence</a> that wildlife populations can increase soil carbon – possibly enabling wildlife ranches to tap into carbon credit markets. The government can also recognise and support the role of rhino custodians through <a href="https://www.birdlife.org.za/what-we-do/important-bird-and-biodiversity-areas/what-we-do-ibas/fiscal-benefits-project/">tax incentives</a>. South Africa is a pioneer in biodiversity stewardship tax incentives, though they are currently only available to landowners who formally declare their land as protected. </p>
<p>Time is <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/the-state-of-africas-rhino/">running out for rhinos</a>: more inclusive, equitable and innovative solutions are needed to support their conservation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205860/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hayley Clements receives funding from a Jennifer Ward Oppenheimer Research Grant and Kone Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dave Balfour is a freelance ecologist and a member of the IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group and Chairs the SADC Rhino Management Group. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Enrico Di Minin receives funding from the European Research Council – EU's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 802933).</span></em></p>To what extent should the costs of protecting globally valued rhinos be carried by their local custodians?Hayley Clements, Researcher, Stellenbosch UniversityDave Balfour, Freelance conservation ecologist, Nelson Mandela UniversityEnrico Di Minin, Associate Professor in Conservation Geography, University of HelsinkiLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.