Global sea turtle conservation successes.

We document a tendency for published estimates of population size in sea turtles to be increasing rather than decreasing across the globe. To examine the population status of the seven species of sea turtle globally, we obtained 299 time series of annual nesting abundance with a total of 4417 annual estimates. The time series ranged in length from 6 to 47 years (mean, 16.2 years). When levels of abundance were summed within regional management units (RMUs) for each species, there were upward trends in 12 RMUs versus downward trends in 5 RMUs. This prevalence of more upward than downward trends was also evident in the individual time series, where we found 95 significant increases in abundance and 35 significant decreases. Adding to this encouraging news for sea turtle conservation, we show that even small sea turtle populations have the capacity to recover, that is, Allee effects appear unimportant. Positive trends in abundance are likely linked to the effective protection of eggs and nesting females, as well as reduced bycatch. However, conservation concerns remain, such as the decline in leatherback turtles in the Eastern and Western Pacific. Furthermore, we also show that, often, time series are too short to identify trends in abundance. Our findings highlight the importance of continued conservation and monitoring efforts that underpin this global conservation success story

A review of the combined effects of climate change and other local human stressors on the marine environment

Climate change (CC) is a key, global driver of change of marine ecosystems. At local and regional scales, other local human stressors (LS) can interact with CC and modify its effects on marine ecosystems. Understanding the response of the marine environment to the combined effects of CC and LS is crucial to inform marine ecosystem-based management and planning, yet our knowledge of the potential effects of such interactions is fragmented. At a global scale, we explored how cumulative effect assessments (CEAs) have addressed CC in the marine realm and discuss progress and shortcomings of current approaches. For this we conducted a systematic review on how CEAs investigated at different levels of biological organization ecological responses, functional aspects, and the combined effect of CC and HS. Globally, the effects of 52 LS and of 27 CC-related stressors on the marine environment have been studied in combination, such as industrial fisheries with change in temperature, or sea level rise with artisanal fisheries, marine litter, change in sediment load and introduced alien species. CC generally intensified the effects of LS at species level. At trophic groups and ecosystem levels, the effects of CC either intensified or mitigated the effects of other HS depending on the trophic groups or the environmental conditions involved, thus suggesting that the combined effects of CC and LS are context-dependent and vary among and within ecosystems. Our results highlight that large-scale assessments on the spatial interaction and combined effects of CC and LS remain limited. More importantly, our results strengthen the urgent need of CEAs to capture local-scale effects of stressors that can exacerbate climate-induced changes. Ultimately, this will allow identifying management measures that aid counteracting CC effects at relevant scales

A risk-based approach to cumulative effect assessments for marine management

Marine ecosystems are increasingly threatened by the cumulative effects of multiple human pressures. Cumulative effect assessments (CEAs) are needed to inform environmental policy and guide ecosystem-based management. Yet, CEAs are inherently complex and seldom linked to real-world management processes. Therefore we propose entrenching CEAs in a risk management process, comprising the steps of risk identification, risk analysis and risk evaluation. We provide guidance to operationalize a risk-based approach to CEAs by describing for each step guiding principles and desired outcomes, scientific challenges and practical solutions. We reviewed the treatment of uncertainty in CEAs and the contribution of different tools and data sources to the implementation of a risk based approach to CEAs. We show that a risk-based approach to CEAs decreases complexity, allows for the transparent treatment of uncertainty and streamlines the uptake of scientific outcomes into the science-policy interface. Hence, its adoption can help bridging the gap between science and decision-making in ecosystem-based management

A global gap analysis of sea turtle protection coverage

 Although the number and extent of protected areas (PAs) are continuously increasing, their coverage of global biodiversity, as well as criteria and targets that underline their selection, warrants scrutiny. As a case study, we use a global dataset of sea turtle nesting sites (. n=. 2991) to determine the extent to which the existing global PA network encompasses nesting habitats (beaches) that are vital for the persistence of the seven sea turtle species. The majority of nesting sites (87%) are in the tropics, and are mainly hosted by developing countries. Developing countries contain 82% nesting sites, which provide lower protection coverage compared to developed countries. PAs encompass 25% of all nesting sites, of which 78% are in marine PAs. At present, most nesting sites in PAs with IUCN ratification receive high protection. We identified the countries that provide the highest and lowest nesting site protection coverage, and detected gaps in species-level protection effort within countries. No clear trend in protection coverage was found in relation to gross domestic product, the Global Peace Index or sea turtle regional management units; however, countries in crisis (civil unrest, war or natural catastrophes) provided slightly higher protection coverage of all countries. We conclude that global sea turtle resilience against threats spanning temperate to tropical regions require representative PA coverage at the species level within countries. This work is anticipated to function as a first step towards identifying specific countries or regions that should receive higher conservation interest by national and international bodies. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability

publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability journaltitle: Ecological Indicators articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.07.038 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability journaltitle: Ecological Indicators articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.07.038 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability journaltitle: Ecological Indicators articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.07.038 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability journaltitle: Ecological Indicators articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.07.038 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.publisher: Elsevier articletitle: Using climatic suitability thresholds to identify past, present and future population viability journaltitle: Ecological Indicators articlelink: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.07.038 content_type: article copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

A review of the combined effects of climate change and other local human stressors on the marine environment

Climate change (CC) is a key, global driver of change of marine ecosystems. At local and regional scales, other local human stressors (LS) can interact with CC and modify its effects on marine ecosystems. Understanding the response of the marine environment to the combined effects of CC and LS is crucial to inform marine ecosystem-based management and planning, yet our knowledge of the potential effects of such interactions is fragmented. At a global scale, we explored how cumulative effect assessments (CEAs) have addressed CC in the marine realm and discuss progress and shortcomings of current approaches. For this we conducted a systematic review on how CEAs investigated at different levels of biological organization ecological responses, functional aspects, and the combined effect of CC and HS. Globally, the effects of 52 LS and of 27 CC-related stressors on the marine environment have been studied in combination, such as industrial fisheries with change in temperature, or sea level rise with artisanal fisheries, marine litter, change in sediment load and introduced alien species. CC generally intensified the effects of LS at species level. At trophic groups and ecosystem levels, the effects of CC either intensified or mitigated the effects of other HS depending on the trophic groups or the environmental conditions involved, thus suggesting that the combined effects of CC and LS are context-dependent and vary among and within ecosystems. Our results highlight that large-scale assessments on the spatial interaction and combined effects of CC and LS remain limited. More importantly, our results strengthen the urgent need of CEAs to capture local-scale effects of stressors that can exacerbate climate-induced changes. Ultimately, this will allow identifying management measures that aid counteracting CC effects at relevant scales

Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor Type-1 Tag Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 and Diabetic Retinopathy

Background: There is accumulating evidence for genetic susceptibility to the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR). The role of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) in DR risk remains controversial. Objective: The present study was designed to investigate possible influence of PAI-1 gene region polymorphisms on the risk of DR and on the risk of developing DR early vs late in the course of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A total of 138 patients with DR, 107 patients with T2DM without DR, and 315 healthy controls were recruited. To cover the majority of the genetic variability across the extended region of PAI-1 gene, five tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from the HapMap using a pairwise approach and an r2 ≥ 0.8 and a minor allele frequency (MAF) of >0.05 were identified. Using logistic regression analyses, tag SNPs and haplotypes were tested for associations with DR risk and risk of DR development early or late in the course of T2DM. The generalized odds ratio (ORG) was calculated to estimate the mutational load effect on DR development among all participants. Corrections for multiple comparisons were carried out (p-value < 0.01). Results: A significant effect of rs2070682 on the risk of early DR onset was found in the codominant model of inheritance [odds ratio, OR (95% confidence interval, CI): 5.04 (1.47–17.28), p = 0.018]. However, this association marginally did not survive multiple testing corrections. No other significant association between PAI-1 tag-SNPs and haplotypes was revealed. Furthermore, no significant mutational load effect of PAI-1 tag SNPs on the risk of DR development in T2DM course was found. Conclusions: In conclusion, the present study does not provide any strong evidence that PAI-1 gene variants are implicated in the risk of DR or the development of DR during T2DM course. © 2017 Taylor & Francis

Appendix A. Bioclimatic variables of sea turtle Regional Management Units.

Bioclimatic variables of sea turtle Regional Management Units

Sea level rise threatens critical nesting sites of charismatic marine turtles in the Mediterranean

Sea level rise could result in the loss and shrinkage of coastal habitats, jeopardizing the persistence of a number of species that rely upon these highly dynamic and sensitive areas. With reproduction and population recruitment depending exclusively on low-lying sandy beaches, marine turtles are among the organisms for which sea level rise represents a major threat. Here, we provide an assessment of the potential impacts of sea level rise upon sandy beaches located at the Ionian Archipelagos, which host some of the main nesting sites of the Mediterranean population of the loggerhead marine turtle Caretta caretta. Our analyses focused on sandy beaches which host stable or sporadic nesting as well as on sites that could potentially serve as nesting grounds for the species. We demonstrated that more than 60% of the stable nesting sites (accounting for about half of the total nesting activity in the region) are likely to fail to act as nesting sites under moderate and worst case scenarios of projected sea level rise by 2100. We found that only about one fifth of the stable and the sporadic nesting beaches were characterized by high resilience to SLR, meaning that the effective zone for nesting can migrate landwards and fit in the remaining upper beach part. Potential nesting sites were subjected to even lower resilience to sea level rise, suggesting that even if marine turtles could shift to new, nearby nesting sites, the efficiency of such a response would be limited. These alarming findings call for the prioritization of conservation and restoration efforts towards sandy shores of moderate and high resilience to sea level rise which are currently used for stable or even sporadic nesting. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature