Maximizing the effectiveness of qualitative systematic reviews: A case study on terrestrial arthropod conservation translocations

Systematic literature reviews are frequently used in biodiversity conservation to identify knowledge gaps and strategies for improvement. Despite their important role, systematic reviews are not standardized and often use different methods, standards for success, and data sources. We compared two systematic reviews on terrestrial arthropod conservation translocations, unknowingly conducted by two research groups at the same time. Both studies found geographic and taxonomic biases, with most projects focusing on certain countries (e.g., United States, United Kingdom) and taxa (e.g., butterflies, grasshoppers), and found similar success rates (range: 52–58%). However, the studies had different conclusions about which factors significantly influenced trans-location success, driven by the data sources used (published literature vs. data from corresponding authors). Release numbers reported by corresponding authors were approximately double those in the published literature, causing the two studies’ data sets to differ dramatically. The results show that improved communication among researchers and practitioners is needed to ensure access to current data and prevent duplication of efforts. We recommend that: i) planned, ongoing, and unpublished work be integrated as best possible in reviews; ii) expert perspectives be included alongside quantitative measures; iii) online tools be used more to promote communi-cation; iv) an online catalogue of translocation projects be established to facilitate awareness and contact among researchers; and v) standardization of translocation reporting be increased. We provide practical pathways and actions to help achieve these recommendations. These improved review practices can benefit both systematic reviewers and conservation practitioners by increasing the quality and accuracy of systematic reviews

Evolutionary social and biogeophysical changes in the Amazon, Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna and Mekong deltas

Policy-making in social-ecological systems increasingly looks to iterative, evolutionary approaches that can address the inherent complexity of interactions between human wellbeing, provision of goods, and the maintenance of ecosystem services. Here, we show how the analysis of available time-series in tropical delta regions over past decades can provide important insight into the social-ecological system dynamics in deltaic regions. The paper provides an exploratory analysis of the recent changes that have occurred in the major elements of three tropical deltaic social-ecological systems, such as demography, economy, health, climate, food, and water. Time-series data from official statistics, monitoring programmes, and Earth observation data are analysed to explore possible trends, slow and fast variables, and observed drivers of change in the Amazon, Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna and Mekong deltas. In the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna delta zone, increasing gross domestic product and per capita income levels since the 1980s mirror rising levels of food and inland fish production. In contrast, non-food ecosystem services, such as water availability, water quality, and land stability appear to be deteriorating. In the Amazon delta, natural and anthropogenic perturbations are continuously degrading key ecosystem services, such as carbon storage in biomass and soils, the regulation of water balance, and the modulation of regional climate patterns. In the Mekong delta, rapid economic development, changing land-use practices, and salinity intrusion are progressively putting more pressure on the delivery of important provisioning services, such as rice and inland aquaculture production, which are key sources of staple food, farm incomes, and export revenue. Observed changes in many key indicators of ecosystem services point to a changing dynamic state and increased probability of systemic threshold transformations in the near future