Religious Relationships with the Environment in a Tibetan Rural Community : Interactions and Contrasts with Popular Notions of Indigenous Environmentalism

Acknowledgments: We thank Beijing Forestry University, our field assistants Tashi Rabden, Pema Dechin, Tsewang Chomtso and Gele Chopel for their invaluable help, the Forest Bureau of Daocheng county for permission and support, and the people of Samdo for their hospitality and participation. The research was funded by the ESRC and the World Pheasant Association. This paper is a contribution to Imperial College’s Grand Challenges in Ecosystems and the Environment initiative. Two anonymous reviewers gave valuable comments on the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Investigating acceptance of marine tourism levies, to cover the opportunity costs of conservation for coastal communities

Marine tourism is promoted as a substitute economic activity to unsustainable fishing, which is compatible with conservation. However, benefits of marine tourism do not typically accrue in small-scale fisheries (SSFs), which often bear the costs of conservation; they accrue to tourists and tourist-focussed businesses. We explored how marine tourism levies could operationalise the beneficiary-pays principle and address these cost-benefit inequities using an online contingent valuation (CV) survey to measure international tourists' willingness-to-pay (WTP) towards community-based shark conservation (N = 1033). Levies were widely supported (96%), with median and Turnbull mean WTP of US$10–14.99 and$22.02 per person per day, respectively. We combined these results with data from two marine tourism hotspots in Indonesia – Lombok and Pulau Weh – to explore the feasibility of implementing tourism levies to incentivize pro-conservation behaviour in local SSFs. Our conservative estimates indicate that marine tourism levies in Lombok and Pulau Weh could respectively generate US$2.3–10 million and US$ 300,000–1.3 million annually – several times greater than the estimated costs of conservation incentives in local SSFs. The marine tourism industry offers an under-utilised revenue stream for marine conservation, which could support policy aspirations such as ‘a sustainable and equitable blue economy’

A serological survey of ruminant livestock in Kazakhstan during post-Soviet transitions in farming and disease control

The results of a serological survey of livestock in Kazakhstan, carried out in 1997–1998, are reported. Serum samples from 958 animals (cattle, sheep and goats) were tested for antibodies to foot and mouth disease (FMD), bluetongue (BT), epizootic haemorrhagic disease (EHD), rinderpest (RP) and peste des petits ruminants (PPR) viruses, and to Brucella spp. We also investigated the vaccination status of livestock and related this to changes in veterinary provision since independence in 1991. For the 2 diseases under official surveillance (FMD and brucellosis) our results were similar to official data, although we found significantly higher brucellosis levels in 2 districts and widespread ignorance about FMD vaccination status. The seroprevalence for BT virus was 23%, and seropositive animals were widespread suggesting endemicity, despite the disease not having being previously reported. We found a few seropositives for EHDV and PPRV, which may suggest that these diseases are also present in Kazakhstan. An hierarchical model showed that seroprevalence to FMD and BT viruses were clustered at the farm/village level, rather than at a larger spatial scale. This was unexpected for FMD, which is subject to vaccination policies which vary at the raion (county) level

Robust study design is as important on the social as it is on the ecological side of applied ecological research

1. The effective management of natural systems often requires resource users to change their behaviour. This has led to many applied ecologists using research tools developed by social scientists. This comes with challenges as ecologists often lack relevant disciplinary training. 2. Using an example from the current issue of Journal of Applied Ecology that investigated how conservation interventions influenced conservation outcomes, we discuss the challenges of conducting interdisciplinary science. We illustrate our points using examples from research investigating the role of law enforcement and outreach activities in limiting illegal poaching and the application of the theory of planned behaviour to conservation. 3. Synthesis and applications. Interdisciplinary research requires equal rigour to be applied to ecological and social aspects. Researchers with a natural science background need to access expertise and training in the principles of social science research design and methodology, in order to permit a more balanced interdisciplinary understanding of social–ecological system

New directions in management strategy evaluation through cross-fertilisation between fisheries science and terrestrial conservation

et al.On 1 and 2 June 2010, an international meeting was held at the University of Paris Sud XI, France, organized within the framework of the EU FP7 consortium project HUNT, to bring together fisheries and conservation scientists to discuss a unified framework for the future of management strategies for harvested species.E.J.M.G. acknowledges the support of a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit award. This workshop was supported by the European Commission under the HUNT project of the 7th Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development.Peer Reviewe

The use of traditional ecological knowledge in forest management: an example from India

Many forest communities possess considerable knowledge of the natural resources they use. Such knowledge can potentially inform scientific approaches to management, either as a source of baseline data to fill information gaps that cannot otherwise be addressed or to provide alternative management approaches from which scientists and managers might learn. In general, however, little attention has been given to the relevance of quantitative forms of such knowledge for resource management. Much discussion has focused on the integration of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) into management, but less attention has been paid to identifying specific areas where it is most useful and where it may be most problematic. We contrasted scientific data with information from TEK in the context of a threat to the sustainable harvesting of a nontimber forest product (NTFP) of livelihood importance in southern India, specifically, a fruit tree infected by mistletoe. The efficiency of deriving information from NTFP harvesters compared to scientific field studies was assessed. We further evaluated the potential of TEK to provide novel solutions to the management problem in question, the degree to which TEK could provide quantitative information, and the biases that might be associated with information derived from TEK. TEK complemented previously gathered ecological data by providing concordant and additional information, but also contradicted some results obtained using a scientific approach. TEK also gave a longer-term perspective with regard to NTFP harvesting patterns. Combining information on historical and current harvesting trends for the NTFP with official data suggests that current assessments of sustainability may be inaccurate and that the use of diverse information sources may provide an effective approach to assessing the status of harvested resources

Using local ecological knowledge to assess the status of the Critically Endangered Chinese giant salamander Andrias davidianus in Guizhou Province, China

The Critically Endangered Chinese giant salamander Andrias davidianus, the world's largest amphibian, is severely threatened by unsustainable exploitation of wild individuals. However, field data with which to assess the salamander's status, population trends, or exploitation across its geographical range are limited, and recent field surveys using standard ecological field techniques have typically failed to detect wild individuals. We conducted community-based fieldwork in three national nature reserves (Fanjingshan, Leigongshan and Mayanghe) in Guizhou Province, China, to assess whether local ecological knowledge constitutes a useful tool for salamander conservation. We collected a sample of dated salamander sighting records and associated data from these reserves for comparative assessment of the relative status of salamander populations across the region. Although Fanjingshan and Leigongshan are still priority sites for salamander conservation, few recent sightings were recorded in either reserve, and respondents considered that salamanders had declined locally at both reserves. The species may already be functionally extinct at Mayanghe. Although respondent data on threats to salamanders in Guizhou are more difficult to interpret, overharvesting was the most commonly suggested explanation for salamander declines, and it is likely that the growing salamander farming industry is the primary driver of salamander extraction from Guizhou's reserves. Questionnaire-based surveys can collect novel quantitative data that provide unique insights into the local status of salamander populations, and we advocate wide-scale incorporation of this research approach into future salamander field programmes

Competing Harvesting Strategies In A Simulated Population Under Uncertainty

We present a case study of the use of simulation modelling to develop and test strategies for managing populations under uncertainty. Strategies that meet a stock conservation criterion under a base case scenario are subjected to a set of robustness trials, including biased and highly variable abundance estimates and poaching. Strategy performance is assessed with respect to a conservation criterion, the revenues achieved and their variability. Strategies that harvest heavily, even when the population is apparently very large, perform badly in the robustness trials. Setting a threshold below which harvesting does not take place, and above which all individuals are harvested, does not provide effective protection against over-harvesting. Strategies that rely on population growth rates rather than estimates of population size are more robust to biased estimates. The strategies that are most robust to uncertainty are simple, involving harvesting a relatively small proportion of the population each year. The simulation modelling approach to exploring harvesting strategies is suggested as a useful tool for the assessment of the performance of competing strategies under uncertainty

Bioeconomic adaptive management procedures for short-lived species: A case study of Pacific saury (Cololabis saira) and Japanese common squid (Todarodes pacificus)

Short-lived fisheries stocks are subject to large fluctuations in abundance and respond rapidly to many factors including changes in oceanographic conditions, biological interactions and fishery exploitation. Management of such species requires a flexible, adaptive framework that responds rapidly to a changing environment, although such schemes are rarely operationalized. In this article, we develop a set of bioeconomic adaptive management schemes that respond to changes in economic conditions, stock abundance and catchability, using as case studies the fisheries targeting short-lived Japanese common squid (Todarodes pacificus) and Pacific saury (Cololabis saira). We suggest that such adaptive schemes have the potential to support the successful implementation of profit maximizing (MEYbased) harvest policies for borderline profitable fisheries targeting short-lived species.Keywords: Posters and Game Demonstration Session and Reception, Fisheries Management, Fisheries Economic

Monitoring and conservation of the critically endangered Alaotran gentle lemur Hapalemur alaotrensis

The Alaotran gentle lemur Hapalemur alaotrensis is a Critically Endangered lemur, which exclusively inhabits the marshes around Lac Alaotra in northeast Madagascar. In the past decades the population of H. alaotrensis has experienced a dramatic decline due to poaching, habitat destruction and degradation. Surveys have been carried out periodically to follow the status of the population. Here we present the results of a survey carried out between May and June 2008 in the southwestern part of the marshes around Alaotra and discuss the key findings derived from the analysis of the data collected. Our study indicates that the probability of detecting the species in an area where it is present is very low and depends on factors that vary in space and time. These results stress the need to account for imperfect detection when monitoring this species, an issue especially relevant when reporting population trends. Our analyses also show that habitat fragmentation is a key determinant of habitat suitability for H. alaotrensis, with fragmented areas of marsh showing low suitability. Finally, our observations and analysis suggest that the protection provided by the local community to H. alaotrensis in Andreba is contributing to the conservation of this Critically Endangered species. This highlights the need to continue working on engaging the local communities in the conservation of the marshes at Lac Alaotra as a critical element to secure the future of H. alaotrensis