Where did all the pangolins go? International CITES trade in pangolin species

Available online 24 October 2016The pangolin is greatly sought after for its various body parts, largely driven by demand from China. The mammal has been driven to the edge of extinction in Asia, with two Asian species listed as Critically Endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. With declining Asian pangolin populations, a shift in trade from Asian to African pangolin species has been suggested. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Trade Database provides a unique opportunity to investigate global trends in pangolin trade at the species level, across a broad temporal scale (1977–2014). We found that CITES trade in Asian pangolin species decreased through time, whilst trade in African species increased post 2000. The total number of incidents involving Asian species declined since 2000, yet they were still being traded in large volumes (more than 17,500 estimated whole Asian pangolins were traded from 2001 to 2014) despite a zero export quota for all wild sourced Asian species, traded for primarily commercial purposes. In 2014 all eight pangolin species were recorded in the CITES trade for the first time. An increasingly complex international network was identified through time, with the United States of America (US) being the dominant player in the global pangolin trade that was reported to CITES. The US was the most frequent trade country throughout the entire period and was the greatest importer of pangolins, and their products; measured both in volume as well as frequency. We hope that identifying these global trade network characteristics, and pangolin trade dynamics will help to inform pangolin conservation efforts, and guide enforcement and legislative changes in the future.Sarah Heinrich, Talia A. Wittmann, Thomas A.A. Prowse, Joshua V. Ross, Steven Delean, Chris R. Shepherd, Phillip Casse

Amplifying staff development through film: the case of a university staff visit to a sixth form college

Purpose: The literature on student transition to university commonly investigates student expectations, perceptions and experiences and rarely focuses on university academic staff viewpoints. This paper explores the staff development potential of a filmed visit of university academic staff to a sixth form college. Design/methodology/approach: The project created a space for eight university colleagues from a wide range of discipline areas in a large metropolitan university and ten college students from one local sixth form feeder college to observe and reflect on their experiences of learning and teaching in the two environments. Findings: Staff development episodes were subsequently designed to allow staff who had not attended the visit to comprehend the experiences of learning and teaching in colleges and promote a consideration of pedagogies for student transition. Observations and reflections from this ‘second audience’ are presented. Research limitations/implications:This was a case study of a visit of a small group of university academic staff to one Roman Catholic 6th form college who selected students to speak on film. The visit occurred just prior to final exams at the end of the academic year. Practical implications: Packaging the visit via film and workshop activity enabled university staff to hear their own colleagues’ reflections on how students learn in college and the step up to university study. This combination of vicarious/peer learning could be used in a range of staff development and training settings. Originality/value: This study explored a practical way of extending a small-scale episode of experiential staff development to a much larger staff audience via the use of filmed reflections of participants, combined with workshop activity and online comment and discussion

Dynamic simulation of the THAI heavy oil recovery process

Toe-to-Heel Air Injection (THAI) is a variant of conventional In-Situ Combustion (ISC) that uses a horizontal production well to recover mobilised partially upgraded heavy oil. It has a number of advantages over other heavy oil recovery techniques such as high recovery potential. However, existing models are unable to predict the effect of the most important operational parameters, such as fuel availability and produced oxygen concentration, which will give rise to unsafe designs. Therefore, we have developed a new model that accurately predicts dynamic conditions in the reservoir and also is easily scalable to investigate different field scenarios. The model used a three component direct conversion cracking kinetics scheme, which does not depend on the stoichiometry of the products and, thus, reduces the extent of uncertainty in the simulation results as the number of unknowns is reduced. The oil production rate and cumulative oil produced were well predicted, with the latter deviating from the experimental value by only 4%. The improved ability of the model to emulate real process dynamics meant it also accurately predicted when the oxygen was first produced, thereby enabling a more accurate assessment to be made of when it would be safe to shut-in the process, prior to oxygen breakthrough occurring. The increasing trend in produced oxygen concentration following a step change in the injected oxygen rate by 33 % was closely replicated by the model. The new simulations have now elucidated the mechanism of oxygen production during the later stages of the experiment. The model has allowed limits to be placed on the air injection rates that ensure stability of operation. Unlike previous models, the new simulations have provided better quantitative prediction of fuel laydown, which is a key phenomenon that determines whether, or not, successful operation of the THAI process can be achieved. The new model has also shown that, for completely stable operation, the combustion zone must be restricted to the upper portion of the sand pack, which can be achieved by using higher producer back pressure

Integrating trans-disciplinary approaches: joined-up working in urban regeneration.

This paper questions the relationship between biodiversity, planning and governance and highlights physical and organizational barriers that can prevent change. Trans-disciplinary approaches to evaluating biodiverse urban environments are discussed and analysed with particular reference to the role of environmental public art and community engagement projects within urban regeneration. Public art has been integrated into the regeneration of cities. Public artists are capable of delivering interesting ‘greening projects’ that involve local communities in the processes. Such projects appeal to local authorities because they are perceived to address objectives within authority¹s social and environmental policies. An illustrative study is provided: a multidisciplinary team were commissioned to map four miles of the Leeds/Liverpool canal as part of Liverpool Biennial’s Urbanism 2009. The team, led by an artist and a plant ecologist, collected data over six months in the spring and summer of 2009. This data included measurements of the biodiversity of the area, recording and categorising human activity, patterns of dog fouling, ‘landscape preference’ using selected canal-side landscapes, and detailed data on the ‘barrier constructs’ (fencing, walls etc) along the canal which link back to patterns of human activity and can be further related to aesthetics and environmental psychology. The conclusions were that this stretch of urban waterway is an ecological gem within an area of urban deprivation, but for the gem to attract people from across all demographics - to enjoy and foster ongoing use and respect for the environment, changes need to occur in the way that agencies and professionals work together. This vision can only realistically be achieved if professionals from all relevant agencies work collectively, pooling resources and expertise. A series of recommendations for action are suggested: it is not so much about community cohesion - a sense of community in the built environment - but cohesion amongst agencies and professionals

Thermoresponsive worms for expansion and release of human embryonic stem cells

The development of robust suspension cultures of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) without the use of cell membrane disrupting enzymes or inhibitors is critical for future clinical applications in regenerative medicine. We have achieved this by using long, flexible, and thermoresponsive polymer worms decorated with a recombinant vitronectin subdomain that bridge hESCs, aiding in hESC's natural ability to form embryoid bodies (EBs) and satisfying their inherent requirement for cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix contact. When the EBs reached an optimal upper size where cytokine and nutrient penetration becomes limiting, these long and flexible polymer worms facilitated EB breakdown via a temperature shift from 37 to 25 C. The thermoresponsive nature of the worms enabled a cyclical dissociation and propagation of the cells. Repeating the process for three cycles (over eighteen days) provided a >30-fold expansion in cell number while maintaining pluripotency, thereby providing a simple, nondestructive process for the 3D expansion of hESC

Exposing the human nude phenotype [4]

Peer reviewedSubmitted Versio

Integrative analysis of the physical transport network into Australia

Effective biosecurity is necessary to protect nations and their citizens from a variety of threats, including emerging infectious diseases, agricultural or environmental pests and pathogens, and illegal wildlife trade. The physical pathways by which these threats are transported internationally, predominantly shipping and air traffic, have undergone significant growth and changes in spatial distributions in recent decades. An understanding of the specific pathways and donor-traffic hotspots created by this integrated physical transport network is vital for the development of effective biosecurity strategies into the future. In this study, we analysed the physical transport network into Australia over the period 1999-2012. Seaborne and air traffic were weighted to calculate a "weighted cumulative impact" score for each source region worldwide, each year. High risk source regions, and those source regions that underwent substantial changes in risk over the study period, were determined. An overall risk ranking was calculated by integrating across all possible weighting combinations. The source regions having greatest overall physical connectedness with Australia were Singapore, which is a global transport hub, and the North Island of New Zealand, a close regional trading partner with Australia. Both those regions with large amounts of traffic across multiple vectors (e.g., Hong Kong), and those with high levels of traffic of only one type (e.g., Bali, Indonesia with respect to passenger flights), were represented among high risk source regions. These data provide a baseline model for the transport of individuals and commodities against which the effectiveness of biosecurity controls may be assessed, and are a valuable tool in the development of future biosecurity policy.Robert C. Cope, Joshua V. Ross, Talia A. Wittmann, Thomas A. A. Prowse, Phillip Casse

Scalability of genetic biocontrols for eradicating invasive alien mammals

CRISPR-based gene drives offer novel solutions for controlling invasive alien species, which could ultimately extend eradication efforts to continental scales. Gene drives for suppressing invasive alien vertebrates are now under development. Using a landscape-scale individual-based model, we present the first estimates of times to eradication for long-lived alien mammals. We show that demography and life-history traits interact to determine the scalability of gene drives for vertebrate pest eradication. Notably, optimism around eradicating smaller-bodied pests (rodents and rabbits) with gene-drive technologies does not easily translate into eradication of larger-bodied alien species (cats and foxes).Aysegul Birand, Phillip Cassey, Joshua V. Ross, Paul Q. Thomas, Thomas A. A. Prows