The medium over the message: differential knowledge of conservation outreach activities and implications for threatened species

Conservation outreach is regularly conducted to increase support for conservation by altering local awareness and attitudes about species or environmental issues. However, there is often little assessment of the effectiveness of these activities. We investigated knowledge of past conservation outreach in 26 villages adjacent to Bawangling National Nature Reserve, Hainan, China, which contains the last population of the Hainan gibbon (Nomascus hainanus). The medium of past outreach activities was reported most frequently by interviewees, followed by who delivered them and the outreach topic, with the fewest interviewees reporting the specific messages being communicated (the consequences of following conservation management policies). Negatively-framed messages, emphasizing prohibited activities and associated punishments, were reported more than positively-framed messages that aimed to foster conservation support. Male interviewees and those with higher education levels reported more aspects of past activities. The Hainan gibbon had higher salience than other threatened native species, and reporting the occurrence (but not necessarily the content) of past outreach was associated with increased likelihood of knowing that gibbons were threatened. These findings highlight the need for conservation outreach to increase both exposure and retention of key messages among target audiences. Meaningful and concrete conservation benefits should be communicated to local communities, and the effectiveness of outreach using a flagship species could be expanded to also improve awareness of other conservation-priority species within the same landscape

Differential Effects of Word-Repetition Rate on Cognitive Defusion of Believability and Discomfort of Negative Self-Referential Thoughts Postintervention and at One-Month Follow-Up

Objective: The word repetition technique is used in acceptance and commitment therapy as a method of facilitating cognitive defusion from distressing thoughts. The present study conducted a randomised trial to manipulate the rate of word repetition and evaluate its impact on the efficacy of cognitive defusion. Method: Thirty-two participants repeated a self-chosen negative self-evaluative word for 30 seconds at the rates of one word per 0.5-, 1-, or 2-seconds. Visual analogue scales were used to measure the associated levels of believability and discomfort at pre- and immediately postrepetition, and 1 month later. Results: Both believability and discomfort were significantly reduced immediately after word repetition in the 0.5-seconds and 1-second conditions. There was a significantly greater reduction in Discomfort in the 1-second condition in comparison to the 2-second condition. The 1-second condition alone maintained significant reductions in both believability and discomfort at 1-month follow up. Conclusion: Differences in the cognitive defusion of distressing thoughts appear to be influenced by word repetition rate with repetition rates of one word per 0.5 and 1 seconds somewhat more effective for treating distressing private experiences associated with problem words

Local awareness and interpretations of species extinction in a rural Chinese biodiversity hotspot

Incorporating local perspectives is fundamental to evidence-based conservation, for both understanding complex socio-ecological systems and implementing appropriate management interventions. How local communities understand extinction, and whether these views affect perceptions of biodiversity loss and the effect of anthropogenic activities, has rarely been evaluated explicitly in conservation projects. To target this data gap, we conducted 185 interviews to assess levels and patterns of understanding about wildlife decline and extinction in rural communities around Bawangling National Nature Reserve, Hainan, China, a priority conservation site that has experienced recent species losses. Interviewees showed varying awareness of declines and extirpation of local wildlife species. Two-thirds did not consider the permanent disappearance of wildlife to be possible; among those who did, only one-third could comprehend the scientific term “extinction.” Thinking extinction is possible was associated with identifying declined and extirpated species, but not with perceiving locally-driven human activities, such as hunting, as the reason for wildlife loss. The government was seen as the entity most responsible for conservation. Variation found around local perceptions of extinction, its drivers, and conservation responsibility demonstrates that comprehension of key conservation concepts should not be assumed to be homogenous, highlighting the challenge of transposing scientific concepts between different social and cultural settings. Proactively incorporating local perspectives and worldviews, especially by obtaining context-specific baseline understandings, has major implications for other contexts worldwide and should inform conservation planning and management

A Regional Decision Support Scheme for Pest Risk Analysis in Southeast Asia

A key justification to support plant health regulations is the ability of quarantine services to conduct pest risk analyses (PRA). Despite the supranational nature of biological invasions and the close proximity and connectivity of Southeast Asian countries, PRAs are conducted at the national level. Furthermore, some countries have limited experience in the development of PRAs, which may result in inadequate phytosanitary responses that put their plant resources at risk to pests vectored via international trade. We review existing decision support schemes for PRAs and, following international standards for phytosanitary measures, propose new methods that adapt existing practices to suit the unique characteristics of Southeast Asia. Using a formal written expert elicitation survey, a panel of regional scientific experts was asked to identify and rate unique traits of Southeast Asia with respect to PRA. Subsequently, an expert elicitation workshop with plant protection officials was conducted to verify the potential applicability of the developed methods. Rich biodiversity, shortage of trained personnel, social vulnerability, tropical climate, agriculture-dependent economies, high rates of land-use change, and difficulties in implementing risk management options were identified as challenging Southeast Asian traits. The developed methods emphasize local Southeast Asian conditions and could help support authorities responsible for carrying out PRAs within the region. These methods could also facilitate the creation of other PRA schemes in low- and middle-income tropical countries

Ecological knowledge and value of traded species: Local awareness of native turtles in Hainan, China

Wildlife trade is driving species extinctions globally, and the Asian Turtle Crisis is posing a threat in China as turtle species are collected from the wild and sold at high prices. Local ecological knowledge is increasingly used to determine the status of threatened taxa, but there is little understanding of wider relationships between indices of ecological knowledge and other conservation-relevant factors such as market values of traded species. To assess whether local people's awareness of potentially traded turtles might indicate direct interaction with trade in these species, we conducted 185 interviews in rural villages around Bawangling National Nature Reserve, Hainan, China. Interviewees were asked to free-list native turtles to determine species salience and then were shown photographs of the species to assess recognition and knowledge. We investigated relationships between species' salience, whether species were recognized, named and/or perceived to be traded by more people, and independently obtained market prices. Indices of species awareness varied among interviewees, but all species were reported to be traded by at least some people. There was no correlation between indices of awareness and market value, indicating that more valuable species were no more likely to be well known. However, the perception that turtles are traded irrespective of species is a concern for conservation because all species are then vulnerable to exploitation. Our results highlight that local communities should not be assumed to have accurate knowledge of traded species, with implications for the management of wildlife trade and conservation at the community level

Can local ecological knowledge establish conservation baselines for the Critically Endangered Blue‐crowned Laughingthrush?

Designing conservation interventions for rare species can be hindered by a lack of relevant data. Local ecological knowledge (LEK) has potential to provide rapidly collected, cost‐effective data across large spatio‐temporal scales, but has rarely been used as a source of conservation‐relevant information for the Asian Songbird Crisis. The Blue‐crowned Laughingthrush (Pterorhinus courtoisi; BCLT) is a Critically Endangered passerine found only in southeastern China. It is unclear why the species' breeding range and global population are extremely small, as it occurs in human‐occupied forest‐agricultural landscapes similar to surrounding environments across southern China. We conducted systematic range‐wide interviews on BCLT (n = 519) to collect novel information on the species' temporal and spatial distribution, and on potential human activities and landscape changes associated with its presence or absence. Recognition of BCLT was moderate (45.0% of respondents reported sightings), with sightings within the previous 18 months across the study area, within and beyond their known distribution. Over half of known breeding villages were confirmed by LEK data, and nesting was reported from two villages with no previous breeding records. BCLT trapping was reported across the study landscape, mostly from the last decade and associated with trappers from urban centres. BCLT trapping and lack of fengshui forest were associated with sites where BCLTs did not breed. Breeding sites were associated with increases in vegetable gardens over respondents' lifetimes, and other sites within the species' range were associated with decreases in bush/scrub. We demonstrate that LEK can identify potential threats, new breeding sites and landscape changes correlated with species presence or absence for threatened birds affected by the Asian songbird crisis. This study provides the first evidence of ongoing trapping as a threat to BCLT, and remedial measures are urgently required across the region. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog

Density functional theory calculations of the carbon ELNES of small diameter armchair and zigzag nanotubes: core-hole, curvature and momentum transfer orientation effects

We perform density functional theory calculations on a series of armchair and zigzag nanotubes of diameters less than 1nm using the all-electron Full-Potential(-Linearised)-Augmented-Plane-Wave (FPLAPW) method. Emphasis is laid on the effects of curvature, the electron beam orientation and the inclusion of the core-hole on the carbon electron energy loss K-edge. The electron energy loss near-edge spectra of all the studied tubes show strong curvature effects compared to that of flat graphene. The curvature induced $\pi-\sigma$ hybridisation is shown to have a more drastic effect on the electronic properties of zigzag tubes than on those of armchair tubes. We show that the core-hole effect must be accounted for in order to correctly reproduce electron energy loss measurements. We also find that, the energy loss near edge spectra of these carbon systems are dominantly dipole selected and that they can be expressed simply as a proportionality with the local momentum projected density of states, thus portraying the weak energy dependence of the transition matrix elements. Compared to graphite, the ELNES of carbon nanotubes show a reduced anisotropy.Comment: 25 pages, 15 figures, revtex4 submitted for publication to Phys. Rev.