Terrestrial biological studies in Southern Victoria Land, Antarctica.

The biota, comprising the bryophyte flushes on continental Antarctica, are specialized organisms adapted to the rigorous conditions imposed on them by the environment. Ice free areas of continental Antarctica provide the few habitats suitable for colonization by plants and invertebrates. The presence of free water and certain climatic conditions are essential features. This report investigates bryophyte flushes in two ice free areas in Southern Victoria Land. The first is within the Lake Fryxell Site of Special Scientific Interest No.12 adjacent to the Canada Glacier in the Taylor Valley, one of the so called Dry Valleys. The second is at Granite Harbour approximately sixty kilometres north of the Taylor Valley site

The contribution of nearshore fish aggregating devices (FADs) to food security and livelihoods in Solomon Islands

Fish aggregating devices, or FADs, are used widely in developing countries to concentrate pelagic fish, making them easier to catch. Nearshore FADs anchored close to the coast allow access for rural communities, but despite their popularity among policy makers, there is a dearth of empirical analysis of their contributions to the supply of fish and to fisheries management. In this paper we demonstrate that nearshore FADs increased the supply of fish to four communities in Solomon Islands. Estimated total annual fish catch ranged from 4300 to 12 000 kg across the study villages, with nearshore FADs contributing up to 45% of the catch. While it is clear that FADs increased the supply of fish, FAD catch rates were not consistently higher than other fishing grounds. Villages with limited access to diverse or productive fishing grounds seemingly utilized FADs to better effect. Villagers believed FADs increased household income and nutrition, as well as providing a source of fish for community events. FADs were also perceived to increase intrahousehold conflict and reduce fishers\u27 participation in community activities. FADs need to be placed within a broader rural development context and treated as another component in the diversified livelihoods of rural people; as with other livelihood options they bring trade-offs and risks

Livelihoods and fisheries governance in a contemporary Pacific Island setting

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Inshore marine resources play an important role in the livelihoods of Pacific Island coastal communities. However, such reliance can be detrimental to inshore marine ecosystems. Understanding the livelihoods of coastal communities is important for devising relevant and effective fisheries management strategies. Semi-structured household interviews were conducted with householders in Langalanga Lagoon, Solomon Islands, to understand household livelihoods and resource governance in fishing-dependent communities. Households were engaged in a diverse range of livelihoods. Fishing, shell money production and gardening were the most important livelihoods. Proximity to an urban centre influenced how households accessed some livelihoods. Perceptions of management rules varied and different reasons were cited for why rules were broken, the most common reason being to meet livelihood needs. Current models of inshore small-scale fisheries management that are based on the notion of community-based resource management may not work in locations where customary management systems are weak and livelihoods are heavily reliant on marine resources. An important step for fisheries management in such locations should include elucidating community priorities through participatory development planning, taking into consideration livelihoods as well as governance and development aspirations

Distribution of livelihood activities across family members.

<p>Multinomial logistic regression plot of the probability of involvement in the six most common livelihood activities, and all other livelihood activities combined, as a function of household members and proximity to Auki.</p

Map of Langalanga Lagoon, Solomon Islands.

<p>(A) Solomon Islands are located in the Western Pacific. (B) Langalanga lagoon is situated on the west coast of Malaita Province. (C) Many communities in the lagoon live on the high-water mark on artificial islands. (D) The lagoon extends south of the provincial capital Auki; twelve communities were included in the study.</p

Food groups consumed by households in Langalanga lagoon.

<p>Main food groups consumed by study households in the 24 hours prior to the dietary survey.</p

Livelihood diversity in Langalanga Lagoon.

<p>Percent of island and mainland households engaged in a number of livelihood activities.</p