Notes on the birds of the tidal lowlands and floodplains of South Sumatra province, Indonesia

During an environmental baseline survey of the tidal lowlands and floodplains of South Sumatra Province in 1988-89, a total of 270 bird species was recorded. This paper focuses on wetland species, including those inhabiting swamp forests. No upland forest habitats are found within the region described. The area supports a diverse avifauna, including some globally threatened species that have a core population here, notably Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea, Storm's Stork Ciconia stormi, Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus, Black-headed Ibis Threskiomis melanocephatus and Asian Dowitcher Limnodromus semipalmatus. The coast has vital passage and wintering grounds that rank second in importance only to coastal wetlands in Bangladesh for East Palaearctic waders in terms of numbers of birds. Three species were recorded for the first time in Sumatra: Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga, Steppe/Imperial Eagle Aquila nipalensis/heliaca and Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropa, and first Sumatran breeding records were obtained for Javan Pond-heron Ardeola speciosa and White-headed Stilt Himantopus leucocephalus. A few species were observed outside their previously recorded usual habitats. The paper discusses the principal habitats of the area, and the very rapid rate of development that has occurred during the past two decades. Only one wetland area in the province has protection status, Padang-Sugihan. This Wildlife Reserve does not provide habitat for eight out of the eleven globally threatened species recorded in the study area. Consequently the establishment of two additional swamp reserves and bird sanctuary is strongly recommended

Beyond 'Global Production Networks': Australian Fashion Week's Trans-Sectoral Synergies

When studies of industrial organisation are informed by commodity chain, actor network, or global production network theories and focus on tracing commodity flows, social networks, or a combination of the two, they can easily overlook the less routine trans-sectoral associations that are crucial to the creation and realisation of value. This paper shifts attention to identifying the sites at which diverse specialisations meet to concentrate and amplify mutually reinforcing circuits of value. These valorisation processes are demonstrated in the case of Australian Fashion Week, an event in which multiple interests converge to synchronize different expressions of fashion ideas, actively construct fashion markets and enhance the value of a diverse range of fashionable commodities. Conceptualising these interconnected industries as components of a trans-sectoral fashion complex has implications for understanding regional development, world cities, production location, and the manner in which production systems “touch down” in different places

A Cognitive Model of an Epistemic Community: Mapping the Dynamics of Shallow Lake Ecosystems

We used fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM) to develop a generic shallow lake ecosystem model by augmenting the individual cognitive maps drawn by 8 scientists working in the area of shallow lake ecology. We calculated graph theoretical indices of the individual cognitive maps and the collective cognitive map produced by augmentation. The graph theoretical indices revealed internal cycles showing non-linear dynamics in the shallow lake ecosystem. The ecological processes were organized democratically without a top-down hierarchical structure. The steady state condition of the generic model was a characteristic turbid shallow lake ecosystem since there were no dynamic environmental changes that could cause shifts between a turbid and a clearwater state, and the generic model indicated that only a dynamic disturbance regime could maintain the clearwater state. The model developed herein captured the empirical behavior of shallow lakes, and contained the basic model of the Alternative Stable States Theory. In addition, our model expanded the basic model by quantifying the relative effects of connections and by extending it. In our expanded model we ran 4 simulations: harvesting submerged plants, nutrient reduction, fish removal without nutrient reduction, and biomanipulation. Only biomanipulation, which included fish removal and nutrient reduction, had the potential to shift the turbid state into clearwater state. The structure and relationships in the generic model as well as the outcomes of the management simulations were supported by actual field studies in shallow lake ecosystems. Thus, fuzzy cognitive mapping methodology enabled us to understand the complex structure of shallow lake ecosystems as a whole and obtain a valid generic model based on tacit knowledge of experts in the field.Comment: 24 pages, 5 Figure