The Conservation Business

Direct payments to local communities to conserve wildlife could prove effective but is biodiversity a commodity that can be bought and sold

Adaptive female choice for middle-aged mates in a lekking sandfly

Most theoretical models of age-related mate choice predict that females should prefer older males because they have proven survival ability. An alternative view is that older males represent inferior mates because of negative genetic correlations between early and late fitness components, or because older males have traded off longevity against other fitness components, have accumulated deleterious germ-line mutations, or are less well adapted to current conditions than more recently born individuals. While numerous studies have reported female choice for older males, few have explicitly examined the fitness consequences of such a preference. We present evidence from a lekking sandfly, Lutzomyia longipalpis , showing that choosy females discriminate against older males and gain a fitness benefit from their choice. When permitted free choice from an aggregation consisting of males aged zero to two days (young), four to six days (middle-aged) and eight to ten days (old), females preferentially mated with middle-aged males, but all measures of female reproductive success were independent of male age. In contrast, when a second set of females was randomly assigned single virgin males of known age, the eggs of those paired to old mates exhibited lower hatching success than the eggs of females mated to young or middle-aged males. These results suggest that females avoid mating with older males because they represent poorer quality mates. Age-related differences in male quality may have a genetic basis, but could equally well arise through a phenotypic decline in sperm quality or sperm transfer ability with male age. The lack of evidence of female discrimination against older males from other studies may be because these did not explore the reproductive success of the full age range of males

Spatial and temporal water quality in the River Esk in relation to freshwater pearl mussels

Riverine systems provide networks of habitats, resources and biodiversity. Globally, riverine biodiversity is under threat due to a variety of human activities; diffuse pollution, particularly in agricultural catchments, raises challenges to river environments. This work addresses the water quality in the River Esk (North York Moors National Park) and its impact on biodiversity, namely the rare, declining population of freshwater pearl mussels (Margaritifera margaritifera). Water quality parameters were monitored both spatially and temporally and the drivers of water quality were investigated. Monthly sampling was undertaken at twenty sites within the Esk catchment. High-resolution monitoring was enabled by three autosamplers and two pressure transducers, which allowed for assessment of the water quality at both baseflow and stormflow. Anion and cation analysis were conducted on all samples and field-based characterisation furthered by use of a YSI multi-parameter probe. Results revealed a number of concentration hotspots with values of nitrate that are thought unsuitable for freshwater pearl mussels. Other water quality variables were all within acceptable limits. Concentrations of nitrate in sub-catchments with smaller upstream areas proved to be more variable than in larger catchments. Land cover was found to be a key driver of concentration: high upstream percentage of improved pasture resulted in high nitrate concentration; high upstream percentage of moorland resulted in low nitrate concentration. During storm events, concentrations of key parameters were greater than limits suggested for pearl mussels (nitrate up to approximately 3.0 mg l-1 as opposed to limit of 1.0 mg l-1 proposed by Skinner et al. (2003)); this raised the fundamental question of exposure time. The process of connectivity was considered by the application of the risk-based hydrological model SCIMAP. This highlighted a number of areas that could adversely affect the pearl mussel population; these results will require further validation. Empirical work provided a foundation for future management recommendations. A case is made for the importance of expansion or addition of riparian buffer zones. This study demonstrates the importance of obtaining high-resolution data sets to understand habitat quality. The worth of these data is demonstrated in planning interventions in catchments to enable the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and UK Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) standards to be met

COVID-19: Analogues and lessons for tackling the extinction and climate crises

As environmental scientists working in countries whose COVID-linked deaths already exceed their military casualties from all campaigns since 1945, we believe there are significant messages from the handling of this horrific disease for efforts addressing the enormous challenges posed by the ongoing extinction and climate emergencies

Public funding for public goods: A post-Brexit perspective on principles for agricultural policy

This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordRaw data for the Gini coefficient and safety-net income calculations use Defra’s 2016 figures available at: http://cap-payments.defra.gov.uk/Download.aspxIn early 2019 the United Kingdom is due to leave the European Union and with it the Common Agricultural Policy. The UK Government has announced its intentions to formulate a novel agricultural policy following the principle that public funding should be restricted to the provision of public goods. However, the acceptance, interpretation and application of this principle is the subject of intense debate. We overview the background to this debate, reveal the major flaws in present policy and identify and provide our answers to three key questions which future policy must address: (1) What are the farm related public goods that public money should support?; (2) How should that spending be allocated?; (3) How much should be spent? We believe that these questions and their answers will be of general interest beyond the UK.This work was supported by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through the SWEEP project [grant number NE/P011217/1]

The ecomics of ecosystems and biodiversity: scoping the scale

The G8 decided in March 2007 to initiate a “Review on the economics of biodiversity loss”, in the so called Potsdam Initiative: 'In a global study we will initiate the process of analysing the global economic benefit of biological diversity, the costs of the loss of biodiversity and the failure to take protective measures versus the costs of effective conservation. The study is being supported by the European Commission (together with the European Environmental Agency and in cooperation with the German Government. “The objective of the current study is to provide a coherent overview of existing scientific knowledge upon which to base the economics of the Review, and to propose a coherent global programme of scientific work, both for Phase 2 (consolidation) and to enable more robust future iterations of the Review beyond 2010.

Closing yield gaps: perils and possibilities for biodiversity conservation.

Increasing agricultural productivity to 'close yield gaps' creates both perils and possibilities for biodiversity conservation. Yield increases often have negative impacts on species within farmland, but at the same time could potentially make it more feasible to minimize further cropland expansion into natural habitats. We combine global data on yield gaps, projected future production of maize, rice and wheat, the distributions of birds and their estimated sensitivity to changes in crop yields to map where it might be most beneficial for bird conservation to close yield gaps as part of a land-sparing strategy, and where doing so might be most damaging. Closing yield gaps to attainable levels to meet projected demand in 2050 could potentially help spare an area equivalent to that of the Indian subcontinent. Increasing yields this much on existing farmland would inevitably reduce its biodiversity, and therefore we advocate efforts both to constrain further increases in global food demand, and to identify the least harmful ways of increasing yields. The land-sparing potential of closing yield gaps will not be realized without specific mechanisms to link yield increases to habitat protection (and restoration), and therefore we suggest that conservationists, farmers, crop scientists and policy-makers collaborate to explore promising mechanisms.BP was funded by the Zukerman Research Fellowship in Global Food Security at King’s College, Cambridge.This is the accepted manuscript of a paper which was published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (B Phalan, R Green, A Balmford, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 2014, 369, 20120285

Agriculture as a key element for conservation: Reasons for caution

This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article: Phalan B., Balmford A. & Green R. E. (2012) Agriculture as a key element for conservation: reasons for caution. Conservation Letters 5: 323–324 which has been published in final form at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2012.00248.x/abstrac

Effects of Influential Points and Sample Size on the Selection and Replicability of Multivariable Fractional Polynomial Models

The multivariable fractional polynomial (MFP) procedure combines variable selection with a function selection procedure (FSP). For continuous variables, a closed test procedure is used to decide between no effect, linear, FP1 or FP2 functions. Influential observations (IPs) and small sample size can both have an impact on a selected fractional polynomial model. In this paper, we used simulated data with six continuous and four categorical predictors to illustrate approaches which can help to identify IPs with an influence on function selection and the MFP model. Approaches use leave-one or two-out and two related techniques for a multivariable assessment. In seven subsamples we also investigated the effects of sample size and model replicability. For better illustration, a structured profile was used to provide an overview of all analyses conducted. The results showed that one or more IPs can drive the functions and models selected. In addition, with a small sample size, MFP might not be able to detect non-linear functions and the selected model might differ substantially from the true underlying model. However, if the sample size is sufficient and regression diagnostics are carefully conducted, MFP can be a suitable approach to select variables and functional forms for continuous variables.Comment: Main paper and a supplementary combine