Data Infrastructure and Local Stakeholder Engagement with Biodiversity Conservation Research

Biodiversity research that informs conservation action is increasingly data intensive. Cutting-edge projects at large institutions use massive aggregated datasets to build dynamic models and conduct novel analyses of natural systems. Most of these research institutions are geographically distant from the highest-priority conservation areas, which are found in South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. There, data is typically collected by or with the help of local residents hired as field assistants. These field assistants have few meaningful opportunities to participate in biodiversity research and conservation beyond data logging. The literature indicates the data revolution has increased demand for impersonal and integrated large-scale systems that aggregate biodiversity data across sources with minimal friction. In this study, interviews were conducted with six active conservation workers to identify elements of these data systems that create barriers to field assistants’ engagement with the projects they make possible. As both creators and consumers of data, all six relayed frustration with various aspects of their data workflows. Regarding field assistant interaction with digital data systems, they observed that their field assistants engaged only at the initial point of data entry or not at all. Some suggested mobile apps as a good solution for field data collection. However, some also expressed doubt that their local assistants had the necessary knowledge background to navigate digital systems or understand scientific methodologies. These results suggest that trying to mold field assistants to fit existing data infrastructure and adapting purpose-built data systems to nontechnical users are both sub-optimal solutions. A human-mediated capacity building paradigm, which requires embedding people who are both culturally literate and data literate alongside field assistants, is explored as an alternative path to making data meaningful. Improving the accessibility of data this way can empower local communities to share ownership in biodiversity conservation. The substance of this article is based upon a panel presentation at RDAP Summit 2019

Supporting the Proliferation of Data-Sharing Scholars in the Research Ecosystem

Librarians champion the value of openness in scholarship and have been powerful advocates for the sharing of research data. College and university administrators have recently joined in the push for data sharing due to funding mandates. However, the researchers who create and control the data usually determine whether and how data is shared, so it is worthwhile to look at what they are incentivized to do. The current scholarly publishing landscape plus the promotion and tenure process create a “prisoner’s dilemma” for researchers as they decide whether or not to share data, consistent with the observation that researchers in general are eager for others to share data but reluctant to do so themselves. If librarians encourage researchers to share data and promote openness without simultaneously addressing the academic incentive structure, those who are intrinsically motivated to share data will be selected against via the promotion and tenure process. This will cause those who are hostile to sharing to be disproportionately recruited into the senior ranks of academia. To mitigate the risk of this unintended consequence, librarians must advocate for a change in incentives alongside the call for greater openness. Highly-cited datasets must be given similar weight to highly-cited articles in promotion and tenure decisions in order for researchers to reap the rewards of their sharing. Librarians can help by facilitating data citation to track the impact of datasets and working to persuade higher administration of the value of rewarding data sharing in tenure and promotion

Geographic body size variation of a tropical anuran: effects of water deficit and precipitation seasonality on Asian common toad from southern Asia

Abstract Background Two previous studies on interspecific body size variation of anurans found that the key drivers of variation are the species’ lifestyles and the environments that they live in. To examine whether those findings apply at the intraspecific level, we conducted a study of the Asian common toad (Duttaphrynus melanostictus), a terrestrial anuran distributed in tropical regions. The body size of toads from 15 locations, covering the majority of their geographic range, and local environmental data were summarized from published literature. We used a model selection process based on an information-theoretic approach to examine the relationship between toad body size and those environmental parameters. Results We found a positive correlation between the body size of the Asian common toad and the water deficit gradient, but no linkage between body size and temperature-related parameters. Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between the seasonality of precipitation and body size of females from different sampled populations. Conclusions As a terrestrial anuran, the Asian common toad should experience greater pressure from environmental fluctuations than aquatic species. It is mainly distributed in tropical regions where temperatures are generally warm and stable, but water availability fluctuates. Therefore, while thermal gradients are not strong enough to generate selection pressure on body size, the moisture gradient is strong enough to select for larger size in both males and females in dryer regions. Larger body size supports more efficient water conservation, a pattern in accordance with the prediction that lifestyles of different species and their local habitats determine the relationship between body size and environment. In addition, larger females occur in regions with greater seasonality in precipitation, which may happen because larger females can afford greater reproductive output in a limited reproductive season

Sharing Technological Resources in Institutional Repositories and Libraries

This conference panel will explore the concept of sharing technological resources in IRs and libraries. Featuring experts that have successfully implemented shared technology initiatives, panelists will share their experiences and insights on the key factors that have contributed to their success and discuss how libraries can collaborate to enhance their technological capabilities and provide better services to their users. Attendees will gain a better understanding of the benefits and challenges of sharing resources, different models for resource sharing, and strategies for successful collaboration

Research on Space Occupancy, Activity Rhythm and Sexual Segregation of White-Lipped Deer (<i>Cervus albirostris</i>) in Forest Habitats of Jiacha Gorge on Yarlung Zangbo River Basin Based on Infrared Camera Technology

The white-lipped deer (Cervus albirostris) is a rare and endangered species found in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in China. To understand the space occupancy, activity rhythm, and sexual segregation of the white-lipped deer, 24,096 effective photos and 827 effective videos were captured using infrared cameras from February 2020 to January 2022. The ecology and behavior of the white-lipped deer in Jiacha Gorge were studied in more detail using site occupancy models, relative abundance index, and other technologies and methods. The results show that The occupancy predicted by the model exceeds or approaches 0.5. The occupancy increases with greater altitude and with larger EVI values, while the detection rate increases with altitude only during spring and decreases with EVI values only in summer. The daily activity peaks for white-lipped deer were observed from 7:00 to 11:00 and 17:00 to 22:00, with annual activity peaks occurring from April to June and from September to November. From July to the following January, white-lipped deer mostly move in mixed-sex groups, while during the remainder of the year, they predominantly associate with individuals of the same sex. Climate, vegetation coverage, food resources, and human disturbance collectively influenced the behavior and habitat utilization of white-lipped deer. The foundational research conducted on white-lipped deer over the past two years is expected to enhance the basic understanding of white-lipped deer in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and contribute to future protection and management decisions

Determinants of differences in the activity budgets of Rhinopithecus bieti by age/sex class at Xiangguqing in the Baimaxueshan nature reserve, China

Ecological factors are known to influence the activity budgets of Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti). However, little is known about how activity budgets vary between age/sex classes, because the species is difficult to observe in the wild. This study provides the first detailed activity budgets subdivided by age/sex classes based on observations of the largest habituated group at Xiangguqing in Baimaxueshan Nature Reserve. This study was conducted from June 2008 to May 2009. We found that adult females spent more time feeding (44.8%) than adult males (39.5%), juveniles (39.1%), and infants (14.2%). Adult males allocated more time to miscellaneous activities (12.5%) than did adult females (3.8%). Infants were being groomed 6.9% of the time, which was the highest proportion among all age/sex classes. Adults spent more time feeding, while immature individuals allocated more time to moving and other activities. There are several reasons activity budgets may vary by age/sex class: 1) differential reproductive investment between males and females; 2) developmental differences among the age categories; 3) social relationships between members of different age/sex classes, particularly dominance. In addition, group size and adult sex ratio may also impact activity budgets. These variations in activity budgets among the different age/sex classes may become a selective pressure that shapes the development and growth pattern in this species

Distribution range contractions and identification of conservation priority areas for canids in Sichuan Province, China

Canids are among the numerous taxonomic groups that have recently experienced significant population declines. The reconstruction of distribution range changes using long-term ecological data can reveal processes underlying spatial contractions that short-term studies may not detect. We integrated ecological niche modeling with long-term ecological records to estimate the magnitude of canid range contractions in Sichuan Province over the last 50 years. Our findings indicate that canid distributions underwent sharp contractions between the 1970 s and 2010 s (contraction rates: gray wolf Canis lupus 24.62%, dhole Cuon alpinus 75.65%, red fox Vulpes vulpes 48.63%, Tibetan fox V. ferrilata 26.88%, and raccoon dog Nyctereutes procyonoides 30.84%). Concerning environmental variables, our results suggest that altitude, dd＜18 (degree-days below 18 °C, heating degree-days), LUCC (land use), and human population density contributed the most to patterns of canid distribution between the 1970s and 2010s. Canid contraction rates in nature reserves were significantly lower than in other types of protected and non-protected areas. For all study species, 47% of the canid conservation priority areas on average have been protected in Sichuan Province. The Chinese government has recently upgraded canid species’ protection level and established more national parks. However, it is critical to invest in the surveillance of anthropogenic disturbance, compensation schemes for human–wildlife conflict, and public wildlife conservation education