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The Value of Offshore Marine Protected Areas for Open Ocean Habitats and Species.

Available Online

Ceccarelli D M & Fernandes L

This paper reviews the value of, especially, no-take marine rotected areas (MPAs), specifically for protecting offshore areas. It describes open ocean habitats and explores the question of whether offshore MPAs can be effective in helping to ensure the future of the open oceans pelagic and benthic habitats and species including large, wide-ranging and migratory fauna that inhabit all depths of the ocean.

Towards an effective legal framework for marine protected areas in Fiji

Available Online

The purpose of this paper is to support the development of a comprehensive legal framework for the establishment and management of an effective network of MPAs in Fiji which is based on science and suited to the Fiji context. MPAs are not just aimed at limiting fishing activity but also promote a whole range of potential uses that address critical issues such as food security, resilience to natural disasters and adaptation to climate change

fiji

Report on the 2016 Funafuti Community-based Ridge-To-Reef (R2R). Rapid biodiversity assessment of the conservation status of biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) in Tuvalu.

Available Online

Alefaio, Semese

Fonua, Mile

Penivao, Feagaiga

Saamu, Lamese

Saitala, Moe

Teakau, Faoliu

Tekinene, Mataio

Thaman, Randy

This report presents the results of the 2016 Funafuti Community-Based Ridge-to-Reef (R2R) Rapid Biodiversity Assessment (BIORAP) of biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES), hereafter referred to as the BIORAP.

tuvalu

Globally threatened vertebrates on islands with invasive species.

Available Online

Butchart, Stuart H M

Ceballos, Gerardo

Croll Donald A.

Genovesi, Piero Genovesi

Holmes, Nick D.

Spatz, Dena

Tershy, Bernie R

Zilliacus, Kelly M.

Global biodiversity loss is disproportionately rapid on islands, where invasive species are a major driver of extinctions. To inform conservation planning aimed at preventing extinctions, we identify the distribution and biogeographic patterns of highly threatened terrestrial vertebrates (classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature) and invasive vertebrates on ~465,000 islands worldwide by conducting a comprehensive literature review and interviews with more than 500 experts. We found that 1189 highly threatened vertebrate species (319 amphibians, 282 reptiles, 296 birds, and 292 mammals) breed on 1288 islands. These taxa represent only 5% of Earth's terrestrial vertebrates and 41% of all highly threatened terrestrial vertebrates, which occur in 1% of islands worldwide. Information about invasive vertebrates was available for 1030 islands (80% of islands with highly threatened vertebrates). Invasive vertebrates were absent from 24% of these islands, where biosecurity to prevent invasions is a critical management tool. On the 76% of islands where invasive vertebrates were present, management could benefit 39% of Earths highly threatened vertebrates. Invasive mammals occurred in 97% of these islands, with Rattus as the most common invasive vertebrate (78%; 609 islands). Our results provide an important baseline for identifying islands for invasive species eradication and other island conservation actions that reduce biodiversity loss.

Stable isotope analysis as an early monitoring tool for Community-scale effects of rat eradication

Available Online

Egmann, Alex S.

Fisher, Robert N.

Hathaway, Stacie A

Katherine M Nigro

Kuile, Ana Miller-ter

Young, Hillary S

Invasive rats have colonized most of the islands of the world, resulting in strong negative impacts on native biodiversity and on ecosystem functions. As prolific omnivores, invasive rats can cause local extirpation of a wide range of native species, with cascading consequences that can reshape communities and ecosystems. Eradication of rats on islands is now becoming a widespread approach to restore ecosystems, and many native island species showstrong numerical responses to rat eradication. However, the effect of rat eradication on other consumers can extend beyond direct numerical effects, to changes in behavior, dietary composition, and other ecological parameters. These behavioral and trophic effectsmay have strong cascading impacts on the ecology of restored ecosystems, but they have rarely been examined. In this study, we explore how rat eradication has affected the trophic ecology of native land crab communities. Using stable isotope analysis of rats and crabs, we demonstrate that the diet or trophic position of most crabs changed subsequent to rat eradication. Combined with the numerical recovery of two carnivorous land crab species (Geograpsus spp.), this led to a dramatic widening of the crab trophic niche following rat eradication. Given the established importance of land crabs in structuring island communities, particularly plants, this suggests an unappreciated mechanism by which rat eradication may alter island ecology. This study also demonstrates the potential for stable isotope analysis as a complementary monitoring tool to traditional techniques, with the potential to provide more nuanced assessments of the community- and ecosystem-wide effects of restoration.

Norfolk Island: Protecting an Ocean Jewel

Booth, Dr Carol

This report was prepared to highlight the considerable conservation values of the Norfolk Island group and the importance of rigorous biosecurity to prevent the establishment of new invasive species and to limit harm from existing invaders. We describe the existing and potential arrangements for biosecurity and make recommendations for building a more robust biosecurity system.

Feral Pig trapping in New Caledonia

PDF file in French that has links to feral pig trapping in New Caledonia; direct access to leaflets on rope snare trap, folding cage trap and 15-minute video

new caledonia

Feral hog disturbance alters carbon dynamics in Southeastern US salt marshes

Biodiversity Conservation, BRB

Available Online

Angelini, Christine

Persico, Emily P.

Sharp, Sean J

Disturbances that remove primary producers and alter substrate chemistry commonly influence ecosystem carbon dynamics. Because coastal wetlands are especially effective in sequestering carbon, quantifying how disturbances may alter their ability to perform this climate-regulating function is important for assessing their carbon storage potential. Here, we quantified soil respiration, litter decomposition, and soil organic carbon (SOC), as a proxy for carbon storage, in areas disturbed by invasive feral hogs Sus scrofa and in adjacent, undisturbed areas within 3 southeastern US salt marshes. Contrary to our hypothesis that hog overturning of soils would stimulate soil respiration, this metric was lower and both surface and subsurface litter decomposition rates were similar in disturbed relative to undisturbed areas across all sites. SOC was lower in disturbed versus undisturbed areas at 2 sites as hypothesized, but higher at 1 site. Surveys and analyses reveal that lower and less variable infauna, plant, and benthic algae densities likely suppressed soil respiration in hog-disturbed versus undisturbed areas, while the offsetting effects of lower invertebrate densities and higher soil temperature likely caused decomposition to be consistent within and outside of disturbed areas. . These findings suggest that hog removal of plants and disruption of soils can cause tracts of marsh to transition from carbon sinks to sources where these disturbances are intense enough to prohibit rapid plant recovery and promote the gradual respiration of carbon stocks from denuded soils.

Vanuatu ecosystem and socio-economic resilience analysis and mapping (ESRAM)

Biodiversity Conservation

Available Online

Buckwell, Andrew

Connolly, Rod

Fleming, Christopher M.V.

Hallgren, Willow

Mackey, Brendan

Nalau, Joanna

Sahin, Oz

Smart, James C.R.

Ware, Daniel

Ecosystem and Socio-economic Resilience Analysis and Mapping (ESRAM) is the first stage of PEBACC. This report presents the results of the ESRAM undertaken by Griffith University for the Republic of Vanuatu (hereafter Vanuatu) and Tanna Island (heareafter Tanna).

Greater Port Vila : social mapping and analysis of ecosystem use

Biodiversity Conservation

Available Online

Aimee, Komugabe-Dixson

Alexei, Trundle

McEvoy, Darryn

de Ville, Naomi

This technical summary document reports on the findings from the first phase of ESRAM activity that was conducted in Greater Port Vila between January and June 2016. Whilst it was understood at the outset that both climate and non-climate drivers would be important influences on ecosystem quality (and the services they provide), local engagement through household surveys and community workshops also uncovered substantial detail on the range of contemporary issues facing these communities: urban development, pollution, access to water, overharvesting and poor management of resources, sand mining, and climate impacts (including ongoing recovery from Tropical Cyclone Pam, March 2015). It is clear that the ecosystem and socio-economic resilience challenges for these urban and peri-urban communities are already considerable but will be further amplified by continued urbanisation and future climate change in the years to come.

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