Lecture 4

Question 1

What is In-situ conservation and management?

Answer 1

The process of protecting an endangered plant or animal species in its natural habitat

Question 2

Is the protected area coverage increasing or decreasing?

Answer 2

Increasing

Question 3

Since the status 2014 how many km2 of terrestrial and inland water areas are covered?

Answer 3

20.6km2

Question 4

What was the CBD 2010 target for the percentage of the worlds land area under some sort of protection?

Answer 4

17%

Question 5

For the CBD 2010 target to have 17% of the worlds land area under some sort of protection that additional km2 of protected areas are needed (based on 2014 year status)?

Answer 5

2.2 million additional km2

Question 6

How can protected area effectiveness be assessed?

Answer 6

. Change over >2 decades: interviews + time-series of data

. Looking at sensitive functional groups: apex predators, amphibians, bats, large-seeded old-growth trees

Question 7

About what percentage of reserves are experiencing an erosion of biodiversity?

Answer 7

~50%

Question 8

How can protected areas management effectiveness (PAME) be assessed? (give examples)

Answer 8

Across a set of assessment criteria related to adequacy of law enforcement, management plan, governance effectiveness, threat monitoring, securing boundaries (fencing) etc.

Question 9

Why are protected areas (PAs) useful tools?

Answer 9

. More effective and more secure: we often only know what we don’t know
. Less costly (although that is context specific)
. Coverage: many species conserved at once through network of protected areas
. Viability: natural selection and evolution continue -> maintenance of genetic diversity
. Economic sustainability
. They protect species from main drivers of threat

Question 10

Define translocation

Answer 10

Moving plants and animals for conservation purposes from one site for release in another site

Question 11

Translocation success is more likely for what?

Answer 11

. Native non-sensitive than for threatened, endangered or sensitive species
. When habitat quality at target site is high/ increased (degraded forests may not harbour the same species as primary forests)
. In the core of species historical ranges (as compared to periphery of species range)
. Herbivores compared to carnivores
. Early breeders with large clutches as compared to late breeders with small clutches
. Wild-caught animals versus captive-reared

Question 12

What are the types of translocation?

Answer 12

. Population restoration

. Conservation introduction

Question 13

Define the type of translocation population restoration

Answer 13

Conservation translocation to within indigenous range

Question 14

Define the type of translocation conservation introduction

Answer 14

Conservation translocation to outside an organism’s indigenous range

Question 15

What is reinforcement (in translocation)?

Answer 15

Intentional movement and release into an existing population of conspecifics

Question 16

What is reintroduction (in translocation)?

Answer 16

Intentional movement and release inside its indigenous range from which it has disappeared

Question 17

What is assisted colonisation (in translocation)?

Answer 17

Intentional movement and release outside its indigenous range to avoid extinction of populations of the focal species

Question 18

What is ecological replacement (in translocation)?

Answer 18

Intentional movement and release outside its indigenous range to perform a specific ecological function

Question 19

What is the argument for pro ‘conservation introduction’? And explain how this would work

Answer 19

Retaining or restoring past community composition is no longer feasible
. Dispersal barriers: species at greatest risk of extinction from anthropogenic climate change are narrow endemics
. Objective: translocate those species to locations where climate is/ will be suitable
. Assumption: translocate within same geographic range into areas that lack local endemics

Question 20

What is the argument for anti ‘conservation introduction’?

Answer 20

The current understanding of invasions is inadequate to forecast negative consequences associated with species translocations (‘show me the evidence’)

Question 21

Explain how case studies have demonstrated a broad range of ecological risk of invasions with conservation reintroduction (anti ‘conservation introduction’.

Answer 21

1. Alter production, hydrology, disturbance (e.g. fire, erosion)
2. Disrupt ecological interactions linked to pollination and seed dispersal
3. Spread parasites and diseases (e.g. blue tongue disease in livestock)

Question 22

Explain the famous example of the ‘conservation introduction’ of the Nile Perch

Answer 22

. Translocate to Lake Victoria in the late 1950s and early 1960s from Lake Albert and Lake Turkana
. Contributed to the disappearance of nearly 200 endemic species

Question 23

Explain the example of ‘conservation introduction’ of the American red squirrel

Answer 23

. Translocated to Newfoundland as suitable prey for declining pine marten
. Impacts: presumably competed with Newfoundland red crossbill for black spruce cones as primary food source causing near local extinction

Question 24

Explain the case study of the golden lion tamarin in relation to translocation (why, numbers left, threats)

Answer 24

Endangered. Appendix 1 CITIES Arboreal, Lowland
. Vet rare species found in highly fragmented coastal lowlands of Brazil (state of Rio de Janeiro)
. About 800 individuals left in the wild, of which 30% were translocated
. Threats: habitat loss and fragmentation, pet trade

Question 25

Opportunity costs in designating land to conservation areas measure forgone benefits from alternative land uses. Give an example of a opportunity cost

Answer 25

Are particularly high for people that depend heavily on natural resources for the food intake and livelihood, e.g. in many tropical landscapes
(These costs need to be included in conservation planning)

Question 25

Conservation is expensive. Give an example

Answer 25

Borneo:
Carbon payments needed to overcome profit aimed from logging: 22-28 US Dollar/ tCO2.
Compensating for opportunity costs of not planting oil palm increases that to 46-47 US Dollar/ tCO2

Question 26

What are the debates of conservation?

Answer 26

1) natural ecosystem equally important to novel assemblages of species?
2) concept of thresholds equally important to ecosystem recovery?
3) Should we emphasise successful captive breeding programs instead of focussing on the peril of species with small populations?
4) strict nature reserves might be better replace with multiple use parks?

Question 27

What does a site have to be to be classed as a world heritage site?

Answer 27

Sites must be of outstanding universal value and meet at least one out of ten selection criteria (cultural or natural). E.g. criterion 10: most important and significant natural habitats for biological diversity

Question 28

What are Ramsar sites and how many are there?

Answer 28

List of Wetlands of international importance: designated according to nine criteria, eight of which related to biodiversity
>2000

Question 29

What are biosphere reverses and how many are there?

Answer 29

Learning sites for sustainable development: core area- strictly protected; buffer zone- used following sound ecological practices; transition area- greatest activity is allowed
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