Karen Mustin

The highly threatened and little known Amazonian savannahs

The biodiversity of the Amazonian savannahs may be lost before it is known, unless scientists, conservationists and policymakers come together quickly to protect it.

Impact of Management on Avian Communities in the Scottish Highlands

The protection of biodiversity is a key national and international policy objective. While protected areas provide one approach, a major challenge lies in understanding how the conservation of biodiversity can be achieved in the context of multiple land management objectives in the wider countryside. Here we analyse metrics of bird diversity in the Scottish uplands in relation to land management types and explore how bird species composition varies in relation to land managed for grazing, hunting and conservation. Birds were surveyed on the heather moorland areas of 26 different landholdings in Scotland. The results indicate that, in relation to dominant management type, the composition of bird species varies but measures of diversity and species richness do not. Intensive management for grouse shooting affects the occurrence, absolute and relative abundance of bird species. While less intensive forms of land management appear to only affect the relative abundance of species, though extensive sheep grazing appears to have little effect on avian community composition. Therefore enhanced biodiversity at the landscape level is likely to be achieved by maintaining heterogeneity in land management among land management units. This result should be taken into account when developing policies that consider how to achieve enhanced biodiversity outside protected areas, in the context of other legitimate land-uses.

The distribution and protection of intertidal habitats in Australia

Abstract Shorebirds have declined severely across the East Asian—Australasian Flyway. Many species rely on intertidal habitats for foraging, yet the distribution and conservation status of these habitats across Australia remain poorly understood. Here, we utilised freely available satellite imagery to produce the first map of intertidal habitats across Australia. We estimated a minimum intertidal area of 9856 km2, with Queensland and Western Australia supporting the largest areas. Thirty-nine percent of intertidal habitats were protected in Australia, with some primarily within marine protected areas (e.g. Queensland) and others within terrestrial protected areas (e.g. Victoria). Three percent of all intertidal habitats were protected by both marine and terrestrial protected areas. To achieve conservation targets, protected area boundaries must align more accurately with intertidal habitats. Shorebirds use intertidal areas to forage and supratidal areas to roost, so a coordinated management approach is required to account for movement of birds between terrestrial and marine habitats. Ultimately, shorebird declines are occurring despite high levels of habitat protection in Australia. There is a need for a concerted effort both nationally and internationally to map and understand how intertidal habitats are changing, and how habitat conservation can be implemented more effectively.

Optimizing disturbance management for wildlife protection: The enforcement allocation problem

To ensure public compliance with regulations designed to protect wildlife, many protected areas need to be patrolled. However, there have been few attempts to determine how to deploy enforcement effort to get the best return on investment. This is particularly complex where repeated enforcement visits may result in diminishing returns on investment. Straightforward quantitative methods to solve such problems are not available to conservation practitioners. We use structured decision-making to find the most cost-effective allocation of patrol effort among sites with a limited budget. We use the case study of declining migratory shorebirds in Moreton Bay, Australia, to determine where and when Marine Park personnel could reduce disturbance using two different scenarios: (i) where a fixed subset of sites is chosen for management each year and (ii) where different sites are visited during each patrol. The goal is to maximize the number of undisturbed birds for a given budget. We discover that by prioritizing enforcement based on cost-effectiveness, it is possible to avoid inefficient allocation of resources. Indeed, 90% of the maximum possible benefit can be achieved with only 25% of the total available budget. Visiting a range of enforcement sites at varying rates yields a greater return on investment than visiting only a fixed number of sites. Assuming an exponential reduction in disturbance from enforcement, the greatest benefit can be achieved by patrolling many sites a small number of times. Assuming a linear reduction in disturbance from enforcement, repeatedly patrolling a small number of sites where return on investment is high is best. If we only prioritize sites where wildlife is disturbed most often, or where abundance is greatest, we will not achieve an optimal solution. The choice of patrol location and frequency is not a trivial problem, and prudent investment can substantially improve conservation outcomes.Synthesis and applications. Our research demonstrates a straightforward objective method for allocating enforcement effort while accounting for diminishing returns on investment over multiple visits to the same sites. Our method is transferable to many other enforcement problems, and provides solutions that are cost-effective and easily communicable to managers.

Consequences of game bird management for non‐game species in Europe

This work was originally funded by EU Framework IV for the project Reconciling Gamebird Hunting and Biodiversity (REGHAB), and continued under FP7 HUNTing for Sustainability. S.R. is grateful for his King Carl XVI Gustaf guest professorship with SLU, which gave him the time to finish this manuscript. P.B. was supported through the EDP Biodiversity Chair. S.N. and R.J.I. were also supported by the Rural & Environment Science & Analytical Services Division of the Scottish Government.

Towards the Construction of a Typology of Management Models of Shooting Opportunities in Scotland

ABSTRACT In Scotland, the shooting industry has a significant impact on the economy, the environment and rural communities. However, styles of land management vary widely, and this is likely to have an effect on the benefits of shooting management. Here we construct a typology of management models, and test its utility in explaining economic benefits. Based on semi-structured interviews with 24 stakeholders representing 28 estates, three management models were defined: ‘Commercial Shooting Estates’ (CSE), ‘Non-commercial Shooting Estates’ (NSE) and ‘Diversified Estates’ (DE). DEs are differentiated from the other models as forestry, farming or biodiversity conservation, rather than shooting, is the main management objective. CSE and NSE are differentiated based on the degree of commercialisation of the shooting: CSEs let almost all of their shooting whereas NSEs do not let any shooting. Were the typology to be applied to a wider, systematic sample of estates, other factors may become more clearly differentiated. We found little variation between the three models in terms of spending and employment directly related to shooting activities. This study presents a typology of shooting management models that can be used to help identify pathways towards a new social contract between Scottish society and its landowners and managers.

Assessing the impact of revegetation and weed control on urban sensitive bird species

Abstract Nature in cities is concentrated in urban green spaces, which are key areas for urban biodiversity and also important areas to connect people with nature. To conserve urban biodiversity within these natural refugia, habitat restoration such as weed control and revegetation is often implemented. These actions are expected to benefit biodiversity, although species known to be affected by urbanization may not be interacting with restoration in the ways we anticipate. In this study, we use a case study to explore how urban restoration activities impact different bird species. Birds were grouped into urban sensitivity categories and species abundance, and richness was then calculated using a hierarchical species community model for individual species responses, with “urban class” used as the hierarchical parameter. We highlight variable responses of birds to revegetation and weed control based on their level of urban sensitivity. Revegetation of open grassy areas delivers significant bird conservation outcomes, but the effects of weed control are neutral or in some cases negative. Specifically, the species most reliant on remnant vegetation in cities seem to remain stable or decline in abundance in areas with weed control, which we suspect is the result of a simplification of the understorey. The literature reports mixed benefits of weed control between taxa and between locations. We recommend, in our case study site, that weed control be implemented in concert with replanting of native vegetation to provide the understory structure preferred by urban sensitive birds. Understanding the impacts of revegetation and weed control on different bird species is important information for practitioners to make restoration decisions about the allocation of funds for conservation action. This new knowledge can be used both for threatened species and invasive species management.

The Fate of an Amazonian Savanna: Government Land-Use Planning Endangers Sustainable Development in Amapá, the Most Protected Brazilian State:

Although Amapá is the most protected Brazilian state, the same level of protection does not extend to its savannas. These are currently suffering increased pressure from threats including large-scale agriculture, particularly the expansion of soybean plantations. In September 2016, the Government of Amapá presented a zoning proposal (Zoneamento Socioambiental do Cerrado [ZSC]) that reserves most of the savannas for agricultural activities. Here, we outline how the methodology employed is flawed because it does not include fauna surveys, evaluations of ecosystem services or an assessment of the social importance of the savannas. The ZSC authors admit that, contrary to Brazilian legislation, the zoning was carried out with the single intention of increasing agriculture production. Current knowledge indicates that Amapá’s savannas are rich in biodiversity, including endemic and threatened species, and are also home to a rich culture of traditional populations. These savannas are important providers of ecosystem services that, if intact, could represent around US

Mapped distribution of intertidal habitats in Australia between 1999 and 2014, link to data in ArcGIS format (29 MB)

1.52 billion annually. We hold that the ZSC should be reformulated, with fair participation of stakeholders, in accordance with Brazil’s legal requirements. At least 30% of the savannas should be protected, local family farming should be supported, and the rights of traditional peoples must now be assured through recognition of their land rights.

Accelerating invasion rates result from the evolution of density-dependent dispersal

Mapping of distribution of intertidal habitats in Australia, and identification of percentage of marine and terrestrial protected areas.