Sarah E. Dalrymple

Human well-being impacts of terrestrial protected areas

BackgroundEstablishing Protected Areas (PAs) is among the most common conservation interventions. Protecting areas from the threats posed by human activity will by definition inhibit some human actions. However, adverse impacts could be balanced by maintaining ecosystem services or introducing new livelihood options. Consequently there is an ongoing debate on whether the net impact of PAs on human well-being at local or regional scales is positive or negative. We report here on a systematic review of evidence for impacts on human well-being arising from the establishment and maintenance of terrestrial PAs.MethodsFollowing an a priori protocol, systematic searches were conducted for evidence of impacts of PAs post 1992. After article title screening, the review was divided into two separate processes; a qualitative synthesis of explanations and meaning of impact and a review of quantitative evidence of impact. Abstracts and full texts were assessed using inclusion criteria and conceptual models of potential impacts. Relevant studies were critically appraised and data extracted and sorted according to type of impact reported. No quantitative synthesis was possible with the evidence available. Two narrative syntheses were produced and their outputs compared in a metasynthesis.ResultsThe qualitative evidence review mapped 306 articles and synthesised 34 that were scored as high quality. The quantitative evidence review critically appraised 79 studies and included 14 of low/medium susceptibility to bias. The meta-synthesis reveals that a range of factors can lead to reports of positive and negative impacts of PA establishment, and therefore might enable hypothesis generation regarding cause and effect relationships, but resulting hypotheses cannot be tested with the current available evidence.ConclusionsThe evidence base provides a range of possible pathways of impact, both positive and negative, of PAs on human well-being but provides very little support for decision making on how to maximise positive impacts. The nature of the research reported to date forms a diverse and fragmented body of evidence unsuitable for the purpose of informing policy formation on how to achieve win-win outcomes for biodiversity and human well-being. To better assess the impacts of PAs on human well-being we make recommendations for improving research study design and reporting.

A Meta-Analysis of Threatened Plant Reintroductions from across the Globe

Reintroductions and associated methods have been recommended as techniques for mitigating or redressing threatened plant species declines for several decades. Their use continues to increase as an option for overcoming problems associated with habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, and reproductive isolation (Quinn et al. 1994). However, these approaches have been criticized for the lack of monitoring and central recording, inappropriateness of the action due to genetic considerations, a lack of demographic knowledge of the donor populations, and inadequate information on the species’ habitat needs (Pearman and Walker 2004).

Evaluating effects of land management on greenhouse gas fluxes and carbon balances in boreo-temperate lowland peatland systems

BackgroundPeatlands cover 2 to 5 percent of the global land area, while storing between 30 and 50 percent of all global soil carbon (C). Peatlands constitute a substantial sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) via photosynthesis and organic matter accumulation, but also release methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and CO2 through respiration, all of which are powerful greenhouse gases (GHGs). Lowland peats in boreo-temperate regions may store substantial amounts of C and are subject to disproportionately high land-use pressure. Whilst evidence on the impacts of different land management practices on C cycling and GHG fluxes in lowland peats does exist, these data have yet to be synthesised. Here we report on the results of a Collaboration for Environmental Evidence (CEE) systematic review of this evidence.MethodsEvidence was collated through searches of literature databases, search engines, and organisational websites using tested search strings. Screening was performed on titles, abstracts and full texts using established inclusion criteria for population, intervention/exposure, comparator, and outcome key elements. Remaining relevant full texts were critically appraised and data extracted according to pre-defined strategies. Meta-analysis was performed where sufficient data were reported.ResultsOver 26,000 articles were identified from searches, and screening of obtainable full texts resulted in the inclusion of 93 relevant articles (110 independent studies). Critical appraisal excluded 39 studies, leaving 71 to proceed to synthesis. Results indicate that drainage increases N2O emission and the ecosystem respiration of CO2, but decreases CH4 emission. Secondly, naturally drier peats release more N2O than wetter soils. Finally, restoration increases CH4 release. Insufficient studies reported C cycling, preventing quantitative synthesis. No significant effect was identified in meta-analyses of the impact of drainage and restoration on DOC concentration.ConclusionsConsistent patterns in C concentration and GHG release across the evidence-base may exist for certain land management practices: drainage increases N2O production and CO2 from respiration; drier peats release more N2O than wetter counterparts; and restoration increases CH4 emission. We identify several problems with the evidence-base; experimental design is often inconsistent between intervention and control samples, pseudoreplication is common, and variability measures are often unreported.

Synthesis and Future Directions

Reintroduction work must continue and should be expanded because it is an important tool to stabilize and restore vulnerable declining species. Reintroduction can play a vital role in keeping species present in our landscape through climate change, but this will be possible only through careful planning, research, modeling, and priority setting. In this chapter we review the insights emerging from the sections of this volume: the meta-analyses of plant reintroductions, the science and practice of reintroduction, and managed relocation (MR). We provide examples of well-conceived reintroduction projects to serve as models for planning future reintroductions. Furthermore, we make suggestions for improving plant rein-troduction science and practice, preparing for climate change, and moving forward to best conserve biodiversity.

Integrating a biogeographical approach into assisted colonization activities is urgently needed

The use of human-assisted colonization for species affected by climate change is now being adopted by some conservationists but remains controversial. In order to deter extreme translocation actions, a decision framework is proposed that incorporates a biogeographical approach.

Tutorials for Enhancing Skills Development in First Year Students Taking Biological Sciences

Abstract In order to increase engagement and to consolidate skills, a tutorial-based skills course (module) was introduced as a compulsory component of first-year in the School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen. We evaluated whether students had attained certain ‘graduate attributes’ during the course, comprising: transferable and generic skills and intellectual curiosity. Student feedback from course evaluation forms, student diaries and focus groups indicated that the course increased students’ confidence in questioning accepted wisdom and helped students to develop generic skills. Feedback forms generally indicated a strong appreciation of interactions with tutors, and also of learning in small groups, interacting with peers within degree programmes, personalised learning, and developing generic skills. The quality of students’ experience varied, probably due to differences among students themselves as well as with their tutors. Students’ use of the course website indicated strategic use of materials to enhance the development of transferable/generic skills. Activity on the course website tended to be greatest among those students who went on to achieve higher overall course marks. Tutors were more cautious than students in claiming that students were more ready to question information having done the tutorial course. Intellectual curiosity among students was more apparent later in the course, suggesting that students had been learning critical thinking skills.

Inconclusive Predictions and Contradictions: A Lack of Consensus on Seed Germination Response to Climate Change at High Altitude and High Latitude

Climate change directly affects arctic-alpine plants and acute responses to increased temperatures may be seen in their reproductive fitness and germination ability. However, uncertainties prevail in predicting whether a future warmer climate favors or hampers seed germination in high latitude and high altitude soils and seed germination research in such systems has not been able to provide generalizable patterns of response. The available literature on this subject has been conducted at various locations contributing to difficulties in predicting the response of arctic-alpine seeds to climate change. Here, we show that discrepancies in seed collection, dormancy breaking treatments, and germination conditions found in the published literature are possible reasons for our inability to draw large scale conclusions. We explore how these factors influence the results and highlight the fact that many of the previous investigations have reported the effects of warmer temperature, rather than a warmer climate and all the associated complex environmental interactions, on seed germination. We recommend that long-term monitoring of seed response to treatments that mimic the present and future alpine climate is likely to produce more ecologically meaningful insights and suggest several practical steps that researchers can take that would facilitate greater coherence between studies.