1
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Zwerts JA, Sterck EHM, Verweij PA, Maisels F, van der Waarde J, Geelen EAM, Tchoumba GB, Donfouet Zebaze HF, van Kuijk M. FSC-certified forest management benefits large mammals compared to non-FSC. Nature 2024; 628:563-568. [PMID: 38600379 PMCID: PMC11023928 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07257-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
More than a quarter of the world's tropical forests are exploited for timber1. Logging impacts biodiversity in these ecosystems, primarily through the creation of forest roads that facilitate hunting for wildlife over extensive areas. Forest management certification schemes such as the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) are expected to mitigate impacts on biodiversity, but so far very little is known about the effectiveness of FSC certification because of research design challenges, predominantly limited sample sizes2,3. Here we provide this evidence by using 1.3 million camera-trap photos of 55 mammal species in 14 logging concessions in western equatorial Africa. We observed higher mammal encounter rates in FSC-certified than in non-FSC logging concessions. The effect was most pronounced for species weighing more than 10 kg and for species of high conservation priority such as the critically endangered forest elephant and western lowland gorilla. Across the whole mammal community, non-FSC concessions contained proportionally more rodents and other small species than did FSC-certified concessions. The first priority for species protection should be to maintain unlogged forests with effective law enforcement, but for logged forests our findings provide convincing data that FSC-certified forest management is less damaging to the mammal community than is non-FSC forest management. This study provides strong evidence that FSC-certified forest management or equivalently stringent requirements and controlling mechanisms should become the norm for timber extraction to avoid half-empty forests dominated by rodents and other small species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joeri A Zwerts
- Ecology and Biodiversity, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
- Animal Behaviour & Cognition, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - E H M Sterck
- Animal Behaviour & Cognition, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Animal Science Department, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, Rijswijk, The Netherlands
| | - Pita A Verweij
- Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Fiona Maisels
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Emma A M Geelen
- Animal Behaviour & Cognition, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Marijke van Kuijk
- Ecology and Biodiversity, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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2
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Guarnieri M, Kumaishi G, Brock C, Chatterjee M, Fabiano E, Katrak-Adefowora R, Larsen A, Lockmann TM, Roehrdanz PR. Effects of climate, land use, and human population change on human-elephant conflict risk in Africa and Asia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2312569121. [PMID: 38285935 PMCID: PMC10861898 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2312569121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
Human-wildlife conflict is an important factor in the modern biodiversity crisis and has negative effects on both humans and wildlife (such as property destruction, injury, or death) that can impede conservation efforts for threatened species. Effectively addressing conflict requires an understanding of where it is likely to occur, particularly as climate change shifts wildlife ranges and human activities globally. Here, we examine how projected shifts in cropland density, human population density, and climatic suitability-three key drivers of human-elephant conflict-will shift conflict pressures for endangered Asian and African elephants to inform conflict management in a changing climate. We find that conflict risk (cropland density and/or human population density moving into the 90th percentile based on current-day values) increases in 2050, with a larger increase under the high-emissions "regional rivalry" SSP3 - RCP 7.0 scenario than the low-emissions "sustainability" SSP1 - RCP 2.6 scenario. We also find a net decrease in climatic suitability for both species along their extended range boundaries, with decreasing suitability most often overlapping increasing conflict risk when both suitability and conflict risk are changing. Our findings suggest that as climate changes, the risk of conflict with Asian and African elephants may shift and increase and managers should proactively mitigate that conflict to preserve these charismatic animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mia Guarnieri
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106-5131
| | - Grace Kumaishi
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106-5131
| | - Cameryn Brock
- Moore Center for Science, Conservation International, Arlington, VA22202
| | - Mayukh Chatterjee
- North of England Zoological Society, Upton, ChesterCH2 1LP, United Kingdom
| | - Ezequiel Fabiano
- Department of Wildlife Management and Tourism Studies, University of Namibia, Katima Mulilo1096, Namibia
| | - Roshni Katrak-Adefowora
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106-5131
| | - Ashley Larsen
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106-5131
| | - Taylor M. Lockmann
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106-5131
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3
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Wall J, Hahn N, Carroll S, Mwiu S, Goss M, Sairowua W, Tiedeman K, Kiambi S, Omondi P, Douglas-Hamilton I, Wittemyer G. Land use drives differential resource selection by African elephants in the Greater Mara Ecosystem, Kenya. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2024; 12:11. [PMID: 38303081 PMCID: PMC10832223 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-023-00436-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
Understanding drivers of space use by African elephants is critical to their conservation and management, particularly given their large home-ranges, extensive resource requirements, ecological role as ecosystem engineers, involvement in human-elephant conflict and as a target species for ivory poaching. In this study we investigated resource selection by elephants inhabiting the Greater Mara Ecosystem in Southwestern Kenya in relation to three distinct but spatially contiguous management zones: (i) the government protected Maasai Mara National Reserve (ii) community-owned wildlife conservancies, and (iii) elephant range outside any formal wildlife protected area. We combined GPS tracking data from 49 elephants with spatial covariate information to compare elephant selection across these management zones using a hierarchical Bayesian framework, providing insight regarding how human activities structure elephant spatial behavior. We also contrasted differences in selection by zone across several data strata: sex, season and time-of-day. Our results showed that the strongest selection by elephants was for closed-canopy forest and the strongest avoidance was for open-cover, but that selection behavior varied significantly by management zone and selection for cover was accentuated in human-dominated areas. When contrasting selection parameters according to strata, variability in selection parameter values reduced along a protection gradient whereby elephants tended to behave more similarly (limited plasticity) in the human dominated, unprotected zone and more variably (greater plasticity) in the protected reserve. However, avoidance of slope was consistent across all zones. Differences in selection behavior was greatest between sexes, followed by time-of-day, then management zone and finally season (where seasonal selection showed the least differentiation of the contrasts assessed). By contrasting selection coefficients across strata, our analysis quantifies behavioural switching related to human presence and impact displayed by a cognitively advanced megaherbivore. Our study broadens the knowledge base about the movement ecology of African elephants and builds our capacity for both management and conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jake Wall
- Mara Elephant Project, Nairobi, Kenya.
- Colorado State University, Fort Collins, USA.
| | - Nathan Hahn
- Colorado State University, Fort Collins, USA
| | | | - Stephen Mwiu
- Kenya Wildlife Research and Training Institute, Naivasha, Kenya
| | - Marc Goss
- Mara Elephant Project, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Kate Tiedeman
- Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Constance, Germany
| | - Sospeter Kiambi
- Kenya Wildlife Research and Training Institute, Naivasha, Kenya
| | - Patrick Omondi
- Kenya Wildlife Research and Training Institute, Naivasha, Kenya
| | | | - George Wittemyer
- Colorado State University, Fort Collins, USA
- Save the Elephants, Nairobi, Kenya
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4
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Huang RM, Maré C, Guldemond RAR, Pimm SL, van Aarde RJ. Protecting and connecting landscapes stabilizes populations of the Endangered savannah elephant. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadk2896. [PMID: 38181078 PMCID: PMC10776014 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adk2896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024]
Abstract
The influence of protected areas on the growth of African savannah elephant populations is inadequately known. Across southern Africa, elephant numbers grew at 0.16% annually for the past quarter century. Locally, much depends on metapopulation dynamics-the size and connections of individual populations. Population numbers in large, connected, and strictly protected areas typically increased, were less variable from year to year, and suffered less from poaching. Conversely, populations in buffer areas that are less protected but still connected have more variation in growth from year to year. Buffer areas also differed more in their growth rates, likely due to more threats and dispersal opportunities in the face of such dangers. Isolated populations showed consistently high growth due to a lack of emigration. This suggests that "fortress" conservation generally maintains high growth, while anthropogenic-driven source-sink dynamics within connected conservation clusters drive stability in core areas and variability in buffers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M. Huang
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | - Celesté Maré
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | - Robert A. R. Guldemond
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | - Stuart L. Pimm
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Rudi J. van Aarde
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
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5
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Yuan W, Chen L, Chen H, Deng S, Ji H, Liang F. Assessing habitat quality at Poyang Lake based on InVEST and Geodetector modeling. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10759. [PMID: 38053792 PMCID: PMC10694386 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Poyang Lake is an essential natural wetland in the Yangtze River basin and plays a vital role in maintaining the ecosystem function and ecological security in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. However, the relative importance and spatial heterogeneity of the impacts of human activities and land use changes on ecological security needs to be further explored. Here, we analyzed the habitat quality level around Poyang Lake in 2022 and explored the factors of habitat quality change from a geographical perspective. The land use structure changes around the Poyang Lake basin from 2000 to 2022 were quantitatively analyzed, and then the relative importance and spatial heterogeneity of each factor on ecological security changes were investigated using geographic probes. The results show that (1) The worst quality habitat (0-0.1) consists mainly of construction land (1624.9 km2) with an area of 1634.64 km2; (2) Construction land continues to increase with the most significant change, and the dynamic land use attitude is 0.47. Grassland and mudflats have the greatest decrease. The increase in cultivated land in different periods is mainly due to the shift of water surface and forest land; (3) The drivers of habitat quality in Poyang Lake were significantly influenced by the interaction of socioeconomic factors. The explanatory power of population density interacting with the total year-end population and population density interacting with administrative area exceeded 0.84. These values were higher than the explanatory power of each individual factor, indicating that habitat quality was primarily associated with population density, total year-end population, and administrative area. These results suggest that human activities contribute to the degradation of wetlands around Poyang Lake. This study has significant reference value for coordinating human-land relationships in Poyang Lake, optimizing land management policy, and improving the sustainable development of cities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenrui Yuan
- College of SciencesGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
| | - Lingkang Chen
- College of SciencesGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
- School of Resource and Environmental EngineeringJiangxi University of Science and TechnologyGanzhouChina
| | - Haixia Chen
- College of Petroleum EngineeringGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
| | - Shaofu Deng
- College of SciencesGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
| | - Hong Ji
- College of SciencesGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
| | - Fenshuo Liang
- College of SciencesGuangdong University of Petrochemical TechnologyMaomingChina
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6
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Robertson MR, Olivier LJ, Roberts J, Yonthantham L, Banda C, N’gombwa IB, Dale R, Tiller LN. Testing the Effectiveness of the "Smelly" Elephant Repellent in Controlled Experiments in Semi-Captive Asian and African Savanna Elephants. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:3334. [PMID: 37958089 PMCID: PMC10647569 DOI: 10.3390/ani13213334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Crop-raiding by elephants is one of the most prevalent forms of human-elephant conflict and is increasing with the spread of agriculture into wildlife range areas. As the magnitude of conflicts between people and elephants increases across Africa and Asia, mitigating and reducing the impacts of elephant crop-raiding has become a major focus of conservation intervention. In this study, we tested the responses of semi-captive elephants to the "smelly" elephant repellent, a novel olfactory crop-raiding mitigation method. At two trial sites, in Zambia and Thailand, African elephants (Loxodonta africana) and Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) were exposed to the repellent, in order to test whether or not they entered an area protected by the repellent and whether they ate the food provided. The repellent elicited clear reactions from both study groups of elephants compared to control conditions. Generalised linear models revealed that the elephants were more alert, sniffed more, and vocalised more when they encountered the repellent. Although the repellent triggered a response, it did not prevent elephants from entering plots protected by the repellent or from eating crops, unlike in trials conducted with wild elephants. Personality played a role in responses towards the repellent, as the elephants that entered the experimental plots were bolder and more curious individuals. We conclude that, although captive environments provide controlled settings for experimental testing, the ecological validity of testing human-elephant conflict mitigation methods with captive wildlife should be strongly considered. This study also shows that understanding animal behaviour is essential for improving human-elephant coexistence and for designing deterrence mechanisms. Appreciating personality traits in elephants, especially amongst "problem" elephants who have a greater propensity to crop raid, could lead to the design of new mitigation methods designed to target these individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lisa J. Olivier
- Game Rangers International, Plot 2374, The Village, Leopards Hill Road, Lusaka 10101, Zambia; (L.J.O.); (C.B.)
| | - John Roberts
- Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation, 229 Moo 1, Chiang Saen, Chiang Rai 57150, Thailand; (J.R.); (L.Y.)
| | - Laddawan Yonthantham
- Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation, 229 Moo 1, Chiang Saen, Chiang Rai 57150, Thailand; (J.R.); (L.Y.)
| | - Constance Banda
- Game Rangers International, Plot 2374, The Village, Leopards Hill Road, Lusaka 10101, Zambia; (L.J.O.); (C.B.)
| | - Innocent B. N’gombwa
- Department of National Parks and Wildlife, Ministry of Tourism, Chilanga 10101, Zambia;
| | - Rachel Dale
- Department for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University for Continuing Education Krems, 3500 Krems an der Donau, Austria;
| | - Lydia N. Tiller
- Amboseli Trust for Elephants, Langata, Nairobi 15135, Kenya;
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NZ, UK
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7
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Giliba RA, Kiffner C, Fust P, Loos J. Modelling elephant corridors over two decades reveals opportunities for conserving connectivity across a large protected area network. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0292918. [PMID: 37831668 PMCID: PMC10575508 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/02/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Protected area (PA) connectivity is pivotal for the persistence of wide-ranging wildlife species, but is challenged by habitat loss and fragmentation. We analyzed habitat suitability and connectivity for the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) across PAs in south-western Tanzania in 2000, 2010, and 2019. We quantified land-use changes through remote sensing data; estimated habitat suitability through aerial survey data, remotely sensed variables and ensemble species distribution models; modelled least-cost corridors; identified the relative importance of each corridor for the connectivity of the PA network and potential bottlenecks over time through circuit theory; and validated corridors through local ecological knowledge and ground wildlife surveys. From 2000 to 2019, cropland increased from 7% to 13% in the region, with an average expansion of 634 km2 per year. Distance from cropland influenced elephant distribution models the most. Despite cropland expansion, the locations of the modelled elephant corridors (n = 10) remained similar throughout the survey period. Based on local ecological knowledge, nine of the modelled corridors were active, whereas one modelled corridor had been inactive since the 1970s. Based on circuit theory, we prioritize three corridors for PA connectivity. Key indicators of corridor quality varied over time, whereas elephant movement through some corridors appears to have become costlier over time. Our results suggest that, over the past two decades, functional connectivity across the surveyed landscape has largely persisted. Beyond providing crucial information for spatial prioritization of conservation actions, our approach highlights the importance of modeling functional connectivity over time and verifying corridor models with ground-truthed data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard A. Giliba
- The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences and Bio-Engineering, Arusha, Tanzania
- Institute of Ecology, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany
| | - Christian Kiffner
- Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Junior Research Group Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence, Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Research Area Land-use and Governance, Müncheberg, Germany
| | - Pascal Fust
- The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences and Bio-Engineering, Arusha, Tanzania
| | - Jacqueline Loos
- The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, School of Life Sciences and Bio-Engineering, Arusha, Tanzania
- Social-Ecological Systems Institute, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany
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8
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Imron MA, Glass DM, Tafrichan M, Crego RD, Stabach JA, Leimgruber P. Beyond protected areas: The importance of mixed-use landscapes for the conservation of Sumatran elephants ( Elephas maximus sumatranus). Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10560. [PMID: 37780084 PMCID: PMC10539044 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 08/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Elephants were once widely distributed across the Indonesian island of Sumatra but now exist in small, isolated populations. Using the best data available on elephant occurrence, we aimed to (a) predict potential habitat suitability for elephants (Elephas maximus sumatranus) across the island of Sumatra and (b) model landscape connectivity among the extant elephant populations. We used direct sightings and indirect observations of elephant signs, as well as six remotely sensed proxies of surface ruggedness, vegetation productivity and structure, and human land use and disturbance, to model habitat suitability in a Google Earth Engine (GEE) environment. We validated the habitat suitability prediction using 10-fold spatial block cross validation and by calculating the area under the precision-recall curve (AUC-PR), sensitivity, and specificity for each model iteration. We also used a geolocation dataset collected from global positioning system (GPS) collars fitted on elephants as an independent validation dataset. Models showed good predictive performance with a mean AUC-PR of 0.73, sensitivity of 0.76, and specificity of 0.68. Greater than 83% of the independent GPS collar geolocations were located in predicted suitable habitat. We found human modification, surface ruggedness, and normalized difference vegetation index to be the most important variables for predicting suitable elephant habitat. Thirty-two percent, or 135,646 km2, of Sumatra's land area was predicted to be suitable habitat, with 43 patches of suitable habitat located across Sumatra. Areas with high connectivity were concentrated in the Riau and North Sumatra provinces. Though our analysis highlights the need to improve the quality of data collected on Sumatran elephants, more suitable habitat remains on Sumatra than is used by known populations. Targeted habitat conservation, especially of the suitable habitat in and around the Lamno, Balai Raja, Tesso Tenggara, Tesso Utara, Bukit Tigapuluh, Seblat, Padang Sugihan, and Bukit Barisan Selatan ranges, may improve the long-term viability of this critically endangered species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Danielle M. Glass
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteConservation Ecology CenterFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | | | - Ramiro D. Crego
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteConservation Ecology CenterFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
- School of Biological, Earth & Environmental SciencesUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
| | - Jared A. Stabach
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteConservation Ecology CenterFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
| | - Peter Leimgruber
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology InstituteConservation Ecology CenterFront RoyalVirginiaUSA
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9
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Ellis-Soto D, Oliver RY, Brum-Bastos V, Demšar U, Jesmer B, Long JA, Cagnacci F, Ossi F, Queiroz N, Hindell M, Kays R, Loretto MC, Mueller T, Patchett R, Sims DW, Tucker MA, Ropert-Coudert Y, Rutz C, Jetz W. A vision for incorporating human mobility in the study of human-wildlife interactions. Nat Ecol Evol 2023; 7:1362-1372. [PMID: 37550509 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02125-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023]
Abstract
As human activities increasingly shape land- and seascapes, understanding human-wildlife interactions is imperative for preserving biodiversity. Habitats are impacted not only by static modifications, such as roads, buildings and other infrastructure, but also by the dynamic movement of people and their vehicles occurring over shorter time scales. Although there is increasing realization that both components of human activity substantially affect wildlife, capturing more dynamic processes in ecological studies has proved challenging. Here we propose a conceptual framework for developing a 'dynamic human footprint' that explicitly incorporates human mobility, providing a key link between anthropogenic stressors and ecological impacts across spatiotemporal scales. Specifically, the dynamic human footprint integrates a range of metrics to fully acknowledge the time-varying nature of human activities and to enable scale-appropriate assessments of their impacts on wildlife behaviour, demography and distributions. We review existing terrestrial and marine human-mobility data products and provide a roadmap for how these could be integrated and extended to enable more comprehensive analyses of human impacts on biodiversity in the Anthropocene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diego Ellis-Soto
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
- Center for Biodiversity and Global Change, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Ruth Y Oliver
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
- Center for Biodiversity and Global Change, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
- Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
| | - Vanessa Brum-Bastos
- School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
- Institute of Geodesy and Geoinformatics, Wroclaw University of Environmental Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland
- School of Earth and Environment, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand
| | - Urška Demšar
- School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Brett Jesmer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Center for Biodiversity and Global Change, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Jed A Long
- Department of Geography & Environment, Centre for Animals on the Move, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Francesca Cagnacci
- Animal Ecology Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all'Adige, Italy
- National Biodiversity Future Center S.C.A.R.L., Palermo, Italy
| | - Federico Ossi
- Animal Ecology Unit, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all'Adige, Italy
| | - Nuno Queiroz
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado/BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
- Marine Biological Association, Plymouth, UK
| | - Mark Hindell
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
- Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Roland Kays
- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA
- Dept Forestry and Environmental Resources, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Matthias-Claudio Loretto
- Ecosystem Dynamics and Forest Management Group, TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
- Berchtesgaden National Park, Berchtesgaden, Germany
- Department of Migration, Max-Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Radolfzell, Germany
| | - Thomas Mueller
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt (Main), Germany
- Department of Biological Sciences, Goethe University, Frankfurt (Main), Germany
| | - Robert Patchett
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - David W Sims
- Marine Biological Association, Plymouth, UK
- Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- Centre for Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Marlee A Tucker
- Department of Environmental Science, Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Yan Ropert-Coudert
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, La Rochelle Université - CNRS, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Christian Rutz
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Walter Jetz
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Center for Biodiversity and Global Change, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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10
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Medupe D, Roberts SG, Shenk MK, Glowacki L. Why did foraging, horticulture and pastoralism persist after the Neolithic transition? The oasis theory of agricultural intensification. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20220300. [PMID: 37381847 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite the global spread of intensive agriculture, many populations retained foraging or mixed subsistence strategies until well into the twentieth century. Understanding why has been a longstanding puzzle. One explanation, called the marginal habitat hypothesis, is that foraging persisted because foragers tended to live in marginal habitats generally not suited to agriculture. However, recent empirical studies have not supported this view. The alternative but untested oasis hypothesis of agricultural intensification claims that intensive agriculture developed in areas with low biodiversity and a reliable water source not reliant on local rainfall. We test both the marginal habitat and oasis hypotheses using a cross-cultural sample drawn from the 'Ethnographic atlas' (Murdock 1967 Ethnology 6, 109-236). Our analyses provide support for both hypotheses. We found that intensive agriculture was unlikely in areas with high rainfall. Further, high biodiversity, including pathogens associated with high rainfall, appears to have limited the development of intensive agriculture. Our analyses of African societies show that tsetse flies, elephants and malaria are negatively associated with intensive agriculture, but only the effect of tsetse flies reached significance. Our results suggest that in certain ecologies intensive agriculture may be difficult or impossible to develop but that generally lower rainfall and biodiversity is favourable for its emergence. This article is part of the theme issue 'Evolutionary ecology of inequality'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dithapelo Medupe
- Department of Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Seán G Roberts
- School of English, Communication and Philosophy, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF10 3EU, UK
| | - Mary K Shenk
- Department of Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Luke Glowacki
- Department of Anthropology, Boston University, Boston MA 02215, USA
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11
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Brown MB, Fennessy JT, Crego RD, Fleming CH, Alves J, Brandlová K, Fennessy S, Ferguson S, Hauptfleisch M, Hejcmanova P, Hoffman R, Leimgruber P, Masiaine S, McQualter K, Mueller T, Muller B, Muneza A, O'Connor D, Olivier AJ, Rabeil T, Seager S, Stacy-Dawes J, van Schalkwyk L, Stabach J. Ranging behaviours across ecological and anthropogenic disturbance gradients: a pan-African perspective of giraffe ( Giraffa spp .) space use. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230912. [PMID: 37357852 PMCID: PMC10291724 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2023] [Indexed: 06/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal movement behaviours are shaped by diverse factors, including resource availability and human impacts on the landscape. We generated home range estimates and daily movement rate estimates for 149 giraffe (Giraffa spp.) from all four species across Africa to evaluate the effects of environmental productivity and anthropogenic disturbance on space use. Using the continuous time movement modelling framework and a novel application of mixed effects meta-regression, we summarized overall giraffe space use and tested for the effects of resource availability and human impact on 95% autocorrelated kernel density estimate (AKDE) size and daily movement. The mean 95% AKDE was 359.9 km2 and the mean daily movement was 14.2 km, both with marginally significant differences across species. We found significant negative effects of resource availability, and significant positive effects of resource heterogeneity and protected area overlap on 95% AKDE size. There were significant negative effects of overall anthropogenic disturbance and positive effects of the heterogeneity of anthropogenic disturbance on daily movements and 95% AKDE size. Our results provide unique insights into the interactive effects of resource availability and anthropogenic development on the movements of a large-bodied browser and highlight the potential impacts of rapidly changing landscapes on animal space-use patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Butler Brown
- Giraffe Conservation Foundation, PO Box 86099, Eros, Windhoek, Namibia
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
| | | | - Ramiro D. Crego
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
| | - Christen H. Fleming
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Joel Alves
- Wildscapes Veterinary & Conservation Services, Hoedspruit, South Africa
| | - Karolina Brandlová
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, 16500 Prague, Czechia
| | | | - Sara Ferguson
- Giraffe Conservation Foundation, PO Box 86099, Eros, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Morgan Hauptfleisch
- Biodiversity Research Centre, Namibia University of Science and Technology, 8 Johann Albrecht Street, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Pavla Hejcmanova
- Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, 16500 Prague, Czechia
| | - Rigardt Hoffman
- Giraffe Conservation Foundation, PO Box 86099, Eros, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Peter Leimgruber
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
| | - Symon Masiaine
- Conservation Science & Wildlife Health, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Kylie McQualter
- Centre for Ecosystem Studies, School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Thomas Mueller
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre and Department of Biological Science, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Ben Muller
- Wildscapes Veterinary & Conservation Services, Hoedspruit, South Africa
| | - Arthur Muneza
- Giraffe Conservation Foundation, PO Box 86099, Eros, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - David O'Connor
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre and Department of Biological Science, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Adriaan Jacobus Olivier
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland 7602, South Africa
| | | | | | - Jenna Stacy-Dawes
- Conservation Science & Wildlife Health, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Louis van Schalkwyk
- Office of the State Veterinarian, Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, Kruger National Park, Skukuza, South Africa
- Department of Migration, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Radolfzell, Germany
- Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Jared Stabach
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Conservation Ecology Center, 1500 Remount Rd, Front Royal, VA 22630, USA
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12
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Sach F, Fields L, Chenery S, Yon L, Henley MD, Buss P, Dierenfeld ES, Langley-Evans SC, Watts MJ. Method development to characterise elephant tail hairs by LA-ICP-MS to reflect changes in elemental chemistry. ENVIRONMENTAL GEOCHEMISTRY AND HEALTH 2023; 45:1153-1164. [PMID: 35129705 PMCID: PMC10060304 DOI: 10.1007/s10653-022-01207-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
This paper evaluated analytical methods used to generate time-series data from elephant tail hairs, which can be used to reflect changing exposure to environmental geochemistry. Elephant tail hairs were analysed by three methods sequentially, each providing data to inform subsequent analysis. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Microanalysis visually showed the structure of the hair, specific structures such as tubules, and the mineral crusting around the edge of the hair, informing targeting of subsequent analysis by Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). LA-ICP-MS generated time-series data which informed sectioning of the tail hairs for subsequent quantitative analysis for potentially toxic elements and micronutrients using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) of dissolved tail hairs. This novel approach to characterise the tail hair enabled time-series analysis to reflect changes in environmental exposure which may result from seasonal or geochemical spatial variation and could inform elephant movement patterns. The seasonal change between wet and dry seasons was reflected down the length of the hair. Correlations were seen between LA-ICP-MS data and ICP-MS data in several elements including Mg, P, Ca, Fe, Na, Mn and U. This study provided time-series data for the analysis of elephant tail hairs by evaluating analytical challenges to obtaining quantitative data, such as improving protocols to ensure removal of extraneous material, determining where to section the tail hairs to best reflect environmental changes/exposure and ensuring representative analyses. A protocol was established to determine mineral status across a 12-18 month time period utilizing single elephant tail hairs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona Sach
- Inorganic Geochemistry, Centre for Environmental Geochemistry, British Geological Survey, Nottingham, UK
- School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Lorraine Fields
- Inorganic Geochemistry, Centre for Environmental Geochemistry, British Geological Survey, Nottingham, UK
| | - Simon Chenery
- Inorganic Geochemistry, Centre for Environmental Geochemistry, British Geological Survey, Nottingham, UK
| | - Lisa Yon
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Michelle D Henley
- Applied Behavioural Ecology and Environmental Research Unit, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
- Elephants Alive, Bosbokrand, Limpopo, South Africa
| | - Peter Buss
- Veterinary Wildlife Services, South African National Parks, Kimberley, South Africa
| | - Ellen S Dierenfeld
- LLC, Saint Louis, MO, 63128, USA
- School of Animal, Rural & Environmental Sciences, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | | | - Michael J Watts
- Inorganic Geochemistry, Centre for Environmental Geochemistry, British Geological Survey, Nottingham, UK.
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13
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Chan SCY, Chui SYS, Pretorius Y, Karczmarski L. Estimating population parameters of African elephants: a photographic mark-recapture application in a South African protected area. Mamm Biol 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s42991-022-00334-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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14
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A Phased Approach to Increase Human Tolerance in Elephant Corridors to Link Protected Areas in Southern Mozambique. DIVERSITY 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/d15010085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Pathfinding elephants are moving through human dominated landscapes, often across international boundaries, thereby playing a vital role in connecting protected areas. Their movements are a call to action to not only understand their spatial requirements but to urgently work towards innovative ways to make people’s livelihoods compatible with conservation outcomes so that coexistence and connected landscapes can prevail. We discuss the first three phases of a long-term strategy to conserve elephant corridors whilst incorporating the socio-economic needs of the people that share the landscape with them. We present a comprehensive satellite-tracking history of elephants across two transfrontier conservation areas (TFCA), represented by Great Limpopo- and Lubombo TFCAs and involving four countries (South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Eswatini) to flag where linking corridors exist. We use innovative cafeteria-style experiments to understand which elephant-unpalatable plants would offer lucrative alternative income streams to farmers living in human–elephant-conflict hotspots. The most suitable unpalatable plants are chosen based not only on whether they are unpalatable to elephants, but also on their life history traits and growth prerequisites. We consider a combination of potential economic values (food, essential oil, medicinal and bee fodder value) to ensure that selected plants would accommodate changing economic markets. Lastly, we highlight the importance of combining food security measures with ensuring people’s safety by means of deploying rapid-response units. By implementing these three phases as part of a longer-term strategy, we draw closer to ensuring the protection of bioregions to achieve biodiversity objectives at a landscape scale.
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15
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Using camera trap bycatch data to assess habitat use and the influence of human activity on African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in Kasungu National Park, Malawi. Mamm Biol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s42991-022-00330-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
AbstractAfrican elephants (Loxodonta africana) are increasingly exposed to high levels of human disturbance and are threatened by poaching and human–elephant conflict. As anthropogenic pressures continue to increase, both inside and outside protected areas, understanding elephant behavioural responses to human activity is required for future conservation management. Here, we use bycatch data from camera trap surveys to provide inferences on elephant habitat use and temporal activity in Kasungu National Park (KNP), Malawi. The KNP elephant population has declined by ~ 95% since the late 1970s, primarily because of intensive poaching, and information on elephant ecology and behaviour can assist in the species’ recovery. Using occupancy modelling, we show that proximity to water is the primary driver of elephant habitat use in KNP, with sites closer to water having a positive effect on elephant site use. Our occupancy results suggest that elephants do not avoid sites of higher human activity, while results from temporal activity models show that elephants avoid peak times of human activity and exhibit primarily nocturnal behaviour when using the KNP road network. As key park infrastructure is located near permanent water sources, elephant spatiotemporal behaviour may represent a trade-off between resource utilisation and anthropogenic-risk factors, with temporal partitioning used to reduce encounter rates. Increased law enforcement activity around permanent water sources could help to protect the KNP elephant population during the dry season. Our findings highlight that camera trap bycatch data can be a useful tool for the conservation management of threatened species beyond the initial scope of research.
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16
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de la Torre JA, Cheah C, Lechner AM, Wong EP, Tuuga A, Saaban S, Goossens B, Campos‐Arceiz A. Sundaic elephants prefer habitats on the periphery of protected areas. J Appl Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.14286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- J. Antonio de la Torre
- Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute Chinese Academy of Sciences & Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences Mengla China
- Programa Jaguares de la Selva Maya Bioconciencia A.C. Ciudad de Mexico Mexico
- School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
| | - Cheryl Cheah
- WWF‐Malaysia Centre Point Complex Kota Kinabalu Malaysia
| | - Alex M. Lechner
- Urban Transformations Hub Monash University Indonesia The Breeze BSD City Indonesia
| | - Ee Phin Wong
- School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
- Management & Ecology of Malaysian Elephants University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
| | | | - Salman Saaban
- Department of Wildlife and National Parks Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
| | - Benoit Goossens
- Sabah Wildlife Department Wisma MUIS Kota Kinabalu Malaysia
- Organisms and Environment Division, Cardiff School of Biosciences Cardiff University Cardiff UK
- Danau Girang Field Centre c/o Sabah Wildlife Department Kota Kinabalu Malaysia
| | - Ahimsa Campos‐Arceiz
- Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute Chinese Academy of Sciences & Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences Mengla China
- School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
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17
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Huang RM, van Aarde RJ, Pimm SL, Chase MJ, Leggett K. Mapping potential connections between Southern Africa's elephant populations. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0275791. [PMID: 36219597 PMCID: PMC9553058 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Southern Africa spans nearly 7 million km2 and contains approximately 80% of the world’s savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana) mostly living in isolated protected areas. Here we ask what are the prospects for improving the connections between these populations? We combine 1.2 million telemetry observations from 254 elephants with spatial data on environmental factors and human land use across eight southern African countries. Telemetry data show what natural features limit elephant movement and what human factors, including fencing, further prevent or restrict dispersal. The resulting intersection of geospatial data and elephant presences provides a map of suitable landscapes that are environmentally appropriate for elephants and where humans allow elephants to occupy. We explore the environmental and anthropogenic constraints in detail using five case studies. Lastly, we review all the major potential connections that may remain to connect a fragmented elephant metapopulation and document connections that are no longer feasible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M. Huang
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- * E-mail: (RMH); (RJA)
| | - Rudi J. van Aarde
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
- * E-mail: (RMH); (RJA)
| | - Stuart L. Pimm
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Conservation Ecology Research Unit, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | | | - Keith Leggett
- Fowlers Gap Arid Zone Research Station, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Fowlers Gap, Australia
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18
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Scalbert M, Vermeulen C, Breuer T, Doucet J. The challenging coexistence of forest elephants
Loxodonta cyclotis
and timber concessions in central Africa. Mamm Rev 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/mam.12305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Morgane Scalbert
- Université de Liège – Gembloux Agro‐Bio Tech, Forest is Life, Terra Teaching and Research Centre Passage des Déportés 2 B‐5030 Gembloux Belgium
| | - Cédric Vermeulen
- Université de Liège – Gembloux Agro‐Bio Tech, Forest is Life, Terra Teaching and Research Centre Passage des Déportés 2 B‐5030 Gembloux Belgium
| | - Thomas Breuer
- World Wide Fund for Nature Germany Reinhardstr. 18 10117 Berlin Germany
| | - Jean‐Louis Doucet
- Université de Liège – Gembloux Agro‐Bio Tech, Forest is Life, Terra Teaching and Research Centre Passage des Déportés 2 B‐5030 Gembloux Belgium
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19
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Benitez L, Kilian JW, Wittemyer G, Hughey LF, Fleming CH, Leimgruber P, du Preez P, Stabach JA. Precipitation, vegetation productivity, and human impacts control home range size of elephants in dryland systems in northern Namibia. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9288. [PMID: 36177134 PMCID: PMC9471278 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Climatic variability, resource availability, and anthropogenic impacts heavily influence an animal's home range. This makes home range size an effective metric for understanding how variation in environmental factors alter the behavior and spatial distribution of animals. In this study, we estimated home range size of African elephants (Loxodonta africana) across four sites in Namibia, along a gradient of precipitation and human impact, and investigated how these gradients influence the home range size on regional and site scales. Additionally, we estimated the time individuals spent within protected area boundaries. The mean 50% autocorrelated kernel density estimate for home range was 2200 km2 [95% CI:1500–3100 km2]. Regionally, precipitation and vegetation were the strongest predictors of home range size, accounting for a combined 53% of observed variation. However, different environmental covariates explained home range variation at each site. Precipitation predicted most variation (up to 74%) in home range sizes (n = 66) in the drier western sites, while human impacts explained 71% of the variation in home range sizes (n = 10) in Namibia's portion of the Kavango‐Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area. Elephants in all study areas maintained high fidelity to protected areas, spending an average of 85% of time tracked on protected lands. These results suggest that while most elephant space use in Namibia is driven by natural dynamics, some elephants are experiencing changes in space use due to human modification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorena Benitez
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute Front Royal Virginia USA
| | - J Werner Kilian
- Etosha Ecological Institute, Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism Okaukuejo Namibia
| | - George Wittemyer
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA.,Save the Elephants Nairobi Kenya
| | - Lacey F Hughey
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute Front Royal Virginia USA
| | - Chris H Fleming
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute Front Royal Virginia USA.,Department of Biology University of Maryland Maryland USA
| | - Peter Leimgruber
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute Front Royal Virginia USA
| | | | - Jared A Stabach
- Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute Front Royal Virginia USA
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20
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Adams TSF, Leggett KE, Chase MJ, Tucker MA. Who is adjusting to whom?: Differences in elephant diel activity in wildlife corridors across different human-modified landscapes. FRONTIERS IN CONSERVATION SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fcosc.2022.872472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The global impact of increased human activities has consequences on the conservation of wildlife. Understanding how wildlife adapts to increased human pressures with urban expansion and agricultural areas is fundamental to future conservation plans of any species. However, there is a belief that large wild free-ranging carnivores and ungulates, cannot coexist with people, limited studies have looked at wildlife movements through differing human-dominated landscapes at finer spatial scales, in Africa. This information is vital as the human population is only going to increase and the wildlife protected areas decrease. We used remote-sensor camera traps to identify the movement patterns of African elephant (Loxodonta africana) through six wildlife corridors in Botswana. The wildlife corridors were located in two different human-dominated landscapes (agricultural/urban), with varying degrees of human impact. While we found that elephants use corridors in both landscapes, they use the urban corridors both diurnally and nocturnally in contrast to agricultural corridors which were only nocturnal. Our results provide evidence for temporal partitioning of corridor use by elephants. We identified that seasonality and landscape were important factors in determining the presence of elephants in the corridors. Our findings demonstrate that elephant diel patterns of use of the wildlife corridor differs based on the surrounding human land-uses on an hourly basis and daily basis, revealing potential adaptation and risk avoidance behaviour.
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21
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Tiller LN, King LE, Okita‐Ouma B, Lala F, Pope F, Douglas‐Hamilton I, Thouless CR. The behaviour and fate of translocated bull African savanna elephants (
Loxodonta africana
) into a novel environment. Afr J Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/aje.13038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lydia N. Tiller
- Save the Elephants Nairobi Kenya
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology University of Kent Canterbury UK
| | - Lucy E. King
- Save the Elephants Nairobi Kenya
- Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
| | - Benson Okita‐Ouma
- Save the Elephants Nairobi Kenya
- Wyss Academy for Nature University of Bern Kochergasse Bern Switzerland
| | - Fredrick Lala
- Wildlife Research and Training Institute Naivasha Kenya
| | | | - Iain Douglas‐Hamilton
- Save the Elephants Nairobi Kenya
- Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
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22
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Kerley GIH, Monsarrat S. Shifted models cannot be used for predicting responses of biodiversity to global change: the African elephant as an example. AFRICAN ZOOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/15627020.2022.2053883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Graham IH Kerley
- Centre for African Conservation Ecology, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa
| | - Sophie Monsarrat
- Centre for African Conservation Ecology, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha, South Africa
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE) & Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus City, Denmark
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23
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Acknowledging the Relevance of Elephant Sensory Perception to Human–Elephant Conflict Mitigation. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12081018. [PMID: 35454264 PMCID: PMC9031250 DOI: 10.3390/ani12081018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2022] [Revised: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Elephants have a unique sensory perspective of the world, using their complex olfactory and auditory systems to make foraging and social decisions. All three species of elephants are endangered and inhabit environments, which are being affected rapidly by human development. Anthropogenic disturbances can have significant effects on elephants’ abilities to perceive sensory information and communicate with one another, potentially further endangering their survival. Conflicts over high-quality resources also arise from the overlapping habitation of humans and elephants. While many different methods have been employed to reduce this conflict, we propose that elephants’ unique olfactory and acoustic sensory strengths be considered in future mitigation strategies to achieve coexistence. Abstract Elephants are well known for their socio-cognitive abilities and capacity for multi-modal sensory perception and communication. Their highly developed olfactory and acoustic senses provide them with a unique non-visual perspective of their physical and social worlds. The use of these complex sensory signals is important not only for communication between conspecifics, but also for decisions about foraging and navigation. These decisions have grown increasingly risky given the exponential increase in unpredictable anthropogenic change in elephants’ natural habitats. Risk taking often develops from the overlap of human and elephant habitat in Asian and African range countries, where elephants forage for food in human habitat and crop fields, leading to conflict over high-quality resources. To mitigate this conflict, a better understanding of the elephants’ sensory world and its impact on their decision-making process should be considered seriously in the development of long-term strategies for promoting coexistence between humans and elephants. In this review, we explore the elephants’ sensory systems for audition and olfaction, their multi-modal capacities for communication, and the anthropogenic changes that are affecting their behavior, as well as the need for greater consideration of elephant behavior in elephant conservation efforts.
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24
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Garai ME, Roos T, Eggeling T, Ganswindt A, Pretorius Y, Henley M. Developing welfare parameters for African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in fenced reserves in South Africa. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0264931. [PMID: 35324916 PMCID: PMC8947097 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0264931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
South Africa has many fenced reserves harbouring small to medium sized populations of African elephant (Loxodonta africana), most of which have been translocated. Elephants on fenced reserves may be exposed to various management interventions and practices (translocation, hunting, darting, high tourism impact, contraception programs, disruption due to infrastructure maintenance, etc.). These factors may impact the welfare of elephants. Poor elephant welfare may have serious consequences such as increased inter- and intra-species aggression that could result in fatalities. This is the first study to attempt to define behavioural and physiological welfare parameters for free-ranging elephants on small to medium sized reserves. The eight study sites incorporated reserves with different social structure combinations, elephant life-histories, reserve sizes, habitat, management, and tourism intensity. Data collection consisted of behavioural observations (10-minute videos) as well as faecal samples. By incorporating both behavioural and physiological (faecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentration) parameters, we aimed to investigate whether the two parameters showed similar trends. Five behavioural categories were identified (Arousal, Assessing, Ambivalent, Ambivalent/ Body care, and Frustrated behaviour), with various detailed behaviours demonstrated by the elephants that may indicate the influence of anthropogenic disturbance and possibly impact on animal welfare. The study showed significant differences between the selected detailed behaviours, behavioural categories and fGCM concentrations of elephants across the eight reserves. History seemed to be a decisive factor, as reserves with predominantly ex-captive elephants showed higher frequencies of certain behaviours as well as higher fGCM concentrations. Age, sex, reserve size and season were also found to contribute to our defined welfare indices and fGCM concentrations. This indicates that behavioural parameters, indicative of certain behavioural states, are valuable indicators of welfare, as supported by the physiological response of the elephants. The results also highlight the importance of taking multiple specified behaviours from a category into consideration when evaluating the welfare of elephants, to account for individual variation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tenisha Roos
- Elephant Reintegration Trust, Port Alfred, South Africa
| | | | - André Ganswindt
- Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | - Michelle Henley
- Applied Behavioural Ecology and Environmental Research Unit, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
- Elephants Alive, Hoedspruit, Limpopo, South Africa
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25
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Medici EP, Mezzini S, Fleming CH, Calabrese JM, Noonan MJ. Movement ecology of vulnerable lowland tapirs between areas of varying human disturbance. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2022; 10:14. [PMID: 35287742 PMCID: PMC8919628 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-022-00313-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Animal movement is a key ecological process that is tightly coupled to local environmental conditions. While agriculture, urbanisation, and transportation infrastructure are critical to human socio-economic improvement, these have spurred substantial changes in animal movement across the globe with potential impacts on fitness and survival. Notably, however, human disturbance can have differential effects across species, and responses to human activities are thus largely taxa and context specific. As human disturbance is only expected to worsen over the next decade it is critical to better understand how species respond to human disturbance in order to develop effective, case-specific conservation strategies. METHODS Here, we use an extensive telemetry dataset collected over 22 years to fill a critical knowledge gap in the movement ecology of lowland tapirs (Tapirus terrestris) across areas of varying human disturbance within three biomes in southern Brazil: the Pantanal, Cerrado, and Atlantic Forest. RESULTS From these data we found that the mean home range size across all monitored tapirs was 8.31 km2 (95% CI 6.53-10.42), with no evidence that home range sizes differed between sexes nor age groups. Interestingly, although the Atlantic Forest, Cerrado, and Pantanal vary substantially in habitat composition, levels of human disturbance, and tapir population densities, we found that lowland tapir movement behaviour and space use were consistent across all three biomes. Human disturbance also had no detectable effect on lowland tapir movement. Lowland tapirs living in the most altered habitats we monitored exhibited movement behaviour that was comparable to that of tapirs living in a near pristine environment. CONCLUSIONS Contrary to our expectations, although we observed individual variability in lowland tapir space use and movement, human impacts on the landscape also had no measurable effect on their movement. Lowland tapir movement behaviour thus appears to exhibit very little phenotypic plasticity in response to human disturbance. Crucially, the lack of any detectable response to anthropogenic disturbance suggests that human modified habitats risk being ecological traps for tapirs and this information should be factored into conservation actions and species management aimed towards protecting lowland tapir populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- E P Medici
- Lowland Tapir Conservation Initiative (LTCI), Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas (IPÊ), Rodovia Dom Pedro I, km 47, Nazaré Paulista, São Paulo, 12960-000, Brazil.
- IUCN SSC Tapir Specialist Group (TSG), Campo Grande, Brazil.
- Escola Superior de Conservação Ambiental E Sustentabilidade (ESCAS/IPÊ), Rodovia Dom Pedro I, km 47, Nazaré Paulista, São Paulo, 12960-000, Brazil.
| | - S Mezzini
- The Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, Kelowna, Canada
| | - C H Fleming
- University of Maryland College Park, College Park, MD, USA
- Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - J M Calabrese
- Center for Advanced Systems Understanding (CASUS), Görlitz, Germany
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden Rossendorf (HZDR), Dresden, Germany
- Department of Ecological Modelling, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig, Germany
| | - M J Noonan
- The Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, Kelowna, Canada
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26
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Thévenet J, Grimault N, Fonseca P, Mathevon N. Voice-mediated interactions in a megaherbivore. Curr Biol 2022; 32:R70-R71. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.12.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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27
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Nationwide abundance and distribution of African forest elephants across Gabon using non-invasive SNP genotyping. Glob Ecol Conserv 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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28
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Salerno J, Stevens FR, Gaughan AE, Hilton T, Bailey K, Bowles T, Cassidy L, Mupeta-Muyamwa P, Biggs D, Pricope N, Mosimane AW, Henry LM, Drake M, Weaver A, Kosmas S, Woodward K, Kolarik N, Hartter J. Wildlife impacts and changing climate pose compounding threats to human food security. Curr Biol 2021; 31:5077-5085.e6. [PMID: 34562383 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.08.074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
High-level policy debates surrounding elephant management often dominate global conservation headlines, yet realities for people living with wildlife are not adequately incorporated into policymaking or evident in related discourse.1,2 Human health and livelihoods can be severely impacted by wildlife and indirectly by policy outcomes.3 In landscapes where growing human and elephant (Loxodonta spp. and Elephas maximus) populations compete over limited resources, human-elephant conflict causes crop loss, human injury and death, and retaliatory killing of wildlife.4-6 Across Africa, these problems may be increasingly compounded by climate change, which intensifies resource competition and food insecurity.6-9 Here, we examine how human-wildlife impacts interact with climate change and household food insecurity across the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, the world's largest terrestrial transboundary conservation area, spanning five African nations. We use hierarchical Bayesian statistical models to analyze multi-country household data together with longitudinal satellite-based climate measures relevant to rainfed agriculture. We find that crop depredation by wildlife, primarily elephants, impacts 58% of sampled households annually and is associated with significant increases in food insecurity. These wildlife impacts compound effects of changing climate on food insecurity, most notably observed as a 5-day shortening of the rainy season per 10 years across the data record (1981-2018). To advance sustainability goals, global conservation policy must better integrate empirical evidence on the challenges of human-wildlife coexistence into longer term strategies at transboundary scales, specifically in the context of climate change.3,9-11.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Salerno
- Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1480, USA.
| | - Forrest R Stevens
- Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, USA
| | - Andrea E Gaughan
- Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, USA
| | - Tom Hilton
- Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1480, USA
| | - Karen Bailey
- Environmental Studies Program, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - Timothy Bowles
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Lin Cassidy
- Okavango Research Institute, University of Botswana, Maun, Botswana
| | | | - Duan Biggs
- School of Earth and Sustainability, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA; Resilient Conservation, Centre for Planetary Health and Food Security, School of Environment and Science, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia; Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland 7602, South Africa; Centre for Complex Systems in Transition, School of Public Leadership, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch 7600, South Africa
| | - Narcisa Pricope
- Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Alfons Wahabe Mosimane
- Multi-Disciplinary Research Centre, University of Namibia, Neudamm Campus, Windhoek, Namibia
| | | | - Michael Drake
- Environmental Studies Program, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - Ariel Weaver
- Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, USA
| | - Selma Kosmas
- Department of Wildlife Management and Ecotourism, Katima Mulilo Campus, University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Kyle Woodward
- Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Nicholas Kolarik
- Department of Geographic and Environmental Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, USA
| | - Joel Hartter
- Environmental Studies Program, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
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Hahn NR, Wall J, Denninger-Snyder K, Goss M, Sairowua W, Mbise N, Estes AB, Ndambuki S, Mjingo EE, Douglas-Hamiliton I, Wittemyer G. Risk perception and tolerance shape variation in agricultural use for a transboundary elephant population. J Anim Ecol 2021; 91:112-123. [PMID: 34726278 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
To conserve wide-ranging species in human-modified landscapes, it is essential to understand how animals selectively use or avoid cultivated areas. Use of agriculture leads to human-wildlife conflict, but evidence suggests that individuals may differ in their tendency to be involved in conflict. This is particularly relevant to wild elephant populations. We analysed GPS data of 66 free-ranging elephants in the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem to quantify their use of agriculture. We then examined factors influencing the level of agricultural use, individual change in use across years and differences in activity budgets associated with use. Using clustering methods, our data grouped into four agricultural use tactics: rare (<0.6% time in agriculture; 26% of population), sporadic (0.6%-3.8%; 34%), seasonal (3.9%-12.8%; 31%) and habitual (>12.8%; 9%). Sporadic and seasonal individuals represented two-thirds (67%) of recorded GPS fixes in agriculture, compared to 32% from habitual individuals. Increased agricultural use was associated with higher daily distance travelled and larger home range size, but not with age or sex. Individual tactic change was prevalent and the habitual tactic was maintained in consecutive years by only five elephants. Across tactics, individuals switched from diurnal to nocturnal activity during agricultural use, interpreted as representing similar risk perception of cultivated areas. Conversely, tactic choice appeared to be associated with differences in risk tolerance between individuals. Together, our results suggest that elephants are balancing the costs and benefits of crop usage at both fine (e.g. crop raid events) and long (e.g. yearly tactic change) temporal scales. The high proportion of sporadic and seasonal tactics also highlights the importance of mitigation strategies that address conflict arising from many animals, rather than targeted management of habitual crop raiders. Our approach can be applied to other species and systems to characterize individual variation in human resource use and inform mitigations for human-wildlife coexistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan R Hahn
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.,Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Jake Wall
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.,Mara Elephant Project, Narok, Kenya
| | - Kristen Denninger-Snyder
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.,Grumeti Fund, Mugumu-Serengeti, Tanzania
| | | | | | - Noel Mbise
- Grumeti Fund, Mugumu-Serengeti, Tanzania
| | - Anna Bond Estes
- Department of Environmental Studies, Carleton College, Northfield, MN, USA.,School of Life Sciences and Bioengineering, The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, Arusha, Tanzania
| | - Stephen Ndambuki
- Biodiversity Research and Monitoring, Kenya Wildlife Service, Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Iain Douglas-Hamiliton
- Save the Elephants, Nairobi, Kenya.,Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Oxford, UK
| | - George Wittemyer
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.,Save the Elephants, Nairobi, Kenya
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30
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Bista D, Baxter GS, Hudson NJ, Lama ST, Murray PJ. Effect of disturbances and habitat fragmentation on an arboreal habitat specialist mammal using GPS telemetry: a case of the red panda. LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY 2021; 37:795-809. [PMID: 34720409 PMCID: PMC8542365 DOI: 10.1007/s10980-021-01357-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
CONTEXT Habitat specialists residing in human-modified landscapes are likely to be more vulnerable to disturbance because of a functional reliance on very particular habitat features. However, there have been few studies designed to specifically address that issue. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to explore how the red panda, an iconic endangered habitat specialist, behaves when faced with disturbances and habitat fragmentation. In particular, we attempted to examine the effect of anthropogenic disturbances and fragmentation on home-range size, activity patterns, and recursion. METHODS Using GPS telemetry we monitored 10 red pandas and documented disturbances using camera trapping for one year in eastern Nepal. We performed spatial analysis, analysed activity patterns and evaluated the effect of habitat fragmentation and disturbances on home-range size and residence time using Linear Mixed Models. RESULTS Home-range size increased in areas with low availability of forest cover whilst home ranges were smaller in areas with a high road density. Red pandas spent more time in large habitat patches away from roads and cattle stations. Crossing rates suggested that roads acted as a barrier for movement across their habitat. Red pandas also partitioned their activity to minimize interactions with disturbances. CONCLUSIONS Red pandas seem to make a trade-off to co-exist in human-dominated landscapes which may have adverse long-term effects on their survival. This indicates that current patterns of habitat fragmentation and forest exploitation may be adversely affecting red panda conservation efforts and that landscape-scale effects should be considered when planning conservation actions. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10980-021-01357-w.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damber Bista
- School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343 Australia
| | - Greg S. Baxter
- School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343 Australia
| | - Nicholas J. Hudson
- School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343 Australia
| | | | - Peter John Murray
- School of Sciences, University of Southern Queensland, West St., Darling Heights, Toowoomba, QLD 4350 Australia
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31
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Ordaz-Németh I, Sop T, Amarasekaran B, Bachmann M, Boesch C, Brncic T, Caillaud D, Campbell G, Carvalho J, Chancellor R, Davenport TRB, Dowd D, Eno-Nku M, Ganas-Swaray J, Granier N, Greengrass E, Heinicke S, Herbinger I, Inkamba-Nkulu C, Iyenguet F, Junker J, Bobo KS, Lushimba A, Maisels F, Malanda GAF, McCarthy MS, Motsaba P, Moustgaard J, Murai M, Ndokoue B, Nixon S, Nseme RA, Nzooh Z, Pintea L, Plumptre AJ, Roy J, Rundus A, Sanderson J, Serckx A, Strindberg S, Tweh C, Vanleeuwe H, Vosper A, Waltert M, Williamson EA, Wilson M, Mundry R, Kühl HS. Range-wide indicators of African great ape density distribution. Am J Primatol 2021; 83:e23338. [PMID: 34662462 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Species distributions are influenced by processes occurring at multiple spatial scales. It is therefore insufficient to model species distribution at a single geographic scale, as this does not provide the necessary understanding of determining factors. Instead, multiple approaches are needed, each differing in spatial extent, grain, and research objective. Here, we present the first attempt to model continent-wide great ape density distribution. We used site-level estimates of African great ape abundance to (1) identify socioeconomic and environmental factors that drive densities at the continental scale, and (2) predict range-wide great ape density. We collated great ape abundance estimates from 156 sites and defined 134 pseudo-absence sites to represent additional absence locations. The latter were based on locations of unsuitable environmental conditions for great apes, and on existing literature. We compiled seven socioeconomic and environmental covariate layers and fitted a generalized linear model to investigate their influence on great ape abundance. We used an Akaike-weighted average of full and subset models to predict the range-wide density distribution of African great apes for the year 2015. Great ape densities were lowest where there were high Human Footprint and Gross Domestic Product values; the highest predicted densities were in Central Africa, and the lowest in West Africa. Only 10.7% of the total predicted population was found in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Category I and II protected areas. For 16 out of 20 countries, our estimated abundances were largely in line with those from previous studies. For four countries, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, and South Sudan, the estimated populations were excessively high. We propose further improvements to the model to overcome survey and predictor data limitations, which would enable a temporally dynamic approach for monitoring great apes across their range based on key indicators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Ordaz-Németh
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Tenekwetche Sop
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Mona Bachmann
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Christophe Boesch
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Terry Brncic
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | - Damien Caillaud
- Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, Atlanta, USA.,Department of Anthropology, University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | | | - Joana Carvalho
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, UK
| | - Rebecca Chancellor
- Departments of Anthropology & Sociology and Psychology, West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Tim R B Davenport
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | - Dervla Dowd
- Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | - Stefanie Heinicke
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,Biodiversity Conservation group, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Leipzig-Jena, Leipzig, Germany.,Transformation Pathways Research Department, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | | | | | - Fortuné Iyenguet
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | - Jessica Junker
- Biodiversity Conservation group, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Leipzig-Jena, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Kadiri S Bobo
- Department of Forestry, Faculty of Agronomy and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Dschang, Dschang, Cameroon
| | - Alain Lushimba
- IUCN, Regional Program Central and West Africa, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
| | - Fiona Maisels
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA.,Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, UK
| | | | - Maureen S McCarthy
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Prosper Motsaba
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | | | - Mizuki Murai
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Bezangoye Ndokoue
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | | | | | | | - Lilian Pintea
- Conservation Science, Jane Goodall Institute, Vienna, USA
| | | | - Justin Roy
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Aaron Rundus
- Department of Psychology, West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Jim Sanderson
- Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation, Corrales, New Mexico, USA
| | - Adeline Serckx
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,The Biodiversity Consultancy Ltd., Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral Biology Unit, Primatology Research Group, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
| | - Samantha Strindberg
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | - Clement Tweh
- Wild Chimpanzee Foundation, Leipzig, Germany.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Hilde Vanleeuwe
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, New York, New York, USA
| | | | - Matthias Waltert
- Workgroup on Endangered Species, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | | | - Michael Wilson
- Departments of Anthropology and Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Roger Mundry
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Hjalmar S Kühl
- Department of Primatology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,Biodiversity Conservation group, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Leipzig-Jena, Leipzig, Germany
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32
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Goldenberg SZ, Hahn N, Stacy-Dawes J, Chege SM, Daballen D, Douglas-Hamilton I, Lendira RR, Lengees MJ, Loidialo LS, Omengo F, Pope F, Thouless C, Wittemyer G, Owen MA. Movement of Rehabilitated African Elephant Calves Following Soft Release Into a Wildlife Sanctuary. FRONTIERS IN CONSERVATION SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fcosc.2021.720202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to locate essential resources is a critical step for wildlife translocated into novel environments. Understanding this process of exploration is highly desirable for management that seeks to resettle wildlife, particularly as translocation projects tend to be expensive and have a high potential for failure. African savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana) are very mobile and rely on large areas especially in arid environments, and are translocated for differing management and conservation objectives. Thus, research into how translocated elephants use the landscape when released may both guide elephant managers and be useful for translocations of other species that adjust their movement to social and ecological conditions. In this study, we investigated the movement of eight GPS tracked calves (translocated in three cohorts) following their soft release into a 107 km2 fenced wildlife sanctuary in northern Kenya and compared their movement with that of five tracked wild elephants in the sanctuary. We describe their exploration of the sanctuary, discovery of water points, and activity budgets during the first seven, 14, and 20 months after release. We explored how patterns are affected by time since release, ecological conditions, and social factors. We found that calves visited new areas of the sanctuary and water points during greener periods and earlier post-release. Social context was associated with exploration, with later release and association with wild elephants predictive of visits to new areas. Wild elephants tended to use a greater number of sites per 14-day period than the released calves. Activity budgets determined from hidden Markov models (including the states directed walk, encamped, and meandering) suggested that released calves differed from wild elephants. The first two cohorts of calves spent a significantly greater proportion of time in the directed walk state and a significantly lower proportion of time in the encamped state relative to the wild elephants. Our results represent a step forward in describing the movements of elephant orphan calves released to the wild following a period of profound social disruption when they lost their natal family and were rehabilitated with other orphan calves under human care. We discuss the implications of the elephant behavior we observed for improving release procedures and for defining success benchmarks for translocation projects.
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Abstract
Human presence and activities shape African elephant movements more than water and food availability, restricting the area available for their survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Leimgruber
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, 1500 Remount Road, Front Royal, VA 22601, USA.
| | - Melissa A Songer
- Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, 1500 Remount Road, Front Royal, VA 22601, USA
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