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Abstract
Given the marked variation in abiotic and biotic conditions between day and night, many species specialise their physical activity to being diurnal or nocturnal, and it was long thought that these strategies were commonly fairly fixed and invariant. The term 'cathemeral', was coined in 1987, when Tattersall noted activity in a Madagascan primate during the hours of both daylight and darkness. Initially thought to be rare, cathemerality is now known to be a quite widespread form of time partitioning amongst arthropods, fish, birds, and mammals. Herein we provide a synthesis of present understanding of cathemeral behaviour, arguing that it should routinely be included alongside diurnal and nocturnal strategies in schemes that distinguish and categorise species across taxa according to temporal niche. This synthesis is particularly timely because (i) the study of animal activity patterns is being revolutionised by new and improved technologies; (ii) it is becoming apparent that cathemerality covers a diverse range of obligate to facultative forms, each with their own common sets of functional traits, geographic ranges and evolutionary history; (iii) daytime and nighttime activity likely plays an important but currently neglected role in temporal niche partitioning and ecosystem functioning; and (iv) cathemerality may have an important role in the ability of species to adapt to human-mediated pressures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
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2
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Chapman KE, Smith MT, Gaston KJ, Hempel de Ibarra N. Bumblebee nest departures under low light conditions at sunrise and sunset. Biol Lett 2024; 20:20230518. [PMID: 38593853 PMCID: PMC11003773 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2023.0518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Only a few diurnal animals, such as bumblebees, extend their activity into the time around sunrise and sunset when illumination levels are low. Low light impairs viewing conditions and increases sensory costs, but whether diurnal insects use low light as a cue to make behavioural decisions is uncertain. To investigate how they decide to initiate foraging at these times of day, we observed bumblebee nest-departure behaviours inside a flight net, under naturally changing light conditions. In brighter light bees did not attempt to return to the nest and departed with minimal delay, as expected. In low light the probability of non-departures increased, as a small number of bees attempted to return after spending time on the departure platform. Additionally, in lower illumination bees spent more time on the platform before flying away, up to 68 s. Our results suggest that bees may assess light conditions once outside the colony to inform the decision to depart. These findings give novel insights into how behavioural decisions are made at the start and the end of a foraging day in diurnal animals when the limits of their vision impose additional costs on foraging efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine E. Chapman
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Michael T. Smith
- Department of Computer Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, UK
| | - Natalie Hempel de Ibarra
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
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3
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Morrell S, Hatchell J, Wordingham F, Bennie J, Inston MJ, Gaston KJ. Changing streetlighting schemes and the ecological availability of darkness. J R Soc Interface 2024; 21:20230555. [PMID: 38412961 PMCID: PMC10898964 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2023.0555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN), from streetlights and other sources, has a wide variety of impacts on the natural environment. A significant challenge remains, however, to predict at intermediate spatial extents (e.g. across a city) the ALAN that organisms experience under different lighting regimes. Here we use Monte Carlo radiative Transfer to model the three-dimensional lighting environment at, and just above, ground level, on the spatial scales at which animals and humans experience it. We show how this technique can be used to model a suite of both real and hypothetical lighting environments, mimicking the transition of public infrastructure between different lighting technologies. We then demonstrate how the behaviour of animals experiencing these simulated lighting environments can be emulated to probe the availability of darkness, and dark corridors, within them. Our simulations show that no single lighting technology provides an unmitigated alleviation of negative impacts within urban environments, and that holistic treatments of entire lighting environments should be employed when understanding how animals use and traverse them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam Morrell
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, EX4 4QL, UK
| | - Jennifer Hatchell
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, EX4 4QL, UK
| | - Freddy Wordingham
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, EX4 4QL, UK
| | - Jonathan Bennie
- Centre for Geography and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Maisy J. Inston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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4
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Wilkinson R, Mleczko MM, Brewin RJW, Gaston KJ, Mueller M, Shutler JD, Yan X, Anderson K. Environmental impacts of earth observation data in the constellation and cloud computing era. Sci Total Environ 2024; 909:168584. [PMID: 37979853 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168584] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/20/2023]
Abstract
Numbers of Earth Observation (EO) satellites have increased exponentially over the past decade reaching the current population of 1193 (January 2023). Consequently, EO data volumes have mushroomed and data storage and processing have migrated to the cloud. Whilst attention has been given to the launch and in-orbit environmental impacts of satellites, EO data environmental footprints have been overlooked. These issues require urgent attention given data centre water and energy consumption, high carbon emissions for computer component manufacture, and difficulty of recycling computer components. Doing so is essential if the environmental good of EO is to withstand scrutiny. We provide the first assessment of the EO data life-cycle and estimate that the current size of the global EO data collection is ~807 PB, increasing by ~100 PB/year. Storage of this data volume generates annual CO2 equivalent emissions of 4101 t. Major state-funded EO providers use 57 of their own data centres globally, and a further 178 private cloud services, with considerable duplication of datasets across repositories. We explore scenarios for the environmental cost of performing EO functions on the cloud compared to desktop machines. A simple band arithmetic function applied to a Landsat 9 scene using Google Earth Engine (GEE) generated CO2 equivalent (e) emissions of 0.042-0.69 g CO2e (locally) and 0.13-0.45 g CO2e (European data centre; values multiply by nine for Australian data centre). Computation-based emissions scale rapidly for more intense processes and when testing code. When using cloud services such as GEE, users have no choice about the data centre used and we push for EO providers to be more transparent about the location-specific impacts of EO work, and to provide tools for measuring the environmental cost of cloud computation. The EO community as a whole needs to critically consider the broad suite of EO data life-cycle impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Wilkinson
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - M M Mleczko
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - R J W Brewin
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - K J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - M Mueller
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - J D Shutler
- Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - X Yan
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - K Anderson
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.
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5
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Cox DTC, Gaston KJ. Ecosystem functioning across the diel cycle in the Anthropocene. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:31-40. [PMID: 37723017 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2023] [Revised: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
Given the marked differences in environmental conditions and active biota between daytime and nighttime, it is almost inevitable that ecosystem functioning will also differ. However, understanding of these differences has been hampered due to the challenges of conducting research at night. At the same time, many anthropogenic pressures are most forcefully exerted or have greatest effect during either daytime (e.g., high temperatures, disturbance) or nighttime (e.g., artificial lighting, nights warming faster than days). Here, we explore current understanding of diel (daily) variation in five key ecosystem functions and when during the diel cycle they primarily occur [predation (unclear), herbivory (nighttime), pollination (daytime), seed dispersal (unclear), carbon assimilation (daytime)] and how diel asymmetry in anthropogenic pressures impacts these functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
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6
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Sutherland WJ, Bennett C, Brotherton PNM, Butchart SHM, Butterworth HM, Clarke SJ, Esmail N, Fleishman E, Gaston KJ, Herbert-Read JE, Hughes AC, James J, Kaartokallio H, Le Roux X, Lickorish FA, Newport S, Palardy JE, Pearce-Higgins JW, Peck LS, Pettorelli N, Primack RB, Primack WE, Schloss IR, Spalding MD, Ten Brink D, Tew E, Timoshyna A, Tubbs N, Watson JEM, Wentworth J, Wilson JD, Thornton A. A horizon scan of global biological conservation issues for 2024. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:89-100. [PMID: 38114339 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
We present the results of our 15th horizon scan of novel issues that could influence biological conservation in the future. From an initial list of 96 issues, our international panel of scientists and practitioners identified 15 that we consider important for societies worldwide to track and potentially respond to. Issues are novel within conservation or represent a substantial positive or negative step-change with global or regional extents. For example, new sources of hydrogen fuel and changes in deep-sea currents may have profound impacts on marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Technological advances that may be positive include benchtop DNA printers and the industrialisation of approaches that can create high-protein food from air, potentially reducing the pressure on land for food production.
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Affiliation(s)
- William J Sutherland
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK.
| | - Craig Bennett
- Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, The Kiln, Waterside, Mather Road, Newark, Nottinghamshire NG24 1WT, UK
| | | | - Stuart H M Butchart
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; Birdlife International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Holly M Butterworth
- Natural Resources Wales, Cambria House, 29 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0TP, UK
| | | | - Nafeesa Esmail
- Wilder Institute, 1300 Zoo Road NE, Calgary, AB T2E 7V6, Canada
| | - Erica Fleishman
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | | | - Alice C Hughes
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, China
| | - Jennifer James
- The Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol BS1 5TL, UK
| | | | - Xavier Le Roux
- Microbial Ecology Centre, Université Lyon 1, INRAE, CNRS, UMR 1418, 69622 Villeurbanne, France
| | - Fiona A Lickorish
- UK Research and Consultancy Services (RCS) Ltd, Valletts Cottage, Westhope, Hereford HR4 8BU, UK
| | - Sarah Newport
- UK Research and Innovation, Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1EU, UK
| | - James E Palardy
- The Pew Charitable Trusts, 901 East Street NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA
| | - James W Pearce-Higgins
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, UK
| | - Lloyd S Peck
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | | | | | - Irene R Schloss
- Instituto Antártico Argentino, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC-CONICET), Ushuaia, Argentina; Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia, Argentina
| | - Mark D Spalding
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; The Nature Conservancy, Department of Physical, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Pian dei Mantellini, Siena 53100, Italy
| | - Dirk Ten Brink
- Wetlands International, 6700 AL Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Eleanor Tew
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; Forestry England, 620 Bristol Business Park, Coldharbour Lane, Bristol BS16 1EJ, UK
| | - Anastasiya Timoshyna
- TRAFFIC, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Nicolas Tubbs
- WWF-Belgium, Boulevard Emile Jacqmainlaan 90, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - James E M Watson
- School of The Environment, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Jonathan Wentworth
- Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 14 Tothill Street, Westminster, London SW1H 9NB, UK
| | - Jeremy D Wilson
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, 2 Lochside View, Edinburgh EH12 9DH, UK
| | - Ann Thornton
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
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7
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Sanders D, Hirt MR, Brose U, Evans DM, Gaston KJ, Gauzens B, Ryser R. How artificial light at night may rewire ecological networks: concepts and models. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20220368. [PMID: 37899020 PMCID: PMC10613535 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) is eroding natural light cycles and thereby changing species distributions and activity patterns. Yet little is known about how ecological interaction networks respond to this global change driver. Here, we assess the scientific basis of the current understanding of community-wide ALAN impacts. Based on current knowledge, we conceptualize and review four major pathways by which ALAN may affect ecological interaction networks by (i) impacting primary production, (ii) acting as an environmental filter affecting species survival, (iii) driving the movement and distribution of species, and (iv) changing functional roles and niches by affecting activity patterns. Using an allometric-trophic network model, we then test how a shift in temporal activity patterns for diurnal, nocturnal and crepuscular species impacts food web stability. The results indicate that diel niche shifts can severely impact community persistence by altering the temporal overlap between species, which leads to changes in interaction strengths and rewiring of networks. ALAN can thereby lead to biodiversity loss through the homogenization of temporal niches. This integrative framework aims to advance a predictive understanding of community-level and ecological-network consequences of ALAN and their cascading effects on ecosystem functioning. This article is part of the theme issue 'Light pollution in complex ecological systems'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Sanders
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Myriam R. Hirt
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07737 Jena, Germany
| | - Ulrich Brose
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07737 Jena, Germany
| | - Darren M. Evans
- School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Benoit Gauzens
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07737 Jena, Germany
| | - Remo Ryser
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07737 Jena, Germany
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8
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Cox DTC, Gaston KJ. Global erosion of terrestrial environmental space by artificial light at night. Sci Total Environ 2023; 904:166701. [PMID: 37652384 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) disrupts natural light cycles, with biological impacts that span from behaviour of individual organisms to ecosystem functions, and across bacteria, fungi, plants and animals. Global consequences have almost invariably been inferred from the geographic distribution of ALAN. How ALAN is distributed in environmental space, and the extent to which combinations of environmental conditions with natural light cycles have been lost, is also key. Globally (between 60°N and 56°S), we ordinated four bioclimatic variables at 1.61 * 1.21 km resolution to map the position and density of terrestrial pixels within nighttime environmental space. We then used the Black Marble Nighttime Lights product to determine where direct ALAN emissions were present in environmental space in 2012 and how these had expanded in environmental space by 2022. Finally, we used the World Atlas of Artificial Sky Brightness to determine the proportion of environmental space that is unaffected by ALAN across its spatial distribution. We found that by 2012 direct ALAN emissions occurred across 71.9 % of possible nighttime terrestrial environmental conditions, with temperate nighttime environments and highly modified habitats disproportionately impacted. From 2012 to 2022 direct ALAN emissions primarily grew within 34.4 % of environmental space where it was already present, with this growth concentrated in tropical environments. Additionally considering skyglow, just 13.2 % of environmental space now only experiences natural light cycles throughout its distribution. With opportunities to maintain much of environmental space under such cycles fast disappearing, the removal, reduction and amelioration of ALAN from areas of environmental space in which it is already widespread is critical.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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Gardner AS, Trew BT, Maclean IMD, Sharma MD, Gaston KJ. Wilderness areas under threat from global redistribution of agriculture. Curr Biol 2023; 33:4721-4726.e2. [PMID: 37863061 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/22/2023]
Abstract
Agriculture expansion is already the primary cause of terrestrial biodiversity loss globally1,2; yet, to meet the demands of growing human populations, production is expected to have to double by 2050.3 The challenge of achieving expansion without further detriment to the environment and biodiversity is huge and potentially compounded by climate change, which may necessitate shifting agriculture zones poleward to regions with more suitable climates,4 threatening species or areas of conservation priority.5,6,7 However, the possible future overlap between agricultural suitability and wilderness areas, increasingly recognized for significant biodiversity, cultural, and climate regulation values, has not yet been examined. Here, using high-resolution climate data, we model global present and future climate suitability for 1,708 crop varieties. We project, over the next 40 years, that 2.7 million km2 of land within wilderness will become newly suitable for agriculture, equivalent to 7% of the total wilderness area outside Antarctica. The increase in potentially cultivable land in wilderness areas is particularly acute at higher latitudes in the northern hemisphere, where 76.3% of newly suitable land is currently wilderness, equivalent to 10.2% of the total wilderness area. Our results highlight an important and previously unidentified possible consequence of the disproportionate warming known to be occurring in high northern latitudes. Because we find that, globally, 72.0% of currently cultivable land is predicted to experience a net loss in total crop diversity, agricultural expansion is a major emerging threat to wilderness. Without protection, the vital integrity of these valuable areas could be irreversibly lost.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra S Gardner
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Brittany T Trew
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Ilya M D Maclean
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Manmohan D Sharma
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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10
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Bullough K, Gaston KJ, Troscianko J. Artificial light at night causes conflicting behavioural and morphological defence responses in a marine isopod. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230725. [PMID: 37312543 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Encroachment of artificial light at night (ALAN) into natural habitats is increasingly recognized as a major source of anthropogenic disturbance. Research focussed on variation in the intensity and spectrum of ALAN emissions has established physiological, behavioural and population-level effects across plants and animals. However, little attention has been paid to the structural aspect of this light, nor how combined morphological and behavioural anti-predator adaptations are affected. We investigated how lighting structure, background reflectance and the three-dimensional properties of the environment combined to affect anti-predator defences in the marine isopod Ligia oceanica. Experimental trials monitored behavioural responses including movement and background choice, and also colour change, a widespread morphological anti-predator mechanism little considered in relation to ALAN exposure. We found that behavioural responses of isopods to ALAN were consistent with classic risk-aversion strategies, being particularly exaggerated under diffuse lighting. However, this behaviour was disconnected from optimal morphological strategies, as diffuse light caused isopods to become lighter coloured while seeking out darker backgrounds. Our work highlights the potential for the structure of natural and artificial light to play a key role in behavioural and morphological processes likely to affect anti-predator adaptations, survival, and ultimately wider ecological effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn Bullough
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Jolyon Troscianko
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn TR10 9FE, UK
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Gaston KJ, Gardner AS, Cox DTC. Anthropogenic changes to the nighttime environment. Bioscience 2023; 73:280-290. [PMID: 37091747 PMCID: PMC10113933 DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biad017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2022] [Revised: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
How the relative impacts of anthropogenic pressures on the natural environment vary between different taxonomic groups, habitats, and geographic regions is increasingly well established. By contrast, the times of day at which those pressures are most forcefully exerted or have greatest influence are not well understood. The impact on the nighttime environment bears particular scrutiny, given that for practical reasons (e.g., researchers themselves belong to a diurnal species), most studies on the impacts of anthropogenic pressures are conducted during the daytime on organisms that are predominantly day active or in ways that do not differentiate between daytime and nighttime. In the present article, we synthesize the current state of knowledge of impacts of anthropogenic pressures on the nighttime environment, highlighting key findings and examples. The evidence available suggests that the nighttime environment is under intense stress across increasing areas of the world, especially from nighttime pollution, climate change, and overexploitation of resources.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alexandra S Gardner
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom
| | - Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom
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Coetzee BW, Smit IP, Ackermann S, Gaston KJ. The impacts of artificial light at night in Africa: Prospects for a research agenda. S AFR J SCI 2023. [DOI: 10.17159/sajs.2023/13988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) has increasingly been recognised as one of the world’s most pernicious global change drivers that can negatively impact both human and environmental health. However, when compared to work elsewhere, the dearth of research into the mapping, expansion trajectories and consequences of ALAN in Africa is a surprising oversight by its research community. Here, we outline the scope of ALAN research and elucidate key areas in which the African research community could usefully accelerate work in this field. These areas particularly relate to how African conditions present underappreciated caveats to the quantification of ALAN, that the continent experiences unique challenges associated with ALAN, and that these also pose scientific opportunities to understanding its health and environmental impacts. As Africa is still relatively free from the high levels of ALAN found elsewhere, exciting possibilities exist to shape the continent’s developmental trajectories to mitigate ALAN impacts and help ensure the prosperity of its people and environment.
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13
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Soga M, Gaston KJ. Nature benefit hypothesis: Direct experiences of nature predict self‐reported pro‐biodiversity behaviors. Conserv Lett 2023. [DOI: 10.1111/conl.12945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/07/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Masashi Soga
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences The University of Tokyo Bunkyo Tokyo Japan
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn Cornwall UK
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14
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Jolkkonen J, Gaston KJ, Troscianko J. Artificial lighting affects the landscape of fear in a widely distributed shorebird. Commun Biol 2023; 6:131. [PMID: 36721045 PMCID: PMC9889372 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04486-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Fear influences almost all aspects of a prey species' behaviour, such as its foraging and movement, and has the potential to cause trophic cascades. The superior low-light vision of many predators means that perceived predation risk in prey is likely to be affected by light levels. The widespread and increasing intensity of artificial light at night is therefore likely to interfere with this nocturnal visual arms race with unknown behavioural and ecological consequences. Here we test how the fear of predation perceived by wintering Eurasian curlew foraging on tidal flats is influenced by lighting. We quantified flight initiation distance (FID) of individuals under varying levels of natural and artificial illumination. Our results demonstrate that FID is significantly and substantially reduced at low light levels and increases under higher intensity illumination, with artificial light sources having a greater influence than natural sources. Contrary to the sensory-limitation hypothesis, the curlews' unwillingness to take flight in low-light appears to reflect the risks posed by low-light flight, and a desire to remain on valuable foraging grounds. These findings demonstrate how artificial light can shape the landscape of fear, and how this interacts with optimal foraging decisions, and the costs of taking flight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juho Jolkkonen
- grid.9681.60000 0001 1013 7965Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- grid.8391.30000 0004 1936 8024Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall UK
| | - Jolyon Troscianko
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, UK.
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15
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Soga M, Gaston KJ, Fukano Y, Evans MJ. The vicious cycle of biophobia. Trends Ecol Evol 2023; 38:512-520. [PMID: 36707258 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.12.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
People can express irrational fears and disgust responses towards certain wild organisms. This so-called 'biophobia' can be useful and indeed necessary in some circumstances. Biophobia can, however, also lead to excessive distress and anxiety which, in turn, can result in people avoiding interactions with nature. Here, we highlight concern that this reduction in interactions with nature might lead to progressive increases in biophobia, entrenching it more in individuals and across society. We propose the 'vicious cycle of biophobia', a concept that encapsulates how excessive aversion towards nature might emerge and grow in society. The vicious cycle of biophobia risks accelerating the extinction of experience, leading to long-term adverse consequences for the conservation of biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masashi Soga
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Yuya Fukano
- Graduate School of Horticulture, Chiba University, 1-33, Yayoi, Inage, Chiba 263-8522, Japan
| | - Maldwyn J Evans
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 0200, Australia
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16
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Abstract
Biodiversity is being eroded worldwide. Many human pressures are most forcefully exerted or have greatest effect during a particular period of the day. Therefore when species are physically active (their diel niche) may influence their risk of population decline. We grouped 5032 terrestrial extant mammals by their dominant activity pattern (nocturnal, crepuscular, cathemeral and diurnal), and determine variation in population decline across diel niches. We find an increased risk of population decline in diurnal (52.1% of species), compared to nocturnal (40.1% of species), crepuscular (39.1% of species) and cathemeral (43.0% of species) species, associated with the larger proportion of diurnal mammals that are primates. Those species with declining populations whose activity predominantly coincides with that of humans (cathemeral, diurnal) face an increased number of anthropogenic threats than those principally active at night, with diurnal species more likely to be declining from harvesting. Across much of the land surface habitat loss is the predominant driver of population decline, however, harvesting is a greater threat to day-active species in sub-Saharan Africa and mainland tropical Asia, associated with declines in megafauna and arboreal foragers. Deepening understanding of diel variation in anthropogenic pressures and resulting population declines will help target conservation actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Alexandra S Gardner
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
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17
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Sutherland WJ, Bennett C, Brotherton PNM, Butterworth HM, Clout MN, Côté IM, Dinsdale J, Esmail N, Fleishman E, Gaston KJ, Herbert-Read JE, Hughes A, Kaartokallio H, Le Roux X, Lickorish FA, Matcham W, Noor N, Palardy JE, Pearce-Higgins JW, Peck LS, Pettorelli N, Pretty J, Scobey R, Spalding MD, Tonneijck FH, Tubbs N, Watson JEM, Wentworth JE, Wilson JD, Thornton A. A global biological conservation horizon scan of issues for 2023. Trends Ecol Evol 2023; 38:96-107. [PMID: 36460563 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
We present the results of our 14th horizon scan of issues we expect to influence biological conservation in the future. From an initial set of 102 topics, our global panel of 30 scientists and practitioners identified 15 issues we consider most urgent for societies worldwide to address. Issues are novel within biological conservation or represent a substantial positive or negative step change at global or regional scales. Issues such as submerged artificial light fisheries and accelerating upper ocean currents could have profound negative impacts on marine or coastal ecosystems. We also identified potentially positive technological advances, including energy production and storage, improved fertilisation methods, and expansion of biodegradable materials. If effectively managed, these technologies could realise future benefits for biological diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- William J Sutherland
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; Biosecurity Research Initiative at St Catharine's (BioRISC), St Catharine's College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| | - Craig Bennett
- Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, The Kiln, Waterside, Mather Road, Newark, Nottinghamshire NG24 1WT, UK
| | - Peter N M Brotherton
- Natural England, 4th Floor Foss House, Kings Pool, 1-2 Peasholme Green, York YO1 7PX, UK
| | - Holly M Butterworth
- Natural Resources Wales, Cambria House, 29 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0TP, UK
| | - Mick N Clout
- Centre for Biodiversity and Biosecurity, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, PB 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Isabelle M Côté
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, Canada
| | - Jason Dinsdale
- Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol BS1 5AH, UK
| | - Nafeesa Esmail
- Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo, 1300 Zoo Road NE, Calgary, AB T2E 7V6, Canada
| | - Erica Fleishman
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | | | - Alice Hughes
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
| | | | - Xavier Le Roux
- University of Lyon, Microbial Ecology Centre, INRAE (UMR1418), CNRS (UMR5557), University Lyon 1, 69622 Villeurbanne, France
| | - Fiona A Lickorish
- UK Research and Consultancy Services (RCS) Ltd, Valletts Cottage, Westhope, Hereford HR4 8BU, UK
| | - Wendy Matcham
- Natural Environment Research Council, UK Research and Innovation, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1FL, UK
| | - Noor Noor
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | - James E Palardy
- The Pew Charitable Trusts, 901 E St. NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA
| | - James W Pearce-Higgins
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, UK
| | - Lloyd S Peck
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - Jules Pretty
- Centre for Public and Policy Engagement and School of Life Sciences, University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK
| | - Richard Scobey
- TRAFFIC, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Mark D Spalding
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; The Nature Conservancy, Strade delle Tolfe, 14, Siena 53100, Italy
| | | | - Nicolas Tubbs
- WWF-Belgium, BD Emile Jacqumainlaan 90, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - James E M Watson
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Jonathan E Wentworth
- Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 14 Tothill Street, Westminster, London SW1H 9NB, UK
| | - Jeremy D Wilson
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, 2 Lochside View, Edinburgh EH12 9DH, UK
| | - Ann Thornton
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
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18
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Chapman KE, Cozma NE, Hodgkinson AB, English R, Gaston KJ, Hempel de Ibarra N. Bumble bees exploit known sources but return with partial pollen loads when foraging under low evening light. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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19
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Cox DTC, Sánchez de Miguel A, Bennie J, Dzurjak SA, Gaston KJ. Majority of artificially lit Earth surface associated with the non-urban population. Sci Total Environ 2022; 841:156782. [PMID: 35724779 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Key to understanding the negative impacts of artificial light at night (ALAN) on human health and the natural environment is its relationship with human density. ALAN has often primarily been considered an urban issue, however although over half of the population is urbanized, the 46 % that are not inhabit a dispersed array of smaller settlements. Here, we determine the global relationships between two dimensions of ALAN, namely direct emissions (radiance) and skyglow, and human density, and how these relationships vary across continents. We correct the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite Day/Night Band (VIIRS DNB) product for albedo, skyglow, airglow, the aurora and permanent snow and ice to represent upward radiance overland at 1.61 ∗ 2.12 km resolution from artificial sources only. For skyglow we use the World Atlas of Artificial Sky Brightness. Globally (between 59°N and 55°S), direct emissions were detected over 26.5 % and skyglow over 46.9 % of land area. Over half of all cumulative direct emissions (54.9 %) were emitted at low levels by the non-urban population, whilst these populations experienced the negative impacts of over two-thirds of all cumulative skyglow (69.8 %). This emphasises the extent of ALAN outside of urban areas, and its similarity in this regard to a number of other forms of pollution. Although powerful sources of rural direct emissions (e.g., industry, recreation) are important contributors of light pollution, cumulatively they only contributed 10 % to total direct emissions. The relationship between each dimension of ALAN and population density varied across continents, driven by powerful rural emissions, non-urban populations and urban design. These relationships reflect the unique socio-economic and geographical make-up of each region and inform on where best to target light pollution mitigation strategies, not only in urban areas but also in rural ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- D T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - A Sánchez de Miguel
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK; Departamento de Física de la Tierra y Astrofísica, Instituto de Física de Partículas y del Cosmos (IPARCOS), Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain
| | - J Bennie
- Peter Lanyon Building, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - S A Dzurjak
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - K J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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20
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Gaston KJ. Birds and ecosystem services. Curr Biol 2022; 32:R1163-R1166. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.07.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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21
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Sánchez de Miguel A, Bennie J, Rosenfeld E, Dzurjak S, Gaston KJ. Environmental risks from artificial nighttime lighting widespread and increasing across Europe. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabl6891. [PMID: 36103525 PMCID: PMC9473566 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abl6891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The nighttime environment of much of Earth is being changed rapidly by the introduction of artificial lighting. While data on spatial and temporal variation in the intensity of artificial lighting have been available at a regional and global scale, data on variation in its spectral composition have only been collected for a few locations, preventing variation in associated environmental and human health risks from being mapped. Here, we use imagery obtained using digital cameras by astronauts on the International Space Station to map variation in the spectral composition of lighting across Europe for 2012-2013 and 2014-2020. These show a regionally widespread spectral shift, from that associated principally with high-pressure sodium lighting to that associated with broad white light-emitting diodes and with greater blue emissions. Reexpressing the color maps in terms of spectral indicators of environmental pressures, we find that this trend is widely increasing the risk of harmful effects to ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Sánchez de Miguel
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
- Departamento de Física de la Tierra y Astrofísica, Instituto de Física de Particulas y del Cosmos (IPARCOS), Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jonathan Bennie
- Centre for Geography and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Emma Rosenfeld
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Simon Dzurjak
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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22
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Durán AP, Barbosa O, Gaston KJ. Understanding the interacting factors that determine ecological effectiveness of terrestrial protected areas. J Nat Conserv 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jnc.2022.126264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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23
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Cox DTC, Gardner AS, Gaston KJ. Global and regional erosion of mammalian functional diversity across the diel cycle. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabn6008. [PMID: 35960803 PMCID: PMC9374345 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn6008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Biodiversity is declining worldwide. When species are physically active (i.e., their diel niche) may influence their risk of becoming functionally extinct. It may also affect how species losses affect ecosystems. For 5033 terrestrial mammals, we predict future changes to diel global and local functional diversity through a gradient of progressive functional extinction scenarios of threatened species. Across scenarios, diurnal species were at greater risk of becoming functionally extinct than nocturnal, crepuscular, and cathemeral species, resulting in deep functional losses in global diurnal trait space. Redundancy (species with similar roles) will buffer global nocturnal functional diversity; however, across the land surface, losses will mostly occur among functionally dispersed species (species with distinct roles). Functional extinctions will constrict boundaries of cathemeral trait space as megaherbivores, and arboreal foragers are lost. Variation in the erosion of functional diversity across the daily cycle will likely profoundly affect the partitioning of ecosystem functioning between night and day.
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24
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Anic V, Gaston KJ, Davies TW, Bennie J. Long‐term effects of artificial nighttime lighting and trophic complexity on plant biomass and foliar carbon and nitrogen in a grassland community. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9157. [PMID: 35949540 PMCID: PMC9352868 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The introduction of artificial nighttime lighting due to human settlements and transport networks is increasingly altering the timing, intensity, and spectra of natural light regimes worldwide. Much of the research on the impacts of nighttime light pollution on organisms has focused on animal species. Little is known about the impacts of daylength extension due to outdoor lighting technologies on wild plant communities, despite the fact that plant growth and development are under photoperiodic control. In a five‐year field experiment, artificial ecosystems (“mesocosms”) of grassland communities both alone or in combination with invertebrate herbivores and predators were exposed to light treatments that simulated street lighting technologies (low‐pressure sodium, and light‐emitting diode [LED]‐based white lighting), at ground‐level illuminance. Most of the plant species in the mesocosms did not exhibit changes in biomass accumulation after 5 years of exposure to the light treatments. However, the white LED treatment had a significant negative effect on biomass production in the herbaceous species Lotus pedunculatus. Likewise, the interaction between the white LED treatment and the presence of herbivores significantly reduced the mean shoot/root ratio of the grass species Holcus lanatus. Artificial nighttime lighting had no effect on the foliar carbon or nitrogen in most of the grassland species. Nevertheless, the white LED treatment significantly increased the leaf nitrogen content in Lotus corniculatus in the presence of herbivores. Long‐term exposure to artificial light at night had no general effects on plant biomass responses in experimental grassland communities. However, species‐specific and negative effects of cool white LED lighting at ground‐level illuminance on biomass production and allocation in mixed plant communities are suggested by our findings. Further studies on the impacts of light pollution on biomass accumulation in plant communities are required as these effects could be mediated by different factors, including herbivory, competition, and soil nutrient availability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vinka Anic
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Thomas W. Davies
- School of Biological and Marine Sciences University of Plymouth Plymouth UK
| | - Jonathan Bennie
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
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25
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Sanders D, Baker DJ, Cruse D, Bell F, van Veen FJF, Gaston KJ. Spectrum of artificial light at night drives impact of a diurnal species in insect food web. Sci Total Environ 2022; 831:154893. [PMID: 35364173 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) has become a profound form of global anthropogenic environmental change differing in from natural light regimes in intensity, duration, distribution and spectra. It is clear that ALAN impacts individual organisms, however, population level effects, particularly of spectral changes, remain poorly understood. Here we exposed experimental multigenerational aphid-parasitoid communities in the field to seven different light spectra at night ranging from 385 to 630 nm and compared responses to a natural day-night light regime. We found that while aphid population growth was initially unaffected by ALAN, parasitoid efficiency declined under most ALAN spectra, leading to reduced top-down control and higher aphid densities. These results differ from those previously found for white light, showing a strong impact on species' daytime performance. This highlights the importance of ALAN spectra when considering their environmental impact. ALAN can have large impacts on the wider ecological community by influencing diurnal species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Sanders
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.
| | - David J Baker
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Dave Cruse
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Fraser Bell
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Frank J F van Veen
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
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26
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Soga M, Gaston KJ. The dark side of nature experience: Typology, dynamics and implications of negative sensory interactions with nature. People and Nature 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Masashi Soga
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences The University of Tokyo Bunkyo Tokyo Japan
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
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27
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
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28
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Fish R, Chan KMA, Maller C, Hails RS, Aimé E, Gaston KJ. People and nature: The emerging signature of a relational journal. People and Nature 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Robert Fish
- School of Anthropology and Conservation University of Kent Kent UK
| | - Kai M. A. Chan
- Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia Canada
| | - Cecily Maller
- Centre for Urban Research RMIT University Melbourne Victoria Australia
| | | | | | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Exeter UK
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29
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Jarić I, Roll U, Bonaiuto M, Brook BW, Courchamp F, Firth JA, Gaston KJ, Heger T, Jeschke JM, Ladle RJ, Meinard Y, Roberts DL, Sherren K, Soga M, Soriano-Redondo A, Veríssimo D, Correia RA. Societal extinction of species. Trends Ecol Evol 2022; 37:411-419. [PMID: 35181167 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2021.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 12/21/2021] [Accepted: 12/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The ongoing global biodiversity crisis not only involves biological extinctions, but also the loss of experience and the gradual fading of cultural knowledge and collective memory of species. We refer to this phenomenon as 'societal extinction of species' and apply it to both extinct and extant taxa. We describe the underlying concepts as well as the mechanisms and factors that affect this process, discuss its main implications, and identify mitigation measures. Societal extinction is cognitively intractable, but it is tied to biological extinction and thus has important consequences for conservation policy and management. It affects societal perceptions of the severity of anthropogenic impacts and of true extinction rates, erodes societal support for conservation efforts, and causes the loss of cultural heritage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Jarić
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Hydrobiology, České Budějovice, Czech Republic; Department of Ecosystem Biology,(,) Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, České Budějovice, Czech Republic.
| | - Uri Roll
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Marino Bonaiuto
- CIRPA Centro Interuniversitario di Ricerca in Psicologia Ambientale, Dipartimento di Psicologia dei Processi di Sviluppo e Socializzazione, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Barry W Brook
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - Franck Courchamp
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Orsay, France
| | - Josh A Firth
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, UK
| | - Tina Heger
- Technical University of Munich, Restoration Ecology, Freising, Germany; Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Berlin, Germany; Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany; Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jonathan M Jeschke
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Berlin, Germany; Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany; Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Richard J Ladle
- CIBIO/InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal; Institute of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Alagoas, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil
| | - Yves Meinard
- Université Paris Dauphine, PSL Research University, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - David L Roberts
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, UK
| | - Kate Sherren
- School for Resource and Environmental Studies, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada
| | - Masashi Soga
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Andrea Soriano-Redondo
- Helsinki Lab of Interdisciplinary Conservation Science (HELICS), Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science (HELSUS), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | | | - Ricardo A Correia
- Institute of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Alagoas, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil; Helsinki Lab of Interdisciplinary Conservation Science (HELICS), Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science (HELSUS), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; CESAM - Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
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30
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Chang CC, Cox DTC, Fan Q, Nghiem TPL, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ, Carrasco LR. People's desire to be in nature and how they experience it are partially heritable. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001500. [PMID: 35113853 PMCID: PMC8812842 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2021] [Accepted: 11/29/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Nature experiences have been linked to mental and physical health. Despite the importance of understanding what determines individual variation in nature experience, the role of genes has been overlooked. Here, using a twin design (TwinsUK, number of individuals = 2,306), we investigate the genetic and environmental contributions to a person's nature orientation, opportunity (living in less urbanized areas), and different dimensions of nature experience (frequency and duration of public nature space visits and frequency and duration of garden visits). We estimate moderate heritability of nature orientation (46%) and nature experiences (48% for frequency of public nature space visits, 34% for frequency of garden visits, and 38% for duration of garden visits) and show their genetic components partially overlap. We also find that the environmental influences on nature experiences are moderated by the level of urbanization of the home district. Our study demonstrates genetic contributions to individuals' nature experiences, opening a new dimension for the study of human-nature interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chia-Chen Chang
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Daniel T C Cox
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom
| | - Qiao Fan
- Centre for Quantitative Medicine, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | | | - Claudia L Y Tan
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Rachel Rui Ying Oh
- School of Biological Sciences, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Brenda B Lin
- CSIRO Land & Water Flagship, Dutton Park, Queensland, Australia
| | - Danielle F Shanahan
- Centre for People and Nature, Zealandia Ecosanctuary, Wellington, New Zealand.,Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Richard A Fuller
- School of Biological Sciences, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom
| | - L Roman Carrasco
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
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31
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Coetzee BWT, Gaston KJ, Koekemoer LL, Kruger T, Riddin MA, Smit IPJ. Artificial Light as a Modulator of Mosquito-Borne Disease Risk. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.768090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Light is a fundamental cue regulating a host of biological responses. The artificial modification thereof demonstrably impacts a wide range of organisms. The use of artificial light is changing in type, extent and intensity. Insect vector-borne diseases remain a global scourge, but surprisingly few studies have directly investigated the interactions between artificial light and disease vectors, such as mosquitoes. Here we briefly overview the progress to date, which highlights that artificial light must be considered as a modulator of mosquito-borne disease risk. We discuss where the mechanisms may lie, and where future research could usefully be directed, particularly in advancing understanding of the biological effects of the light environment. Further understanding of how artificial light may modulate mosquito-borne disease risk may assist in employing and redesigning light regimes that do not increase, and may even mitigate, already significant disease burdens, especially in the developing world.
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32
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Sutherland WJ, Atkinson PW, Butchart SHM, Capaja M, Dicks LV, Fleishman E, Gaston KJ, Hails RS, Hughes AC, Le Anstey B, Le Roux X, Lickorish FA, Maggs L, Noor N, Oldfield TEE, Palardy JE, Peck LS, Pettorelli N, Pretty J, Spalding MD, Tonneijck FH, Truelove G, Watson JEM, Wentworth J, Wilson JD, Thornton A. A horizon scan of global biological conservation issues for 2022. Trends Ecol Evol 2021; 37:95-104. [PMID: 34809998 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2021.10.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
We present the results of our 13th annual horizon scan of issues likely to impact on biodiversity conservation. Issues are either novel within the biological conservation sector or could cause a substantial step-change in impact, either globally or regionally. Our global panel of 26 scientists and practitioners identified 15 issues that we believe to represent the highest priorities for tracking and action. Many of the issues we identified, including the impact of satellite megaconstellations and the use of long-distance wireless energy transfer, have both elements of threats and emerging opportunities. A recent state-sponsored application to commence deep-sea mining represents a significant step-change in impact. We hope that this horizon scan will increase research and policy attention on the highlighted issues.
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Affiliation(s)
- William J Sutherland
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; Biosecurity Research Initiative at St Catharine's (BioRISC), St Catharine's College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1RL, UK.
| | | | - Stuart H M Butchart
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; BirdLife International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Marcela Capaja
- Natural England, Eastbrook, Shaftesbury Rd, Cambridge CB2 8DR, UK
| | - Lynn V Dicks
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Erica Fleishman
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | | | - Alice C Hughes
- Centre for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan 666303, PR China
| | - Becky Le Anstey
- Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol BS1 5AH, UK
| | - Xavier Le Roux
- Microbial Ecology Centre, UMR1418 INRAE, UMR5557 CNRS, University Lyon 1, University of Lyon, 69622 Villeurbanne, France; BiodivERsA, la Fondation pour la recherche sur la biodiversité, 195 rue Saint Jacques, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Fiona A Lickorish
- UK Research and Consultancy Services (RCS) Ltd, Valletts Cottage, Westhope, Hereford HR4 8BU, UK
| | - Luke Maggs
- Natural Resources Wales, Cambria House, 29 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0TP, UK
| | - Noor Noor
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK
| | | | - James E Palardy
- The Pew Charitable Trusts, 901 E St NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA
| | - Lloyd S Peck
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - Jules Pretty
- Centre for Public and Policy Engagement and School of Life Sciences, University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK
| | - Mark D Spalding
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; The Nature Conservancy, Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Pian dei Mantellini, Siena 53100, Italy
| | | | - Gemma Truelove
- UK Research and Innovation, Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1EU, UK
| | - James E M Watson
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Jonathan Wentworth
- Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 14 Tothill Street, Westminster, London SW1H 9NB, UK
| | - Jeremy D Wilson
- Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) Centre for Conservation Science, 2 Lochside View, Edinburgh EH12 9DH, UK
| | - Ann Thornton
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
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33
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Chang CC, Nghiem TPL, Fan Q, Tan CLY, Oh RRY, Lin BB, Shanahan DF, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ, Carrasco LR. Genetic Contribution to Concern for Nature and Proenvironmental Behavior. Bioscience 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biab103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Earth is undergoing a devastating extinction crisis caused by human impacts on nature, but only a fraction of society is strongly concerned and acting on the crisis. Understanding what determines people's concern for nature, environmental movement activism, and personal conservation behavior is fundamental if sustainability is to be achieved. Despite its potential importance, the study of the genetic contribution to concern for nature and proenvironmental behaviors has been neglected. Using a twin data set (N = 2312), we show moderate heritability (30%–40%) for concern for nature, environmental movement activism, and personal conservation behavior and high genetic correlations between them (.6–.7), suggesting a partially shared genetic basis. Our results shed light on the individual variation in sustainable behaviors, highlighting the importance of understanding both the environmental and genetic components in the pursuit of sustainability.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Qiao Fan
- Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | | | - Rachel Rui Ying Oh
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Brenda B Lin
- CSIRO Land and Water Flagship, Dutton Park, Queensland, Australia
| | | | - Richard A Fuller
- Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom
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Lockett MT, Jones TM, Elgar MA, Gaston KJ, Visser ME, Hopkins GR. Urban street lighting differentially affects community attributes of airborne and ground‐dwelling invertebrate assemblages. J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Martin T. Lockett
- School of BioSciences University of Melbourne Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Therésa M. Jones
- School of BioSciences University of Melbourne Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Mark A. Elgar
- School of BioSciences University of Melbourne Melbourne Vic. Australia
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn Cornwall UK
| | - Marcel E. Visser
- Department of Animal Ecology Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO‐KNAW) Wageningen The Netherlands
| | - Gareth R. Hopkins
- School of BioSciences University of Melbourne Melbourne Vic. Australia
- Department of Biology Western Oregon University Monmouth OR USA
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35
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McNaughton EJ, Gaston KJ, Beggs JR, Jones DN, Stanley MC. Areas of ecological importance are exposed to risk from urban sky glow: Auckland, Aotearoa-New Zealand as a case study. Urban Ecosyst 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s11252-021-01149-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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36
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Briolat ES, Gaston KJ, Bennie J, Rosenfeld EJ, Troscianko J. Artificial nighttime lighting impacts visual ecology links between flowers, pollinators and predators. Nat Commun 2021; 12:4163. [PMID: 34230463 PMCID: PMC8260664 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24394-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The nighttime environment is being altered rapidly over large areas worldwide through introduction of artificial lighting, from streetlights and other sources. This is predicted to impact the visual ecology of many organisms, affecting both their intra- and interspecific interactions. Here, we show the effects of different artificial light sources on multiple aspects of hawkmoth visual ecology, including their perception of floral signals for pollination, the potential for intraspecific sexual signalling, and the effectiveness of their visual defences against avian predators. Light sources fall into three broad categories: some that prevent use of chromatic signals for these behaviours, others that more closely mimic natural lighting conditions, and, finally, types whose effects vary with light intensity and signal colour. We find that Phosphor Converted (PC) amber LED lighting – often suggested to be less harmful to nocturnal insects – falls into this third disruptive group, with unpredictable consequences for insect visual ecology depending on distance from the light source and the colour of the objects viewed. The diversity of impacts of artificial lighting on hawkmoth visual ecology alone argues for a nuanced approach to outdoor lighting in environmentally sensitive areas, employing intensities and spectra designed to limit those effects of most significant concern. Artificial light at night is a major way in which humans are altering the environment, impacting the ecology and behaviour of other species. Modelling how nocturnal hawkmoths see and are seen under multiple light sources suggests a range of potentially disruptive impacts on key behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan Bennie
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Emma J Rosenfeld
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Jolyon Troscianko
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK.
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37
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Lin BB, Ossola A, Alberti M, Andersson E, Bai X, Dobbs C, Elmqvist T, Evans KL, Frantzeskaki N, Fuller RA, Gaston KJ, Haase D, Jim CY, Konijnendijk C, Nagendra H, Niemelä J, McPhearson T, Moomaw WR, Parnell S, Pataki D, Ripple WJ, Tan PY. Integrating solutions to adapt cities for climate change. Lancet Planet Health 2021; 5:e479-e486. [PMID: 34245718 DOI: 10.1016/s2542-5196(21)00135-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Record climate extremes are reducing urban liveability, compounding inequality, and threatening infrastructure. Adaptation measures that integrate technological, nature-based, and social solutions can provide multiple co-benefits to address complex socioecological issues in cities while increasing resilience to potential impacts. However, there remain many challenges to developing and implementing integrated solutions. In this Viewpoint, we consider the value of integrating across the three solution sets, the challenges and potential enablers for integrating solution sets, and present examples of challenges and adopted solutions in three cities with different urban contexts and climates (Freiburg, Germany; Durban, South Africa; and Singapore). We conclude with a discussion of research directions and provide a road map to identify the actions that enable successful implementation of integrated climate solutions. We highlight the need for more systematic research that targets enabling environments for integration; achieving integrated solutions in different contexts to avoid maladaptation; simultaneously improving liveability, sustainability, and equality; and replicating via transfer and scale-up of local solutions. Cities in systematically disadvantaged countries (sometimes referred to as the Global South) are central to future urban development and must be prioritised. Helping decision makers and communities understand the potential opportunities associated with integrated solutions for climate change will encourage urgent and deliberate strides towards adapting cities to the dynamic climate reality.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alessandro Ossola
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA, USA; Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, University of Melbourne, Burnley, VIC, Australia
| | - Marina Alberti
- Department of Urban Design and Planning, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Erik Andersson
- Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm, Sweden; Unit for Environmental Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
| | - Xuemei Bai
- Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
| | - Cynnamon Dobbs
- Center for Modeling and Monitoring Ecosystems, School of Forest Engineering, Faculty of Science, Universidad Mayor, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Karl L Evans
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Niki Frantzeskaki
- Centre for Urban Transitions, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Richard A Fuller
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Dagmar Haase
- Department of Geography, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany; Department Computational Landscape Ecology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Chi Yung Jim
- Department of Social Sciences, Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Cecil Konijnendijk
- Department of Forest Resources Management, University of British Columbia, BC, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Harini Nagendra
- Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru, India
| | | | - Timon McPhearson
- Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm, Sweden; Urban Systems Lab, New School, New York, NY, USA; Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY, USA
| | - William R Moomaw
- Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA; Woodwell Climate Research Center, Falmouth, MA, USA
| | - Susan Parnell
- African Centre for Cities, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa; School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Diane Pataki
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - William J Ripple
- Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
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38
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Gaston KJ, Ackermann S, Bennie J, Cox DTC, Phillips BB, de Miguel AS, Sanders D. Pervasiveness of biological impacts of artificial light at night. Integr Comp Biol 2021; 61:1098-1110. [PMID: 34169964 PMCID: PMC8490694 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icab145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2021] [Revised: 05/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) and its associated biological impacts have regularly been characterized as predominantly urban issues. Although far from trivial, this would imply that these impacts only affect ecosystems that are already heavily modified by humans and are relatively limited in their spatial extent, at least as compared with some key anthropogenic pressures on the environment that attract much more scientific and public attention, such as climate change or plastic pollution. However, there are a number of reasons to believe that ALAN and its impacts are more pervasive, and therefore need to be viewed from a broader geographic perspective rather than an essentially urban one. Here we address, in turn, 11 key issues when considering the degree of spatial pervasiveness of the biological impacts of ALAN. First, the global extent of ALAN is likely itself commonly underestimated, as a consequence of limitations of available remote sensing data sources and how these are processed. Second and third, more isolated (rural) and mobile (e.g., vehicle headlight) sources of ALAN may have both very widespread and important biological influences. Fourth and fifth, the occurrence and impacts of ALAN in marine systems and other remote settings, need much greater consideration. Sixth, seventh, and eighth, there is growing evidence for important biological impacts of ALAN at low light levels, from skyglow, and over long distances (because of the altitudes from which it may be viewed by some organisms), all of which would increase the areas over which impacts are occurring. Ninth and tenth, ALAN may exert indirect biological effects that may further expand these areas, because it has a landscape ecology (modifying movement and dispersal and so hence with effects beyond the direct extent of ALAN), and because ALAN interacts with other anthropogenic pressures on the environment. Finally, ALAN is not stable, but increasing rapidly in global extent, and shifting toward wavelengths of light that often have greater biological impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | - Simone Ackermann
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | - Jonathan Bennie
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | - Daniel T C Cox
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | - Benjamin B Phillips
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | | | - Dirk Sanders
- Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, U.K
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39
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Phillips BB, Bullock JM, Osborne JL, Gaston KJ. Spatial extent of road pollution: A national analysis. Sci Total Environ 2021; 773:145589. [PMID: 33940735 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Roads form vast, pervasive and growing networks across the Earth, causing negative environmental impacts that spill out into a 'road-effect zone'. Previous research has estimated the regional and global extent of these zones using arbitrary distances, ignoring the spatial distribution and distance-dependent attenuation of different forms of road environmental impact. With Great Britain as a study area, we used mapping of roads and realistic estimates of how pollution levels decay with distance to project the spatial distribution of road pollution. We found that 25% of land was less than 79 m from a road, 50% of land was less than 216 m and 75% of land was less than 527 m. Roadless areas were scarce, and confined almost exclusively to the uplands (mean elevation 391 m), with only ca 12% of land in Great Britain more than 1 km from roads and <4% of land more than 2.5 km from roads. Using light, noise, heavy metals, NO2, and particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 as examples, we estimate that roads have a zone of influence that extends across >70% of the land area. Potentially less than 6% of land escapes any impact, resulting in nearly ubiquitously elevated pollution levels. Generalising from this, we find that, whilst the greatest levels of road pollution are relatively localised around the busiest roads, low levels of road pollution (which may be ecologically significant) are pervasive. Our findings demonstrate the importance of incorporating greater realism into road-effect zones and considering the ubiquity of road pollution in global environmental issues. We used Great Britain as a study area, but the findings likely apply to other densely populated regions at present, and to many additional regions in the future due to the predicted rapid expansion of the global road network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin B Phillips
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - James M Bullock
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB, UK
| | - Juliet L Osborne
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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40
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Soga M, Evans MJ, Cox DTC, Gaston KJ. Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on human-nature interactions: Pathways, evidence and implications. People Nat (Hoboken) 2021; 3:518-527. [PMID: 34230912 PMCID: PMC8251160 DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the global response have dramatically changed people's lifestyles in much of the world. These major changes, as well as the associated changes in impacts on the environment, can alter the dynamics of the direct interactions between humans and nature (hereafter human-nature interactions) far beyond those concerned with animals as sources of novel human coronavirus infections. There may be a variety of consequences for both people and nature.Here, we suggest a conceptual framework for understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic might affect the dynamics of human-nature interactions. This highlights three different, but not mutually exclusive, pathways: changes in (a) opportunity, (b) capability and (c) motivation.Through this framework, we also suggest that there are several feedback loops by which changes in human-nature interactions induced by the COVID-19 pandemic can lead to further changes in these interactions such that the impacts of the pandemic could persist over the long term, including after it has ended.The COVID-19 pandemic, which has had the most tragic consequences, can also be viewed as a 'global natural experiment' in human-nature interactions that can provide unprecedented mechanistic insights into the complex processes and dynamics of these interactions and into possible strategies to manage them to best effect. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masashi Soga
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life SciencesThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
| | - Maldwyn J. Evans
- Graduate School of Agricultural and Life SciencesThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
- Fenner School of Environment and SocietyThe Australian National UniversityCanberraACTAustralia
| | - Daniel T. C. Cox
- Environment and Sustainability InstituteUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability InstituteUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
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41
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Hall K, Robert T, Gaston KJ, Hempel de Ibarra N. Onset of morning activity in bumblebee foragers under natural low light conditions. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:6536-6545. [PMID: 34141238 PMCID: PMC8207423 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2020] [Revised: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Foraging on flowers in low light at dusk and dawn comes at an additional cost for insect pollinators with diurnal vision. Nevertheless, some species are known to be frequently active at these times. To explore how early and under which light levels colonies of bumblebees, Bombus terrestris, initiate their foraging activity, we tracked foragers of different body sizes using RFID over 5 consecutive days during warm periods of the flowering season. Bees that left the colony at lower light levels and earlier in the day were larger in size. This result extends the evidence for alloethism in bumblebees and shows that foragers differ in their task specialization depending on body size. By leaving the colony earlier to find and exploit flowers in low light, larger-sized foragers are aided by their more sensitive eyes and can effectively increase their contributions to the colony's food influx. The decision to leave the colony early seems to be further facilitated by knowledge about profitable food resources in specific locations. We observed that experience accrued over many foraging flights determined whether a bee started foraging under lower light levels and earlier in the morning. Larger-sized bees were not more experienced than smaller-sized bees, confirming earlier observations of wide size ranges among active foragers. Overall, we found that most foragers left at higher light levels when they could see well and fly faster. Nevertheless, a small proportion of foragers left the colony shortly after the onset of dawn when light levels were below 10 lux. Our observations suggest that bumblebee colonies have the potential to balance the benefits of deploying large-sized or experienced foragers during dawn against the risks and costs of foraging under low light by regulating the onset of their activity at different stages of the colony's life cycle and in changing environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie Hall
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, PsychologyUniversity of ExeterExeterUK
| | - Théo Robert
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, PsychologyUniversity of ExeterExeterUK
- Present address:
Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Biosciences InstituteNewcastle UniversityNewcastle upon TyneUK
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability InstituteUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
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42
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard W.T. Coetzee
- Department of Zoology & Entomology University of Pretoria Hatfield South Africa
- Scientific Services South African National Parks Skukuza South Africa
- Global Change Institute University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg South Africa
| | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn Cornwall United Kingdom
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43
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Abstract
Mammalian life shows huge diversity, but most groups remain nocturnal in their activity pattern. A key unresolved question is whether mammal species that have diversified into different diel niches occupy unique regions of functional trait space. For 5,104 extant mammals we show here that daytime-active species (cathemeral or diurnal) evolved trait combinations along different gradients from those of nocturnal and crepuscular species. Hypervolumes of five major functional traits (body mass, litter size, diet, foraging strata, habitat breadth) reveal that 30% of diurnal trait space is unique, compared to 55% of nocturnal trait space. Almost half of trait space (44%) of species with apparently obligate diel niches is shared with those that can switch, suggesting that more species than currently realised may be somewhat flexible in their activity patterns. Increasingly, conservation measures have focused on protecting functionally unique species; for mammals, protecting functional distinctiveness requires a focus across diel niches.
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Affiliation(s)
- D T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - A S Gardner
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - K J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
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44
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Phillips BB, Bullock JM, Gaston KJ, Hudson‐Edwards KA, Bamford M, Cruse D, Dicks LV, Falagan C, Wallace C, Osborne JL. Impacts of multiple pollutants on pollinator activity in road verges. J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
| | | | - Meg Bamford
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
| | - Dave Cruse
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
| | - Lynn V. Dicks
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich UK
- Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
| | - Carmen Falagan
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
| | - Claire Wallace
- School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich UK
| | - Juliet L. Osborne
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn UK
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45
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Oh RYR, Fielding KS, Nghiem TPL, Chang C, Shanahan DF, Gaston KJ, Carrasco RL, Fuller RA. Factors influencing nature interactions vary between cities and types of nature interactions. People and Nature 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Rui Ying Rachel Oh
- School of Biological Sciences University of Queensland Brisbane Qld Australia
| | - Kelly S. Fielding
- School of Communication and Arts University of Queensland Brisbane Qld Australia
| | | | - Chia‐Chen Chang
- Department of Biological Sciences National University of Singapore Singapore
| | | | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Roman L. Carrasco
- Department of Biological Sciences National University of Singapore Singapore
| | - Richard A. Fuller
- School of Biological Sciences University of Queensland Brisbane Qld Australia
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46
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment & Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Penryn Cornwall UK
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47
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Cox DTC, Maclean IMD, Gardner AS, Gaston KJ. Global variation in diurnal asymmetry in temperature, cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation and its association with leaf area index. Glob Chang Biol 2020; 26:7099-7111. [PMID: 32998181 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The impacts of the changing climate on the biological world vary across latitudes, habitats and spatial scales. By contrast, the time of day at which these changes are occurring has received relatively little attention. As biologically significant organismal activities often occur at particular times of day, any asymmetry in the rate of change between the daytime and night-time will skew the climatic pressures placed on them, and this could have profound impacts on the natural world. Here we determine global spatial variation in the difference in the mean annual rate at which near-surface daytime maximum and night-time minimum temperatures and mean daytime and mean night-time cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation have changed over land. For the years 1983-2017, we derived hourly climate data and assigned each hour as occurring during daylight or darkness. In regions that showed warming asymmetry of >0.5°C (equivalent to mean surface temperature warming during the 20th century) we investigated corresponding changes in cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation. We then examined the proportional change in leaf area index (LAI) as one potential biological response to diel warming asymmetry. We demonstrate that where night-time temperatures increased by >0.5°C more than daytime temperatures, cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation increased. Conversely, where daytime temperatures increased by >0.5°C more than night-time temperatures, cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation decreased. Driven primarily by increased cloud cover resulting in a dampening of daytime temperatures, over twice the area of land has experienced night-time warming by >0.25°C more than daytime warming, and has become wetter, with important consequences for plant phenology and species interactions. Conversely, greater daytime relative to night-time warming is associated with hotter, drier conditions, increasing species vulnerability to heat stress and water budgets. This was demonstrated by a divergent response of LAI to warming asymmetry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel T C Cox
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Ilya M D Maclean
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | | | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
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48
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Sutherland WJ, Atkinson PW, Broad S, Brown S, Clout M, Dias MP, Dicks LV, Doran H, Fleishman E, Garratt EL, Gaston KJ, Hughes AC, Le Roux X, Lickorish FA, Maggs L, Palardy JE, Peck LS, Pettorelli N, Pretty J, Spalding MD, Tonneijck FH, Walpole M, Watson JEM, Wentworth J, Thornton A. A 2021 Horizon Scan of Emerging Global Biological Conservation Issues. Trends Ecol Evol 2020; 36:87-97. [PMID: 33213887 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.10.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2020] [Revised: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
We present the results from our 12th annual horizon scan of issues likely to impact biological conservation in the future. From a list of 97 topics, our global panel of 25 scientists and practitioners identified the top 15 issues that we believe society may urgently need to address. These issues are either novel in the biological conservation sector or represent a substantial positive or negative step-change in impact at global or regional level. Six issues, such as coral reef deoxygenation and changes in polar coastal productivity, affect marine or coastal ecosystems and seven relate to human and ecosystem-level responses to climate change. Identification of potential forthcoming issues for biological conservation may enable increased preparedness by researchers, practitioners, and decision-makers.
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Affiliation(s)
- William J Sutherland
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK.
| | | | - Steven Broad
- TRAFFIC, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Sam Brown
- Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol BS1 5AH, UK
| | - Mick Clout
- Centre for Biodiversity and Biosecurity, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, PB 90129 Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Maria P Dias
- BirdLife International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; MARE Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ISPA, Instituto Universitário, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Lynn V Dicks
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Helen Doran
- Natural England, Eastbrook, Shaftesbury Road, Cambridge CB2 8DR, UK
| | - Erica Fleishman
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Elizabeth L Garratt
- UK Research and Innovation, Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1EU, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Alice C Hughes
- Centre for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan 666303, PR China
| | - Xavier Le Roux
- Microbial Ecology Centre, UMR1418 INRAE, CNRS, University Lyon 1, VetAgroSup, 69622 Villeurbanne, France; BiodivERsA, Fondation pour la Recherche sur la Biodiversité, 195 rue Saint Jacques, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Fiona A Lickorish
- UK Research and Consultancy Services (RCS) Ltd, Valletts Cottage, Westhope, Hereford HR4 8BU, UK
| | - Luke Maggs
- Natural Resources Wales, Cambria House, 29 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0TP, UK
| | - James E Palardy
- The Pew Charitable Trusts, 901 E St NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA
| | - Lloyd S Peck
- British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - Jules Pretty
- School of Life Sciences, University of Essex, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK
| | - Mark D Spalding
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK; The Nature Conservancy, Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Pian dei Mantellini, Siena 53100, Italy
| | | | - Matt Walpole
- Fauna and Flora International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - James E M Watson
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia; Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA
| | - Jonathan Wentworth
- Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, 14 Tothill Street, Westminster, London SW1H 9NB, UK
| | - Ann Thornton
- Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
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49
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Affiliation(s)
- David J. Baker
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Ilya M. D. Maclean
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | | | - Kevin J. Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute University of Exeter Cornwall UK
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50
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Kehoe R, Sanders D, Cruse D, Silk M, Gaston KJ, Bridle JR, van Veen F. Longer photoperiods through range shifts and artificial light lead to a destabilizing increase in host-parasitoid interaction strength. J Anim Ecol 2020; 89:2508-2516. [PMID: 32858779 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Many organisms are experiencing changing daily light regimes due to latitudinal range shifts driven by climate change and increased artificial light at night (ALAN). Activity patterns are often driven by light cycles, which will have important consequences for species interactions. We tested whether longer photoperiods lead to higher parasitism rates by a day-active parasitoid on its host using a laboratory experiment in which we independently varied daylength and the presence of ALAN. We then tested whether reduced nighttime temperature tempers the effect of ALAN. We found that parasitism rate increased with daylength, with ALAN intensifying this effect only when the temperature was not reduced at night. The impact of ALAN was more pronounced under short daylength. Increased parasitoid activity was not compensated for by reduced life span, indicating that increased daylength leads to an increase in total parasitism effects on fitness. To test the significance of increased parasitism rate for population dynamics, we developed a host-parasitoid model. The results of the model predicted an increase in time-to-equilibrium with increased daylength and, crucially, a threshold daylength above which interactions are unstable, leading to local extinctions. Here we demonstrate that ALAN impact interacts with daylength and temperature by changing the interaction strength between a common day-active consumer species and its host in a predictable way. Our results further suggest that range expansion or ALAN-induced changes in light regimes experienced by insects and their natural enemies will result in unstable dynamics beyond key tipping points in daylength.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Kehoe
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Dirk Sanders
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Dave Cruse
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Matthew Silk
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Kevin J Gaston
- Environment and Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Jon R Bridle
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, University College London, London, UK
| | - Frank van Veen
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
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