Science: Journal Articles

Permanent URI for this collection

https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/handle/10092/24

Browse

Now showing 1 - 20 of 1315

Open Access
Memory retention of conditioned aversion training in New Zealand's alpine parrot, the kea
(Wiley, 2022) McLean LRW; Nichols MM; Taylor AH; Nelson, Ximena
New Zealand pest control operations commonly deploy toxic sodium fluoroacetate (1080) baits to control introduced mammalian predators and protect vulnerable native fauna, yet the highly intelligent kea (Nestor notabilis) is at risk of mortality following ingestion of toxic baits intended for their protection. We tested the retention of conditioned aversion in 11 captive kea that had learned to avoid baits containing the bird repellent anthraquinone alongside color, olfactory, and taste cues. We revisited kea over increasing time intervals (3 days, 5 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 yr) offering them otherwise identical non-repellent baits. Kea retained their aversion until the final session, 1 year after previous exposure to reinforcement, and almost 2 years since previous exposure to repellent. Whether the kea forgot their aversion or the repeated exposures to non-repellent baits resulted in extinction of the aversion, our results indicate that kea are capable of remembering an aversion for long enough to be of practical use to conservation managers in reducing kea mortality through 1080 operations.
Open Access
Anterior thalamic nuclei: a critical substrate for non-spatial paired-associate memory in rats
(Wiley, 2022) Hamilton, Jenny J; Dalrymple-Alford, John
Injury or dysfunction in the anterior thalamic nuclei (ATN) may be the key contributory factor in many instances of diencephalic amnesia. Experimental ATN lesions impair spatial memory and temporal discriminations, but there is only limited support for a more general role in non-spatial memory. To extend evidence on the effects of ATN lesions, we examined the acquisition of biconditional associations between odour and object pairings presented in a runway, either with or without a temporal gap between these items. Intact adult male rats acquired both the no-trace and 10-s trace versions of this non-spatial task. Intact rats trained in the trace version showed elevated Zif268 activation in the dorsal CA1 of the hippocampus, suggesting that the temporal component recruited additional neural processing. ATN lesions completely blocked acquisition on both versions of this association-memory task. This deficit was not due to poor inhibition to non-rewarded cues or impaired sensory processing, because rats with ATN lesions were unimpaired in the acquisition of simple odour discriminations and simple object discriminations using similar task demands in the same apparatus. This evidence challenges the view that impairments in arbitrary paired-associate learning after ATN lesions require the use of multimodal spatial stimuli. It suggests that diencephalic amnesia associated with the ATN stems from degraded attention to stimulus–stimulus associations and their representation across a distributed memory system.
Open Access
Integrative analysis of stressor gradients reveals multiple discrete trait-defined axes underlie community assembly
(Wiley, 2022) Barrett, Isabelle; McIntosh, Angus; Febria , Catherine M.; Graham , S. Elizabeth; Burdon , Francis J.; Pomeranz , Justin P. F.; Warburton, Helen
The generalizable functional attributes of organisms (traits) relate strongly to their environment across multiple levels of biological organization, making trait-based approaches a powerful mechanistic framework to understand species distributions and community composition in relation to environmental change. To investigate how a wide range of stressor types shape stream macroinvertebrate communities, we conducted an integrative analysis using community and taxon trait information across drying, flooding, eutrophication, fine sediment, and acid mine drainage (AMD) gradients. Each gradient spanned relatively unimpacted to severely impacted sites. To characterize community change in response to stressors, we incorporated abundance-based trait information from all stressor gradients in a single trait-based ordination (nonmetric multidimensional scaling), defining the trait space within which each stressor gradient acted. We hypothesized that different stressors would apply different environmental filters, moving communities along distinct axes in trait space and resulting in communities with definable trait combinations. Particularly strong relationships were associated with anthropogenically derived stressors (fine sediment, eutrophication, and AMD) compared to natural stressors (drying and flooding). Anthropogenic stressors instigated significant movement of communities along multiple axes in trait space, likely driven by limited adaptation to these novel stressors. We demonstrate that trait-based analysis of communities across multiple stressor gradients can support a more comprehensive understanding of how community composition changes than taxonomic methods or investigation of a single stressor type, and could underpin community-focused management actions.
Open Access
National‐Scale Rainfall‐Triggered Landslide Susceptibility and Exposure in Nepal
(American Geophysical Union (AGU), 2024) Kincey ME, M. E.; Rosser , N. J.; Swirad , Z. M.; Robinson, Tom; Shrestha , R.; Pujara , D. S.; Basyal , G. K.; Densmore , A. L.; Arrell , K.; Oven , K. J.; Dunant , A.
AbstractNepal is one of the most landslide‐prone countries in the world, with year‐on‐year impacts resulting in loss of life and imposing a chronic impediment to sustainable livelihoods. Living with landslides is a daily reality for an increasing number of people, so establishing the nature of landslide hazard and risk is essential. Here we develop a model of landslide susceptibility for Nepal and use this to generate a nationwide geographical profile of exposure to rainfall‐triggered landslides. We model landslide susceptibility using a fuzzy overlay approach based on freely‐available topographic data, trained on an inventory of mapped landslides, and combine this with high resolution population and building data to describe the spatial distribution of exposure to landslides. We find that whilst landslide susceptibility is highest in the High Himalaya, exposure is highest within the Middle Hills, but this is highly spatially variable and skewed to on average relatively low values. Around 4 × 106 Nepalis (∼15% of the population) live in areas considered to be at moderate or higher degree of exposure to landsliding (>0.25 of the maximum), and critically this number is highly sensitive to even small variations in landslide susceptibility. Our results show a complex relationship between landslides and buildings, that implies wider complexity in the association between physical exposure to landslides and poverty. This analysis for the first time brings into focus the geography of the landslide exposure and risk case load in Nepal, and demonstrates limitations of assessing future risk based on limited records of previous events.
Open Access
Effects of customary egg harvest regimes on hatching success of a culturally important waterfowl species
(Wiley, 2021) Herse , Mark R.; Tylianakis, Jason; Scott , Nigel J.; Brown , Donald; Cranwell , Iaean; Henry , John; Pauling , Craig; McIntosh, Angus; Gormley , Andrew M.; Lyver , Phil O'B.; McPherson J
Customary harvests of wildlife underpin the livelihoods, cultural identities, well-being and ecological knowledge of many Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC), whereas government restrictions on harvests can erode these relationships. Supporting IPLC in place-based resource management, including sustainable customary harvests, can aid wildlife, their habitat and the cultures that value them. Using an experiment jointly initiated by the Māori tribe Ngāi Tahu and researchers (Māori and non-Māori) in Aotearoa/New Zealand, we identified low-impact strategies for harvesting black swan (kakī anau, Cygnus atratus) eggs at an important coastal lagoon, Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere. The experiment tested whether nest-level hatching success (number of eggs hatched) depended on nest-level harvest pressure; whether this effect was additive; and the extent to which harvest influenced post-harvest egg laying and hatching probability, relative to several control variables. Nest-level harvest pressure determined nest-level hatching success and had a non-additive effect on population-level hatching success. Specifically, harvesting one-third or two-thirds of a clutch caused a loss of approximately one hatchling per egg removed, because swans tended to replace few of those harvested eggs and hatching probability of unharvested eggs was generally high (but lower in nests with two-thirds of eggs removed). Conversely, harvesting an entire clutch caused a loss of approximately one hatchling for every two eggs removed, because swans often subsequently re-laid new, albeit smaller, clutches. During fixed-output harvests, removing entire clutches early during nesting could induce re-laying and prevent abandonment of unharvested eggs. Moreover, harvesting from areas of nesting colonies with low nest density, where hatching probability of unharvested eggs was lowest, could limit disturbance. Finally, restoring foraging habitat in degraded wetlands surrounding nutrient-overloaded waterbodies could offset eutrophication effects by providing plant resources that swans require to lay eggs indeterminately. In addition to improving IPLC well-being, implementing strategies such as these could enhance place-based resource management by supporting IPLC engagement with nature, which increases the number and detection resolution of ecological feedbacks (e.g. population numbers, habitat conditions) and resilience to environmental change. Moreover, customary harvest could be a practical, culturally appropriate and less wasteful alternative to non-consumptive culling for mitigating human–wildlife conflict (e.g. waterfowl grazing on pasture). A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Open Access
Global and regional ecological boundaries explain abrupt spatial discontinuities in avian frugivory interactions
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2022) Martins LP; Stouffer, Daniel; Blendinger PG; Böhning-Gaese K; Buitrón-Jurado G; Correia M; Costa JM; Dehling DM; Donatti CI; Emer C; Galetti M; Heleno R; Jordano P; Menezes Í; Morante-Filho JC; Muñoz MC; Neuschulz EL; Pizo MA; Quitián M; Ruggera RA; Saavedra F; Santillán V; Sanz D’Angelo V; Schleuning M; da Silva LP; Ribeiro da Silva F; Timóteo S; Traveset A; Vollstädt MGR; Tylianakis, Jason
Species interactions can propagate disturbances across space via direct and indirect effects, potentially connecting species at a global scale. However, ecological and biogeographic boundaries may mitigate this spread by demarcating the limits of ecological networks. We tested whether large-scale ecological boundaries (ecoregions and biomes) and human disturbance gradients increase dissimilarity among plant-frugivore networks, while accounting for background spatial and elevational gradients and differences in network sampling. We assessed network dissimilarity patterns over a broad spatial scale, using 196 quantitative avian frugivory networks (encompassing 1496 plant and 1004 bird species) distributed across 67 ecoregions, 11 biomes, and 6 continents. We show that dissimilarities in species and interaction composition, but not network structure, are greater across ecoregion and biome boundaries and along different levels of human disturbance. Our findings indicate that biogeographic boundaries delineate the world’s biodiversity of interactions and likely contribute to mitigating the propagation of disturbances at large spatial scales.
Open Access
Long-range atmospheric transport of microplastics across the southern hemisphere
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2023) Chen , Qiqing; Shi , Guitao; Revell, Laura; Zhang , Jun; Zuo , Chencheng; Wang , Danhe; Le Ru , Eric C.; Wu , Guangmei; Mitrano , Denise M.
Airborne microplastics (MPs) can undergo long range transport to remote regions. Yet there is a large knowledge gap regarding the occurrence and burden of MPs in the marine boundary layer, which hampers comprehensive modelling of their global atmospheric transport. In particular, the transport efficiency of MPs with different sizes and morphologies remains uncertain. Here we show a hemispheric-scale analysis of airborne MPs along a cruise path from the mid-Northern Hemisphere to Antarctica. We present the inaugural measurements of MPs concentrations over the Southern Ocean and interior Antarctica and find that MPs fibers are transported more efficiently than MPs fragments along the transect, with the transport dynamics of MPs generally similar to those of non-plastic particles. Morphology is found to be the dominant factor influencing the hemispheric transport of MPs to remote Antarctic regions. This study underlines the importance of long-range atmospheric transport in MPs cycling dynamics in the environment.
Open Access
Regulation of open populations of a stream insect through larval density dependence
(Wiley, 2022) McIntosh, Angus; Greig , Hamish S.; Howard , Simon
In organisms with complex life cycles, the various stages occupy different habitats creating demographically open populations. The dynamics of these populations will depend on the occurrence and timing of stochastic influences relative to demographic density dependence, but understanding of these fundamentals, especially in the face of climate warming, has been hampered by the difficulty of empirical studies. Using a logically feasible organism, we conducted a replicated density-perturbation experiment to manipulate late-instar larvae of nine populations of a stream caddisfly, Zelandopsyche ingens, and measured the resulting abundance over 2 years covering the complete life cycle of one cohort to evaluate influences on dynamics. Negative density feedback occurred in the larval stage, and was sufficiently strong to counteract variation in abundance due to manipulation of larval density, adult caddis dispersal in the terrestrial environment as well as downstream drift of newly hatched and older larvae in the current. This supports theory indicating regulation of open populations must involve density dependence in local populations sufficient to offset variability associated with dispersal, especially during recruitment, and pinpoints the occurrence to late in the larval life cycle and driven by food resource abundance. There were large variations in adult, egg mass and early instar abundance that were not related to abundance in the previous stage, or the manipulation, pointing to large stochastic influences. Thus, the results also highlight the complementary nature of stochastic and deterministic influences on open populations. Such density dependence will enhance population persistence in situations where variable dispersal and transitioning between life stages frequently creates mismatches between abundance and the local availability of resources, such as might become more common with climate warming.
Open Access
Spatiotemporal patterns of research on Southern Hemisphere amphidromous galaxiids: A semi–quantitative review
(Wiley, 2023) Lee F; Boddy NC; Bloxham M; McIntosh, Angus; Perry GLW; Simon KS
Amphidromy is a distinctive life-history strategy of some fish species that involves spawning in fresh or brackish water followed by dispersal to sea by newly hatched larvae, where they develop for a short period. Individuals then return to freshwater as juveniles, where they feed and grow, before maturing and spawning. Six amphidromous species from the Southern Hemisphere genus Galaxias (G. truttaceus, G. fasciatus, G. argenteus, G. postvectis, G. brevipinnis, G. maculatus) are recreationally, culturally, and economically important as the juveniles are harvested. Due to ongoing population declines and a lack of critical demographic information, there is growing concern about the management of the species. Here, we used semi-quantitative review, culturomics, and bibliometric tools to analyse peer-reviewed research conducted on the six amphidromous species of Galaxias to: (i) understand how spatiotemporal patterns of research have shifted over the last five decades, and (ii) identify critical research gaps. Forty percent of studies (n = 295) covered a spatial extent of 10 km or less and 87% of studies lasted less than 2 years – studies were largely small and short relative to the species' ranges and their longevity. Additionally, we found important research gaps; for example, studies on the effects of climate change and the associated effects of disturbance, and the marine phase are scarce in the peer-reviewed literature. Finally, we suggest that quantitative models have been underutilized as tools for studying amphidromous galaxiids and should be embraced to answer questions not readily addressed with field and laboratory-based techniques. If these species are to be effectively managed, their population dynamics across spatiotemporal scales must be understood and critical and long-standing gaps in research knowledge addressed.
Open Access
Modelled sources of airborne microplastics collected at a remote Southern Hemisphere site
(Elsevier BV, 2024) Aves A; Ruffell H; Evangeliou N; Gaw, Sally; Revell, Laura
Airborne microplastics have emerged in recent years as ubiquitous atmospheric pollutants. However, data from the Southern Hemisphere, and remote regions in particular, are sparse. Here, we report airborne microplastic deposition fluxes measured during a five-week sampling campaign at a remote site in the foothills of the Southern Alps of New Zealand. Samples were collected over 24-hour periods for the first week and for 7-day periods thereafter. On average, atmospheric microplastic (MP) deposition fluxes were six times larger during the 24-hour sampling periods (150 MP m−2 day−1) than during the 7-day sampling periods (26 MP m−2 day−1), highlighting the importance of sampling frequency and deposition collector design to limit particle resuspension. Previous studies, many of which used weekly sampling frequencies or longer, may have substantially underestimated atmospheric microplastic deposition fluxes, depending on the study design. To identify likely sources of deposited microplastics, we performed simulations with a global dispersion model coupled with an emissions inventory of airborne microplastics. Modelled deposition fluxes are in good agreement with observations, highlighting the potential for this method in tracing sources of deposited microplastics globally. Modelling indicates that sea-spray was the dominant source when microplastics underwent long-range atmospheric transport, with a small contribution from road dust.
Open Access
Predicting biomass of resident kōkopu (Galaxias) populations using local habitat characteristics
(Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2023) Crichton BRJ; Hickford, Michael; McIntosh, Angus; Schiel, David; Kumar R
With the global decline of freshwater fishes, quantifying the body size-specific habitat use of vulnerable species is crucial for accurately evaluating population health, identifying the effects of anthropogenic stressors, and directing effective habitat restoration. Populations of New Zealand’s endemic kōkopu species (Galaxias fasciatus, G. argenteus, and G. postvectis) have declined substantially over the last century in response to anthropogenic stressors, including habitat loss, migratory barriers, and invasive species. Despite well-understood habitat associations, key within-habitat features underpinning the reach-scale biomass of small and large kōkopu remain unclear. Here, we investigated whether the total biomass of large (> 90 mm) size classes of each kōkopu species and the composite biomass of all small (< 90 mm) kōkopu were associated with components of the physical environment that provided refuge and prey resources across fifty-seven 50-m stream reaches. Because kōkopu are nocturnal, populations were sampled by removal at night using headlamps and hand-nets until reaches were visually depleted. Based on Akaike’s information criterion, greater large banded kōkopu biomass was most parsimoniously explained by greater pool volume and forest cover, greater large giant kōkopu biomass by greater bank cover and pool volume, and greater large shortjaw kōkopu biomass by greater substrate size and pool volume. In contrast, greater composite small kōkopu biomass was best explained by smaller substrate size, reduced bank cover, and greater pool volume. Local habitat associations therefore varied among kōkopu species and size classes. Our study demonstrates the importance of considering the ontogenetic shift in species’ habitat use and provides an effective modelling approach for quantifying size-specific local habitat use of stream-dwelling fish.
Open Access
High rates of male courtship in a female-ornamented pipefish
(The Royal Society, 2023) van Eyndhoven , Fleur; Cameron, Elissa; Flanagan, Sarah
In species with sex-specific signalling traits that appear to be ornamental (i.e. are conspicuous and with no obvious natural selection benefit), the ornamented sex typically initiates courtship and is most active in courtship. Here, we report for the first time courtship displays in the extremely sexually dimorphic, female-ornamented wide-bodied pipefish (Stigmatopora nigra), revealing unexpected behaviours. Females use their sex-specific ornament during courtship displays, as expected, but rarely in female–female interactions. Surprisingly, males initiated 61% of reciprocated courtship bouts and chased females in 17% of the bouts. This chasing behaviour could be a form of male harassment or be indicative of female disinterest in ardent males, either of which was unexpected to be found in this female-ornamented species. Our results highlight the need to study the details of species’ behaviours in considering the potential roles of sexual selection and sexual conflict in shaping sexual dimorphism.
Open Access
Initial insights into leopard seal moult in Aotearoa New Zealand
(New Zealand Ecological Society, online-publication-date) Grabham , Alexander A.; van der Linde , Krista; Visser , Ingrid N.; Nelson, Ximena
Leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) moult affects the application of glued tags used to monitor activity. Considering the possible effects of climate change on leopard seal activity and climate on pinniped moult, we assessed aspects of leopard seal moult in a warm region (New Zealand) of their range for the first time. Moult pelage colours resembled those found in their primary range and indicated a progressive degeneration akin to that of the pre-moult of other pinnipeds. Unexpectedly, pelage loss commonly resulted in black areas, that may be skin or short dark post-moult pelage. The reverse pattern of moult, reported for the first time in this species, was more prevalent than the standard pattern. In the reverse pattern, black areas commonly progressed from the neck down the spine. Pre-moult was uncommon, but active moult occurred year-round. Year-round moulting may have implications for glued tagging in climatically similar regions of their range
Open Access
Recreational Disturbance of River Sediments During Base Flow Deteriorates Microbial Water Quality
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2024) Pattis , Isabelle; Moriarty , Elaine; Anderson , Juliet; McIntosh, Angus; Gilpin , Brent
Recreational water quality of rivers is typically assessed by microbial analysis of indicator organisms, such as Escherichia coli and enterococci in samples collected directly from the water column, implying that risk to public health comes from free-floating microorganisms. In New Zealand, the Recreational Water Quality Guidelines apply certain E. coli concentration thresholds to categorize results into ‘meet guidelines’ (≤ 260 cfu E. coli 100 mL−1), ‘alert level’, and ‘action level’ (≥ 550 cfu E. coli 100 mL−1). The impairment of water quality due to re-suspended riverbed sediment under flood conditions has been widely recognized. However, the potential risks posed by sediment-linked microorganisms associated with river recreational activities under base flow are less appreciated. We evaluated the water quality of 30 rivers in Canterbury, New Zealand, during base flow conditions prior to and after artificially stirring the sediment. Bacterial and protozoan indicators, pathogens, water quality, and land use in surrounding areas were examined. While 71% of water samples (n = 64) met New Zealand Recreational Water guidelines prior to stirring, only 39% of samples (n = 35) met the guidelines after stirring. E. coli levels increased by 110%, or more, following sediment stirring. Campylobacter were detected in every river, at least once, and increases were observed following stirring. We conclude that sediment-associated microbes become suspended by recreational activities and may pose a higher risk than previously thought to river users. To ensure public health is protected, authorities should assess microorganisms in both sediment and water samples to rate the microbiological risk of recreational water use.
Open Access
Chronology and evolution of the world's largest sand island: K'gari (Fraser Island), South East Queensland, Australia
(Elsevier BV, 2024) shulmeister, james; Rittenour TM; Patton NR; Ellerton D; Gontz A; Hesp PA; Santini T; Miot da Silva G; Forman S; Bowyer H; Kelly JT; McCallum A; Welsh K
K'gari in South East Queensland, Australia, is the world's largest sand island and a UNESCO World Heritage Area. The island is covered by extensive coastal dune fields that have been divided into seven morphological units (the Awinya, Yankee Jack, Bowarrady, Triangle Cliff, Freshwater, Station Hill, and Cape). Optically-Stimulated Luminescence dating of the dune sequences indicate that the Awinya unit is > 340 ka, and the Yankee Jack and Bowarrady units are ca. 180 ka old. Holocene dune sequences comprise Triangle Cliff (ca. 8.5 ka); Freshwater (ca. 4 ka); Station Hill (ca. 1.5 ka) and Cape (ca. < 0.5 ka). Combining these data with dune ages from the adjacent Cooloola Sand Mass, we demonstrate that for at least the last three glacial cycles the dunes were emplaced during intermediate to high sea-levels. At shorter time intervals (decades to centuries), some dune formation is affected by storminess. Initial formation of the dune field occurred in the mid-Pleistocene, but the most recent widespread stabilisation of dunes occurred late in Marine Isotope Stage 7 (MIS 7: 190–240 ka). The preservation of dunes relates to antecedent topography coupled with the duration and height of individual interglacial high sea-stands. This research confirms K'gari as an outstanding example of geomorphological processes and supports its World Heritage listing.
Embargo
Reproductive roles as likely drivers of sexual dimorphism in New Zealand’s endangered mountain parrot, the Kea
(Oxford University Press (OUP), 2023) McLean LRW; Horton TW; Robertson BC; Robertson F; Greer AL; Nelson, Ximena
New Zealand’s endangered mountain parrot, the Kea (Nestor notabilis), exhibits moderate male-biased sexual size dimorphism in linear body measurements (~5%) and a pronounced dimorphism in bill size (12–14%). Using stable isotope analyses of carbon and nitrogen in Kea feathers and blood sampled from a significant portion (~10%) of the extant population, we determined that Kea bill dimorphism may be an ecologically selected trait that enhances male Kea’s ability to forage at a higher trophic level in order to provision females and offspring during nesting. Sexual dimorphism can arise through sexual selection, ecological drivers, or a combination of both. Ecological selection is associated with foraging niche divergence between the sexes to reduce inter-sexual competition or due to differing dietary needs associated with reproductive role. Despite the widespread occurrence of sexual dimorphism throughout the animal kingdom, empirical evidence for ecological causation is rare. We conducted the first molecular confirmation of sexual size dimorphism in Kea. We then employed Bayesian mixing models to explore potential correlations between diet and bill size to determine whether the dimorphism is linked to diet partitioning throughout all age classes (fledgling, juvenile, subadult, and adult). Female Kea foraged at a consistent, relatively low, trophic level throughout their lifetime, whereas male trophic level increased with age to a maximum at subadult stage, prior to breeding for the first time—a time in which males may have been actively learning extractive foraging techniques associated with a high protein diet. Adult males foraged at a high trophic level relative to all groups except subadult males. As males provision females on the nest, which in turn provision young, these results highlight that the evolution of morphology and reproductive output may be linked in circuitous ways.
Open Access
Tailored investments needed to support weather, water, ice and climate services in the Polar Regions
(American Meteorological Society, 2024) Lamers M; Ljubicic G; Thoman R; Carrasco J; Dawson J; Heinrich VJ; Jeuring J; Liggett, Daniela; Stewart EJ
The Polar Prediction Project (PPP), one of the flagship programmes of the World Meteorological Organisation’s (WMO) World Weather Research Programme (WWRP), has come to an end after a decade of intensive and coordinated international observing, modelling, verification, user engagement, and education activities. While PPP facilitated many advancements in modelling and forecasting, critical investment is now required to turn prediction science into salient environmental services for the Polar Regions. In this commentary, the members of the Societal and Economic Research and Applications task team of PPP, a group of social scientists and service delivery specialists, identify a number of insights and lessons that are critical for the implementation of the follow up programme Polar Coupled Analysis and Prediction for Services (PCAPS). We argue that in order to raise the societal value of polar environmental services we need: to better understand the diversity of highly specific user contexts; to tailor the actionability of weather, water, ice and climate (WWIC) service development in the Polar Regions through inclusive transdisciplinary approaches to co-production; to assess the societal impact of improved environmental services in the Polar Regions; and to invest and provide dedicated funding for involving the social sciences in research and tailoring processes across all the Polar Regions.
Open Access
Quantifying the relative contributions of habitat modification and mammalian predators on landscape-scale declines of a threatened river specialist duck
(Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2022) Whitehead AL; Leathwick JR; Booker DJ; McIntosh, Angus; Rana N
Habitat modification and introduced mammalian predators are linked to global species extinctions and declines, but their relative influences can be uncertain, often making conservation management difficult. Using landscape-scale models, we quantified the relative impacts of habitat modification and mammalian predation on the range contraction of a threatened New Zealand riverine duck. We combined 38 years of whio (Hymenolaimus malacorhynchos) observations with national-scale environmental data to predict relative likelihood of occurrence (RLO) under two scenarios using bootstrapped boosted regression trees (BRT). Our models used training data from contemporary environments to predict the potential contemporary whio distribution across New Zealand riverscapes in the absence of introduced mammalian predators. Then, using estimates of environments prior to human arrival, we used the same models to hindcast potential pre-human whio distribution prior to widespread land clearance. Comparing RLO differences between potential pre-human, potential contemporary and observed contemporary distributions allowed us to assess the relative impacts of the two main drivers of decline; habitat modification and mammalian predation. Whio have undergone widespread catastrophic declines most likely linked to mammalian predation, with smaller declines due to habitat modification (range contractions of 95% and 37%, respectively). We also identified areas of potential contemporary habitat outside their current range that would be suitable for whio conservation if mammalian predator control could be implemented. Our approach presents a practical technique for estimating the relative importance of global change drivers in species declines and extinctions, as well as providing valuable information to improve conservation planning.
Open Access
How the COVID-19 pandemic signaled the demise of Antarctic exceptionalism
(American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2024) Liggett, Daniela; Frame, Bob; Convey P; Hughes KA
This paper explores how the COVID-19 pandemic affected science and tourism activities and their governance in the Antarctic and Southern Ocean. The pandemic reduced the ability of Antarctic Treaty Parties to make decisions on policy issues and placed a considerable burden on researchers. Tourism was effectively suspended during the 2020–2021 Antarctic season and heavily reduced in 2021–2022 but rebounded to record levels in 2022–2023. The pandemic stimulated reflection on practices to facilitate dialog, especially through online events. Opportunities arose to integrate innovations developed during the pandemic more permanently into Antarctic practices, in relation to open science, reducing operational greenhouse gas footprints and barriers of access to Antarctic research and facilitating data sharing. However, as well as the long-term impacts arising directly from the pandemic, an assemblage of major geopolitical drivers are also in play and, combined, these signal a considerable weakening of Antarctic exceptionalism in the early Anthropocene.
Open Access
Access to human-mobility data is essential for building a sustainable future
(Elsevier BV, 2024) Oliver RY; Chapman M; Ellis-Soto D; Brum-Bastos V; Cagnacci F; Long J; Loretto M-C; Patchett R; Rutz C
Mobile devices, and other tracking technologies, generate detailed data on the movements and behavior of billions of people worldwide. At present, these data are predominantly used to pursue corporate interests. We argue that improving access to human-mobility data is essential for addressing urgent conservation and sustainability goals. Close collaboration between industry and the research community has the potential to generate substantive environmental and societal benefits.