Guy Castley | Griffith University (original) (raw)

Papers by Guy Castley

Biological Conservation, Aug 1, 2022

Bird Conservation International, Aug 17, 2016

Birders are generally nature-oriented; however, their understanding of key bird conservation issu... more Birders are generally nature-oriented; however, their understanding of key bird conservation issues remains under-examined. We surveyed English-speaking birders online and face-toface asking questions related to their views on conservation, conservation funding and their understanding of a global bird conservation program (BirdLife International's Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas [IBAs]). Most birders that responded to the survey were from Australia, the United Kingdom, South Africa and the United States of America. Birders tend to value bird conservation in an ecocentric way, often citing the overarching importance of general biodiversity. The ecological roles birds play was also highlighted, but this varied across socio-demographic groups. Despite their positive support for conservation, less than half of all birders surveyed are familiar with the IBA program. Familiarity with IBAs was driven by socio-demographic factors, with males more familiar than females and South African birders more familiar than birders from Australia and the United Kingdom. Most birders are willing to make contributions to bird conservation when visiting key birding sites, however they also feel governments should remain the main funders of conservation. Opportunities to enhance engagement between birders and bird conservation groups exist with most indicating a desire to learn more about bird conservation at birding sites. Increasing access to relevant information and presenting opportunities to contribute to conservation at birding sites could provide tangible benefits for bird habitats, protected areas and bird conservation groups.

Journal of Ecotourism, Mar 14, 2018

Ecotourism is often promoted for its potential to act as a conservation mechanism by: mobilising ... more Ecotourism is often promoted for its potential to act as a conservation mechanism by: mobilising political, financial and social support for conservation; increasing environmental awareness; protecting sensitive ecosystems and threatened species; and providing an alternate income to land-intensive or consumptive practices. Although instances to date indicate that this can indeed prove highly successful in some circumstances, the conservation impact of the ecotourism sector on a larger scale is unclear. This study identified 70 papers published prior to January 2016 in English language academic journals that examine the conservation actions and outcomes of ecotourism enterprises. There were three key findings within this study. Firstly, conservation actions have been examined more frequently than conservation outcomes. Secondly, there has been a strong focus on indirect approaches to conservation such as visitor education and community-based actions, and a shortage of studies measuring direct impacts on wildlife populations or other components of the natural bio-physical environment. Thirdly, the majority of sites studied are located in developing countries, but the majority of authors are located in developed countries. By identifying these gaps and patterns that currently exist in the academic literature, this review helps to direct and support future research agendas.

African Zoology, Apr 1, 2002

A previous estimate of the lion (Panthera leo) population in the southwestern Kgalagadi Transfron... more A previous estimate of the lion (Panthera leo) population in the southwestern Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (KTP) was made over 20 years ago. This together with increased fears regarding the viability of the population as a result of recent killings of roaming animals, an observed increase in non-violent mortalities during 1996, and possible reduced genetic viability due to suspected isolation, prompted another investigation. Between October 1996 and December 1996, 68 lions were captured and marked and subjected to two recapture (resighting) samples. The minimum estimate derived from direct enumeration of marked and unmarked individuals is between 100-103 individuals. Assessment of the adult and subadult population using the Lincoln-Petersen estimator and the software program NOREMARK gives a figure between 92 and 125. The current estimate is below the previous estimate of between 113 and 140 lions. Lion densities of 1.2 adult and subadult lions/100 km 2 in the semi-arid southern Kalahari are considerably lower than those in more mesic regions. Furthermore, there appears to be some demographic variability with the ratio of females to males being twice as high as that recorded 20 years ago.

Waterbirds, Mar 1, 2018

Habitat selection by herons, egrets and bitterns (Ardeidae) is influenced by the extent and quali... more Habitat selection by herons, egrets and bitterns (Ardeidae) is influenced by the extent and quality of surrounding wetlands in natural landscapes. However, these relationships may be different in highly modified urban environments where inter-and intra-specific competition could be increased. To assess the relative effects of habitat and competition on habitat selection by ardeids in an urban landscape, all known colonies in the densely populated coastal region around Macao Special Administrative Region, China, were surveyed. The relationship among ardeid communities and patch-level habitat variables were investigated using multivariate and co-occurrence analyses. Ardeid species (n = 12) were recorded during 2006-2009. Habitat patches were categorized into three types based on 10 habitat factors using redundancy analysis. The area of adjacent open land (r 13 = 0.772, P = 0.002) and patch area (r 13 = 0.670, P = 0.012) were the major indicators of species richness and abundance, respectively. However, the factor that influenced habitat selection the most was perimeter-area ratio (marginal effect: λ1 = 0.33). The lack of evidence for competition in the co-occurrence analysis suggested that the spatial pattern of the ardeid community in Macao Special Administrative Region, China, was primarily driven by variation in habitat features that satisfy species-specific requirements.

Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 2016

Hollow-bearing trees provide habitat for diverse taxonomic groups and as such they are recognised... more Hollow-bearing trees provide habitat for diverse taxonomic groups and as such they are recognised for their importance globally. There is, however scant reference to this resource relative within urban forest patches. The functional ecology of habitat remnants along an urbanisation gradient plays an important ecological, social and economic role within urban landscapes. Here we quantify the impacts of urbanisation, landscape, environmental, disturbance (past and present) and stand variables on hollow-bearing tree density within urban forest patches. This was undertaken by surveying 45 forest patches on the Gold Coast, southeast Queensland, Australia. Sites were categorised as; urban, peri-urban or rural along an urbanisation gradient, with an additional five control sites. Historical logging practices were found to be the driving factor influencing hollow-bearing tree density along the urbanisation gradient; while the impacts of urbanisation itself are not as yet discernible. These findings highlight the significance of incorporating historical land use practise into current and future urban planning, as these will have continuing impacts on remaining urban biodiversity values. These findings, will benefit natural resource managers and urban planners when making decisions about where and how best to manage for hollow-bearing trees along urbanisation gradients.

Societies

This research presents a new model based on Twitter posts and VADER algorithms to analyze social ... more This research presents a new model based on Twitter posts and VADER algorithms to analyze social media discourse during and following a bushfire event. The case study is the Gold Coast community that experienced the first bushfire event of Australia’s severe Black Summer in 2019/2020. This study aims to understand which communities and stakeholders generate and exchange information on disasters caused by natural hazards. In doing so, a new methodology to analyze social media in disaster management is presented. This model enables stakeholders to understand key message themes and community sentiment during and following the disaster, as well as the individuals and groups that shape the messaging. Three main findings emerged. Firstly, the results show that messaging volume is a proxy for the importance of the bushfires, with a clear increase during the bushfire event and a sharp decline after the event. Secondly, from a content perspective, there was a consistent negative message sent...

Frontiers in Conservation Science

IntroductionConservation research plays an integral role in the effort to conserve biodiversity g... more IntroductionConservation research plays an integral role in the effort to conserve biodiversity globally. However, research gaps can limit conservation research’s potential contribution to addressing global biodiversity problems such as habitat fragmentation. While a synthesis of the research literature does not attain effective conservation action by itself, it can inform future research and corridor conservation planning and practices.MethodsWe used a systematic search of peer-reviewed research articles in Scopus, Web of Science, and grey literature in the Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group library published before December 2020. Our review assessed research on the identification and use of corridors, a primary instrument used to address the threats of habitat fragmentation, for large carnivores to identify patterns, priorities, and gaps in the literature. We focused on large carnivores because they are frequently used for connectivity planning owing to their higher sensit...

Tourism Recreation Research

5th Interdisciplinary Tourism Research Conference, 2017

https://news.griffith.edu.au/2020/07/22/gathering-memories-from-the-bushfire-ashes/, 2021

Scientific Reports, 2020

Understanding geographical biases in ecological research is important for conservation, planning,... more Understanding geographical biases in ecological research is important for conservation, planning, prioritisation and management. However, conservation efforts may be limited by data availability and poor understanding of the nature of potential spatial bias. We conduct the first continent-wide analysis of spatial bias associated with Australian terrestrial reptile ecological research. To evaluate potential research deficiencies, we used Maxent modelling to predict the distributions of 646 reptile studies published from 1972 to 2017. Based on existing distributions of 1631 individual reptile study locations, reptile species richness, proximity to universities, human footprint and location of protected areas, we found the strongest predictor of reptile research locations was proximity to universities (40.8%). This was followed by species richness (22.9%) and human footprint (20.1%), while protected areas were the weakest predictor (16.2%). These results highlight that research effort ...

Pacific Conservation Biology, 2021

Habitat destruction is a key threatening process for amphibians. Modified or anthropogenic waterb... more Habitat destruction is a key threatening process for amphibians. Modified or anthropogenic waterbodies can be used to compensate for habitat loss, with several amphibian species utilising created or modified waterbodies. We measured usage of anthropogenic/modified waterbodies by adult and tadpole frog species, including threatened species, in coastal wallum habitat in eastern Australia. Nine road trenches/ditches, 8 artificial ‘lakes’, 6 golf course waterbodies and 13 natural waterbodies were surveyed for frog adults and tadpoles during the summer/spring period 2011–2012. Additionally, we examined the relationship between frog assemblages and environmental factors (water chemistry, aquatic predators, vegetation types), focusing on Litoria olongburensis and Litoria fallax. Frog species richness differed between waterbody types, with two of three threatened frog species present in both natural and anthropogenic/modified waterbodies. The frog assemblage was influenced by pH, turbidity,...

Forest Ecology and Management, 2020

Abstract Habitat loss remains one of the primary threats to global forest communities but remaini... more Abstract Habitat loss remains one of the primary threats to global forest communities but remaining forest habitats are also subjected to ongoing fragmentation by linear clearings such as seismic lines for petroleum exploration. Seismic lines alter local habitat use, but unlike roads, which are well studied, less is known about the effects of seismic lines on mammal abundance and community composition. The objective of this study was to determine whether fragmentation by seismic linear clearings affected mammal abundance or community composition at fine and landscape scales. Winter snow track surveys were conducted over three winters, within 14 landscapes, dispersed throughout a boreal forest area (4000 km2), to measure relative abundances of 17 co-existing mammals. Mammal communities within seismic line habitat were dissimilar from communities in nearby forest habitat and were characterized by relatively higher abundances of some larger herbivores (moose/elk) and some mammalian predators (cougar, lynx, weasel). Within broader landscapes (12.3 km2), relative abundances of some large mammals were also associated with seismic line fragmentation. One large predator (gray wolf) trended toward higher relative abundance in the landscapes most fragmented by seismic lines, while one large herbivore group (moose/elk) decreased in abundance in these landscapes. Overall, our results reveal that forest fragmentation by narrow linear clearings (e.g. seismic lines) had a measurable effect on wildlife relative abundances, particularly for a few large mammals. They also highlight the importance of differentiating between fine-scale and landscape-scale effects. In this area, strong preference and avoidance behaviors toward seismic line habitat, were generally not associated with a consistent response at the landscape scale, potentially due to the dissimilar responses by different species to seismic line habitats, which may have altered interactions between co-existing species, such as predator and prey species. These findings have important implications for the management of mammal communities located within forests fragmented by seismic lines.

Frontiers in Immunology, 2018

Conservation Biology, 2017

Conservation of biodiversity, including birds, continues to challenge natural area managers. Stat... more Conservation of biodiversity, including birds, continues to challenge natural area managers. Stated preference methods (e.g. choice experiments - CE) are increasingly used to provide data for natural ecosystem valuations. Here we use a CE to calculate birders' willingness to pay for different levels of bio-ecological attributes (threatened species, endemic species and diversity) of birding sites, with hypothetical entry fees. The CE was delivered at popular birding and avitourism sites in Australia and the United Kingdom. Latent class modelling results revealed heterogeneous preferences among birders, with correspondingly variable willingness to pay. Four clear groups were apparent from the sample; 'quantity driven birders', 'special bird seekers', 'confused respondents' and 'price is no object birders'. Quantity driven birders are attracted to sites that deliver high levels of diversity and endemic species. Special bird seekers value threatened species and high levels of endemics most. Confused respondents' preferences were difficult to determine, but were most sensitive to the hypothetical entry fees, unlike the price is no object birders who were not at all sensitive to cost. Our findings demonstrate that birders are amenable to paying for their preferred birding experience. These payments could provide an alternative source of funding in some avitourism sites, on both public and private land. These alternative revenue streams should be explored and given full consideration in increasingly competitive conservation financing environments. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Urban Ecosystems, 2016

Urbanisation affects fauna in many ways; with some species persisting and going on to dominate ur... more Urbanisation affects fauna in many ways; with some species persisting and going on to dominate urban habitats, while other species decline over time due to habitat disturbance and modification. Microbats comprise a major component of remnant mammalian fauna in urban areas but we have a comparatively poor understanding of how they respond to urbanisation compared to other taxonomic groups. We investigated the impacts of an urban gradient on microbat communities of habitat remnants on the Gold Coast, southeast Queensland, Australia. We conducted acoustic surveys of 34 sites categorised as urban, peri-urban or rural, with an additional five reference sites. A combination of landscape and habitat elements were quantified for each site and their influence on the richness and calling activity of microbats determined. Overall, more microbat species were detected in reference sites followed by peri-urban sites. Rural and urban sites had similar richness, but only 50 % overlap in species recorded. After accounting for sampling effort peri-urban sites were found to have the greatest species richness and calling activity. Three species accounted for 45.4 % of the variation in microbat species detected. Using generalised linear mixed models we found that site area and the extent of urban development in the landscape (i.e. urbanisation index) had the greatest impact on microbat richness and calling activity. Models including logging (clearfelling) and hollow-bearing tree measures were also important. Our results support the use of the urbanisation gradient as a key measure to quantify the impacts of urbanisation on biodiversity. Logging history plays an important role across the landscape as it is a potential driver of other landscape variables such as tree species diversity, stand density and hollow-bearing tree density.

Journal for Nature Conservation, Feb 1, 2016

Traditional strategies to stem declines in biodiversity include the establishment of public prote... more Traditional strategies to stem declines in biodiversity include the establishment of public protected area networks. However, private lands are an increasingly important component of contemporary reserve networks. Despite the increasing recognition of the value of private lands for conservation little is known about these areas. Consequently, this study aimed to re-evaluate the changes in private reserves in Brazil since 2005. Brazil’s private reserve system is represented by 1182 reserves, recognized under federal law and created to protect nature in perpetuity. These reserves protect 7502 km2 of land and are distributed across seven terrestrial biomes. This is an overall increase of 35% in the number of reserves (n = 753) and 3265 km2 of protected land (<0.05% of Brazilian terrestrial extent) since 2005. Forty-eight percent of the reserves (n = 572) are each smaller than 0.5 km2. While 749 (67%) of all private reserves (n = 1,182) are located in the Atlantic Forest biome, 38% of the overall area protected under the private reserve system is in the Pantanal biome, which has only 10 reserves. For landowners, the establishment of these reserves is a costly and bureaucratic process. Few economic incentives to establish reserves are available and comprise mostly tax breaks and funding from NGOs to assist with the establishment and management activities. The private reserve network provides valuable contributions to watershed and species conservation in Brazil, despite their limited size and challenges to create and manage these areas. Greater funding opportunities to landowners can be a catalyst for the establishment of reserves beyond the Atlantic Forest biome.

Biological Conservation, Aug 1, 2022

Bird Conservation International, Aug 17, 2016

Birders are generally nature-oriented; however, their understanding of key bird conservation issu... more Birders are generally nature-oriented; however, their understanding of key bird conservation issues remains under-examined. We surveyed English-speaking birders online and face-toface asking questions related to their views on conservation, conservation funding and their understanding of a global bird conservation program (BirdLife International's Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas [IBAs]). Most birders that responded to the survey were from Australia, the United Kingdom, South Africa and the United States of America. Birders tend to value bird conservation in an ecocentric way, often citing the overarching importance of general biodiversity. The ecological roles birds play was also highlighted, but this varied across socio-demographic groups. Despite their positive support for conservation, less than half of all birders surveyed are familiar with the IBA program. Familiarity with IBAs was driven by socio-demographic factors, with males more familiar than females and South African birders more familiar than birders from Australia and the United Kingdom. Most birders are willing to make contributions to bird conservation when visiting key birding sites, however they also feel governments should remain the main funders of conservation. Opportunities to enhance engagement between birders and bird conservation groups exist with most indicating a desire to learn more about bird conservation at birding sites. Increasing access to relevant information and presenting opportunities to contribute to conservation at birding sites could provide tangible benefits for bird habitats, protected areas and bird conservation groups.

Journal of Ecotourism, Mar 14, 2018

Ecotourism is often promoted for its potential to act as a conservation mechanism by: mobilising ... more Ecotourism is often promoted for its potential to act as a conservation mechanism by: mobilising political, financial and social support for conservation; increasing environmental awareness; protecting sensitive ecosystems and threatened species; and providing an alternate income to land-intensive or consumptive practices. Although instances to date indicate that this can indeed prove highly successful in some circumstances, the conservation impact of the ecotourism sector on a larger scale is unclear. This study identified 70 papers published prior to January 2016 in English language academic journals that examine the conservation actions and outcomes of ecotourism enterprises. There were three key findings within this study. Firstly, conservation actions have been examined more frequently than conservation outcomes. Secondly, there has been a strong focus on indirect approaches to conservation such as visitor education and community-based actions, and a shortage of studies measuring direct impacts on wildlife populations or other components of the natural bio-physical environment. Thirdly, the majority of sites studied are located in developing countries, but the majority of authors are located in developed countries. By identifying these gaps and patterns that currently exist in the academic literature, this review helps to direct and support future research agendas.

African Zoology, Apr 1, 2002

A previous estimate of the lion (Panthera leo) population in the southwestern Kgalagadi Transfron... more A previous estimate of the lion (Panthera leo) population in the southwestern Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (KTP) was made over 20 years ago. This together with increased fears regarding the viability of the population as a result of recent killings of roaming animals, an observed increase in non-violent mortalities during 1996, and possible reduced genetic viability due to suspected isolation, prompted another investigation. Between October 1996 and December 1996, 68 lions were captured and marked and subjected to two recapture (resighting) samples. The minimum estimate derived from direct enumeration of marked and unmarked individuals is between 100-103 individuals. Assessment of the adult and subadult population using the Lincoln-Petersen estimator and the software program NOREMARK gives a figure between 92 and 125. The current estimate is below the previous estimate of between 113 and 140 lions. Lion densities of 1.2 adult and subadult lions/100 km 2 in the semi-arid southern Kalahari are considerably lower than those in more mesic regions. Furthermore, there appears to be some demographic variability with the ratio of females to males being twice as high as that recorded 20 years ago.

Waterbirds, Mar 1, 2018

Habitat selection by herons, egrets and bitterns (Ardeidae) is influenced by the extent and quali... more Habitat selection by herons, egrets and bitterns (Ardeidae) is influenced by the extent and quality of surrounding wetlands in natural landscapes. However, these relationships may be different in highly modified urban environments where inter-and intra-specific competition could be increased. To assess the relative effects of habitat and competition on habitat selection by ardeids in an urban landscape, all known colonies in the densely populated coastal region around Macao Special Administrative Region, China, were surveyed. The relationship among ardeid communities and patch-level habitat variables were investigated using multivariate and co-occurrence analyses. Ardeid species (n = 12) were recorded during 2006-2009. Habitat patches were categorized into three types based on 10 habitat factors using redundancy analysis. The area of adjacent open land (r 13 = 0.772, P = 0.002) and patch area (r 13 = 0.670, P = 0.012) were the major indicators of species richness and abundance, respectively. However, the factor that influenced habitat selection the most was perimeter-area ratio (marginal effect: λ1 = 0.33). The lack of evidence for competition in the co-occurrence analysis suggested that the spatial pattern of the ardeid community in Macao Special Administrative Region, China, was primarily driven by variation in habitat features that satisfy species-specific requirements.

Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 2016

Hollow-bearing trees provide habitat for diverse taxonomic groups and as such they are recognised... more Hollow-bearing trees provide habitat for diverse taxonomic groups and as such they are recognised for their importance globally. There is, however scant reference to this resource relative within urban forest patches. The functional ecology of habitat remnants along an urbanisation gradient plays an important ecological, social and economic role within urban landscapes. Here we quantify the impacts of urbanisation, landscape, environmental, disturbance (past and present) and stand variables on hollow-bearing tree density within urban forest patches. This was undertaken by surveying 45 forest patches on the Gold Coast, southeast Queensland, Australia. Sites were categorised as; urban, peri-urban or rural along an urbanisation gradient, with an additional five control sites. Historical logging practices were found to be the driving factor influencing hollow-bearing tree density along the urbanisation gradient; while the impacts of urbanisation itself are not as yet discernible. These findings highlight the significance of incorporating historical land use practise into current and future urban planning, as these will have continuing impacts on remaining urban biodiversity values. These findings, will benefit natural resource managers and urban planners when making decisions about where and how best to manage for hollow-bearing trees along urbanisation gradients.

Societies

This research presents a new model based on Twitter posts and VADER algorithms to analyze social ... more This research presents a new model based on Twitter posts and VADER algorithms to analyze social media discourse during and following a bushfire event. The case study is the Gold Coast community that experienced the first bushfire event of Australia’s severe Black Summer in 2019/2020. This study aims to understand which communities and stakeholders generate and exchange information on disasters caused by natural hazards. In doing so, a new methodology to analyze social media in disaster management is presented. This model enables stakeholders to understand key message themes and community sentiment during and following the disaster, as well as the individuals and groups that shape the messaging. Three main findings emerged. Firstly, the results show that messaging volume is a proxy for the importance of the bushfires, with a clear increase during the bushfire event and a sharp decline after the event. Secondly, from a content perspective, there was a consistent negative message sent...

Frontiers in Conservation Science

IntroductionConservation research plays an integral role in the effort to conserve biodiversity g... more IntroductionConservation research plays an integral role in the effort to conserve biodiversity globally. However, research gaps can limit conservation research’s potential contribution to addressing global biodiversity problems such as habitat fragmentation. While a synthesis of the research literature does not attain effective conservation action by itself, it can inform future research and corridor conservation planning and practices.MethodsWe used a systematic search of peer-reviewed research articles in Scopus, Web of Science, and grey literature in the Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group library published before December 2020. Our review assessed research on the identification and use of corridors, a primary instrument used to address the threats of habitat fragmentation, for large carnivores to identify patterns, priorities, and gaps in the literature. We focused on large carnivores because they are frequently used for connectivity planning owing to their higher sensit...

Tourism Recreation Research

5th Interdisciplinary Tourism Research Conference, 2017

https://news.griffith.edu.au/2020/07/22/gathering-memories-from-the-bushfire-ashes/, 2021

Scientific Reports, 2020

Understanding geographical biases in ecological research is important for conservation, planning,... more Understanding geographical biases in ecological research is important for conservation, planning, prioritisation and management. However, conservation efforts may be limited by data availability and poor understanding of the nature of potential spatial bias. We conduct the first continent-wide analysis of spatial bias associated with Australian terrestrial reptile ecological research. To evaluate potential research deficiencies, we used Maxent modelling to predict the distributions of 646 reptile studies published from 1972 to 2017. Based on existing distributions of 1631 individual reptile study locations, reptile species richness, proximity to universities, human footprint and location of protected areas, we found the strongest predictor of reptile research locations was proximity to universities (40.8%). This was followed by species richness (22.9%) and human footprint (20.1%), while protected areas were the weakest predictor (16.2%). These results highlight that research effort ...

Pacific Conservation Biology, 2021

Habitat destruction is a key threatening process for amphibians. Modified or anthropogenic waterb... more Habitat destruction is a key threatening process for amphibians. Modified or anthropogenic waterbodies can be used to compensate for habitat loss, with several amphibian species utilising created or modified waterbodies. We measured usage of anthropogenic/modified waterbodies by adult and tadpole frog species, including threatened species, in coastal wallum habitat in eastern Australia. Nine road trenches/ditches, 8 artificial ‘lakes’, 6 golf course waterbodies and 13 natural waterbodies were surveyed for frog adults and tadpoles during the summer/spring period 2011–2012. Additionally, we examined the relationship between frog assemblages and environmental factors (water chemistry, aquatic predators, vegetation types), focusing on Litoria olongburensis and Litoria fallax. Frog species richness differed between waterbody types, with two of three threatened frog species present in both natural and anthropogenic/modified waterbodies. The frog assemblage was influenced by pH, turbidity,...

Forest Ecology and Management, 2020

Abstract Habitat loss remains one of the primary threats to global forest communities but remaini... more Abstract Habitat loss remains one of the primary threats to global forest communities but remaining forest habitats are also subjected to ongoing fragmentation by linear clearings such as seismic lines for petroleum exploration. Seismic lines alter local habitat use, but unlike roads, which are well studied, less is known about the effects of seismic lines on mammal abundance and community composition. The objective of this study was to determine whether fragmentation by seismic linear clearings affected mammal abundance or community composition at fine and landscape scales. Winter snow track surveys were conducted over three winters, within 14 landscapes, dispersed throughout a boreal forest area (4000 km2), to measure relative abundances of 17 co-existing mammals. Mammal communities within seismic line habitat were dissimilar from communities in nearby forest habitat and were characterized by relatively higher abundances of some larger herbivores (moose/elk) and some mammalian predators (cougar, lynx, weasel). Within broader landscapes (12.3 km2), relative abundances of some large mammals were also associated with seismic line fragmentation. One large predator (gray wolf) trended toward higher relative abundance in the landscapes most fragmented by seismic lines, while one large herbivore group (moose/elk) decreased in abundance in these landscapes. Overall, our results reveal that forest fragmentation by narrow linear clearings (e.g. seismic lines) had a measurable effect on wildlife relative abundances, particularly for a few large mammals. They also highlight the importance of differentiating between fine-scale and landscape-scale effects. In this area, strong preference and avoidance behaviors toward seismic line habitat, were generally not associated with a consistent response at the landscape scale, potentially due to the dissimilar responses by different species to seismic line habitats, which may have altered interactions between co-existing species, such as predator and prey species. These findings have important implications for the management of mammal communities located within forests fragmented by seismic lines.

Frontiers in Immunology, 2018

Conservation Biology, 2017

Conservation of biodiversity, including birds, continues to challenge natural area managers. Stat... more Conservation of biodiversity, including birds, continues to challenge natural area managers. Stated preference methods (e.g. choice experiments - CE) are increasingly used to provide data for natural ecosystem valuations. Here we use a CE to calculate birders&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39; willingness to pay for different levels of bio-ecological attributes (threatened species, endemic species and diversity) of birding sites, with hypothetical entry fees. The CE was delivered at popular birding and avitourism sites in Australia and the United Kingdom. Latent class modelling results revealed heterogeneous preferences among birders, with correspondingly variable willingness to pay. Four clear groups were apparent from the sample; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;quantity driven birders&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;, &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;special bird seekers&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;, &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;confused respondents&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39; and &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;price is no object birders&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;. Quantity driven birders are attracted to sites that deliver high levels of diversity and endemic species. Special bird seekers value threatened species and high levels of endemics most. Confused respondents&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39; preferences were difficult to determine, but were most sensitive to the hypothetical entry fees, unlike the price is no object birders who were not at all sensitive to cost. Our findings demonstrate that birders are amenable to paying for their preferred birding experience. These payments could provide an alternative source of funding in some avitourism sites, on both public and private land. These alternative revenue streams should be explored and given full consideration in increasingly competitive conservation financing environments. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Urban Ecosystems, 2016

Urbanisation affects fauna in many ways; with some species persisting and going on to dominate ur... more Urbanisation affects fauna in many ways; with some species persisting and going on to dominate urban habitats, while other species decline over time due to habitat disturbance and modification. Microbats comprise a major component of remnant mammalian fauna in urban areas but we have a comparatively poor understanding of how they respond to urbanisation compared to other taxonomic groups. We investigated the impacts of an urban gradient on microbat communities of habitat remnants on the Gold Coast, southeast Queensland, Australia. We conducted acoustic surveys of 34 sites categorised as urban, peri-urban or rural, with an additional five reference sites. A combination of landscape and habitat elements were quantified for each site and their influence on the richness and calling activity of microbats determined. Overall, more microbat species were detected in reference sites followed by peri-urban sites. Rural and urban sites had similar richness, but only 50 % overlap in species recorded. After accounting for sampling effort peri-urban sites were found to have the greatest species richness and calling activity. Three species accounted for 45.4 % of the variation in microbat species detected. Using generalised linear mixed models we found that site area and the extent of urban development in the landscape (i.e. urbanisation index) had the greatest impact on microbat richness and calling activity. Models including logging (clearfelling) and hollow-bearing tree measures were also important. Our results support the use of the urbanisation gradient as a key measure to quantify the impacts of urbanisation on biodiversity. Logging history plays an important role across the landscape as it is a potential driver of other landscape variables such as tree species diversity, stand density and hollow-bearing tree density.

Journal for Nature Conservation, Feb 1, 2016

Traditional strategies to stem declines in biodiversity include the establishment of public prote... more Traditional strategies to stem declines in biodiversity include the establishment of public protected area networks. However, private lands are an increasingly important component of contemporary reserve networks. Despite the increasing recognition of the value of private lands for conservation little is known about these areas. Consequently, this study aimed to re-evaluate the changes in private reserves in Brazil since 2005. Brazil’s private reserve system is represented by 1182 reserves, recognized under federal law and created to protect nature in perpetuity. These reserves protect 7502 km2 of land and are distributed across seven terrestrial biomes. This is an overall increase of 35% in the number of reserves (n = 753) and 3265 km2 of protected land (<0.05% of Brazilian terrestrial extent) since 2005. Forty-eight percent of the reserves (n = 572) are each smaller than 0.5 km2. While 749 (67%) of all private reserves (n = 1,182) are located in the Atlantic Forest biome, 38% of the overall area protected under the private reserve system is in the Pantanal biome, which has only 10 reserves. For landowners, the establishment of these reserves is a costly and bureaucratic process. Few economic incentives to establish reserves are available and comprise mostly tax breaks and funding from NGOs to assist with the establishment and management activities. The private reserve network provides valuable contributions to watershed and species conservation in Brazil, despite their limited size and challenges to create and manage these areas. Greater funding opportunities to landowners can be a catalyst for the establishment of reserves beyond the Atlantic Forest biome.