Monitoring Biodviersty Flashcards
Why do we monitor
Changes over time to stress. (Climate change)
Responses to specific interventions. (Wild fire management)
Recovery of a species (reintrudrion)
Why can biodiversity itself not be applied to real world problems
It is too broad and vague a concept
Why is biodiversity so broad
It’s the number of genes, species ecosystem but also processes like interspecific interactions, natural disturbances, nutrient cycles
What are the different ways to monitoring the impacts on dendribates (frog)
Climate factors controlling vegetation and patterns of species richness across regions.
Habitat availability and landscape linkages.
Climate controls on regional and local disturbance regimes.
Physiological tolerances of individual species.
Dispersal capacities of individual species.
Genetic variations within and among different populations of a species.
What are the parts of the the conceptual figure of biodiversity
Structural
Compositional
Functional
What does structural mean
Physical organisation or patterns like habitat complexity.
What does compositional mean
Identity and richness like species diversity and genetic diversity
What does functional mean
Ecological and evolutionary processes like gene flow and nutrient cyclin
What is the conceptual figure of biodiversity at the regional scale
C: distribution, richness, endemism.
S: heterogeneity, fragmentation, patch size.
F: disturbance processes, hydrological processes
What is the conceptual figure of biodiversity at the community (ecosystem scale)
C: relatively abundance and proportions of threatened species.
S: soil, vegetation, horizontal/ vertical heterogeneity.
F: herbivory, productivity.
What is the conceptual figure of biodiversity at the population (species) level
C: abundance, biomass.
S/ range, population structure.
F: population fluctuation and phenology
What is the conceptual figure of biodiversity at the genetic scale
C: allelic diversity, presence of specific alleles.
S: population size, heterozygosity.
F: inbreeding depression, geneflow.
What makes a good indicator species
Sensitive to detect change.
Widely relevant/ disturbed.
Provides continuous assessment over wide range.
Results are independent of sample size.
Easy to measure.
Cost effective.
Differentiates between natural and anthropogenically induced change.
Relevant to ecologically significant issues.
What are the different indicators in Brazil
Birds
Dung beetles
Moths
Small mammals
Birds and dung beetles are well studied and perform important ecological functions.
What does resolution do
It’s about scale and precision and tells us what tools
What are the range of methods to monitoring
Camera trapping
Field measurements
Remote sensing
Example of field measurements
DBH
Species idenitfixauofn
Example of remote sensing
Conventional aircraft
Satellite
UAV photos
What are the analyses of monitoring
Time series
Spatial statistics
Indicies
Comparisons
Examples of indicies
Heterogentiy, connnectivity, diversity
What are conservation drones
Low cost unmanned aerial vehicles
What do conservations drones do
Survey wildlife
Monitor and map terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
Support enforcement of protected areas.
Example of conservation drones
Drones to monitor organgutabs who make their nests on top of trees
What are camera traps
Remotely activated camera equipped with a motion, infrared or light sensor as a trigger
Why do we use camera traps
Detected elusive species e.g low density, nocturnal or shy. Can get to remote or inhospitable sites and good for Mark-recapture studies
Example of camera trapping
Sri Lankan leopards.
To monitor: population size and trends. Home range and territoriality. Feeding ecology. Landscape connectivity.
Why should we conserve birds and butterflies
Good indicators of environmental change. Charismatic species. Rare species. Vulnerable. Important to the ecosystem.
Example of a charity organisation for birds
RSPB - royal society for the protection of birds
BTo - British trust for ornithology
Facts of the RSPB
Leading charity for the last 110 years.
UK headquarters, 3 national offices, 9 regional offices, 175 local groups.
A million current members.
Example of a butterfly charity organisation
Butterfly conservation
Facts of the butterfly conservation
Leading charity for the last 40 years.
31 regional branches.
13,000 current members.
What has the UK biodiversity action plan allowed us to do
Set priorities ‘action plans’ help us identify what species are endangered. Based on data gathered on conservation organisations
Why was the uk biodiversity action plan developed
To meet commitments under the convention on biological diversity - rip de janeiro 1992
What were the four criteria of the Uk biodiversity action plan
Threatened internationally.
International responsibility and a 25% decline in the uk.
More than 50% decline in the uk.
Other factors like species that’s decling is a good indicator or flagship.
When is conservation of a species impossible
Without knowing where species are and how abundant they are
What are the two main ways to get information about where a species is and how abundant
Recording: distribution data.
Monitoring: measuring abundance of local population.
How far back does records for all UK birds go
More than 200 years
How many main BTO atlas of breeding birds in Britain and Ireland i there
2 e.g the atlas of breeding birds and the new atlas of breeding birds
What is the resolution of recording birds throughout the country
10km
Why is the New Atlas the best
It’s the most complete and up to date Uk distribution map for all breeding birds.
Predictions of potentials breeding areas and info on changes since 1988.
How far back do records of butterflies go
200 years
What is BNM
Butterflies for the new millennium project started in 1995
What does the BNM do
Intensive recording of butterflies through the country - historical records too.
Resolution of the BNM
10km
What does the biological records centre (BRC) record
Botany
Vertebrate zoology
Invertebrate zoology
What do recording schemes provide information on
Extinction of species
Range decline and increase
Responses to climate change
What has been the changes in bird distribution
No extinctions but 55% of the species have declined in distribution
What is the change in distribution for butterflies
2 species became extinct and 72% decline in distribution
Why are may species shifting their range northward
A result of warming
Facts about the breeding bird surveys
Carry out annually since 1994.
Random 1km squares across the country.
More than 3000 squares in 2009.
2 early morning visits during the breeding season.
All birds within the square are record (2 transects, 1km each)
Facts about the UK butterfly monitoring scheme
Fixed routes 1-2km in length.
Weekly for 6months.
1400 sites.
Between 10:45 and 15:45 in weather conditions.
All butterflies counted within 2.5m eaither side of the transect and 5m aheqd.
What do monitoring schemes provide information on
Phenology
Local and regional abundance
Population trends
Population trends for birds
45% of species decrease in abundance and 55% have increased.
Farmland and woodland birds declined while sea birds had increaed
What are the population trends for butterflies
54% has decreased and 46% have increased.
Habitats specialised have declined and habitats generalisations have increased
What are the species found by the Uk biodiversity action plan
1150 species.
59 birds.
24 butterflies.
154 moths.
What does the Uk BAP say about birds
Severe decline in the Uk (50%)
10% loss of occupied squares
61% decline in abundance
What does the UK BAP for butterfliese says
Iver 50% decline.
61% loss of occupied squares.
66% decline of abundance
What are the actions to conserve species
Reintroduction of extinct species.
Habitats restoration to increase habitats area and connectivity.
Habitat management to increase habitats quality.
Agri-environmental schemes.
What do agri-environmental schemes do
Helps set up environmental policies on how we should manage our farming landscapes
Case study of bird species reintroduction in the Un
Red kite. Extinct here in 1870s. Stock from Sweden, Spain and Germany in 1989. Released in 6 main areas. Now well established and increasing.
Case study of a buttefly species reintroduction
Large blue. Extinct in 1979. Habitat restoration for the buttefly and ants. Stick from Sweden released in 1993. Well established in 10 sites.
Facts about the high brown fritillary butterflies
79% distribution lost in 40 years.
85% population decline in 10 years.
Arnside/silverdale AONB National stronghold.
A landscape scale conservation project.
What is the conservation plan for the high brown fritillary
Monitor populations annually by transects.
Undertake habitat condition monitoring triennially.
Winter cattle grazing regime.
Scrub/woodland clearance and bracken control.
Facts about the corn bunting
34% distribution list in the last 40 years.
80% population decline in the last 40 years.
AES implemented to reverse decline.
What are the agri-environmental schemes for corn bunting
Research over 7 years and 71 farms in Scotland found:
5.6% increase in populations annually in farms managed for birds.
No change in general AES.
14.4% decline in outside AES farms.
How do ‘we’ do monitoring
Traditional and local ecological knowledge (TEK/LEK)
Collaborations with the public.
Example of LEK/TEK
Whale sharks in Indonesia can get the approx location to them from sightings by fisherman. Not resolution like science but it’s effective. Can see distribution, behaviour, human interactions and photographing of individuals
Example of changes in wild orchid populations
Ornamental plants are illegally traded in places we can not go (Myanmar).
Limited infrastructure and dense forest.
Interview of local and traders to get their ecological knowledge of plants: species lists, changes in availability over time, price data to see rarity and demand.
Limitations of using local knowledge for orchids
Traders don’t have full information.
Misinformation and social desirability.
What is citizen science
The involvement of volunteers in research
Pros of citizen science
Free
Large Labour force
Can be Everywhere
Helps with data classification
What are the types of data in citizen science
Environmental measurements
Percentage cover
Absence-presence
Counts
cons of citizen science
Requires training, management, verification.
Potential for error and bias is poorly understood.
Example of citizen science
Monitoring UK predatory birds.
Managed by CEH.
Monitors concentrations of contaminants in the livers and eggs of selected predatory and fish eating bird species.
Detects and quantifies current and emerging chemical threats, which vary.
Relies on dead birds and failed egg collection by the public
Example of citizen science for uk flora
National plant monitoring scheme.
Habitats based plant monitoring scheme.
Volunteers identity 25-30 indicator species in randomly allocated, local 1km square.
Often requires training.
Steps to develop a monitoring strategy
What kind of biodiversity?
What priority sites and issues.
Specific questions.
Gather existing data.
Select indicators.
Set a baseline.
Identify control areas/ treatments.
Develop a sampling scheme.
Make sure your indicators are good.
Recommend management actions.
