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Citizen science, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Research stories: Strava, GBIF and Citizen Science

Lead author Caitlin Mandeville recalls how she and her co-authors kept their focus close to home in their latest research that explores connections between citizen science and recreation in natural areas. Just about every community has some small, unassuming natural areas that are mainly known to locals: a neighbourhood park, a small wildlife preserve, a field on the edge of town. These places might not … Continue reading Research stories: Strava, GBIF and Citizen Science

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Monitoring and methods, Practitioners, Research summaries

Making optimal adaptive management accessible to everyone

Author Sam Nicol describes his team’s latest research developing a new model to help managers easily identify and employ adaptive management interventions to protect threatened species. Adaptive management—what’s the problem? Adaptive management has been the coolest thing in conservation for almost 40 years – everyone wants to do it. Way back in the ‘80s, the elegant seminal formulations by Hollings and Walters proposed that conservation … Continue reading Making optimal adaptive management accessible to everyone

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Agriculture, Forests, Practitioners, Research summaries

From the ground up: Understanding coffee agroforestry systems

Sarah Archibald describes her team’s latest research seeking to better understand emergent herbaceous communities in organic coffee agroforestry systems by identifying their taxonomic and functional diversity as well as their management by interviewing farmers in Costa Rica. Coffee agroecosystems range in management and diversity, from monocultures with chemical inputs to biologically complex multi-strata agroforestry systems. With the demand for organic coffee expected to increase by … Continue reading From the ground up: Understanding coffee agroforestry systems

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Agriculture, Forests, Research summaries

The proximity of rapeseed fields influences levels of forest damage by red deer

Deer can show transitional use between agricultural fields and forests for foraging and shelter which may have an effect on the level of forest damage. In their latest research, Anders Jarnemo and colleagues investigate this relationship by studying red deer in Skåne, Sweden. Red deer (Cervus elaphus) have been observed to cause severe damage to forest plantations through bark stripping, with tree species such as … Continue reading The proximity of rapeseed fields influences levels of forest damage by red deer

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Citizen science, Coastal and marine, Practitioners, Research summaries, Restoration

Research stories: Boxing for conservation

Authors Brian Burke and Darren O’Connell discuss the conservation of roseate terns at Europe’s largest colony on Rockabill Island in Dublin, Ireland, with their latest research highlighting the important role artificial nestboxes have played in the species’ population growth and recovery. The role of a tern warden on Rockabill Island has been described on more than one occasion as a dream job. A summer spent … Continue reading Research stories: Boxing for conservation

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Grasslands, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries, Restoration

Mapping 35 years of prescribed fire history

Authors Erin Rowland-Schaefer and Elizabeth Bach describe their latest Data Article presenting a visual record of the long fire history of Nachusa Grasslands, a tallgrass prairie restoration site in Illinois, USA. Fire has played a significant role in the development and management of tallgrass prairie ecosystems since before European colonization. While historically, fire was used by Indigenous communities to manage the movements of bison, today, … Continue reading Mapping 35 years of prescribed fire history

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Careers, Journal news

Join The Applied Ecologist team as a Blog Associate Editor

We are seeking an enthusiastic ecologist with a passion for stimulating dialogue and communication across everyone involved in ecological research and practice to join the team in this voluntary role. Summary of the Role We are looking for an active ecologist with a passion for stimulating dialogue and communication across everyone involved in ecological research and practice. Part of the Editorial Boards for Journal Applied … Continue reading Join The Applied Ecologist team as a Blog Associate Editor

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Human-wildlife interactions, Pathogens and disease, Practitioners, Research summaries

Badger social structure maintained despite selective culling

In their new study, Allen et al. present a case study in Northern Ireland (NI) showing how selective culling can be less disruptive to badger social structures than indiscriminate culling. This method could be an effective and more socially acceptable means of controlling bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in wildlife. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has raised consciousness on the issue of human disturbance of ecosystems and how this … Continue reading Badger social structure maintained despite selective culling

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Citizen science, Freshwater, Practitioners, Research summaries, Urban ecosystems

Eight steps to urban amphibian conservation: Framework to translate ecological knowledge to action

New research by Lee et al. demonstrates the utility of an eight-step framework to identify priority wetland habitats and movement corridors for urban amphibian conservation in cities. Author Nicole Kahal explains more in this blog post. Amphibians are one of the most imperilled species assemblages with diversity and abundance declines reported globally. Considered a key indicator of ecological condition, amphibians face many challenges in the … Continue reading Eight steps to urban amphibian conservation: Framework to translate ecological knowledge to action

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Freshwater, Grasslands, Practitioners, Research summaries

Electric fencing safeguards declining wader populations

Originally posted and adapted from a RSPB Centre for Conservation Science and Vogelbescherming Nederland blog. Insufficient reproduction as a consequence of predation is a major determinant of population decline in ground-nesting birds. Malcolm Burgess and colleagues discuss their latest study on the effectiveness of using electric fences as a preventative measure. A common driver of the decline of ground-nesting meadow birds, especially waders, is insufficient … Continue reading Electric fencing safeguards declining wader populations

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