Category: Research summaries

Careers, Human-wildlife interactions, Research summaries, Urban ecosystems

Douglas Cirino: Balanced spatial distribution of green areas creates healthier urban landscapes

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022 This post is also available in Brazilian Portuguese here. Douglas Cirino discusses his and research colleagues’ article which explores how healthier urban landscapes are those that share city space with greenery. São Paulo Upon arriving in São Paulo, the largest metropolis in the world outside of Asia, I was shocked by the amount of concrete used to build the city. As a … Continue reading Douglas Cirino: Balanced spatial distribution of green areas creates healthier urban landscapes

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Agriculture, Perspectives, Policy, Practitioners, Research summaries

More and better hedgerows

Jo Staley, Lisa Norton (UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology) and Rob Wolton (Devon Hedge Group and Hedgelink) present their latest Perspective article calling for and providing recommendations for improving and expanding hedgerows as a valuable habitat and carbon store. Hedgerows, and having more of them, are high on the policy agenda with a target for a 10% national increase by 2050 in the recent … Continue reading More and better hedgerows

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Agriculture, Careers, Plant and soil ecology, Research summaries

Chongzhe Zhang: Leveraging functional traits of cover crops to coordinate crop productivity and soil health

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022 In this blog post, Chongzhe Zhang talks us through his and colleagues’ research involving a trait-based field experiment in which cover crops were measured to evaluate soil health, crop productivity and agricultural ecosystem sustainability. Trait-based ecology The grand challenge of feeding a growing population while preserving biodiversity and ecosystem sustainability is a daunting task for humanity. To achieve a … Continue reading Chongzhe Zhang: Leveraging functional traits of cover crops to coordinate crop productivity and soil health

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Careers, Human-wildlife interactions, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Mahmood Soofi: Quantifying the relationship between prey density, livestock and illegal killing of leopards

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022 Mahmood Soofi talks us through his research project which saw him and colleagues use ranger-collected data on illegal leopard killings in Iran and an N-mixture model to quantify relationships between livestock, prey density and illegal killing. Overexploitation and carnivores Overexploitation is one of the major threats to biodiversity in many parts of the world, which is driving many species … Continue reading Mahmood Soofi: Quantifying the relationship between prey density, livestock and illegal killing of leopards

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Agriculture, Policy, Practitioners, Research summaries, Urban ecosystems

How can we make solar energy work for the environment as much as for the climate?

Drawing from his team’s latest Perspective piece, Fabio Carvalho provides an overview of the growth of the solar energy industry in the UK and how we can better evaluate its impact on the environment. Solar farms are fast becoming a common sight across Britain. It is not hard to spot one by the side of a road or by going up a hill and looking … Continue reading How can we make solar energy work for the environment as much as for the climate?

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Careers, Coastal and marine, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Deqiang Ma: The consequences of coastal offsets for fisheries

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022 Deqiang Ma talks us through his and colleagues’ research article which uses a case study of mangrove and seagrass habitats in Queensland, Australia to consider different policies regarding offsetting impacts on fish habitats. The issue Globally, ecosystem services are imperiled due to development, especially in coastal and marine areas. To achieve no net loss of ecosystem services through offsetting … Continue reading Deqiang Ma: The consequences of coastal offsets for fisheries

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Careers, Forests, Plant and soil ecology, Research summaries, Translation

Ricard Arasa-Gisbert: La pérdida de bosques y las matrices sin árboles causan el empobrecimiento funcional de las comunidades de árboles jóvenes en zonas de bosques antiguos en las regiones tropicales

Preseleccionados para el Premio Southwood 2022. Ricard Arasa-Gisbert discute su artículo y el de sus colegas de investigación sobre la pérdida de bosques y el empobrecimiento funcional de las comunidades de árboles jóvenes en las regiones tropicales. Continue reading Ricard Arasa-Gisbert: La pérdida de bosques y las matrices sin árboles causan el empobrecimiento funcional de las comunidades de árboles jóvenes en zonas de bosques antiguos en las regiones tropicales

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Careers, Forests, Plant and soil ecology, Research summaries

Ricard Arasa-Gisbert: Forest loss and treeless matrices cause the functional impoverishment of sapling communities in old-growth forest patches across tropical regions

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022. Ricard Arasa-Gisbert discusses his and research colleagues’ article on forest loss and the functional impoverishment of sapling communities in tropical regions. Continue reading Ricard Arasa-Gisbert: Forest loss and treeless matrices cause the functional impoverishment of sapling communities in old-growth forest patches across tropical regions

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Agriculture, Careers, Pollinators, Research summaries

Corina Maurer: Different types of semi-natural habitat are required to sustain diverse wild bee communities across agricultural landscapes

Shortlisted for the Southwood Prize 2022 Corina Maurer talks us through her and colleagues’ research on how different kinds of habitats are able to maintain a diverse bee community throughout agricultural landscapes. Habitats and bees Open habitat mosaics, such as grasslands interspersed with hedgerows that existed more than 150 years ago, were home to very diverse wild bee communities. But, the once so diverse and … Continue reading Corina Maurer: Different types of semi-natural habitat are required to sustain diverse wild bee communities across agricultural landscapes

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Careers, Freshwater, Monitoring and methods, Perspectives, Research summaries

Lucy Dowdall: The Natural Capital approach to estuaries

Shortlisted for the Georgina Mace Prize 2022 In their latest Perspective, Lucy Dowdall and colleagues present a framework for successful recovery of nature in estuaries using the Natural Capital approach. Estuaries are the transitional zones between freshwater rivers and saltwater seas. They are also some of the most complex and unique habitats on earth. They provide important habitats for a wide range of key species, … Continue reading Lucy Dowdall: The Natural Capital approach to estuaries

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