Category: Research summaries

Citizen science, Research summaries, Video

Volunteering time matters for improving amphibian conservation

Salamander bucket brigades represent grassroots volunteer efforts to reduce road mortality of amphibians. Simulations by Sean Sterrett and colleagues found that efforts to move outbound metamorphs are more influential than inbound adults. Find out more about their citizen science efforts. As the last signs of winter diminish; air temperatures rise, icy cover on ponds melts and spring rains begin to warm soils, amphibians emerge from forests … Continue reading Volunteering time matters for improving amphibian conservation

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Agriculture, Research summaries, Video

U.S. policy-based management improves grassland bird nest survival – although finer-scale habitat has superior predictive ability

In a recent study, Justin Shew and colleagues found nest survival improved with policy-based management and establishing native grasses but conclude finer-scale details often have superior predictive ability from a multi-scale perspective. Read more about their findings here. A video summary of their work is also available. Grassland and farmland bird populations have been declining around the world and these declines are primarily attributed to … Continue reading U.S. policy-based management improves grassland bird nest survival – although finer-scale habitat has superior predictive ability

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology2 Comments
Research summaries

Long-term European LIFE project key for the recovery of an endangered Egyptian vulture population

In new research, Jaume Adrià Badia‐Boher and colleagues highlight the need for long-term monitoring of conservation programmes. Here, co-author, Ana Sanz‐Aguilar demonstrates one success story of this nature, in conservation of the Canary Egyptian Vulture. The population of one of the most endangered raptors in Europe, the Canary Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus majorensis), is recovering. This is one of the main conclusions reached by an international … Continue reading Long-term European LIFE project key for the recovery of an endangered Egyptian vulture population

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Research summaries

Grazers and fire management: conservation from a ‘systems’ perspective

How do grazing herbivores like hippos affect the influence of fire? Following a recently published article, Izak Smit demonstrates the need for interdependence between herbivore and fire management. Grazing animals and fire are in direct competition – both of them consume grass. Previous continental-scale studies suggest that grazing animals have the competitive advantage in drier and more nutritious landscapes, whilst fires dominate in wetter and … Continue reading Grazers and fire management: conservation from a ‘systems’ perspective

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Agriculture, Research summaries

Complex landscapes and complex decisions for farmland conservation

In this post, discover how farmland birds and agri-environmental schemes went from dissertation topic, to British Ecological Society Annual Meeting talk, to published paper for one early career researcher. Gergana Daskalova (University of Edinburgh) describes the evolution of Population responses of farmland bird species to agri‐environment schemes and land management options in Northeastern Scotland. Farmland birds: decades of decline and mixed benefits of agri-environmental schemes … Continue reading Complex landscapes and complex decisions for farmland conservation

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Research summaries

Deer prevent severe canopy fires, save oak trees and contribute to ecosystem carbon storage

While deer may impact tree regeneration, they can also help prevent the spread of severe wildfires. Given increased likelihood of extreme climatic events, such as droughts, Miguel Bugalho explains how we need to consider both the positive and negative effects of wild ungulate grazing.  Deer mitigate severe wildfires Wild ungulate herbivores, namely deer, may negatively affect tree regeneration through consumption and damage of young seedlings … Continue reading Deer prevent severe canopy fires, save oak trees and contribute to ecosystem carbon storage

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology2 Comments
Research summaries

Monitoring Welsh agri-environment schemes

Alongside the British Ecological Society Policy team, Michael MacDonald looks at the future of environmental funding in agricultural landscapes and discusses his new article, Have Welsh agri-environment schemes delivered for focal species? Results from a comprehensive monitoring programme. Agri-environment schemes (AES) have been European governments’ major attempt to reduce and reverse biodiversity losses on farmland. However, there have been criticisms of the performance of AES, … Continue reading Monitoring Welsh agri-environment schemes

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Coastal and marine, Human-wildlife interactions, Research summaries

How to prioritise management when human and natural worlds collide

Udell et al. recently published a new way to prioritise and allocate speed restriction zones that will best protect wildlife from boat collisions. Associate Editor, Jonathan Rhodes explains how this research could be applied to a range of conservation efforts around biodiversity and human movements. Many threats to species of conservation concern arise due to collisions or interactions between species and people or between species … Continue reading How to prioritise management when human and natural worlds collide

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology1 Comment
Agriculture, Research summaries, Themed collections

Spotlight: Managing biodiversity and ecosystem services in farmland landscapes

Issue 56:1 of Journal of Applied Ecology turns its focus to innovative developments in sustainable food production with the Spotlight, Landscape‐level design for managing biodiversity in agroecosystems. Associate Editor, Tomas Pärt and colleagues from The Landscape Ecology Network group at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences summarize the importance of this new collection of work. How should we use and manage agricultural landscapes for sustainable … Continue reading Spotlight: Managing biodiversity and ecosystem services in farmland landscapes

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology4 Comments
Research summaries

The orchard guardian: pest vole control by owls

Following the recently published article, Effectiveness of vole control by owls in apple orchards, Chie Murano highlights the vital role predators such as Ural owls play in protecting farmers’ produce from pests.   Voles are one of the world’s major pests. For the past few decades, Japanese farmers, especially apple producers have suffered from escalating levels of apple tree damage caused by the Japanese field … Continue reading The orchard guardian: pest vole control by owls

Unknown's avatarJournal of Applied Ecology3 Comments