Forests, Human-wildlife interactions, Research summaries

Why forest cover around your coffee farm matters? Scaling up bird conservation in Colombia

Whenever you walk through a shade-grown coffee farm in the Colombian Andes, it is easy to feel optimistic about biodiversity. Tall trees form a canopy above the coffee shrubs, birds call from every direction, and the system looks far more “natural” than a monoculture field. For years, this kind of agroforestry has been promoted as a win–win solution for farmers and biodiversity. But how much … Continue reading Why forest cover around your coffee farm matters? Scaling up bird conservation in Colombia

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Monitoring and methods, Pathogens and disease, Research summaries

Emerging gastric parasite risks in mountain gorillas: What we found and why it matters

Mountain gorillas are often celebrated as a conservation success story. Their numbers have increased thanks to long-term protection from conservation organisations, park authorities and local communities. However, the remaining two populations live in small, environmentally constrained habitats and recent veterinary records have documented cases of severe gastritis associated with strongylid nematodes in Virunga Massif. This raised an important question for us: are there changes in … Continue reading Emerging gastric parasite risks in mountain gorillas: What we found and why it matters

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Coastal and marine, Research summaries

Critically endangered penguins face higher risk of fisheries competition when fish are scarce

The decline of the African penguin The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) population has plummeted by nearly 80% in the past three decades, in part due to competition with the local purse-seine fishery which targets the penguins’ key prey of sardines and anchovies. To understand the role of fisheries in the penguin decline, a fishery closure experiment was conducted between 2008 and 2021 around two pairs … Continue reading Critically endangered penguins face higher risk of fisheries competition when fish are scarce

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Human-wildlife interactions, Research summaries

The landscapes we created hold clues to today’s wildfires

Wildfires are becoming larger, more frequent and more severe in many parts of the world. In Mediterranean-type regions, extreme wildfires that once seemed exceptional now return every year. According to Copernicus data, over 670,000 hectares burned Spain and Portugal in 2025, mostly during August. Nearly 400,000 hectares burned in Spain alone, the largest area since these records began. These extreme events have led many to … Continue reading The landscapes we created hold clues to today’s wildfires

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Invasive species, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Inteligencia artificial para predecir el éxito de las invasiones biológicas

Las especies invasoras representan una de las mayores amenazas para la biodiversidad, la seguridad alimentaria y la salud de los ecosistemas. Cuando las plantas no-nativas se propagan en nuevos ambientes, pueden desplazar a las especies nativas, alterar los hábitats y causar daños severos a los ecosistemas y a los servicios ecosistémicos que estos brindan a los seres humanos. Continue reading Inteligencia artificial para predecir el éxito de las invasiones biológicas

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Invasive species, Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Using machine learning to predict invasion success

Invasive species are one of the greatest threats to biodiversity, food security, and ecosystem health. When non-native plants spread into new environments, they can outcompete native species, disrupt habitats, and cause long-lasting damage to the natural habitats and the services that ecosystems provide to humans. Continue reading Using machine learning to predict invasion success

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Coastal and marine, Research summaries

Understanding the harvest of Chilean kelp forests: Moving toward sustainability

Blog post written by Alejandro Pérez Matus to discuss their latest study which aimed to help us understand kelp recovery after harvesting. This blog post is also available in Spanish here. Humans have been connected to kelp forests for more than 16,000 years. It is hypothesized that these underwater forests helped early coastal communities migrate from northeast Asia to the Americas. Today, the ecosystem services … Continue reading Understanding the harvest of Chilean kelp forests: Moving toward sustainability

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Coastal and marine, Research summaries

Entendiendo la cosecha de los bosques de macroalgas en Chile: Avanzando hacia la sostenibilidad

Entrada de blog escrita por Alejandro Pérez Matus para discutir su último estudio, que tenía como objetivo ayudarnos a entender la recuperación del alga después de la cosecha. Esta publicación del blog también está disponible en inglés aquí. Los humanos hemos estado conectados con los bosques de algas pardas por más de 16.000 años. Se hipotetiza que estos bosques submarinos ayudaron a las comunidades costeras … Continue reading Entendiendo la cosecha de los bosques de macroalgas en Chile: Avanzando hacia la sostenibilidad

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Monitoring and methods, Research summaries

Are we getting better at knowing what actually works in conservation? Insights from fifty years of conservation evidence

Biodiversity is declining fast, and with limited funding and resources in conservation, it matters that these resources go towards actions that genuinely make a difference. So how do we know which actions deliver results, and which don’t? The answer depends on the quality of evidence behind them – which is largely contingent on the study design used. New research from Staples et al (2026) in … Continue reading Are we getting better at knowing what actually works in conservation? Insights from fifty years of conservation evidence

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Plain language summaries, Research summaries

稳定的鸟类总数可能掩盖正在变化的保护需求

当保护管理者统计鸟类数量时，总数稳定看起来可能是一个好消息。但在多个物种共同利用的区域，总数量可能会掩盖重要变化。一些物种可能正在下降，而另一些物种正在增加，因此总体数量看起来差不多，但不同物种的保护需求已经发生了变化。 我们利用中国江苏沿海（黄海南部）六个重要迁徙停歇地连续九年的春季鸻鹬类计数数据来研究这一问题。该区域是东亚—澳大利西亚迁飞区上一个关键的能量补给区域。每年春季，大量鸻鹬类会在这里停歇、觅食，然后继续向北迁徙。 乍看之下，这个系统似乎是稳定的。六个地点的鸟类总数没有明显变化，整体分布中心和平均迁徙时间也看起来较为稳定。但当我们进一步观察单个物种时，却发现了另一种模式。数量下降的物种倾向于更加集中到北部，并且在春季更早通过；数量增加的物种则倾向于向南部扩展，并且更晚通过。 这意味着，稳定的总数可能具有误导性。它可能掩盖了这样一个事实：下降物种正在越来越依赖少数几个高质量地点。在江苏海岸，这些北部地点拥有丰富的食物资源，可能已经成为受压物种特别重要的核心区域。 我们的研究表明，长期鸟类计数不仅可以用来判断数量是增加还是下降，还可以帮助识别哪些物种正在受到更强限制、哪些地点正在成为瓶颈，以及哪些时间段最需要保护。因此，保护规划不应只依赖鸟类总数，还应考虑不同物种在空间和时间上的变化，从而在正确的地点、正确的时间采取保护行动。 This is a Plain Language Summary discussing a recently-published article in Journal of Applied Ecology. Find the full article here. Continue reading 稳定的鸟类总数可能掩盖正在变化的保护需求

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