Redefining bee-friendly plants: pollen quality versus quantity

Do bees really benefit from our conservation attempts? Michał Filipiak takes a closer look at the factors that determine whether pollen was a healthy food for wild bee larvae or not.  The outcomes have him asking whether we need major shift in the perspective of what we consider ‘bee-friendly’ plants. Take a look at the ‘menu bee’ infographic available here. What are bee-friendly plants? Children, compared … Continue reading Redefining bee-friendly plants: pollen quality versus quantity

Cover stories: protecting the Sumatran rhino

With approximately 100 individuals left in the wild, the Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) is one of four charismatic megafauna species in Sumatra used as flagship and umbrella species for conservation. Our cover image photographer for issue 56:5, Marsya Sibarani tells us about her interaction with this endangered species. In 2015, I got the chance to visit the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Way Kambas National … Continue reading Cover stories: protecting the Sumatran rhino

Traditional management systems maintain phylogenetically distinct rare species in semi-natural grasslands

Based on their research in Japan, Kei Uchida and colleagues, highlight why traditional land-use practices need to be upheld if we are to support biodiversity and rare species in semi-natural grasslands. We live in an era of rapidly changing land use. Semi-natural grasslands on the margins of agricultural lands were previously maintained by traditional extensive management practices. But, more recently, a decline in traditional land-use … Continue reading Traditional management systems maintain phylogenetically distinct rare species in semi-natural grasslands

Carnivores without borders: management of transboundary populations when objectives differ

Using the recent case study of wolverines in Scandinavia as an example, Associate Editor, Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi highlights why management initiatives for transboundary populations need to collaborate across borders – and what happens when they don’t. Globally, carnivore conservation has two very different objectives. First, to protect the population of the carnivore species from going extinct. Second, to mitigate the impact of the carnivore on the … Continue reading Carnivores without borders: management of transboundary populations when objectives differ

Spotlight: Conservation in marine habitats

This month, Journal of Applied Ecology turns its focus to the health of the worlds’ oceans, with a new Spotlight, Conservation in marine habitats. Ignasi Montero-Serra summarizes the importance of this collection of work that provides a variety of cutting-edge tools to quantify the impact of major stressors, and to guide management actions across marine habitats; from the intertidal to the deep sea. Marine habitats … Continue reading Spotlight: Conservation in marine habitats

Editor’s Choice 56:5 – diverse communities of dung beetles and soil microbiota promote food safety

Associate Editor, Bret Elderd explains the importance of insects and microbes in decreasing risks to humans from pathogens such as E. coli. and discusses issue 56:5’s Editor’s Choice article, Organic farming promotes biotic resistance to foodborne human pathogens by Jones et al. Outbreaks of food poisoning, whether due to Escherichia coli (E. coli) or other food-borne pathogens continually pop-up in the news at what seems … Continue reading Editor’s Choice 56:5 – diverse communities of dung beetles and soil microbiota promote food safety

Can living shorelines survive the rising seas?

Take a sneak preview into our new issue, which publishes this Friday and turns the Spotlight on conservation in marine habitats. The feature includes a Practitioner’s Perspective on designing climate‐resilient living shorelines, which Molly Mitchell and Donna Marie Bilkovic discuss here. Look out for an additional post bringing together all the papers in the Spotlight soon. Living shorelines are a form of shoreline protection that mimics … Continue reading Can living shorelines survive the rising seas?

Southwood Prize – Early career researcher award announced

Congratulations to Simon Clulow for winning this year’s Southwood Prize, Journal of Applied Ecology‘s award for the best paper by an early career researcher in the 55th (2018) volume of the journal. Simon’s winning paper, Elevated salinity blocks pathogen transmission and improves host survival from the global amphibian chytrid pandemic: Implications for translocations, shows that manipulating environmental salinity in landscapes where amphibians are translocated can … Continue reading Southwood Prize – Early career researcher award announced

How will climate change impact rangelands in the next few decades?

Philip Thornton (CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS)) contributed a chapter to Grasslands and Climate Change, the latest volume of the Ecological Reviews series. In this post Philip tells us more about the chapter, which explains the impacts of climate change on open grasslands used for livestock grazing. There is considerable uncertainty regarding the effects of climate change on rangelands, not … Continue reading How will climate change impact rangelands in the next few decades?