Tag: conservation

Research summaries

Out of the weeds: Building on lessons learned for better collaboration on aquatic plant management

Authors: Erin Smith and Sarah Rijkenberg Collaborative research approaches with local practitioners and community members are creating more meaningful environmental research. This process is often called ‘knowledge coproduction’, and it’s been shown to increase uptake of scientific findings, build interpersonal trust, and strengthen relationships between researchers and practitioners. Co-production is, however, not easy. We are still figuring out the best practices to make it work … Continue reading Out of the weeds: Building on lessons learned for better collaboration on aquatic plant management

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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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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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Research summaries, Plain language summaries

Leaving trees behind during forest harvesting protects soil fungi and helps forests retain stored carbon

Boreal forest soils are home to diverse fungal communities that break down dead material from plants and fungi. Two key groups drive this process: ectomycorrhizal fungi, which partner with tree roots and receive carbon from trees in exchange for nutrients, and saprotrophic fungi, which break down dead material to acquire both carbon and nutrients. When forests are harvested, ectomycorrhizal fungal communities are disrupted by the … Continue reading Leaving trees behind during forest harvesting protects soil fungi and helps forests retain stored carbon

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Plain language summaries, Research summaries

Habitat connectivity shapes biodiversity outcomes in community forests

We found that community-managed forests can support wildlife just as well as nearby protection forests, especially when forests remain well connected across the landscape. This has important implications for how community forestry is included in future conservation strategies. Across the world, governments are increasingly giving local communities the rights to manage forests. Indonesia is rapidly expanding its community forestry programme, and aims to place 12.7 … Continue reading Habitat connectivity shapes biodiversity outcomes in community forests

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Plain language summaries, Research summaries

Recovery of grassland butterflies requires high plant diversity by implementing high-quality restoration methods

To reverse the decline in plant and animal biodiversity, it is urgent to restore species-rich grasslands. Identifying successful restoration strategies is therefore highly relevant, especially with regard to the national implementation of the EU nature restoration regulation. In this context, butterflies can be used as sensitive indicators that allow for a holistic assessment of restoration success and take the landscape context into account. Our study … Continue reading Recovery of grassland butterflies requires high plant diversity by implementing high-quality restoration methods

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Research summaries

Field Diaries: Weaving knowledge to revive indigenous plants and practices in Mpondoland, South Africa

In our ‘Field Diaries’ series, The Applied Ecologist is sharing stories from a range of different fieldwork experiences.  About the author Mallika Sardeshpande, She/her Affiliation: Ecology interests: Agroecology, Urban ecology, Green infrastructure Overview of fieldwork In 2024, I secured my first applied project grant, to work on indigenous agroforestry in the Mpondoland Centre of Endemism in South Africa. The project was a collaboration between the indigenous people’s … Continue reading Field Diaries: Weaving knowledge to revive indigenous plants and practices in Mpondoland, South Africa

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Plant and soil ecology, Research summaries

What’s hiding beneath our feet? A new way to sample life in dryland soils

By Walter R Jubber, Andrea Fuller, Maria Paniw Drylands cover over 40% of Earth’s land surface. When we think about biodiversity in drylands, we often picture aboveground shrubs, flowers sprouting after rain, grazing animals, and maybe insects scurrying across the surface. But a key adaptation to extreme temperatures and aridity, especially for invertebrates, is spending most of their life below ground. Soil invertebrates hidden below … Continue reading What’s hiding beneath our feet? A new way to sample life in dryland soils

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