Elizabeth Tinsley: Bats are avoiding solar sites

Shortlisted for the 2023 Southwood Prize Elizabeth Tinsley talks us through how she and colleagues conducted a paired study at 19 ground-mounted solar PV developments in southwest England. Through the use of static detectors to record bat echolocation calls and the development of generalised linear mixed-effect models, it was determined that ground-mounted solar photovoltaic developments have a significant negative effect on bat activity. Bats and … Continue reading Elizabeth Tinsley: Bats are avoiding solar sites

Working hard or hardly working? Modelling success of current grassland agri-environment schemes

Shortlisted for the Georgina Mace Prize 2023 In this blog post, author Bede West describe his team’s study analysing the potential for agri-environment schemes to achieve positive changes in plant biodiversity. Plants and soils are the trophic foundations of most temperate terrestrial ecosystems but they are being progressively impacted by climate change, biodiversity loss and a plethora of other environmental impacts. These issues must be … Continue reading Working hard or hardly working? Modelling success of current grassland agri-environment schemes

Lucien Besnard: Mercury isotope clocks predict coastal residency and migration timing of hammerhead sharks

Shortlisted for the 2023 Southwood Prize Lucien Besnard reflects on how he and colleagues used mercury isotopes, within the framework of isotopic clocks, to provide a more precise assessment of hammerhead shark movement. As a result, this method may be used as a complementary tool for stock management through predicting the timing of animal migration – a key aspect in the conservation of marine taxa. … Continue reading Lucien Besnard: Mercury isotope clocks predict coastal residency and migration timing of hammerhead sharks

Video: Building partners in high altitudes through participatory action research

Shortlisted for the Chico Mendes Prize 2023 Lead author Munib Khanyari talks us through his team’s journey through the high altitudes of Changthang in trans-Himalayan India to co-design conservation interventions that benefit the communities who live alongside the wildlife. Community-based conservation, despite being more inclusive than fortress conservation, has been criticized for being a top-down implementation of external ideas brought to local communities for conservation’s … Continue reading Video: Building partners in high altitudes through participatory action research

Samuel Fischer: How can invasive species management benefit from smartphone data?

Shortlisted for the 2023 Southwood Prize Samuel Fischer discusses how he and colleagues researched and utilised an angler smartphone app to build a stochastic model for angler traffic in the Canadian province of Alberta. Anglers facilitate the spread of whirling disease, a parasite-induced fish disease, meaning this model demonstrates the importance of individual-specific behaviour of vectors for propagule transport. From smartphone data to invasive species … Continue reading Samuel Fischer: How can invasive species management benefit from smartphone data?

Salomé Jaramillo Gil: Whale shark and ecotourism management

Shortlisted for the 2023 Southwood Prize Salomé Jaramillo Gil talks us through her research, conducted with colleagues, which aimed to predict whale shark abundance. Through results obtained via modelling and photo identification, it is suggested that local authorities apply the model each spring. Ecotourism and conservation Nowadays, ecotourism with wildlife has witnessed unprecedented growth, attracting tourists seeking immersive experiences with nature. However, when ecotourism guidelines … Continue reading Salomé Jaramillo Gil: Whale shark and ecotourism management

Will fish passages alone resolve our river fragmentation problems?

Shortlisted for the Chico Mendes Prize 2023 In their latest Practice Insights article, Henry Hansen and colleagues present a case study that applies a new method to improve current fish habitat models and better guide future restoration efforts. Fragmentation has become a consistent impact in rivers as society’s need for renewable energy continues to grow. The proliferation of hydropower plants supports the world’s shared goal … Continue reading Will fish passages alone resolve our river fragmentation problems?

Andrea Radici: Looking for winners and losers of marine resources management

Shortlisted for the 2023 Southwood Prize Andrea Radici talks us through his team’s development of a comprehensive metapopulation framework, which provides a tool for assessing area-based management measures aimed at improving fisheries outcomes and describing the spatial distribution of costs and benefits. This can help guide effective spatially-distributed management. Ecosystems and mathematics In Chapter 151 of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, … Continue reading Andrea Radici: Looking for winners and losers of marine resources management

Southwood Prize 2023: Shortlist announced for early career researcher award

The Southwood Prize, awarded by Journal of Applied Ecology, is an annual award given to the best paper by an author at the start of their research career. The following 12 papers were shortlisted by our Senior Editors and span the 60th volume of the journal. Andrea Radici with ‘Assessing fish–fishery dynamics from a spatially explicit metapopulation perspective reveals winners and losers in fisheries management’ … Continue reading Southwood Prize 2023: Shortlist announced for early career researcher award

Chico Mendes Prize 2023: Shortlist announced for early career practitioner award

Every two years, Ecological Solutions and Evidence awards the Chico Mendes Prize to the best Practice Insights article published by an early career author. Today, we present the shortlisted articles for this year’s award based on the previous two volumes of the journal. This is the second time we’ll be awarding the prize in honour of Chico Mendes, an environmental activist whose fight and defence for the Amazon rainforest, … Continue reading Chico Mendes Prize 2023: Shortlist announced for early career practitioner award