Aim Introduced predators negatively impact biodiversity globally, with insular fauna often most severely affected. Here, we assess spatial variation in the number of terrestrial vertebrates (excluding amphibians) killed by two mammalian mesopredators introduced to Australia, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and feral cat (Felis catus). We aim to identify prey groups that suffer especially high rates of predation, and regions where losses to foxes and/or cats are most substantial. Location Australia. Methods We draw information on the spatial variation in tallies of reptiles, birds and mammals killed by cats in Australia from published studies. We derive tallies for fox predation by (i) modelling continental‐scale spatial variation in fox density, (ii) modelling spatial variation in the frequency of occurrence of prey groups in fox diet, (iii) analysing the number of prey individuals within dietary samples and (iv) discounting animals taken as carrion. We derive point estimates of the numbers of individuals killed annually by foxes and by cats and map spatial variation in these tallies. Results Foxes kill more reptiles, birds and mammals (peaking at 1071 km−2 year−1) than cats (55 km−2 year−1) across most of the unmodified temperate and forested areas of mainland Australia, reflecting the generally higher density of foxes than cats in these environments. However, across most of the continent – mainly the arid central and tropical northern regions (and on most Australian islands) – cats kill more animals than foxes. We estimate that foxes and cats together kill 697 million reptiles annually in Australia, 510 million birds and 1435 million mammals. Main conclusions This continental‐scale analysis demonstrates that predation by two introduced species takes a substantial and ongoing toll on Australian reptiles, birds and mammals. Continuing population declines and potential extinctions of some of these species threatens to further compound Australia's poor contemporary conservation record.

This situation analysis presents a thorough, evidence-based examination of the relationship between wildlife and zoonosis, wildlife and emerging human pathogens and associated diseases, their origins, drivers, and risk factors. There is considerable divergence of opinion around the subject both within and outside the biodiversity conservation community and given the ontological challenges and highly different perspectives, contradictory narrative is unsurprising. Context is all-important and to clarify this in the analysis, the evidence of human diseases coming from wildlife is compared to diseases emerging from domestic animals and humans themselves, to provide context and proportions of the relative risk. The report highlights key knowledge, and provides perspective on where research, policy, interventions, and capacity building are needed to reduce risks of zoonoses and emergent animal-origin human diseases globally.

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This is an open access article under the terms of the Creat ive Commo ns Attri bution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Abstract Invasive species management involves complex and multidimensional challenges.There is considerable uncertainty regarding how to identify management strategies that will achieve invasive species control to enhance biodiversity, local economies and human well-being. Invasive species management on inhabited islands is especially challenging, often due to perceived socio-political risks and unexpected technical difficulties.2. Failing to incorporate local knowledge and local perspectives in the early stages of planning can compromise the ability of decision makers to achieve long-lasting conservation outcomes. Hence, engaging the community and accounting for stakeholder perceptions are essential for invasive species management, yet, these processes are often overlooked as they can be perceived as too difficult to implement, too costly and/or too slow for management timeframes.3. To address this gap, we present an application of invasive species management based on structured decision-making, and INFFER-a cost-benefit analysis toolon Minjerribah-North Stradbroke Island (Australia). We assessed the cost-effectiveness of six management scenarios, co-developed with local land managers and community groups, aimed at preserving the environmental and cultural significance of the island by eradicating European red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and feral cats (Felis catus). Information was collected in a survey that elicited local stakeholders' perspectives regarding the significance of the Island, their perception of the benefits of the proposed management scenarios, funding requirements, technical feasibility of implementation and socio-political risk.4. We found that low budgets achieve less cost-effective results than higher budgets. The best strategy focussed on controlling the European red foxes on | 221People and Nature CACERES-ESCOBAR Et Al. | 223People and Nature CACERES-ESCOBAR Et Al.

There is a lot of uncertainty about how we pick the best invasive species management strategies to improve the environment, local economy, and human well-being, as invasive species management involves complex and multidimensional challenges. Invasive species management on inhabited islands is especially challenging, often due to perceived socio-political risks and unexpected technical difficulties. Failing to incorporate local knowledge and local perspectives in the early stages of planning can compromise the ability of decision-makers to achieve long-lasting conservation outcomes. Hence, including local knowledge and accounting for subjective stakeholder perceptions is essential for invasive species management, yet this often remains unaddressed. To address this gap, we present an application of invasive species management based on structured decision-making, and the resource allocation tool INFFER, on Minjerribah-North Stradbroke Island (Australia). We assessed the cost-effectiveness of six management scenarios, co-developed with local land managers and community groups, aimed at preserving the environmental and cultural significance of the island by eradicating European red foxes and feral cats. We further conducted a survey eliciting local stakeholders’ perspectives regarding the significance of the Island, their perception of the benefits of the proposed management scenarios, funding requirements, technical feasibility of implementation, and socio-political risk. We found that the best decisions when the budget is low are less cost-effective than when the budget is high. The best strategy focusses on control of European red fox on Minjerribah. However, our results also highlight the need for more research on feral cat management. This work demonstrates how to use a structured decision support tool, like INFFER, to assess contesting management strategies, this is particularly important when stakeholders’ perceptions regarding management outcomes are heterogeneous and uncertain.

Humans share an important fraction of their viral diseases with other mammals, but the patterns that govern host-virus associations remain largely unknown. Life-history traits have been identified as major indicators of mammals’ susceptibility and exposure to viruses, due to evolutionary constraints that link life-history speed with species’ ecology and immunity. Nonetheless, it is unclear where along the fast-slow continuum of mammalian life-history lies the greatest diversity of host species. Here we analyse the virome of 1,350 wild mammals and detect the characteristics that drive species’ compatibility with different groups of viruses. We highlight that mammals with larger body size and either very rapid or very slow life histories are more likely to carry viruses, especially zoonotic viruses. While some common life-history patterns emerge across carriers, eco-evolutionary characteristics of viral groups appear to determine their preference for certain carrier species. Our findings underline the importance of incorporating both mammals’ life-history information and viruses’ functional diversity into surveillance strategies to identify potential zoonotic carriers in wildlife.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath are the most significant socio-economic crises in modern history. The pandemic’s devastating impacts have prompted urgent policy and regulatory action to reduce the risks of future spillover events and pandemics. Stronger regulatory measures for the trade of wildlife are central to discussions of a policy response. A variety of measures, including broad bans on the trade and sale of wildlife to banning specific species for human consumption are among a suite of discussed options. However, the wildlife trade is diverse, complex, and important for the livelihoods of millions of people globally. We argue that reducing the risk of future pandemics stemming from the wildlife trade must follow established principles of governance which include being equitable, responsive, robust, and effective. We demonstrate how incorporating these principles will support the development of context-specific, culturally sensitive, and inclusive responses that recognize the on-the-ground complexity of disease emergence and the social-ecological systems in which the wildlife trade occurs.

Human pressure on the environment is increasing the frequency, diversity, and spatial extent of disease outbreaks. Despite international recognition, the interconnection between the health of the environment, animals, and humans has been historically overlooked. Past and current initiatives have often neglected prevention under the One Health preparedness cycle, largely focusing on post-spillover stages. We argue that pandemic prevention initiatives have yet to produce actionable targets and indicators, connected to overarching goals, like it has been done for biodiversity loss and climate change. We show how the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response framework, already employed by the Convention on Biological Diversity, can be repurposed to operationalize pandemic prevention. Global responses for pandemic prevention should strive for complementarity and synergies among initiatives, better articulating prevention under One Health. Without agreed-upon goals underpinning specific targets and interventions, current global efforts are unlikely to function at the speed and scale necessary to decrease the risk of disease outbreaks that might lead to pandemics. Threats to the environment are not always abatable, but decreasing the likelihood that environmental pressure leads to pandemics, and developing strategies to mitigate these impacts, are both attainable goals.